I would like to get some information and as you can see, regarding Seroquel and losing weight. I am currently weaning my Seroquel dosage down from 300 mg to 50 mg and that’ due to the fact that this drug Seroquel is keeping me craving for carbs and other unhealthy foods like there is no tomorrow. I have never had anything like this in my entire life. of course I did have had some cravings for foods etc. but I never have had such a strong craving and they were never lasting so much, day by day. especially since now, I am having 40 more pounds, I really have to do something about this and I have to get rid of some of this otherwise I surely won’t stop at 40 pounds more and I will gain and gain. Besides, I have to say that I am not spending my entire day in gym, but I am still doing some light exercising and I am also doing some work in my garden, even so, I still have not lost an ounce in these 2 years. besides, I also try my best to eat as healthy as I can, but as I said, because of this drug, I never seem to be able to do it. is any of you who has any advices about this? is there anybody who has been losing weight while being on Seroquel? My appetite has never been like this since I’ve got on it. besides, one very big layout for me is that it really seems that each time when I have the strength to get off the carbs then I do go through some withdrawals and that’s what makes me wanna eat and not get through that. any advice would be very much appreciated!
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Losing weight while taking Seroquel
- Thread starter Warmaded
- Start date
simply stefanie
New member
Hey there, yes I did, I lost some pounds while I have been on this drug. I went down from 230 to 160 pounds in the time I have been using 900 mg of Seroquel a day. but I have done it by following a very healthy diet that my doctor made it up to me. basically, in my diet there was no refined sugar, no white flour and only some very little saturated fat. And this was strict. I’ve got to say that I am a little bit obsessive that is why it has been pretty easy for me to eat basically almost nothing than fruit, vegetables, oatmeal and chicken breast. That was almost all I was eating. then later I have started to run, I’ve started when some of my weight got off, however later my shins got damaged from the impact that is why I stopped. But well…I then have ended up gaining back all that weight and even more when I have went back to eat all the junk food, full of carbs etc. etc. I have to say that I lost approximately 40 pounds in the last 4 months or so, but I have to tell you that this is surely not a good or better say a healthy way of doing it.
So I can tell you that yeah, it is possible in the end to lose weight while you are on Seroquel, but all I can tell you now as a conclusion is that you should not go on a diet, you really just need to change the way you are living for good. pretty much, this is the only way that you could do it and take it off and then keep it off. Lots of people don’t have issues to lose the weight, but to keep it and this is the most important part, I think.
I have no idea if the previous commenter is just bluffing or that’s real. I mean, he (or she) lost so much weight only by going to diet (without running as he/she said, and without any strenuous exercising program) in the time being on a such high dosage of that drug (900 mg of Seroquel) and losing so much weight. Even the dosage suggests that he/she is bluffing since the maximum daily dosage is 800 mg and rarely when doctors prescribe it. but I’ve never heard of anybody being put on 900 mg of Seroquel. But assumingly that he/she has been put on 900 mg of Seroquel then still losing so much weight is near to impossible. Generally I think that it is impossible to lose weight while on Seroquel. Assumingly that you are one of those few people who are not gaining weight while on it, still losing weight is near impossible. And even here assumingly that you did lost a little bit, you fu**ing can lose so much weight on Seroquel. It’s like you are on an appetite killer while you are on an appetite enhancer. I did have heard about a smaller percentage of people not gaining weight on Seroquel, of course I did have heard about people gaining weight on Seroquel (most of the people) but I damn never heard about anybody losing weight on it. and fine, as I said, assumingly you are one of them, how you could lose so much?? that’s surely a lie, either he/she is talking about other drug than Seroquel. There’s a reason why it is contraindicated Seroquel to people suffering from diabetes. and I know people who were not having diabetes, but then Seroquel caused to have diabetes. and I am one of those people. I took Seroquel and that’s why I said that I think it is impossible to lose weight on it. but again, I do know that people are different and react differently on drugs, but I’ve never heard of anyone losing weight on it. I consider extremely lucky those people who said that they managed to keep their weight.
