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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

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Original poster

If you take/took anti-depressants, which one worked best and did you gain weight?

74 replies

user298472938 · 09/08/2017 15:59

Posting here for more traffic. My question is;

If you take/took anti-depressants which one was best in terms of helping with depression and anxiety and with the fewest side effects such as weight changes (did you put on or lose weight) and sexual dysfunction?

I am seeing my GP next week and would like to do research into which one will work best for my mental health without putting on weight as I normally do on anti-depressants. Thanks.

OP posts:

IdoHaveAName · 09/08/2017 21:29

The one that worked for me though would not usually be prescribed over here. No psychiatrist I mentioned it to here recognised it when I said Valdoxan. When they looked it up they could find it but won't prescribe it for me over here. I was happily prescribed it and lived happily in Ireland.

LalaLeona · 09/08/2017 22:00

I was on fluoxetine/prozac for 6 and a half years. I felt much better in terms of my moods and positivity but killed my sex drive..I still wanted it but it was deeply unsatisfying! Also general lethargic feeling and bloated feeling.

LalaLeona · 09/08/2017 22:01

Terrible to come off too! Took about 4 attempts before I did it. But everyone reacts differently and I did take them a long time.

PersianCatLady · 09/08/2017 22:08

My GP told me that it isn't the ADs themselves that cause people to gain weight, it is the fact that they make people eat more either because they feel better or they crave certain types of foods (usually carbs).

Mirtazipine actually stimulates appetite and is often used specifically to help low weight patients and animals to gain weight.

coffeekittens · 09/08/2017 22:11

Sertaline, for the first 3 weeks I suffered with headaches, mild nausea plus the depression and anxiety was worse, first week I felt drunk. No weight gain at all if anything I've lost weight.

Mirtazapine and citalopram both made me dangerously drowsy for weeks, violent and suicidal mood swings, weight gain and unquenchable thirst.

We all respond differently to different meds, but that's my experience

SmileAndNod · 09/08/2017 22:12

Have been on citalopram and then sertraline for last two years. Put on 4 stone despite my doctor telling me that ADs do not cause weight gain and it must be me.

Citalopram worked to a point but I still felt pretty hopeless even on the highest dose. Sertraline was better the the withdrawal was shocking - literally. Brain zaps / jolts, numbness and finding in my face. I honestly thought I was having a stroke at one point.
I need to go back on ADs as once again im feeling bleak but I don't know which tablet to plump for. Rather shallowly the weight I've put on is contributing to my low self esteem / mood.

Ertrude · 09/08/2017 22:26

I have a hormonal imbalance which can cause dreadful PMS, and since turning 40 it has got so much worse. A year ago I was only getting 3-4 normal days a month, the depression was crippling and I was too scared to be left alone. I was also agrophobic for several months and had to be signed off work.

No one seemed to know what was wrong with me and I got passed round the NHS. I really thought I was going mad and death seemed the only relief I would get.

Then luckily I saw a CPN whose wife had suffered identical symptoms when she became menopausal. I saw a psychiatrist who specialised in severe PMS and hormonal anxiety. He started me on 100mg of sertraline plus 100mg of quetiapine [this is just to help me sleep, as my insomnia was dreadful]. He also started me on HRT, and testosterone to help me keep my libido healthy.

Long story short, I feel great again. I have actually lost weight because I feel so much more positive and want to eat healthily now. My sex drive has waned a bit, but my orgasms are much stronger!

I do feel more tired, but that's a very small price to pay. This time last year DH found me crying hysterically in our garage clutching several packets of aspirin. I don't know what would have happened if he Hadi found me.

Within 24 hours of starting sertraline I felt my mood begin to change and I credit it with saving my life. I look back now and don't recognize the person I was a year ago.

I sleep like a baby now. My mood is calm and positive and I am enjoying life. I will never take this for granted again.

Theresnonamesleft · 09/08/2017 22:36

Agree with pp who mentioned ask for a psychiatric referral. I ended up under their care and tbh it was the best thing to happen. They can prescribe things the gp cannot. A part of the care I had also included proper assessments and a short and long term plan in place.
If I had stayed under gp I either still would be on sertaline or not here. Psychiatrist took me serious and didn't try and persuade me to stay on meds that weren't working.
I was also prescribed zaditen to help me sleep, the gp wanted me to take sleeping tabs even though I was at risk of od.

zukiecat · 09/08/2017 22:47

Been on a few but the only one that works for me is Mirtazapine, I'm on a high dose, and can't say I've noticed any weight gain

No sex drive whatsoever, but as I'm divorced and not in or interested in a relationship it doesn't matter

glamourousgranny42 · 09/08/2017 23:03

I'm on citalapram 60mg. Been taking it for around 8/9 years. Has given me a new life.
First few weeks i had nausea and dizziness and increased anxiety. But that soon went. I think I have gained weight and can feel sleepy but that is outweighed by the benefits of being able to live a better life.

PersianCatLady · 09/08/2017 23:30

There is nothing in the tablets that make people gain weight on their own but it does make people eat more food and crave carbs, that is what my GP told me.

alltouchedout · 09/08/2017 23:47

I lost weight on Prozac. Awful insomnia for weeks though, and I found orgasm unachievable the whole time I was on it. I felt dreadful enough before starting them that the side effects were worth just putting up with, because after a while I stopped wanting to die.

