I have been taking Zoloft for about 15 months and I have gained 40 pounds and I feel so horrible. I have never in my life been this big (have always been thin/average in size) and I look and feel just terrible. I was given the FM diagnosis in April of this year and I feel so stuck because I can't exercise agressively enough. I am on AD for depression and it helps greatly but I also can't exercise hard enough to try and lose some weight. I know weight gain is likely on AD and this is why I was so hesitant to start taking Zoloft but I did and while it helps I can't stand the weight gain!! Is it possible to exercise (I used to run 4 miles a day in the early 90's so I like running but don't do it anymore because of the FM) with FM and lose weight? Am I doomed to being this size forever???? I don't think I can go off of AD as I have a chemical imbalance. I'm so frustrated...thanks for letting me vent. :)

So, will I ever be able to lose weight while taking AD ( I just switched to Cymbalta 2 days ago...so far so good but I'm a little scared of the withdrawal effects if it were to ever stop working for me)? I haven't decided if I'll keep taking it and go back to the Zoloft. My dr thought Cymbalta might help me lose weight and also benefit the FM...

Anyone else going through this? *sigh*

Thanks! :)

Lindsey (lurker for a year or more)

Sorry to hear you are having such a hard time. I was on Zoloft as well, but began going to a doctor who specilist is treating fibramyalgia and CFS. The first thing he did was change my medications. He informed me the Zoloft does absolutely nothing for Fibramyalgia patients. He started me on 150mg of Effexor XR and Provigil 200mg that would help with the fatique and help with feelings of sleepiness all day. Also Neurontin 200mg for the deep restful sleep we have GOT to get in order to get a handle on this condition. I am only sharing what helped me after years of going to Rymtologist and other professionals who I felt were not helping in the least.

As for as the exercise, I was informed DEEP water arobices is the best exercise and also helps with the stiffness and joint pain. I was going for a time, but have not gone for sometime due to going thur a very difficult divorce. I do plan on starting back soon.


Another RX my doctor put me on was 3ccs of injections of vitamin B12 shots.
He also put me on a chronic fatique serum I ordered through his office from a compound pharmacy.

This is a very difficult condition for our loved ones and others to fully understand as we do not LOOK sick. Many people think we are just lazy and we have to deal with these type attitudes as well as the condition. I hope this information has been helpful to you.

Good luck and God bless,

Yvonne:)

Fibro sucks...... Weight gain sucks.... We complain about the pain, Dr puts us on AD's to help with pain and depression. We gain weight, get more depressed, they up the dosage. We get fatter, and more depressed, and then our Dr's tell us that we are over weight and need to lose. OK so NOW what????? Yes it is possible to lose weight with Fibro and on AD's.... You eat nothing but weeds and seeds and excersice 12 hrs a day.. Just joking! :jester:

It can be done but I think it takes us longer and we have to work harder at it. That's just my opinion. I did lose 25lbs in 6 months, but I had to WORK hard at it, and then I got sick in the last few weeks and guess what????? 10lbs just showed up on my BUTT!!!!!

So break out you sneakers girlfriend and hit the pavement. (or treadmill, or elliptical, or bike, or Dr) Begin to sweat, and starve!!!! Tiss the season for SKINNY'S.....

Sid

It's likely that your Zoloft is what is causing your weight gain. I took Paxil for years and gained a lot of weight then when I stopped taking it I slowly over the next year I lost back down to my normal weight.

I've had fibromylgia for 20 years (doesn't seem possible it's been that long).Water exercises have helped my pain and muscles but if you stop you're right back where you started. I go twice a week to a club that has a warm water pool. I refuse to take medicine because one I don't think there are any positives and to me the side effects are too risky.

I've been reading up on Leaky Gut Syndrome (just type it in search and you'll find lots of information about it.) Supposedly this can cause fibromylgia. I'm going to talk to my doctor about it tomorrow. I want her to check this out for me and if she won't I'll find a doctor who knows enough about it to do so. It sounds like it could solve a lot of my fibro problems. Hope this info will help someone else too.

Thanks everyone for the insight. I am feeling thoroughly confused at how, since it may be possible to lose weight, I am to try and lose the weight. How do I exercise in such a way without killing myself and wishing I hadn't done it because of the fatigue and pain? How do I juggle water therapy, walking (I'd rather jog, could I do this with FM without consequences I'll regret?), etc. without over doing it?

The Cymbalta seems to be helping with both the depression and the FM. I've noticed that my appetite is gone since I started taking Cymbalta. Maybe I can lose a few pounds just by switching meds too.... :)

Thanks again everyone! :wave:

Thanks everyone for the insight. I am feeling thoroughly confused at how, since it may be possible to lose weight, I am to try and lose the weight. How do I exercise in such a way without killing myself and wishing I hadn't done it because of the fatigue and pain? How do I juggle water therapy, walking (I'd rather jog, could I do this with FM without consequences I'll regret?), etc. without over doing it?