This drug really may work great for you but you see, in case you are able to get switched to something else then I assume that you should get switched to something else… you really should. Generally I think that there must be a time limit people can stay on this drug. after a while being on this drug the side effects are purely not worth risking with your health. of course I don’t know why you have been put on this drug, but I personally have been put on it because of the fact that I was having bipolar disorder and I did have gained a lot of weight while on it and because of it, Seroquel has caused me to have diabetes as well later. of course I then went off from it and after a while I have been fine and I managed to lose the weight back, but I still got the health issues. I am pretty sure that you are only going to gain weight while you are on Seroquel, there’s a small chance that you would keep your weight but you surely won’t going to lose weight while on it.
unfriendly
New member
I also have taken Seroquel in the past. I have been on it for a brief time approximately one year and a half or so ago. it was for 2 and a half months that it sedated me a little bit, I have been always feeling a little bit cloudy at work. Like I was in my own little world. Besides, I do remember that I have been very tired. The sedation and that tiredness made me never to want to get my lazy ass up. I guess that during the time I have been on it I had the most inactive life I ever did. And I have actually gained some weight, of course. Besides the fact that I did not wanted to get up and do nothing (I barely went to work, and as I said, when I did – I was cloudy), I was also having an unstoppable urge to eat. Whatever I was doing, I was thinking about food. I couldn’t understand how I can eat so much and how to stop the hunger feeling. I surely have had to stop taking that medicine as it was surely not for me. I have been on it for a while, I went back to my doctor and told him about everything and he switched me off it. I am currently on Effexor and on Ativan and I am doing much more better. if you want to lose weight then go and ask your doctor to switch you on Ativan and Effexor. They won’t help you lose weight, but they won’t give you the food cravings so you could get on a diet and would be able to “move”, to exercise. And besides, the combination of these 2 makes me live in the real world and no my little one.
Mysecutage
New member
Hey there OP, I just want to help you by telling you that I have lost really a lot of weight by using slim fast shakes every single morning. They key to achieving your goal is to shrink your stomach by reducing the food intake. But this requires time. your stomach must be enlarged now since you eat carbs and you must eat more than you normally should. Reducing food intake would reduce your stomach, hence you will eat less, hence you will lose weight. As soon as your stomach has shrunk it is going to need less food to fill it all up. I can tell you that you should reduce the carbs and you should eat the main meal in the daytime. You should not eat before the bedtime as this is going to put a lot of weight. The farer you eat from the bedtime, the better for you. and also you’ve got to eat several smaller meals rather than to eat less per day but larger meals, that’s because your stomach is always going to be full and you won’t enlarge it by eating 2 times per day but a lot. you need to know that overeating tends to let your body store much more fat from the excess that it is not needed and that’s where the weight gain comes. And what we’re always hearing about the weight gain regarding the sugar and carbs together is really true as they are really putting the weight on a lot, that is why it may seem bothersome or whatever, but it is true so you need to watch out for soda and fries intake. Generally, the less junkish food you eat, the more weight you will lose. I have not done anything “over my powers” or “super hard” or whatever, but these little methods combined together have allowed me to lose 50 pounds.
It is true that Seroquel can make you want to eat. In fact, I have heard that Seroquel, exactly like a lot of other anti psychotic drugs, can and in most cases will make people more hungry that they used to be. it is going to enhance your appetite and of course by doing all of this is going to make you gain weight. I also did have had an experience with Seroquel, a pretty brief one but it has been enough for me to understand that it is not for me as it was only making me feel tired all the time and sleepy all the time. exactly as the other commenters said, how you can expect lose weight when it makes you to not want to move and it is boosting your appetite and cravings for unhealthy foods? As I said, I have had a brief experience with it, but I already gained a bit of weight. that’s logical since I was not moving at all, I was always tired. I could sleep all time. and I could eat all time. sleeping and eating were basically the only 2 things that I wanted to do. that is why I do not think that it can make you lose weight and I think that it would require an veeeeeeeeeeeeeery big will power to lose weight while you are under its effects.
By the way, I have been thinking that maybe later people are getting used to the drug’s effects and you are not feeling so tired and sleepy and you are not feeling the hungriness so much after you are on it for a while. That’s was what I was thinking when I was not it and I’ve been thinking to try staying on it for a while, hoping that these side effects would diminish over time. good thing I have not tried it out as I see now people having the exact same effects even after years. like OP. just ask your doctor to get you off of it if you really want to lose weight, OP. good luck
angelicabad
New member
Oh yeah this is definitely, to go on a diet in the time that you are taking Seroquel is much more easier said than done. I have also been on it and dieting seem impossible. The previous poster is definitely right. it would take a lot of will power to make you diet on it. I do know that Seroquel can have some various effects on certain people, but when I have been on it, everything that I have been feeling like I was up to do was gorging and every single time when I have been full (but I had to eat like a horse to be full) I was already thinking about my next meal, I couldn’t wait for it to come quicker. Seroquel is acting on our mind, it is “touching” our brains, so since your brain controls you, basically, Seroquel controls you. it is surely mind over matter. looking for weight loss is looking the other direction of Seroquel (and most other anti psychotic drugs).
