I take Abilify and I know the drug he... - Anxiety and Depre...

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I take Abilify and I know the drug helps me, but I'm gaining too much weight!!!!

25 Replies

I recently saw my medical doctor last week. He thinks I need to lose weight and I totally agree. I'm the heaviest I've ever been. I already do a lot of walking and over the past week I've been trying to cut down on how much I eat and watch my portion sizes, doing things like instead of eating 2 hot dogs, just have one. Over the past few days I've got down on the carpet and started doing sit ups like I used to do, along with some yoga poses I know and some push ups. I hate how weak my arms are!!! So I'm making a serious attempt here!!! The thing is, I've read up on Abilify and it can definitely cause weight gain, along with elevating your cholesterol and triglycerides. I just bought some fish oil capsules to try to help with that issue- and those fish oil supplements are not cheap!!! But now I'm seriously wondering if I need to go off the Abilify because I don't want to eventually get diabetes or have heart issues. I can tell if I bring this up with my psychiatrist I bet he's not going to be very eager to take me off of it. I can tell that mentally, this drug does help me and my mood is much better on it. This is a Catch 22. I used to be so much thinner when I was younger. Over the past few years I've been too heavy. It sort of hurt my feelings when recently my mom said to me that I will probably always be a chubby girl. I don't want to be anorexic but this weight needs to go!!!! And I've never been pregnant or had kids, so I don't have that as an excuse. I'm very frustrated. And finally, I really don't like to give out my age, but I turned 50 this year and I've read that when you get older your metabolism changes so the weight becomes even harder to lose than when you were 30........... If I get off of the Abilify then I'm worried I will suffer mentally. This situation is really bugging me. Any advice????

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25 Replies
Tiggerakafidgity profile image
Tiggerakafidgity

Hi goog

I used to be on abilify.it helps with tics but I was still suffering from paranoid personality disorder.

I’ve been taken of those as if my heart.

I’m now on amisulpride. I have in liquid form which is pretty expensive but I can’t believe how much it’s change my life for the better.

I hope this helps a little

T

in reply to Tiggerakafidgity

I have never heard of amisulpride. Does this drug have a certain brand name?

Tiggerakafidgity profile image
Tiggerakafidgity in reply to

I think it’s also called solion,that’s the cheaper version.

Starrlight profile image
Starrlight

For me, my meds that have caused me gained weight which are Paxil and Remeron, I need to maintain a better emotional well being. I am as heavy as I’ve ever been , like you, and like you, I am trying (but honestly I need to try even harder) with exercise and eating very healthy. So far I just can’t see going back to being so unhappy. I’m unhappy about my weight but the other unhappiness was more of torture.

in reply to Starrlight

Well these doctors will always say the benefits outweigh the side effects but I don't know if I buy into that anymore. I'm going to bring this up with my psychiatrist in January, but not too many psyche meds have worked well for me, and I can tell I'm better on Abilify, but at what cost to my health??? I just don't know what to think sometimes. Until January I am really trying to watch how much I eat. I don't want to gain 20 pounds because it's Christmas.

JudieAnn13 profile image
JudieAnn13 in reply to Starrlight

I lost 150 on paxil. So we just need trial and error and diets that work for us.

JudieAnn13 profile image
JudieAnn13 in reply to JudieAnn13

I did no to little carbs and walk 10000 steps a day. I dislocate if I try anything else and look like I'm going to battle in all my braces.

RCJH8610 profile image
RCJH8610

Hello! I would definitely recommend you first try and track what you eat and your level of activity for a month. If you are trying to lose weight you need to consume no more than 1200 calories a day (more if you exercise daily). The app “MyFitnessPal” is free and is a great way to track what you eat daily. If you are unable to lose anything after a month of staying within the calorie deficit then I would say speak to your doctor about possibly trying a different medication.

in reply to RCJH8610

I will check out that app!!!! Thank you so much. Back when I was 35 I lost 50 pounds doing Weight Watchers. I was glad I did that but these days I just can't really afford to spend the money going to WW meetings. I'm curious about that weight loss program called Noom I've seen advertised too.

Carmen810 profile image
Carmen810 in reply to

Lose it app is also a good one. I am struggling with 20 Ib weight gain this year during pandemic. I have used lose it before. It tracks calories in and calories out and you can adjust it. Noon is pricey. Hopefully you find what works for you along with meds.

JudieAnn13 profile image
JudieAnn13 in reply to RCJH8610

My fitness pal worked for me.

VDC1 profile image
VDC1

Hi, I know a lot about nutrition and weight loss and am willing to help. Losing weight is an impossible task if you don’t know what you’re doing and there’s no shame in it. Once you learn some things it’s 100 times easier. The effect the pills or even exercise have is negligible compared to your diet.

You’ve got to learn how to read labels and calculate what you’re eating.

I recommend watching videos by ObesetoBeast on YouTube, specifically one about your TDEE. The knowledge he shared about counting diet/calories was invaluable to me.

There’s lots of fancy apps for counting calories but I just did the simple math and added it up on my phone. It sounds daunting but if you’ll quickly learn calories. Trying to lose weight without learning calories is a losing battle. You could be eating 3 times the food while still losing weight. Learn your TDEE

tdeecalculator.net

in reply to VDC1

Thank you, I checked that out. Do you use a food scale? I'm trying to eat more fruits and vegetables. I know I'm eating too much processed food, like Stouffer's frozen dinners.

in reply to

If you are willing to use a food scale (I do) it will take the guess work out counting. It’s the only thing that gives 100% accuracy, once you learn portions through weighing you’ll start to discover just how much you over eat, it’s eye opening honestly.

