Celexa (citalopram) is one of the most widely prescribed drugs for anxiety disorders and panic attacks. Like most SSRIs (Selective Serotonin re-uptake inhibitors) it is not uncommon to experience side effects. In most cases these are mild and harmless, and pass within the first few weeks of treatment. For others they are unbearable and lead the patient to terminate his/her treatment. Side effects then pass after the medication leaves your system. Relying on drugs might not be wise. Why not also consider something like Panic Away, one of the most reliable anxiety cures.
There is one side effect that seems to linger. Weight gain. Not everyone who takes Celexa for an Anxiety disorder puts on weight but a sizeable number of people do. The amounts very, but weight increases of 25 pounds are not at all unheard of.
Why does Celexa cause weight gain? Well, there are many possible reasons. Perhaps it’s because it alters your body’s metabolism and you burn calories more slowly. Perhaps because it increases your cravings for carbohydrates (some people have definitely reported this). Maybe it’s because when you feel less anxious and relax more you are prone to exercise less, and tense your muscles less. Many people report feeling tired and lethargic on this kind of drug.
The final possibility is that food cravings are an underlying part of the problem, the reason you were prescribed the drug in the first place. Perhaps you are using a sugar hit to escape. If that is the case then you have uncovered a layer of your problem and now it’s time to set to work on it!
If you have gained weight, try to gently moderate your diet and start an exercise regime after clearing it with your doctor. Quite simply burning more calories and consuming less will lead to weight loss. And what’s more, exercise is a great natural remedy for anxiety and depression!
For more info on drugs, look at anxiety 2 calm’s drugs page.
I’ve taken Celexa (citalopram) for anxiety/depression for 2 years and have gained about 30 pounds.
The underlying issues which caused my anxiety/depression (being abandoned with 3 small children, trying to make a living for me and them) also made it almost impossible to take exercise and look after myself.
I’m now getting better and am reducing dose and the weight is slowly going. It’s hard work through, and made easier by a better job, and my kids being older and out at school all day.
Advice on healthy diet and exercise tends to assume an ‘ideal world’ whereas many women I know who are depressed are also trapped in debt, long working hours, uncongenial living conditions and have little access to cheap childcare. I understand why physicians give the advice, but they must surely understand how difficult such advice can be to follow.
I am in exactly the same situation, I was left with 3 small children and my world fell apart. However with help from my gp, I was also taking citalopram and sinequin, and I put on about 70 pounds in a year. However my gp was not prepared to see that there was a link. I reduced my medication after 2 years and the weight started to drop off within weeks and in the space of 6 months I lost 28 pounds.
However now I am concerned that after all that hard work, I have had to go back on them and that I will instantly balloon again. But now I know that the affect weight gain I will try really hard to monitor my food intake.
HI I TOO HAVE BEEN ON CITALOPRAM FOR NEARLY A YEAR AND HAVVE GAINED NEARLY 2 STONE, I HAVE NO APPETITE AT ALL, HARDLY EAT A THING AND CONTINUING TO GAIN WEIGHT. WHEN I SPOKE TO MY DOCTOR, I WAS TOLD IT WAS MY LIFE STYLE….what lifestyle.. i have severe panic disorder/agrophobia aand severe depression, so i wouldnt actually say i have a lifestyle. These tablets do really help, they do make me feel better but the wight gain makes me depressed…. get the picture, i cant win. im at the point now, that i want to reduce the meds and see how i cope, maybe even loose some of the weight gain. I can only try. i am in total favour of this medication and it really does work but with the weight gain. you have to make your own choice. like i have recently read ……..fay and happy… slim and sad…… good luck
Hello, I have been taking 30mg of Citalopram for over a year now and have put on 2 stone. It also makes me extremely tired and lethargic. It has, however, lifted my depression and I have not had a panic attack since taking it. I plan to come off the drug in the new year (under medical supervision) and what I would like to know is how soon after stopping it, does my system go back to normal? I eat very little amounts, exercise moderately and my weight seems to have stabilised at 2 stones over my ideal- any ideas?
I think anything from a few months to a year is common…you don’t want to lose more than a kilogram a week!
I have gained 36 pounds in the 2 years I have been taking citralopam…its not very good but better than constant gnawing anxiety.Iam going to try to lose some in the NY-by giving up the junk food I craved when i first started taking it..incidentally,I recently decreased my dose and lost some weight butt todayb had to go back up as I just felt so awful on 20mg and so much better on 40mg…I do sleep an awful lot though!!
I have been on Prozac, lexapro,paxil (made me yawn all day) and zolft and they all made me gain weight. My depression is getting really bad that I thought about suicide. I am afraid to go on any medicine because I dont let me rephrase that I CANT gain any weight. The way I feel about myself has really played a big part in my depression. I cant stand to look at myself in the mirror. I won’t go to a doctor because I am afraid they will prescribe more anti-depressants and I will gain weight. I am going crazy please help.
I’ve been on citalopram for 8 years OMG! I have put on weight big time, it makes you need food, not because you’re tummys rumbling and you’re hungry, you just need to eat. I now don’t take any drugs at all but I’m on that slippery slope and am now looking at my options. Is there an SSRI that doesn’t make you need food and gain weight? Nicole, I’m with you, I too can’t stand to look in the mirror and at home we don’t have any full length ones! If we did I don’t think I’d ever go out.