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Weight gain on benzos and ADs!


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Hi all. I am about 8weeks off my diazepam taper and all is well. Kind of. I have just now undertaken a prozac wean that I will do start to finish in about 6weeks. I was only on 10 mgs so it was really lower than a standard therapeutic dosage so weaning and stopping should not be too bad. My problem is that in October which was about 7 months into my 8 month taper off the benzo I started to just pack on weight and had killer carb cravings. I upped my exercise level which was already pretty stringent, to no avail. I have gained about 15 lbs in about 2 months. I am not sure  whether it is the benzo or the Prozac that is causing the weight gain, but that is the reason I am getting off the Prozac. I HOPE when I am fully off, my metabolism will go back to normal. These drugs really do a  trip on the metabolism and it will need to be reset. Don't know how to go about that! But gosh, I really hate this weight. I had lost 30lbs when I got depressed a year ago and started the AD and the benzo. Went out and bought all new clothes since everything was falling off of me. OOOOOPPPSSS!!!!!!! Big mistake....now I need my fat clothes! Has anybody had a similar experience? This weight gain is just ferocious, not like anything I've ever gone through before. I can literally feel my butt and belly growing!!!! HELP!
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I have had a LONG history for SSRI's...I have no idea why I kept going back to them since the outcome was never great.  But I did, and with that came weight gain.  Not every AD did it to me, but 3 of them were really bad.  I became a different looking person - my body would look so swollen.  But it DOES come off.  It takes time and won't happen over night...I had to work to get it off, but it does come off.  I don't know the science behind it - not sure why weight gain can be such a prevalent s/x.  I do know that I too craved carbs/sugar on them, so that didn't help my situation.  But I worked out HARD, only to pack more weight on (some of which was muscle). 

 

Hold on to your old wardrobe from last year...once you are off everything it will become easier.  Just take it easy...don't push yourself.  Try to eat as "clean" as possible.  For my family, I now bake all the bad things I use to crave.  So instead of a bag of cookies, I bake my own vegan cookies and freeze them for a craving.  Or I bake my own breads, etc.  So at least the carbs are made by me and I know what goes in them...and they are all easy to freeze.  When i was losing the weight, I cut pop out completely and switched to S. Pellegrino water so I got that bubbly fix.  Smoothies and veggie/fruit drinks are great too.  And have you tried chia seeds?  They are really pricey, but if you add a tablesppon to your cereal in the morning,  you'll stay full EASILY till lunch.  And they are so good for you (you can look into them on the internet). 

 

Your body will take some time to get back to normal INSIDE, so the results won't be over night, but my weight gain was 50+lbs...and I lost it all. 

 

Hang in there and congrats on working so hard to get off of all your meds!!!

 

Take care,

Schatje

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Schatje...you are THE BEST!!!!!! You said just what I needed to hear, and it sounds like you have really been there so you know from whence you speak! I'm mostly just glad to hear that it does come off eventually. I am still in the gaining phase so I just want to break the cycle. I am hoping that going off the prozac and being over 3 months off benzos will be the breaking point where maybe things might begin to turn around. But who knows...we are all so different. Chia....hmmm, who knew? I've never heard of it other than to grow hair on Obama's head, but wil lcheck it out. Many thanks, BL
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  • 3 months later...

Bettylou,

Has your weight dropped yet? I Cold-turkeyd off of Xanax over 2 years ago and I'm still having trouble losing the weight (35 pounds). I know it's water-weight because when I cut out all, and I mean ALL, sugars and salt, the weight drops fast; but once i eat just one orange or have a sprinkle of salt with my food, my body holds onto the water again and i regain all of the weight. it is such a strict diet that i cant stick to it. Im not doing Atkins diet, i eat quinoa and flax, lemon juice and berries.

 

I eat VERY healthy, and not excessively.

 

Does anyone know the cause of this frustrating weight gain?

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I can relate! My journey with weight has been a strange one.

 

First month on clonazepam I dropped 10 pounds in a month.  I stayed that same weight and like you, my clothes were falling off!  I bought a whole new wardrobe... :o

 

3 months off the drug, I gained it all back in one month, and felt like I could have eaten my own arm off, the cravings were so strong.  Now, "swollen" is actually a good word to describe it. I weigh nearly the same as before I took the drug, but I've gone up a couple of sizes. Like Georgy I seem to swell up and down depending on what I eat.

 

Exercise seems to be making no difference at this point, other than the mental health and energy benefits, so I'm trying to focus on that. 

 

I had read a few posts that this is most likely related to cortisol levels.  Here's hoping we are back to svelte soon!!  :smitten:

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You all so great  funny people  . Love you all . Always put smile on my f ace  :laugh: :laugh: :laugh: :laugh: :laugh: :laugh:  ! was 120 lb before start taper , all taper 120 . Stop benzo huge belly , cannot fit in anything . And now 140  , all around middle  , benzo belly .    Look like pregnant .  Most people here have that due taper . I have that  from 6 months off . 

I hope this will go  away ,  reason my sex drive is zero , cause never have that , yes when pregnant , but i think even then i was  smaller  . :smitten: :smitten: :smitten: :smitten:

But  again  I am happy  I am not alone  , just my and huge belly  :laugh: :laugh: :laugh: :laugh: :laugh: Erika

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I think everyone should have their thyroid checked and then post the numbers...I think it can get pretty messed up on benzos, but not sure if it reverses

If you do get it checked....TSH should be under 3 by endocrinologists (some like Cleveland Clinic/Mayo suggest even closer to 2) even though the labs say 4.5 and doctors can say up to 8 (which is crazy)

Also, get the free T4 (which should be in the middle of the range) and free T3 (upper end of the range)

YOu can read about it..

My weight fell off and then zoomed on...still trying to figure it out.  Lots of thyroid symptoms are the same as protracted w/d.

Shell

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