The Cymbalta seems to be helping with both the depression and the FM. I've noticed that my appetite is gone since I started taking Cymbalta. Maybe I can lose a few pounds just by switching meds too.... :)

Thanks again everyone! :wave:


Cymbalta biggest help is a decressed appetite with most people. NOT so with me. I just eat, and eat, and then eat some more. (I eat only healthy, and nutritious food) Oh well I guess it's better than doing drugs or drinking myself to death.:eek: Some days that might be better than living with FIBRO!!!!

As far as the excersice....... Whatever you can do without killing yourself, I'd say do it. You are the one that has to be the judge of it. But excersice is almost a MUST for people with Fibro. Move it or Lose it!!!!

Sid

Thanks Sid! Now, how do I start without overdoing it? Should I take a day off in between, exercise everyday, walk one day, swim the next etc? I am unsure of how to approach exercising. That's partly why I've not started doing anything on a schedule yet. I fear over doing it more than anything.

Yvonne, yeah the Zoloft wasn't doing a thing for the FM but did help with the depression. But, I started Zoloft about 6 mo before I was finally diagnosed with FM so...... I got fed up with the weight gain and asked the dr to switch. I had my dr check my VitD levels but haven't gotten those results back yet.

Thanks again everyone!

Have a great day!

:)

All I can tell you is that you are the judge of your own body, and what my Rhumey Dr told me.

First off......Yes you will hurt after you excersice, just like anyone starting off. Take it easy to start with, and work up to a more vigorous pace.

Swimming is great, and walking too. I swim when I have the use of a pool, but mostly I use my treadmill, and Walk away the pounds tapes. Do stretches, soak in a tub, anything that will help with sore muscles after.

I too had my vitamin levels checked and my vit D was really low.

Now for what my Rhuemy told me.....UGH!!!!! 40 minutes a day, heart pounding, mega sweating, excersice. Yeah right... When he told me that 8 yrs ago, I went home and cried. It wasn't untill I got so bad with pain a yr ago that I decide to give it a try. I have to tell you that before that I was on Vicoden, Soma, Ultram, Trazodone, and O.C.T. stuff to help with the pain. The only drug I take now is Cymbalta. Very RARELY do I need anything else. I excercise daily for 30 -60 min. On the treadmill I now am able to get the speed up to 3.8-4.0mph steady for 2 miles. it takes me about 31-32 minutes. And I also do the Walk away the pounds tapes 3 to 4 times a week you work up a sweat with those too. It has taken me a yr to get to this point, I started out slow.

I also have Empysema, and mild Kidney failure so excersice has become a way of life for me. It's either use it or lose it. I do feel much better.

Take it slow, do whatever excersice you like, and then pamper yourself after.

Sid

I am in the exact same situation as you. I have gained about 50 lbs in the last 1 1/2 years on Effexor. I can't exercise vigorously enough to even lose any of it. I just switched to Wellbutrin this week, which is supposed to help in weight loss. I am also planning in using the Weight Watchers points system. It's easy to follow and you don't feel like you are losing out on anything. Drink lots of water. If you are going to exercise, do it slowly to start off with (just a short 10 min walk) every second day. Increase it weekly as you can tolerate it.

Keep in touch, I'd love to hear how you manage.

Thanks so much, Sid for the advice on exercising. I'm afraid of over-doing it. I would rather run a few miles and be done (like I used to be able to do) but I know that I probably can't do that right now. I guess I have that all-or-nothing mentality when it comes to exercise, lol. So, going slow will be difficult for me. :) I take Cymbalta and Robaxin or Flexeril (depending) to help me sleep but nothing for the pain. I take other prescription drugs but not for fibro. I have an unexplained rash that I get if I don't take Zyrtec and Zantac. No idea what that is yet. Allergist said urticaria (as does other MD's I've ran it across) but I think I may have allergies or something else. Allergist did testing but the control came back positive so the test results were hard to determine. :rolleyes: Drives me crazy not knowing what all is wrong with me. I feel I have fibro but I think there is more going on that is still undiagnosed. I've had this rash since 04! :eek: Anyway, thanks again!

kc: I don't get on the computer much with two kids but I would love to check in occasionally and see how things are going with each other. The weight gain from AD is as depressing for me as it is to BE depressed! :) I never imagined I'd be the type of person who didn't like having their picture taken because of their size. Sucks. Keep in touch, k? I'll do my best to check in every now and then!

Take care all~

4th

Hi, I am new to this site, but not new to FM.,OSt. and DJ disc disease. I have had Fm since 1994. Neck surgery in 2006. I know how you feel about the weight gain. My Dr. told me to walk 29 mins. aday and build up. I started walking and doing good until my left heel started hurting. I still tried to walk with the hurting, but I had to stop. That has been 2 months and it still hurts. At this point I don't know what else to do. The weight is a big factor to feeling better with yourself. I got the tape Walk a mile and Yogo tape and I am going to try exercising again. YOU can't give up. Start slow andgive it some time, because we have to take it slow, but the results will be worth it. Medication is not the answer, yes we have to have it to help with the depression. I am on Cymbalta 60mg. on Tues.,Thurs. and Sat. that keeps the depression under controll for me. Do you know anything about the Vit.D test or the Leaky Gut Syndrome. Let me know how you are doing.
Sherry111