No S Diet and antidepressant related weight gain?

wintry · Post by **wintry** » Tue Sep 01, 2009 6:09 am

So I must confess, my weight was stable till I started taking antidepressants four years ago - once I started, I gained 20 pounds in less than a year (still have the stretch marks) and my weight has just kept on going up since then.

So um, does anyone know if No S works for chemically induced weight gain?

If you know anyone who's been able to fight anti-depressant weight gain, on any diet at all, please chime in . . .

All too cheerfully

wintry

reitschule · Post by **reitschule** » Tue Sep 01, 2009 6:24 am

I don't think antidepressants could have any effect on your metabolism per se. If they caused you to gain weight, I assume it would be because they influence you to eat more and/or move about less while on them. So reducing calories in the form of NoS would work.

I think NoS is a fantastic diet for an individual with a mental illness. I hope that isn't offensive -- my mother takes medication for panic attacks, but she has a really self-deprecating sense of humour about it and is impossible to offend about it. But that may be a...not sure how to put it, a condition less entangled with one's identity than depression.

In any case what I meant is it's conceptually easy. Sight-read "junk food", and don't eat it until the weekend. Don't eat between meals, unless it's on the weekend. So you spend less time worrying and counting and more time enjoying the genuinely interesting and beautiful parts of life.

gratefuldeb67 · Post by **gratefuldeb67** » Tue Sep 01, 2009 7:20 am

Reitschule, I just wanted to say that it is definitely possible to gain weight due to certain anti depressants. Lithium I think is one of them, which often causes serious weight gain.. I'm sure there's others besides that one.
Good luck Wintry!
Just give it a try and definitely, do some form of regular exercise if you aren't already.

Debs

wintry · Post by **wintry** » Tue Sep 01, 2009 7:22 am

Hey, thanks reitschule.

I think you make an insightful point that No S is an easier to comply with and more joyous diet than the alternatives. I'm also looking forward to the happy pride of seeing a nice wide swath of green on my habitcal!

Deb, you're totally right that it can't hurt so I might as well give it a try . . . thanks for your encouragement . . . worst come to worst, I just walk away with a little extra willpower, I guess!

Weirdly, doctors don't really know how SSRIs cause weight gain, but they appear to do so even for patients who maintain their strict food and exercise regimens. So I'd still be eager to hear from anyone who knows anyone who's been able to lose weight even in an abnormal metabolic state . .

with gratitude,
Wintry

wosnes · Post by **wosnes** » Tue Sep 01, 2009 9:54 am

Wintry, I think it's possible to lose weight, but it may be even slower than it is for the rest of us. There are other medications that cause weight gain (and I'm on one of them) and it's just slower.

reitschule · Post by **reitschule** » Tue Sep 01, 2009 6:16 pm

wintry wrote:Weirdly, doctors don't really know how SSRIs cause weight gain, but they appear to do so even for patients who maintain their strict food and exercise regimens. So I'd still be eager to hear from anyone who knows anyone who's been able to lose weight even in an abnormal metabolic state . .

with gratitude,
Wintry

Really! That is interesting. Well I wasn't questioning that they can cause weight gain, just that they can cause irreversible or uncontrollable weight gain. The relationship between mind and body is obviously incredibly complex so a hard distinction between "mental" influence and "metabolic" influence is probably unhelpful.

geekmom · Post by **geekmom** » Wed Sep 02, 2009 3:19 am

A "me too" here. I gained about 30 lbs while taking an anti-anxiety/antidepressant medication over a 1.5 year period. I had never had any difficulty maintaining a normal weight before that. At first I tried reducing my food intake and dramatically increasing my exercise but this had absolutely no effect. Honestly, I was exercising like a fiend for a good six months and didn't drop a single pound! I swam, I took 5 taekwondo classes a week, I went to the gym, I took up running... Unfortunately, nothing worked until I completely went off the drug. I will never know whether it was the medication that made me fat, or if it was just that I couldn't stop myself from eating too much (and too much of the wrong foods) while I was on it.

Either way -- now I'm 25 lbs skinnier, almost entirely thanks to No-S. If only there were an equally simple solution to coping with depression and anxiety!

gratefuldeb67 · Post by **gratefuldeb67** » Wed Sep 02, 2009 4:25 am

Hi Geek Mom

Try St. Johns Wort and Fish Oil, or Flax oil for depression.
If it's not bipolar depression, you can try SAMe, otherwise it's contraindicated.
Also anxiety can be helped by having the proper amount of magnesium (I think??)
Try to find foods rich in that and or take a supplement.
Regular Meditation practice, and exercise of course, is helpful too.