Candepoccus
New member
Seroquel made me eat and sleep too, it is just killing your spirit. I was not feeling right on it. I was experiencing all of the above effects. living in my little world, having cloudy brain, eating forever, sleeping forever, cravings for foods, not wanting to move, sleeping. On Sundays I wasn’t getting up my bed and I wouldn’t on other days as well. of course I have stopped taking the drug and I also suggest you to switch the drugs. There are people who are not being affected so much. they can benefit from it for whatever the condition they might have and they are not affecting so much by not wanting to eat so much and not wanting to sleep so much. Seroquel is made for those people. surely not for me.
HelloKitty
New member
Hi everybody. you are right about that. I personally have not had any luck at all trying to lose weight in the time I was taking Seroquel, as I see, as a lot of other people here. I did have noticed that as soon as I have been put on it, during the first few months after starting the treatment regimen with quetiapine, I have started to gain weight pretty quickly. Of course I noticed, it was impossible not to notice. Everybody around me also noticed it too. I have put on about 25 lbs or so in less than 2 months!! I was never gaining weight more rapidly than when I was on it. well, the thing is that after I have put those 25 lbs (it happened in the first 7 or maybe 8 weeks), it seemed like I have leveled out or something in this matter and so I have finally stopped to gain more weight. I guess this is still a success, especially seeing people here posting about gaining more weight and without stopping… either way, the problem is that, of course, I was not able to get off me any of that weight that I have managed to put on. and that’s taking in consideration that I was working it off by doing the following: I have started to walk every single day and I was always and consistently trying to eat better and better (in particular, I have been trying to eat less and less snack foods, less foods per meal and adding more veggies). Even though I was trying really hard having a healthy life, changing my bad habits to the ones that usually help people to lose weight – I couldn’t lose any. My weight has remained exactly the same at 25 lbs more than with the weight I started to take Seroquel, or maybe even higher than before starting to use Seroquel… of course I can’t be sure, but then I have been thinking that what I was doing was only “keeping myself” into shape, although I might have gained a bit of weight as well after those 25 lbs. but then I got the idea that if I was not doing all of that, then pretty much I wouldn’t stop at 25 lbs (or a bit more).
So well, all the weight gain as well as the food cravings (and especially those foods cravings during the night time) that I am experiencing from using Seroquel it is nothing similar at all to what I have been experiencing during the time that I have been using olanzapine (zyprexa). Indeed Seroquel makes you gain weight etc. etc. but still it is not like olanzapine that caused me to gain more than 40 lbs in approximately 3 weeks or so (this is not healthy at all) and it has almost made me diabetic. That happened because of those extremely intense sugar cravings that olanzapine made me have. some of you people might not understand (and I think you really won’t) but I have been eating frosting right out of the jar with a spoon at 3 Am and that’s even though I have been trying to control my self. I couldn’t. trust me it is very bad. I was sitting in my bed, trying to fall asleep, but I was thinking sooooo much about the food that I couldn’t fall asleep although I was tired. Yeah… that’s how bad were my cravings. It is hard to understand to those people who have not been on Zyprexa. Those cravings it made me have for sugar have been even more bad and more intense than the cravings that I have been having every single morning for a cigarette. Those who smoking might understand me but as I said, the cravings for sure were even more intense than the morning cigarette. That’s taking in consideration that I am smoking no less than a pack per day and I am smoking for no less than 10 years. So I would say that it is better with Seroquel than with Zyprexa. Trust me.
So well, now, even though my weight really is a little bit higher than I would really like it to be (but it is not like I am obese or anything in this matter), I do find that it is still a pretty small price to pay when I am looking at the benefits that I am experiencing from using Seroquel every single day. so far I have seen only negative comments about this drug. indeed it does have side effects, but it doesn’t have only side effects. personally for me the benefits definitely outweigh the side effects. before I have started my treatment therapy with Seroquel, I have been all a mess. I have been angry and mad all the time. I have been feeling that way all the time continuously. And I have been aggressive with anybody, at anyone and that’s for absolutely no real logical reason. Now that I realize what I was doing… that’s sound really stupid. Generally I have been overall very unhappy. But since I am taking Seroquel I am not experiencing almost no aggression and no anger at all! I am a lot much more better than I used to be without it. plus, I can say that my mood in general is much more stabilized, that’s for sure. Please, do not get me wrong, I am still in depression and yeah maybe I am a bit over the weight I would really like to have, however the benefits are a lot better as my mood is not bouncing around like crazy as it used to be in the past, I am not so angry and not so aggressive and I do feel more happier now. that’s why I can say that personally for me Seroquel is a really good drug that I would recommend. It is just people are different.