Wubsally · 10/08/2017 03:58

Im on high dose (200mg) of sertraline, was on citalopram before thought it was useless. Sertraline and propranolol have been absolutely amazing for me. It does have some heavy side effects for a couple of weeks and some have continued for me insomnia being 1 hence the 4am mn sesh! thirst as well, well more of a constant dry mouth but the benefit outweighs the bad.
But sertraline is only used to treat certain mental diagnosis such as ptsd , (what ive got) same with all drugs i think. Best to talk through all the options with your doc.
Good luck.

Kpo58 · 10/08/2017 07:37

Citalopram made me feel worse.

Venelafaxine worked for me.

I did gain weight, but TBH that was due to all the chocolate that I ate, so I can't blame the tablets for that.

Katedotness1963 · 10/08/2017 07:49

The first one I was on made me wicked tempered. Normally I wouldn't say boo to a goose but I was spoiling for a fight on that. Doctor took me off it. Then it was Citalopram (sp?). Whacked on the weight, slept for hours in the day, little help. I'm pretty sure I should be back on ADs but I'm not going through that again!

sadeyedladyofthelowlands63 · 10/08/2017 08:46

Effexor ( Venlafaxine) worked brilliantly for me. I had minor side effects for 2 or 3 weeks then they went away. I took it for six years and didn't put on any weight.

I too had a psychiatric referral and had regular appointments with a psychiatrist, which helped no end. I also had regular sessions of CBT and group therapy (arranged by the psychiatrist). BUT I wouldn't have been able to access any of that without the Effexor - it helped me get my head into a space where I could deal with the therapy.

PersianCatLady · 10/08/2017 11:17

sertraline is only used to treat certain mental diagnosis such as ptsd
It seems to me that individual ADs go through phases where they are prescribed more than others and it isn't always because they are the newest AD on the market.

ATM, it seems as if Mirtazapine is the AD of the moment.

Two or three years ago, it was citalopram or escitalopram.

Five years ago, it was sertraline.

This is only my personal opinion.

Papafran · 10/08/2017 11:32

Took Fluoxetine for about a year. Gained at least 2 stone. Have been off them for 2 years now and only just got the weight thing back under control. I think it increases your appetite and makes you store the weight, but oddly enough fluoxetine is used to treat binge eating disorder. I have BED so I was quite pleased when I found that out, but it made me pack on the pounds instead (although to be fair when I first started taking it, i lost a little).

zukiecat · 10/08/2017 11:39

Persian

I've been on Mirtazapine for about five years, it's the only one that works for me

NouveauBitch · 10/08/2017 11:48

I couldn't get through the initial side effects spike with Fluoxetine - the dreams were just too terrifying so I couldn't take it.

Sertraline made me numb, I ended up a very grey version of myself. I continued to lose weight whilst on it (ED) and struggled to get excited about anything. I also totally lost my sex drive and ability to orgasm.

Mirtazipine was horrendous - I was either angry or asleep and had terrific carb cravings. I actually sat and ate a tin of syrup with a spoon. Disgusting, and terrifying for someone on the waiting list for anorexia treatment.

Duloexitne stopped me sleeping at all

Agomelatine, like a PP notes, saved my life. It's rare (mine was initially prescribed by a private psychiatrist and has been taken over by my GP) but it's great. I have no noticeable side effects and the only weight gain I've had is because I got my ED under control - which whilst linked to the drugs is surely weight gain in a good way. I've just gone back on them after a few months off and those few months really made me realise how much of an impact they have on my mood.

The best thing I found though was a week on Tramadol post surgery. It's not an antidepressant but boy was my mind clear on it. Although really I was high as a kite! It made me realise that contentment is a thing. I wish I could be on that and not turn into an addict.

fufulina · 10/08/2017 11:51

Citalopram saved my marriage. But - I put on two stone and lost ALL sex drive. But at least I could function. Have come off it now (after a year) and the weight will not shift. The weight was why I came off them to be honest - and that I was starting to feel totally demotivated to do ANYTHING. Getting up in the morning was getting harder and harder and I just couldn't be arsed.

Now am off them am a much better employee, and the reasons I went on seem to have gone. So - they were amazing, but the negative side effects for me were quite far reaching.

Papafran · 10/08/2017 12:05

I couldn't get through the initial side effects spike with Fluoxetine - the dreams were just too terrifying so I couldn't take it

Oh yeah, those were 'fun'. I had one where I was pulling mangled bodies out of a car wreck, another where I saw someone get hit by a tube train and several where I was being strangled and could feel hands around my throat. I think it lasted for quite a while as well rather than just being at the beginning.

Ertrude · 10/08/2017 17:29

I love my sertraline dreams. They're epic and quite exciting, I really look forward to them. Made me realise how little I was dreaming before. Is depression linked to not dreaming?

bridgetreilly · 10/08/2017 17:51

Citalopram.

The first 14 days on it were awful: exhausted, anxious and more depressed than before. Day 15 I woke up and suddenly remembered what it felt like to be me without depression. No side effects after day 15 either. I'm overweight but haven't gained since I've been taking the citalopram.

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