Debs

geekmom · Post by **geekmom** » Wed Sep 02, 2009 4:27 am

Thanks Debs, I appreciate those great suggestions!

CrazyCatLady · Post by **CrazyCatLady** » Thu Sep 03, 2009 3:22 pm

gratefuldeb67 wrote:Hi Geek Mom
Try St. Johns Wort and Fish Oil, or Flax oil for depression.
If it's not bipolar depression, you can try SAMe, otherwise it's contraindicated.
Also anxiety can be helped by having the proper amount of magnesium (I think??)
Try to find foods rich in that and or take a supplement.
Regular Meditation practice, and exercise of course, is helpful too.
Debs

Please double check with your doctor before adding St Johns Wort or SAMe to other medications. From my understanding, St. Johns Wort sometimes interacts with other medications. It is also more effective for milder depression, and not as effective with deeper depression. And has a similar side effect profile to Zoloft!

I don't know much about SAMe, but I think your doc should be advised before you add anything to your current meds.

I work as a psychiatric nurse. I am well aware of the tendency for many medications to cause weight gain. Sometimes it seems to be a lack of a feeling of fullness. In that case visualizing the plate of food at each meal would seem to be very effective. Sometimes it seems to be an increase in appetite, so people are more inclined to snack. Again, No S would be good at managing that. But as others said, it is not fully understood why medications often contribute to weight gain. I have even heard that for someone who is deeply depressed, once they are feeling better, everything tastes good again, so they are more inclined to eat.

Whatever the cause, I can say that I have seen many many people who were able to lose the weight that they gain. Occasionally they will change medications, but often they continue the same med. Yet they are able to lose the weight. Of those that I have spoken to, the key seems to be moderate eating habits and exercise. Kind of No S-ish, right?

So why am I over 100 pounds overweight? Why did I not heed what I could see played out in my clients? Sigh....at least I am back to trying to apply the No S principles....moderation, plating, no snacks, get moving.....we can DO this!

oliviamanda · Post by **oliviamanda** » Thu Sep 03, 2009 5:30 pm

So glad you are having this discussion. I have a friend with bi-polar and her medicines make her gain weight... unfortunately for her the weight goes directly to her belly and she looks pregnant, although she is not. She is almost 50, but gets a lot of the pregnancy comments. She eats so poorly, but I think it's the medicine. She basically eats one meal a day (take-out)(dinner), but drinks lots of coffee, high-sugar drinks (even if they are diet), and sometimes she'll down some slimfast and go for a bike ride. I know she doesn't eat enough and has the wrong kind of stuff... but she can't break the cycle. I'd like her to No S, but I know she won't. The complains to the doc about her weight gain, but can't deny the meds are working for her mentally. I hate to see her so frustrated.

wintry · Post by **wintry** » Fri Sep 04, 2009 3:20 am

Olivia - so sorry to hear about your friend. It's really painful watching someone be unhappy and knowing there's not much you can do to help unless they ask you for advice.

Crazycatlady - thanks SO MUCH for weighing in with your professional expertise! Now that you point it out, I think what I've been feeling on antidepressants is absolutely what you say: both a lack of a feeling of fullness, and an increase in appetite. The fact that you have seen people who can lose the weight through moderate eating and exercise is a huge relief. No S all the way!

oliviamanda · Post by **oliviamanda** » Fri Sep 11, 2009 6:17 pm

My friend just asked me about any good diets out there, and of course I told her about No S.

Her problem is she skips meals and drinks lots of sugary drinks. And takes medicines that make her gain weight. Any suggestions on how to get her No Sing? I am going to give her the book, although she's not much of a reader. And I am suspecting she doesn't have much food in the house and doesn't have much money for groceries... a reason she skips breakfast and lunch a lot.

gratefuldeb67 · Post by **gratefuldeb67** » Fri Sep 11, 2009 6:57 pm

CrazyCatLady wrote:Please double check with your doctor before adding St Johns Wort or SAMe to other medications. From my understanding, St. Johns Wort sometimes interacts with other medications. It is also more effective for milder depression, and not as effective with deeper depression. And has a similar side effect profile to Zoloft!