But anyway, yeah, you are definitely right OP about the fact that to drop your weight in the time you are using Seroquel… for a lot of people out there, including me and you as well, is extremely difficult. And as I can see, other people even think that it is impossible. I always thought that there’s nothing impossible but still… very hard.
Hey Warmaded, I am taking Seroquel 100 mg, at bedtime but I take it for sleeping better. I really love very much sleeping every night (lol, yeah, who doesn’t?!) and I can say that only by pure luck and definitely not wisdom, about that time I have started to take Seroquel, I have also added there L glutamine to my every day supplement intake. As I said, purely by accident and luck I have found out about this thing from alcoholics that are using it in order to deal with their cravings for alcohol, which is pretty much sugar, isn’t it? after all, cravings are cravings and it is making my blood sugar to rock solid so instead of gaining weight while I have been taking Seroquel, I did have lost approximately 25 lbs or so. That is why, I really do not think that simply Stefanie has been lying about it. maybe she was also taking L glutamine, or maybe her body reacts on Seroquel like a her own L glutamine. Not sure. The thing is that I do believe her since I also lost weight while being on Seroquel. However, here is the thing with it, for this thing really to work well, it is very and very necessary for you to take a lot much more than the dosage that is being recommended on the label. Of course I did not know it, but those people told me. and another important thing that I can tell you (what I have been recommended and as you can see, did worked for me) is that you always need to use the powdered and not the pills of L glute. A lot of people recommended you to get off from the drug, but since you are 2 years on it now then I assume that it does work for you, you only don’t like the weight gain side effect. So well, this is why I do not recommend you to get off it, but I do recommend to take this powdered form of L glute and in bigger amounts than said on label. Since I lost some weight, I assume that you must lose some weight as well. you need to take about 15 to 20 GRAMS every single day. this is approximately 3 to 5 times more than the amount of 1 serving, it is mostly depending on which brand you decide to purchase from. and don’t worry about your doctor. go and tell him (or her). that’s because my doctor not only that he does know about the fact that I am doing this, but when I have mentioned to him that I am taking it, he has told me that I am doing it really well and that indeed, I should take a lot more of it in order to be effective in the way I need it to be. pretty sure your doctor is going to tell you the same. So well, this is my story of how I have lost weight in the time I have been using Seroquel. I really hope that this is going to help you, or maybe somebody else as well. wishing you good luck guys.
I do remember that I have been having some crazy night time eating for a while and I have been all blaming it on some other mood stabilizers as well. but then later, when I have started to use some larger amounts of oxycodone I have started to notice that I am craving for sweets once again. as soon as I have lowered the dose they really seemed to stop, all of those cravings. However, I am currently on a lower dose of opiates but I am also on a higher dosage of Seroquel and once again, I do feel like I am eating a lot again. and I am also feeling nauseous a lot either. in short, something is wrong with me. this is the reason why I am going to try to reduce my intake of Seroquel and I am going to see what would happen and if this is going to do anything, any changes in my cravings.
Hi all. a few years ago I have been prescribed Zyprexa as off label, thy have given it to me to help me sleep as I was having a bad insomnia. Indeed, it really did helped me a lot with my sleeping problem. I have also been prescribed Doxepin, also off label and also for the exact same reason. That Zyprexa treatment plan has caused me to gain really a ton of weight. I have gained approximately 40 pounds in no time. however, the problem is that in case I refuse to take it then I am not able to sleep again, my insomnia comes again. and so I am honestly getting very anxious about lying in my bed again until the sun is going to come out. gotta say that I have never been fat in the past, in fact, often people would call me skinny. That is why I am surely no very happy about the results that I have got from it. however, in the end, I am not that fat now and I would rather get some sleep as I remember the time when I couldn’t sleep. Not getting sleep is surely not healthy. That is why I do keep to take it. my doctor has told me that I basically need to make a decision about what it is more important to me, staying skinny and without sleep, or fatter but sleeping. So I’ve made my decision. I am just thinking about the fact that I need to search for something that my counter act the weight gain effect of Zyrprexa. So that’s why I am now searching for some weight loss drugs. And yeah, for sleeping issues there are no other drugs that can help, trust me I have tried lots and lots of drugs made to help with insomnia. None works for me, either works but stops from working very soon.
