Are there any anti-depressants that could help someone loose weight?

Question

I have a 15 year old daughter who is depressed and over weight . She has tried loosing weight, she has been exercising 3 times a week for an hour and a half and watches what she eats and hasn't been able to loose. She has also had her T4 and TSH levels checked three times in less then 2 yrs and they have come back in the normal range. Her therapist has suggested putting her back on anti-depressents for depression. Does anyone know if there are any anti-depressent meds that will help her loose vs gain weight?

Thanks,
Her Mom

Answer 1

You wouldn't want a weightloss medication tied in with the anti-depressant.

At some point she may no longer need help with one or the other. If she were taking only 1 medication for both she'd have to go through another adjustment period and start a new drug.

Exercise:

You don't mention the type of exercise she's doing, but an hour and a half per day seems a bit excessive to me. The recommendation is typically 4 or 5 days a week for at least 1/2 an hour. Her heart rate must reach a certain level before she will actually begin to burn calories. The same thing with meals. 4 to 5 small meals per day.

If she is eating right and excercising and just can't seem to lose weight, she should be evaluated by a different doctor perhaps and get further tests for her thyroid. Because exercise can be pretty unpleasant, make sure she is getting her work out doing something she truly enjoys. That will also help with the depression.

Depression:

Everything comes with side affects and no two people will respond the same way. I would stay away from the newer medications (too many class action lawsuits) and go with something older like Trazodone.

To get her the best care she should see a psychiatrist, or if you can afford it, a psychopharmacologist (psych doctor with specialized training in medications.) I highly recommend natural treatments, counseling, and getting her to find something she's passionate about.

Finally, you might try getting her involved in swimming. There are studies now being conducted about the effects it has on depression and brain chemistry. It's alos more fun than a gym or treadmill and it helps people lose fat.

Answer 2

Weight loss is a possible side effect for some anti-depressants, but the same ones have weight gain as a possible side effect. It all depends on how her body reacts to the meds. Like a few people have said, worry more about the depression than the weight and just see how it goes.

Answer 3

If she is exercising and eating better, I can't understand why she hasn't lost weight or toned up some. Most anti-depressants tend to cause weight gain. I don't remember the ones that cause less weight gain (5lbs). Her therapist should know these things better. While being over weight is an important concern, being depressed is more serious and needs immediate attention.

Answer 4

I'm not sure that anti depressants will correlate with weight loss, but certainly it important to listen to a therapist since depression is a forerunner to suicide, which at the age of 15 is a risky age. Best wishes

Answer 5

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Answer 6

yes, actually there are two that I know of, and there may be more. I have been on Prozac, and that helped for a while, but because I didn't work with it (dieting, or at least cutting back) my system soon got used to it, and I quit loosing. It still worked for the depression though. I was on that for about a year before I started having problems with Prozac. Then the pdoc changed me to something else, I think Zoloft. It does help the depression, but it also cuts down your sex drive. (which may be a good thing for a 15 yr. old lol). However, now I am on Wellbutrin. It does certainly cut down your appetite and cravings. It is used quite successfully for people that want to quit smoking. So since I'm also an compulsive over eater, it helps to cut down the compulsiveness, but of course you still have to work with the medication. However, I would be more concerned about the depression, and getting the right pdoc is the key to getting the right med that won't make her gain/but will help her to loose, as a side affect. But if the depression gets under controll, the weight may not be as much of a problem. But, you might ask yourself, Is my daughter really wanting this for herself, or AM I wanting it more for her because I'm the mother and want her to loose weight? If it is MOM trying to CONTROLL daughter into loosing weight, it isn't going to happen. You the MOM, might also ask why she is depressed, what is causing it? and what can I do to help her with the depression? Maybe MOM is too concerned about the weight!!!

Answer 7

You are approaching the problem the wrong way. The real problem is the depression. If you seek professional help to address your daughter's depression, once treated her body chemistry may change enough to deal with the waite problem.
Deal preferably with a Psychiatrist (MD) for anti-depressants
because such drugs could have short to long range side effects up to and including suicide.

Answer 8

She should try walking. It helps you lose weight and it's well known that exercise can help lift depression to some extent. It releases endorphins and that will help. I know it seems simplistic but I really think it could help especially if she has a buddy to walk with. Youcan walk at home or in the mall or something but give it a try. Drugs really don't help with losing weight and antidepressants won't do it although they might help her feel enough better that she will do the walking (or whatever exercise she prefers) The best thing about walking is anyone can do it and you can do it your own pace. Be sure she has good supportive shoes. It makes you feel stronger and gives you some spring in your step. Good luck with her!

Answer 9

that's sad. i wish you the best. if she is depressed, i recommend just trying an anti-depressant and seeing what happens. tell the psychiatrist to make sure weight gain isn't a side effect of the drug. if she starts to gain, she could try another one. but it's better to be overweight than depressed. also maybe she is over-eating due to being depressed? so maybe she could lose weight if she were happier.

Answer 10

they are separate you can't get anti depressants which help you lose wieght- try taking antidepressent and stuff that helps you lose weight together. Coz you can't get two in one!