I don't know much about SAMe, but I think your doc should be advised before you add anything to your current meds.

Hi again.. Just saw Crazy Cat lady's response now

I wanted to mention that this advice was given to Geek Mom, who was mentioning that she's been dealing with depression, and had previously used meds for a year and a half, but now didn't take them....
I wasn't suggesting that anyone who takes pharmaceutical anti depressants should take those in addition.
Personally, I have found all the things I mentioned very helpful, though I haven't used samE because I myself am manic depressive, and samE is supposed to increase chances of manic episodes.
I've taken St. Johns Wort for over 8 years now, and the *only* side effects are light sensitivity, both for getting sunburned easily, and in making your eyes more sensitive to light.
Sorry, but, respectfully, I must say that there's *no way* that St. Johns Wort has the same side effect profile as Zoloft, or any other synthetic anti depressant. Yes, I have to take a bit more than the average "regular" dose, to have a consistent effect on my mood.. The recommended dosage for average people, to help maintain a normal good mood, is supposed to be about 2-4 capsules a day.. I usually take six, but occasionally have to take nine.. no big deal..
It's been a life saver for me.
True, when I was in my deepest depression, which was my first major one almost nine years ago, I was eating them like they were Skittles, and they weren't doing too much. But,,, I also attribute that to the fact that I was going thru a cathartic event which I simply had to live through, and which no drug, herb or anything, could help at the time.
It lasted about 15 weeks or so.

On the weeks when I run out of St. Johns Wort, due to lack of funds to buy it or whatever, I can really feel the effect it has on me, because when it leaves my system, I am *not* a happy camper!! LOL

Luckily, for me, as soon as I get it again, I'm fine.. I try very hard not to let myself run out.
Good luck finding what works for you!

Debs x

geekmom · Post by **geekmom** » Fri Sep 11, 2009 9:04 pm

Debs, thanks again for sharing your experiences with St John's Wort. I'm not currently taking any meds so there's no possible conflict there for me though I do agree it's important for people to be aware that this can be an issue. I think I might give it a try and I will also try to remember to take my vitamins and get back on fish oil since I got lazy and stopped taking those a while back.

gratefuldeb67 · Post by **gratefuldeb67** » Fri Sep 11, 2009 10:34 pm

Hi again Geekmom

Just make sure that whatever kind you have, get capsule form, not tablets..
Tablets are cheaper to produce, and many big vitamin stores like GNC stopped carrying capsules and only carry tablets, but they are much harder to absorb.. For me, the tablets had almost no effect at all.. I luckily found a store that still sells capsules.. Vitamin World.. Maybe they have one in BC?
Experiment with the dosage and see what helps.
I used to use fish oil.. I'd often get very vivid dreams when I took it..
I'm only taking St. Johns, Calcium, Vitamin D and a multi vitamin now.
I'm pretty sure that vitamin B is usually deficient in many people with depression.
Look for foods with lots of vitamin B.
Good luck!

Debs

gratefuldeb67 · Post by **gratefuldeb67** » Fri Sep 11, 2009 10:35 pm

Oh and nowadays they have all kinds of nice fish oils which don't give you that "fishy burp" so look around.

dittany · Post by **dittany** » Sat Sep 12, 2009 3:10 pm

Hi, hope it's OK to chime in here. I read the No-S board sometimes after going to the shovelglove board.

I put on 20 pounds when I took an SSRI a few years back. I didn't change my diet at all (I have always naturally no-Sed, it's one of my few good habits

) and in fact I was doing more exercise. It was odd weight and very difficult to shift until I stopped taking the drug. Then it took about a year or two to get back to normal with no change in my eating habits.

We have serotonin receptors in our gut and in other parts of our bodies so SSRIs obviously aren't just acting on the brain. I don't think SSRIs' effects on the metabolism are fully understood so maybe it's not surprising that for some people they cause weight gain.

Sorry don't have any good advice on losing it whilst you're on them. TBH the freak weight gain made me feel that they were drugs that I wanted to get off as soon as possible once I stopped needing them so much.

marleah · Post by **marleah** » Sun Sep 13, 2009 4:05 pm

Just wanted to stick my head in to say that St. John's Wort can interfere with birth control pills, so if that is a concern, be careful!