Oh wow. I have to say that I am finding this thread interesting but especially interesting I am finding that comment in this thread about the L-Glutamine. I will surely try this L-Glutamine thing myself. I have never knew about it in the past and I still don’t know whether it will work like that with Seroquel for me or not, but since you said that it worked for you, then I guess there’s nothing that I can lose if I would try it out. I personally am taking approximately 400 to 500 mg of it per day (as it is being prescribed by my psych MD). I have been on seroquel for some years now and of course I did put on some weight that I really don’t like and of course I did tried to get it off, however I have never gotten my weight back down to those pre Seroquel days…. unfortunately. I did tried to stay on diet (but it seems impossible) and to exercise but with the lack of time and lack of energy… it also seem to be impossible. I am going to try this supplement L Glute you recommended and I am going to try again to diet and exercise. Really hope it will help me a little bit. thank you very much for that tip.
Hey there all. it is true that Seroquel can make you gain weight. weight gain is among the most common side effects of the drug. I also have gained a pretty considerable amount of weight and this has lead up to my mental complete breakdown in the late October time last year (2015). I have taken the maximum dosage of Mirtazapine, for those who does not know – this is a drug very well known for its properties it has to make people very hungry. I have heard about it being prescribed to anorexic people. but also, this Mirtazapine is very often being prescribed for people with depression where there is a very significant and even worth of concerning weight loss. I am over 5’10 in tall, so I am not very far off 6’, however at my heaviest weight I have been having fifteen stones, which has been technically considered overweight, I did knew it and I did felt it myself very well.
So well, Seroquel along with trazadone has been swiftly added to the mixture that I have been already taking of Mirtazapine, Propanolol as well as a benzodiazepine that I’ve been taking when my mental breakdown has occurred. My situation was very bad that is why my dosage of Seroquel has got up pretty quickly to 400 mg a day. I am currently using a maintenance dosage of it of 450 mg per day, after a little bit of tinkering. So well, very and very slow, gradually but almost unnoticeable at all, I have started to lose my appetite, finally. But it has been so slow and so unnoticeable that it has not become apparent for me until about 7 months passed which is about late april or early may of this year. I have seen that the smell of some food cooking was revolting to me, and especially the meat as well as the aroma of some hot dinner that would make me physically retch. I have stopped to take the trazadone due to the fact that because of that mixture of drugs that I was taking, I was sleeping most of my days for 18 hours which is definitely not normal thing. I was barely able to get out of my bed. Most of my days I couldn’t and I was simply lying there sleeping. Anyway, this has made absolutely no difference for my stunted appetite, and due to the fact that I have found most of the hot food with a “taste” pretty revolting, as I have said, my diet slowly became and has stayed like that pretty strange rigid. All that I am eating is porridge, some boiled eggs, cheese as well as some salad sandwiches. I mean, my main foods.
Gotta say that I have lost most of my weight in this month. I mean, for the last month I have really started to see that I do have some progress. A few days ago I have went in to the hospital for having a blood test, which the nurse at my doctor’s surgery did, and due to the fact that I have been weighed only a little bit more than a month in the past, I did knew well what has been my weight during that time. so well, when I have got up and she has weighed me this time around then she told me that I have lost 16 pounds which is really a big progress especially taking in consideration that I have done it in 4 weeks and 4 days. I was proud of myself, but this has alarmed the nurse very much, she even went to the doctor and called him in. we have worked out my calorie intake which is 800 calories per day. this is pretty much the same as a 10 years old child should be eating, as I have been explained. Then I have told them that I am feeling freezing cold nearly all the time and that I simply do not feel hungry. I have explained to them that I have not felt hungry feeling for a while now and that eating food, lately, has been a pretty big effort for me. so well, because of that, my doctor has referred me to a dietician. I have also seen that they are wondering whether is this because of my breakdown or not. anyway, as a conclusion I can tell you that in the end, since about april – may I have lost nearly 4 stones.
It is all good but the doctor has told me that that yeah, I even though I am still just within the fine range for my BMI, in case I am going to lose some more weight then I am going to be officially underweight. And he has also told me that my body had gone into the starvation mode and hence I was not feeling hungry. Although it is good that I have lose weight, it is not good that I have lost so much weight in so little time. so well, I have to say that it has not been my normal regular doctor that is usually open to some ideas, this doctor, however, immediately poo pooed the thought that the Seroquel can be the drug that is making me to lose so much weight so quickly. She did have mentioned that people are almost always gaining an average of about 1.5 to 2.5 stones in the time they are on a long term treatment at the doses that I am using.
So well, in the end I can tell that since this is the only drug that has been added to my pretty much large drug regimen, I am now really wondering whether is Seroquel the cause of my rapid weight loss or not. the odds are that… yes. But it is either this, or there’s something that is going on my subconscious because I have always had a pretty “difficult to explain” relationship with foods for as much as I can remember myself.
