Antipsychotics and weight gain

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Ive used two different types of antipsychotics for mood control ever since getting diagnosed with AS and ive noticed an increased appetite and weight gain as a side effect. I was wondering if there are any natural appetite suppressants on the market that i could use that wouldnt interact with the meds I am taking( I am currently on Zoloft and Abilify, if you were wondering) or if there is a prescription that i should discuss with my prescriber. IF i could trust myself to control my outbursts, i would sto taking the meds alltogether and get back in shape with exercise and a more slight diet, but Because i tend to self-inflict when im off meds, thats out of the question.

Since you've had no responses here, I'll move this into the Bipolar/other conditions forum, it may do better there.

You might find lamotrigine useful. Its a mood stabiliser, and has less of a problem with weight gain. As you are taking medication for other reasons than their primary function you might find other meds that can help you. I know its not that easy to just eat less, I've struggled with weight gain on certain meds. Talk to your psychiatrist, and educate yourself as much as possible about the options.

http://www.psycheducation.org/hormones/ ... htgain.htm

When i got diagnosed with Bipolar i was in a terrible state underweight & they put me on olanzapine, i was overweight within 6 weeks

I went up to sixteen and a half stone when I went on anti psychotics. They switched me to quetiapine, and with excercise I've gone down to fifteen stone, and am hopefully still losing. It is possible to lose weight on anti psychotics, it's just a bit harder.

I'm on lamotrigine for a mood stabiliser, which is very helpful, as the previous poster said.

I have been on many anti psychotics (along with other meds) and gained between 60-80 pounds while on them. I used to be thin and beautiful and now I am very fat and severely morbidly obese. I am a monster. I hate the way I look and before being on all sorts of meds in the last 5-6 years, people and of course myself loved the way I looked. Nothing fits me now. I always have to buy new clothes. I look awful. I don't even eat much. When there was a period of being off the meds for 6 months I lost a huge amount of weight so I know its directly the pills. I call it poison for this reason. And it shortens your lifespan 25 years. It kills you. I wish so bad that I can go off my pills. I would never take Zyprexa even if my life depended on it. I have known countless people that have gained literally 100 or more pounds on it. On the Internet people talk about it gaining 100 pounds as well. If I get off the pills though I would go psychotic. Sometimes I'd rather live in fear for my life than be on the pills.

I don't think the pills do take 25 years off your life. They make people less suicidal, and because thinking processes improve the patient looks after his or herself better, and is in better health generally. Quality of life is improved... I do know what you mean about feeling bad when one's appearance isn't as good as we'd like, but it's better than being suicidally depressed and off the wall psychotic.

There's a lot of bad diet, smoking, drinking, and drugs, infectious diseases, and rough living conditions in the group of test subjects that the people who did the life expectancy survey didn't factor in.

With some of those pills the weight gain is just something you have to deal with. The question becomes, which is more tolerable... being pudgy and mentally okay or thinner and less mentally okay... but you can always talk to your doc if the weight gain is too much. Some pills tend to cause less weight gain or even have weight loss as a side effect so if you do not mind trying to switch pills, you can. Topamax can be used a mood stabilizer, not an antipsychotic, and people have dubbed it 'Stupamax' or 'The super model drug' because it causes absentmindedness and rather severe weight loss. That is just the one example I can think of right now...

I don't know about anti-psychotics but I know that antidepressants made me gain a lot of weight. Within the first two years of being on them, without making any alterations to my diet and exercise, I gained 40 pounds. I was on them for 5 years, then last June I eventually weaned myself off them. So yeah, I guess the point of my post was to say that I kinda know where you're coming from. Support FTW!

I gained fifty pounds on Ziaprosidone!! !!