However, counting is not the only way to lose weight, it’s a mere tool just like counting points. There’s the hand/fist portion size method you could use if counting seems daunting. There’s just lowering your portions in a manner that works for you. They all work to create a calorie deficit.

I’m a member of MyFitnessPal, I did take an extreme interest in learning nutrition (that app is loaded with invaluable nutritional help and guidance in one place) as my diet was horrible so learning to balance my carbs, fats and proteins was importsnt as I’m not getting any younger. A healthy diet can make you feel better. The food scale once you get use to it, for example I eat pretty much the same stuff every day so I know the amounts that I want my food to come out to be. I’m a partial logger these days, I’ve been maintaining my current weight for about 7 years now.

If you choose counting, and want to use MyFitnessPal, I can help you. Send me a friend request from inside that app. You can talk to me here as well. Offer is there if you want. I wish you the best of luck, this is one of those self challenges I mentioned. Your Abilify may cause weight gain like a lot on antidepressant do, but you can lose weight, add in regular activity particularly heart rate increasing exercise you’ll be losing weight and feeling much better. 🌺💜🌺💜🌺💜

in reply to

Thank you so much!!! I just put the app on my phone.

in reply to

Let me know if you need anything. I’ve been on that app 8 years. 😂

🌺💜🌺💜

VDC1 profile image
VDC1 in reply to

I agree with the food scale. The math is simple. You always find out how many calories per gram for your food. If a white potato is listed as 92 calories per 100 grams, 92 divided by 100 = .92. Then multiply by what the scale says. I eat Turkey bacon and eggs for breakfast all the time . I’ve simple memorized that eggs are 70 calories each , Turkey is 35 per piece. Etc

Like Roxie says when you’re eating the same things each day like most of us do, you soon won’t even need to count it. But there’s really only one way to lose weight . The numbers don’t lie. If you eat 500 calories under your TDEE you’d lose one pound per week. You can also can safely fast for up to 2, 3 days at a time and lose. Research fasting. In my opinion fasting is by far the easiest way if you have a lot to lose.

JudieAnn13 profile image
JudieAnn13

Never stop your meds without Dr supervision. Sorry to say that our body changes in our 50s in 54 my mom tells me I look like a deflated body builder. So what? I couldn't care less about what she says because I'm sure my gran told her horrible things about her body and her mom before that etc. I'm here to love me, I love my soft saggy skin, I have ehlers danlos syndrome is a connective skin disorder and no matter what I do I cannot fix it. I have hyper mobility and there are other types which people have more severe like vascular etc. So whatever your size just be healthy, mentally, spiritually and love the skin you're in because we only get so many trips around the sun. Do something you enjoy and the weight will fall off, dance naked in your living room, walk if you can, and stay safe.

Just do you, and when your mom says something, just tell her you're happy to be alive no matter what size.

in reply to JudieAnn13

Thank you. I do love my mom, but there are times with things she says where I'm thinking, why did she have to say that????? I have not always been chubby, as she puts it. I have 2 sisters, and it doesn't help that one of my sisters, who was very athletic when she was in high school, doing gymnastics, is very thin, but she hardly eats!!!! And if you try to tell her she might be anorexic, she gets really mad and of course has no problem telling me how fat I am. I don't mean to sound so obsessed about my weight, but I do want to be healthy. I know someone who became diabetic and I never want to deal with all of that.

JudieAnn13 profile image
JudieAnn13 in reply to

You cannot change others, you can only change the way you react to others. My mom has always put me down and my sister is the band player, the sorority sister, the this and that better than me. My life is completely opposite of hers but I love my life and people I've met. My sister rarely emails me and I got a picture of her getting her lips coloured she said it was her first tattoo, I'm covered in tattoos and lips, eyes and eyebrows are not tattoos they are semi permanent. Then she sent me a photo of her "doctorate " from a school I never heard of...I looked it up and found out that for 129.00 usd anyone can buy one... I don't know what the need was for the doctorate and why would you go out and get any body modifications during a pandemic??? It blows my mind and scared me, why would she be doing this.. so just because simple degrades you, you know what's true and not. I had diabetes from being 275 pounds and lost 150 pounds I gained a little back because I looked really sick. Diabetes type 2 you can usually reverse by losing weight. Don't do anything drastic or magic pills to lose weight 1 pounds equal 3500 calories I think so you need to eat less calories and have a deficit after exercise and eating. 2 pounds a week loss is healthy. Don't try to do biggest loser or anything fad. Try some apps and log everything you eat and drink.

What are you taking abilify for ?

in reply to lillyofthevalley37

I have trouble with severe depression and anxiety. And I've been diagnosed as having bipolar disorder where I have mood swings, but I don't like to tell people about that because of all the stigma and judgemental attitudes some people have. The Abilify really helps me feel better and function better.

lillyofthevalley37 profile image
lillyofthevalley37 in reply to

Have you heard of lamotrigine ?

in reply to lillyofthevalley37

Is that also called Lamictal??? If so, then yes, I've heard of it.

sweetiepye profile image
sweetiepye

Is abilify an anti depressant ? You could ask your Doctor to put you on a different one .I was on several before I found one without side effects . It's so hard to lose weight , better not to put it on . I have recently lost 60 pounds . I started when we started self isolation . I want to lose another 20 . I didn't start out to lose that much I think I would have been overwhelmed . So I am for not putting it on in the first place . I was on a medicine which caused weight gain only I didn't know it . I thought it was me . Sometimes Doctors don't know all the side effects a drug causes .

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