Oh wow.. damn, those are some really very high dosages of seroquel you are talking up there people. 100, 200, 500, 900 mg. damn… I can’t understand how you can take so much. I have tried 50 mg of it and it has knocked me out on an instant. I really can’t see how you are people still functioning on that, however it really seems that the tolerance is building up pretty fast. I have taken it only for a while so I couldn’t notice whether I have lost or gained any weight on it. maybe yeah, or maybe not. not sure.
Anyway, there’s a friend of mine who is on an antidepressant and she has gained some weight during the time she is on it. I am not very sure how similar the antidepressants and Seroquel are in the structure but I saw that antidepressants make you gain weight as well.
Hey there guys, I also take Seroquel, but compared to most of the people here, I am taking it since about 2010 or so. It is really a good drug that does work very well and that does not have so horrible side effects. initially it did not affected my weight at all, I did not even knew that this drug can affect your weight. but then slowly slowly I have put on approximately 20 pounds or so. I have done my homework about it, I have tried to learn everything. Then I have tried to put myself on a diet and to do what usually are people doing to lose weight and it does seem that I have had some success. gotta say that in the last year I have lost about 23 pounds. The thing is that I was not “hurrying”. I’ve lost about 23 pounds in a full year. But I have gained only 20 since I am on the drug. anyway, what I am doing to lose weight is to count calories and to do some light exercise each time I can. but I try to do it as often as possible. Any unhealthy snacks should be removed from your diet as well. by the way, not sure if this does make a change but I am taking 400 mg of it at night and I am all fine. really hope this is going to be helpful a little bit.
Hi guys, to be honest I personally am not taking Seroquel and I have never taken it, however I still wanted to chime in saying what I think about it. although I never took Seroquel, it has been discussed in my treatment some times. Well, I am sorry that I really can’t answer you directly, however I am able to give you a parallel which I hope will help. so, when I have been prescribed and started to take my xanax, there have also been added a few other anxiety medications as well. so well, after that I have gained a little bit under 30 lbs in less than approximately one year. By that time, I really have noticed this, but until then it kind of crept up on me. I have done exactly what the other poster has said up there, about watching my calories. I have started to count my calories and so I have forgot about all of those crazy diets out there like for example atkins and whatever others (yeah, I do know that there are millions out there). you just need to remember that your body is pretty much the same as your car that needs gas, what you are putting in and is burn then is completely gone, however what it is not then it is stored somewhere, in our case we are talking about fat. So well, I in case I was getting a burger then I was cutting it in half and I was drinking a lot much more water than I was usually doing. In the past, I have been drinking some really big amounts of soda. I stopped drinking soda. I stopped eating junky food. As I said, when there was a big craving for a burger, cut it in half and then drink lots and lots of water amounts to flush it. and basically counting calories. It might seem that it doesn’t help, but trust me, it does. So well, over a period of time of one year or so now, I have managed to drop down 65 lbs.
Also you need to remember that the medication is surely affecting your metabolism. It is important to remember because you need to get a handle on your new metabolism and to adjust your eating habits to it, to make them match and achieve the results that you want. I mean, what has been working for your prior to take the medication might not be enough now. so well, then later I have noticed that eventually, through some tolerance and so on, my metabolism really seemed to level off and I have already been able to eat some reasonably and I did managed to lose quite a bit of my weight. and by the way, I guess that it is important to mention that when I am saying that I have lost 65 lbs, I have been really over weight to start saying with. I have to say that I am 6’ and I have got up to 262 lbs back then…. I have lost 65 lbs and I am currently under 200 lbs… even close to 190 currently. But I will try hard and I will get under 190 as well. and at my HS grad weight… and I am 40 years old now.
And, granted that I am still having a little Pounch around my belly, of course, but the thing that I am still feeling a lot more better about myself and the point is that a big deal is that I’ve never changed one single thing in my diet, if we can say so. The point is that instead of a choc bar I have had a Hershey kiss etc. I am getting the taste and I am satisfying my self while no big intake of calorie. The same with the burger. Got the taste from half of a burger. That’s just enough.
So well, now the bottom line here. I just think that you really need to try to get a feel for your metabolism right now, and of course to eat accordingly, in versus out…. in case you are still gaining right now and watching then talk to your doctor about this problem, due to the fact that you surely do not need and do not want to have a completely unhealthy diet, isn’t it? and I am quite sure that they are able to help you with that and still to maintain those medications that you really need and make you feel good.
