I need advice.

[pops12]

I am currently 19 years of age, and pretty overweight. I was taking Zoloft since age 13 to deal with OCD and clinical depression. About a year ago I went off of the Zoloft for different reasons. Recently I have had the same old feelings of depression and I want to start taking Zoloft again. But just recently I have been told that while on Zoloft it is impossible to lose weight, is this true? While on Zoloft I was inactive, mostly due to the computer, and I ate fast food A LOT. So I was thinking that the fast food and NO excercise made me overweight, I pray that it wasn't Zoloft. Now I exercise on a daily basis and I am doing a low fat diet. Will this be enough to lose weight while on Zoloft?

Thanks in advance

 

[pops12]

I am currently 19 years of age, and pretty overweight. I was taking Zoloft since age 13 to deal with OCD and clinical depression. About a year ago I went off of the Zoloft for different reasons. Recently I have had the same old feelings of depression and I want to start taking Zoloft again. But just recently I have been told that while on Zoloft it is impossible to lose weight, is this true? While on Zoloft I was inactive, mostly due to the computer, and I ate fast food A LOT. So I was thinking that the fast food and NO excercise made me overweight, I pray that it wasn't Zoloft. Now I exercise on a daily basis and I am doing a low fat diet. Will this be enough to lose weight while on Zoloft?

Thanks in advance

 

[David Baxter PhD]

Talk to your doctor about the weight gain issue with Zoloft -- some people do see that as a side-effect with Zoloft and certain other SSRIs but there are things you can do about that: one solution that works for some is to lower the dosage of Zoloft a bit and add in a small amount of Wellbutrin, so you might ask your doctor about that.

Certainly, altering your diet -- better nutrition and more exercise will help a great deal, both for losing weight and for preventing any weight gain that the SSRIs might facilitate.

One caution, though: You indicate that you are on a low fat diet -- be careful with that. Your brain and your body need a certain amount of good fats to function properly and people on very low fat diets have been known to develop symptoms of depression or anxiety or other emotional-psychological issues because of the low fat diets. If you are going to do that, make sure that you add in foods like fish and whole grains to maximize omega 3 essential fatty acids in your food intake.

 

[David Baxter PhD]

Talk to your doctor about the weight gain issue with Zoloft -- some people do see that as a side-effect with Zoloft and certain other SSRIs but there are things you can do about that: one solution that works for some is to lower the dosage of Zoloft a bit and add in a small amount of Wellbutrin, so you might ask your doctor about that.

Certainly, altering your diet -- better nutrition and more exercise will help a great deal, both for losing weight and for preventing any weight gain that the SSRIs might facilitate.

One caution, though: You indicate that you are on a low fat diet -- be careful with that. Your brain and your body need a certain amount of good fats to function properly and people on very low fat diets have been known to develop symptoms of depression or anxiety or other emotional-psychological issues because of the low fat diets. If you are going to do that, make sure that you add in foods like fish and whole grains to maximize omega 3 essential fatty acids in your food intake.