Is Zoloft making me fat, or am I just eating too much?

[Anonymous]

This is my second time on Zoloft and once again I am gaining weight. Too afraid to get on the scale, but my clothes are very tight and I am in danger of going up a size. I was on Zoloft before for about 3 years, gained 15 or 20 pounds during that time. I went off of it for a year or so, lost about 10 of those pounds quite easily. Felt my anxiety was disrupting my life again, and I went back on Zoloft in June of 2009, and think I must have gained 10 or 15 pounds since then. Am I just so relaxed (ha ha) that I am eating more and not paying attention, or is the medicine making me gain weight more easily?
Anybody else have this expereince? Also, is there another medicine for generalized anxiety that might not have the same effect?

[Anonymous]

It might be.

Are you watching calorie intake? That simple exercise might reveal where the weight is coming from. Does anyone know if Zoloft impacts metabolism?

[Anonymous]

Zoloft is used for eating disorders such as binge eating and anorexia. I don't *think* it increases appetite but I'm sure it works differently in everyone.

Does Zoloft Cause Weight Gain?
Weight gain is a possible side effect of Zoloft® (sertraline hydrochloride), although it is not very common. Based on clinical studies, weight gain occurs in around 1 percent of people who take Zoloft (although the exact percentage was not reported in these studies). Given this small percentage, for individual situations it is difficult to say whether weight gain is actually caused by the medicine itself, another medical condition, a change in eating habits and/or physical activity, a combination of these factors, or something else.

[Anonymous]

Zoloft made me crazy hungry all the time. I was over 20lbs heavier on Zoloft than I am now and I am over 40 now. It could partially be your diet, but I had trouble not eating on Zoloft. I would be so hunrgy I was sick and lightheaded. I needed it for the anti-depressant effect. I would talk to your doctor about switching to another one.

[Anonymous]

Possibly both. There is starting to be research emerging (which drug makers are not exactly promoting, IYKWIM) that shows longer term metabolic changes in people on SSRIs. So it may not just be your appetite, but a possible slowing of your metabolism, that contributes to the weight gain.

[Anonymous]

I am on Zoloft. Weight gain is a side effect. There are two things I have found that change that: 1.) OMEGA 3 oil pills - 3 per day helps and even better, but you need a doctor to prescribe it, 2.) Phentermine -which actually works with the Zoloft to reduce your appetite long term (on ts own phentermine only works for 6 weeks). I am finally, after many years, relatively thin once again and on Zoloft.