This is only my opinion…. and my thoghts… this is surely not a medical advice and not something that should be taken as a medical advice. If your doctor tells you to do something other than what I said here, than do as he said. I am not a doctor, as might understand, I am a car mechanic so I really do not intend to mess with your health, I can’t do it and I don’t want to. instead I am going to go and install and remove some gears out there, they are more “for me”. LOL.
As I said, hope this would help, I wish you all the best and take care of yourself. Don’t forget to update and to let us know how you’re feeling. If somebody has something else that can help all these people, we would all be glad to hear you.
martyczeck
New member
Hey all. I personally have taken 400 mg of Seroquel for approximately 2 and half years now. I have been taking it all at night and with a combination of 45 mg of remeron and 400 mg of lamictal. But it seems that due to the fact that I have been taking all my daily dosage of 400 mg at night, it has started to make me have the restless legs syndrome at night, that is why I have gradually went down to take only 200 at night but the rest of 200 mg I have been taking in the morning. After I have done it, I have seen that it was obvious that it has been the remeron that was actually making me eat so much at night (even though, at first it was surely the Seroquel) so I think that it is not the Seroquel that has such side effects of eating a lot. and I am sure that there must be other drugs that are making you eat like that too. anyway, as soon as my condition has finally stabilized and was within a normal range then I have got off of 45 mg of Remeron (this happened only recently), going down to 15 mg at a time every six weeks only. Besides, another option for you and everything else who’s searching for it, trying to use it as an antipsychotic drug or to augment an anti depressant then it is to look into the XR version (extended release version) that, from as much as I know, should not make you feel so much hunger. However, you just need to know that it is not going to help you to sleep so well…. in case this is one of those reasons that you are going to take it or already take it. the XR version of Seroquel provides little to no effects at all for sleeping issues, however the weight gain side effect is much more controllable with this version. So it’s up to you what you decide. But I think that if you’re not having any issues with sleep then there’s not very much of what you should think of.
Anyway, talking about me and my situation, I have gained approximately 40 lbs in the time I have started to use those medications, the last three I have been put on, I am having a few pretty severe issues going on, also using Wellbutrn and Cymbalta, and now I have lost even more than I have gained (nearly 50 lbs) in the last 4 months only. Besides, another thing is that approximately one month ago or so I have discovered that I am also suffering from hypothyroidism that is why I really hope that the medication is going to help with this problem either. anyway, what’s my final point here: yeah, it is possible to lose weight while on Seroquel, I did, so it’s definitely possible. It just depends on what else drugs you’re taking, how you take it, how much, time of the day etc. etc. but of course one essential role plays what you’re eating. you can’t lose weight even if you’re on weight loss drugs if you are not having a proper diet. I myself, started to eat mostly fruits, vegetables, beans, chicken, fish, brown rice and high fiber cereal. Of course I was eating something else from time to time, but most of my week, this has been all the food I was eating. but it is really important the calories in vs the calories out. you’re craving for what you’re eating. that’s because your body gets used to it. the same as cigarettes, heroin etc. etc. you don’t smoke cigarettes, you don’t crave for it, you do smoke, you do crave. You do not try heroin, you don’t need it, you do try heroin, you do crave for it. that’s exactly the same for everything else. as soon as you are going to start to eat a big salad every day, sooner or later you are going to start noticing that you crave for it. and I personally have stopped to eat junk food, I don’t eat it anymore so I don’t crave for it anymore. but you also have to do be sure that you’re not doing anything “off limits”. But in the end, we’re all different, you’ve got to find what it is working for you. I wish you good luck on finding your perfect combination.
jessica302
New member
Hey there guys, I do know what you’re talking about and why there are so many people complaining that they are gaining weight on an anti psychotic medication, that’s very common. I personally have not taken Seroquel ever in my life (thanks god) but there’s a friend of mine who does and that’s how I know it. however, there’s still a chance for you guys and I think so because I have seen my friend. After being put on an anti psychotic medication, exactly as everybody, she gained a lot of weight, however after that increase she has not only managed to lose it all back but she also found out how she should keep it off.
