Zoloft - Can it cause stoumach problems and weight gain?

Yes, and that's why I can't take it. It can give you diarrhea and/or loose stools. I suffer from occassional Diarrhea and other hyper motility problems (cramping etc...) My psychiatrist wanted to put me on Zoloft for depression. I talked to my Gastroenterologist and he told me definitely not, since I have a problem with diarrhea and stomach distress anyway. Zoloft is an SSRI which increases the Seratonin in your system. Apparently Seratonin is one of the "feel good" hormones in your body. 90% of Seratonin is actually stored in your gut amd is responsible for part of your guts motility. Too much seratonin and you get too much motility in the form of GI upset. Now, for most people, this side effect goes away within a couple of weeks, but usually not for people who are already prone to stomach complications like diarrhea. There are many other types of antidepressants that are not SSRIs and will not cause such stomach distress if this becomes an ongoing problem, or you have a history of this. If you do not have a history of GI upset, then give it some time for your body to adjust to the side effects. If it continues to bother you, remember, there are many others out there to try. There are Tricyclics that actually have constipation as a side effect or they have medications like Effexor which is part seartonin and part neuropheron (sp?) so it's not quite as potent to the GI system. That's what I am going to try next. I always tell my psych to give me samples to see how my body will react before going off and buyin the full perscription and wasting an entire bottle.

Good luck and hope this helped.