Bipolar Medication Lose Weight

The more complicated answer involves looking at genetic predispositions, because gaining weight is highly individualized. Whether your treatment for bipolar disorder will cause you to gain weight depends heavily on the type of medication you take and how it interacts with your body. For example, the size of your thighs may

Grow while on one drug, but not on another, even if the second drug is associated with weight gain in other people.

The medications that are used to treat bipolar disorder are mood stabilizers, antidepressants, antipsychotics, and antidepressant-antipsychotics. Some of these medications are also anticonvulsants.

Managing Weight Gain From Psychiatric Medications

No one knows for sure why these medications cause weight gain. Research is still being done on these pills. However, scientists suspect that antidepressants and antipsychotics may trigger food cravings and increase the appetite. The drugs may also slow your metabolism, increase blood sugar, and cause diabetes-like symptoms. The mood stabilizer lithium is also likely to destroy your thyroid, which is part of the reason psychiatrists monitor blood draws every three months or so.

A mood stabilizer is just that: a medication used to steady your mood. These medications help manage the extreme highs of mania and extreme lows of depression. A mood stabilizer also prevents the reoccurrence of these manic and depressive episodes. Gains of 20 to 35 pounds are not uncommon when taking these drugs, especially lithium.

According to the Mayo Clinic, mood stabilizers are the most likely culprits when it comes to packing on the pounds, even more than other drugs like antidepressants. You will probably gain weight on them. Lithium, valproic acid (Depakene), divalproex sodium (Depakote), and carbamazepine (Tegretol) all may increase the risk of weight gain.

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Antipsychotics are another class of medications that treat bipolar disorder, preventing psychotic symptoms like hallucinations and delusions. Antipsychotics that are associated with weight gain include olanzapine (Zyprexa), risperidone (Risperdal), quetiapine (Seroquel), and asenapine (Saphris).

Antipsychotics that are less likely to cause weight gain are cariprazine (Vraylar), lurasidone (Latuda), ziprasidone (Geodon), and aripiprazole (Abilify). Whether these latter medications make you gain weight is highly dependent on the individual person, though these are associated with less weight gain than the others.

Antidepressants like tricyclics–like Elavil and Tofranil–and monoamine oxidase inhibitors (MAOIs)–like Parnate and Nardil–tend to cause patients to gain weight with both long-term and short-term use.

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Other antidepressant medications may also have weight gain as a side effect. Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) are a class of medications that affect the brain’s ability to process serotonin, a feel-good chemical. Escitalopram (Lexapro), paroxetine (Paxil), fluoxetine (Prozac), and sertraline (Zoloft) are all members of this class that increase the risk of weight gain. These SSRIs are the most risky antidepressants when it comes to weight gain, and patients report gaining more on them than on other antidepressants.

The antidepressants venlafaxine (Effexor) and nefazodone (Serzone) are associated with the least weight gain, whereas bupropion (Wellbutrin) is actually associated with weight loss.

Antidepressant-antipsychotic combination medications both treat depression and stabilize moods. The medication Symbyax combines the antidepressant fluoxetine (Prosac) and the antipsychotic olanzapine and is associated with weight gain. Another combination medication, perphenazine/amitriptyline, also lists weight gain as a side effect. There are no weight-neutral combination medications.

Bipolar And Weight Loss: How To Effectively Shed Pounds

Weight gain from bipolar medication use is a very common problem. Many of these drugs cause weight gain. As many as 25 percent of people report gaining some weight on antidepressants, and some people gain up to 100 pounds or more. I personally gained over 70 pounds on a combination of lithium and Depakote over a period of three-to-five years, weight which I have yet to shed.

But I still think that taking my medication was worth the weight gained. As I told my psychiatrist in the mental hospital when I was separated from my newborn, I didn’t mind gaining a few pounds if I could just get my sanity back and be reunited with my baby. While I gained more than I thought I would–and the weight has been stubborn to remove–I would still choose the medication if I had to make the decision over again. Lithium saved my life; Depakote saved my sanity. Gaining weight was an unfortunate side effect, but one as worth it by all means.