She has told me that the feeling she is getting is like you’re never getting when you’re not on medication, that’s because she calls that feeling a “never full feeling”. That’s when you can eat all day long and you’re still wanting to eat. She tells me – yeah, you cannot eat anymore because your stomach is already 10x more enlarged, but it is still full and you can’t eat anymore, but you still want to eat. That’s what she described it. she couldn’t eat anymore because she already ate a LOT, but she was still craving for it. she would eat a really good and big meal but then she was still craving for even more food. She have tried to have little snacks after meals in order to continue feeling for and so the “never full feeling” would disappear, however she says that it won’t. after she gained a lot of weight and she couldn’t go anymore she started to try every single method out there. I remember she was talking with me about this. then later she managed to lose the weight and she told me that the “big secret” in beating the weight gain is to make yourself a meal that you do consciously know that it is a healthy sized meal (of healthy foods) and eat ONLY that portion and then to start improving your self control techniques when you are getting hungry again (because you would be very soon, she has even told me that initially, she ate that healthy sized meal and she was getting up feeling hungry) you need to tell yourself and to realize the fact that you are not hungry. You need to tell yourself that this is not a “natural hungry feeling, it is the medications that are making me feeling hungry”. And preferably would be to keep your mind busy. It is not your stomach hungry, as I said, but your mind is. so you need to keep it busy.
And yeah, I do know that this sounds very simplistic (but let’s face it, most of the time the most simplistic methods are the most effective) but that’s what she has done and she really got some success. she has gained about 2 stones (approximately 30 lbs or so) and as I already said it, she not only managed to lose them all back, but she could keep them all off and currently she is in her normal weight of only 9st at her height is within a healthy range, that is why it can work. Once again, I can’t say anything from experience so I do believe you that it can be very hard. I have seen my friend that was struggling extremely much with this. but the point is that it can be achieved. And the beginning is the worst. As in anything else. but you only need to try to do this simplistic method and that’s it.
The basics here is that even though you have eaten a good healthy full meal, there’s something in the medications that is still continuing to tell you that you want more, that you are still hungry, that you’re not full (when you’re already 2x more full than you should be). in a way or another, it is like you need to fight off with the medication. you need to think here. you need to use your conscious, your common sense, and if you do use them then you are going to learn that you are not, in fact, hungry at all so you don’t need to eat. You just need to eat because that’s the “life cycle” or whatever we can call it. but we should not binge eat. In fact, this is the same as drug addiction. in case we could use an analogy with the drug addiction… what I am trying to say is that if you’re thinking that you do need drugs (this is psychologically) but, in reality, you definitely do not need them… that means that you are psychologically addicted to drugs. The same as to lots of food. You are psychologically addicted to eat a lot of food. I would say that a person is “physically addicted” to food when that person has not eaten in days (which is definitely not something that I, or anybody else, would recommend) but when you just had a healthy sized meal then I doubt that you’re physically addicted. In fact, I think that the previous commenter is right about that. about the fact that if you’re not eating junk food, you’re not addicted to it. the same as with the cigarettes. good example.
But, seeing how my friend has done it all, I personally would use a food diary and there I would write down everything that I am eating. that’s what I recommend you to do either. it would be something like a diet helping food diary. Then you are going to start noticing patterns off eating that you do know full well you do not need so you could start adjusting your eating pattern and to retrain your brain (as well as your stomach) exactly what you do need and what you do not need to eat. You could write what you have eaten, how much and maybe even the time of the day. I think that this would really give you a head start in realizing what should be changed and what not.
To be honest, I do not really understand as to why all of these things are not being explained much better by the psychiatrists before they are prescribing such type of drugs (when they really should do it, it should be mandatory) as it would most likely stop a lot of people who are benefitting from those medications to stay on them.
Well, losing weight is surely not about me. I personally have gained a lot of weight in the time I have been on Seroquel, however it was really helping me very much with insomnia. But I could not deal with the weight anymore. I was eating well, but more weight gain. I have gained approximately 25 or so pounds. So I went off it and switched to another medication for this exact reason. I have went from Seroquel to ambien to help me sleep. I would have been remained on Seroquel, but I couldn’t. so ambien did help as well, but definitely not as good as Seroquel, but I still prefer ambien because of no crazy weight gain. And anyway, after all, Seroquel I would say that it is not that bad because I have managed to lose all of the weight that I have gained on it as soon as I have stopped to use it. It probably took me approximately 2 months or so in order to get me back on my old normal weight. But I still did it.
And yeah, I have to mention that I did have tried to manage my eating habits, I have tried to have a good diet plan and I was exercising in the time that I have been on Seroquel. That’s because I realized that I either keep taking Seroquel (as I said, I realized that it works very well for me and my insomnia) and I have to do something with the weight, or I get off it but my insomnia would return. I so tried to keep taking Seroquel but all my efforts were not really working… so, when I have seen that all my efforts, everything I was trying so hard, were all useless, I stopped from taking it. I went to ambien, noticed that it does help (not as well as Seroquel, as I said, but it is still helping) but I noticed that doing further what I was doing was making me lose weight. So I am much better now.