If you’re distressed about this side effect, talk to your doctors about the risk of weight gain associated with the medications you’re taking. Your doctor might consider changing the dosage amount or the medication you’re taking. Lifestyle changes might also help, though that’s less likely. Still, try to get some exercise to see if it helps. (For a post on how to work out with kids, click here.) And, of course, eat a healthy diet, which has many more benefits than managing your waistline.

Medication May Cause Weight Gain”

Cassandra Stout is a freelance editor who proofreads a variety of genres and lengths of documents. A frequent contributor for the International Bipolar Foundation, Cassandra blogs at the award-winning The Bipolar Parent, a comprehensive resource for parents with mental illnesses–like herself–and their loved ones. View all posts by Cassandra StoutBipolar disorder can be treated with medications from different drug groups. These groups include mood stabilizers, antipsychotics, and antidepressants. The drugs in each of these groups affect your body differently, including how they affect your weight. Here’s a look at how some of the more common drugs for bipolar disorder affect your weight, plus their other side effects.

Most bipolar drugs cause weight gain rather than weight loss. For example, several of them increase your blood sugar level, which can lead to weight gain. Others affect your energy level. During manic episodes, you typically may not sleep much and may burn off lots of energy. Taking a bipolar drug can calm your mood and help you sleep. In turn, these effects could decrease the amount of energy your body burns. This can lead to an increase in weight, especially if you don’t adjust your diet. However, the way that these drugs can affect your weight varies.

Low risk of weight gain: Lamotrigine (Lamictal) is most likely to cause weight loss. However, it can also cause weight gain. Other common side effects of this drug include:

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Low risk of weight gain: Lurasidone has a low risk of weight gain. Other side effects of this drug may include the development of breasts in men, low blood pressure, and fainting.

High risk of weight gain: Olanzapine is very likely to causeweight gain because it increases your appetite. Other common side effects can include:

There are several different drugs available to treat bipolar disorder. Most of them affect your weight, but many increase your risk of weight gain rather than weight loss. By making healthy choices in your diet and adding routine exercise, you may be able to minimize these effects.

Should You Try Medication To Lose Weight?

Many people with bipolar disorder often have to try several different drugs before finding one that works. Talk to your doctor and balance your concerns about weight gain with the likelihood of a certain drug working well for you. Tell your doctor about your health history, your family’s health history, and your concerns about how treatment will affect your weight. This information will help your doctor understand which drugs are more likely to work well for you.

Has strict sourcing guidelines and relies on peer-reviewed studies, academic research institutions, and medical associations. We avoid using tertiary references. You can learn more about how we ensure our content is accurate and current by reading our editorial policy.The main reason is that medications can affect our appetite. My medication makes me crave sweets like never before. A woman I met in my bipolar support group had just been diagnosed with the disorder and subsequently put on a mood stabilizing drug. Within a matter of weeks she had gained 20 pounds. The weight didn’t just suddenly appear. It happened because this woman couldn’t stop her cravings for donuts.

Another cause for weight gain is leading a sedentary lifestyle. I had to go on disability several years ago because I was too sick to work. When there’s suddenly not much to do in your life, it’s easy to end up sitting in front of the TV and snacking all day. Or worse, spending your time in a depressed state and can’t even get out of bed.

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My first major weight gain was seven years ago. I was prescribed an anti-psychotic medication to help with sleep. I got a great night’s sleep, but I also gained almost 50 pounds. I told my doctor I needed to get off the medication because my self-esteem had plummeted and I was feeling more depressed because of it.

I was desperate to lose the weight. Even though it was expensive, I decided to join a pre-packaged food weight loss program. I was working at the time so was able to afford it.

In four months, I was able to lose all the weight I had gained and got off the program. I was taught how to eat right and make better food choices. I kept the weight off for several years.

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Then mania took hold and I again found myself on a mood stabilizing drug that causes weight gain. Forty extra pounds made its way back to me. I