Viibryd Weight Gain (Top voted first)

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I originally got on the web today to research how to loose weight gained from medication. I have been on Viibryd for 6 months for Major Depressive disorder. I currently take 40 mg. It should be noted taking Viibryd has changed me from a size 0 to size 6. 20lbs. My appetite at times especially in the evening is RAVENOUS. I am embarrassed by how much I can eat and not be full. I have been nonchalant about a few pounds here and there but it devestated me yesterday when i caught a glimpse of CELLULITE on my backside. Nothing else has changed in my medicines or routine. I have always been slim. I have compassion for any who have been trying to figure out if Viibryd is causing their body to change physically. I also will comment on other side effects in another post. My memory is compromised and suicidal thoughts have to be fought daily. I do not consider myself suicidal, but there is something different and desperately depressing recently.

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7

I am hoping to wein off Viibryd (i take 40mg) due to weight gain... I am wondering if getting off Viibryd help you lose the weight you gained while on it? I have always been 125 lbs and since starting viibryd 6 months ago I have jumped to 150! I cant take the weight off! I am stunned by it bc i eat right and exercise. any advice or reassurance would help..

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2

Please, Verwon, don't blame everything on menopause. Viibryd definitely causes weight gain whether the drug company admits it or not. I am 58 and 8 years past it. I have taken many different antidepressants over the past 18 years - some cause weight gain, some made me sleep 18 hours a day. Most of the time, if it is a new med, it is the med, not menopause.

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20

Hey all- I commented on this a while ago, and I wanted to follow up. I had gained 23 pounds in less than a year on Lexapro and Viibryd. Nothing I did was taking it off, and this was abnormal for me- my body typically adjusts quickly to dietary changes and exercise and I have never before gained that kind of weight in my life. Since stopping the Viibryd, I have lost about 15 lbs, without increasing my level of activity (which was always pretty active- running, riding horses, rock climbing) or drastically changing my diet. I did notice that when I DID change my diet, I lost weight and kept it off whereas doing the same thing while on Viibryd did nothing. I still plan to lose another 10 pounds, but progress is happening, whereas it was not happening at all on Viibryd. Something else to consider is that many of us from the generations before ADD meds were popular may have ADD which can cause depression. Every situation is individual, but anti-depressants/anti-anxiety meds made me more anxious and less focused but ADD meds so far have helped me focus, thereby removing anxiety and depression.

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6

I gained almost 70lb on Viibryd within six months. It just sort of hit me all at once. I changed nothing in my diet. It is a HORRIBLE medication. Along with the weight gain, my joints were always hurting, I was constantly sick to my stomach. I wish I had gone off the medication after a month, but I trusted my psychiatrist when he promised the side effects would go away. I am never believing that again!

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10

I'm wondering what dosage everyone is on that claims to have gained weight from this drug? I have been on 10 mg for a little over 6 months and I have not gained a pound. I take this in combination with buspar for extreme anxiety and it's been working well for me. I liked lexapro but I gained like 15 pounds that I cannot lose. Lexapro sucks for that so I'm happy I found viibryd. The only thing that I can complain about is the fact that it's very expensive.

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22

What's most important to remember is that everyone reacts to medication in a very individual way. Just because you don't gain weight on a medication doesn't mean you're doing something right, and people who gain weight are doing something wrong. I am a very active person, I eat healthy, I don't indulge in junk food or overeat, and I still gained weight on Viibryd. Once I got off of the medication and stopped SSRIs altogether, lo and behold, my weight rapidly returned to normal, without me having to change a thing, except to get the medication out of my body.

Since stopping Viibryd, I've lost all of the weight I gained, in less than a year. That's 20lbs gained, 20lbs lost. The medication was absolutely to blame.

And for those of you who go around voting helpful posts down, get a life.

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3

I too have been taking Viibryd and slowly increasing from 20 to 40 mg. I have been on it for about 6 months. I too have gained about 10 lbs, have abdominal bloating, swelling in my legs, cannot sleep, hot at night and having weird thought. Not suicidal but, just plain weird. I workout with a trainer 2 x week walk 4 miles a day. There is definitely something to the Viibryd and weight gain. My hormone levels are supposedly normal. Mine could be a combination of issues BUT, I am weening myself OFF of the Viibryd. I am going to look in the direction of a holistic approach. I am NOT suggesting in any way that you stop all medications. But you have to take charge of your medical care. My sister has introduce me to a highly educated nutritionist (Candace Booth in Tavares, Fl) who has been working with me.

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25

I am so glad to find these posts! I am a 47 year old male, who WAS in peak physical condition before viibryd. I weighed 173 lbs, low body fat 11%, within six months of starting viibryd gained 25 lbs, then 30, then 60 at two years. I am now, 4 years later, at almost 250 lbs. I have had every possible hormone and medical issue checked viibryd was the only variable. Finally my doctor has agreed to switch me. I am starting a new atypical medication and will report back my results.

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5

I have been on Viibryd for about 6 months. My last dose was 60mg. I do not eat much, I do not like food. I can't stand the smell of meat cooking. I don't eat sweets, cookies, chips etc. But.... I gained approximately 35 lbs for no reason after starting Viibryd! Month after month I complained about this weight gain, it fell on deaf ears. My other doctors, I am physically disabled due to Fibromyalgia, arthritis, Chronic Migraines and Lifelong Chronic Depression and just recently diagnosed with narcolepsy. Yeah, life sucks and then you die, but, I don't want to die. My Psychiatrist is a MD, PHD and specializes in Medication Management! One would think he knew what he was prescribing! 2 Months ago he added Deplin to my meds. After 2 weeks, I was so manic, I was almost out of my mind! `I wasn't sleeping for more than 2-3 hours at night, even with prescibed sleep meds. At the end of 2 weeks, I went for 3 days without sleep! I quit the Deplin but things never really got better. At my next monthly appointment, 2 weeks after stopping the Deplin, I explained what happened and he actually laughed! His words "Deplin is Folate, a form of Vitamin B6! Let's change your Viibrd back to Pristic. BUT, continue the Deplin, take 1 pill every 3 days and gave directions to wean off the Viibryd which took 12 days. That was 3 doses of Deplin. I became completely out of control, Manic is a mild word to how I felt! After 4 days of no sleep, in desperation I stupidly took 3 lunestas and 3 valiums and cqalled the office begging to talk to my doctor. Sensing the panic in my voice, I was referred to a non medically trained "Office Manager". I told her what I had done and said "Last night I fell over my blind dog and I am afdraid of hurting them. WRONG!! The word HURT is a trigger word! After getting no satisfaction from the office, I simply said, "I'm going to bed and hope to get some sleep! Less than 2 hours later, I awoke to find 2 nasty police officers who dragged me out of my house HANDCUFFED! Because of my disability, I couldn't get into the police car fast enough and the officer "helped" by slamming my head into the top of the door/roof of the car! I was transported to the prison ward of the local hospital when I was treated like an ax murderer! After 6 horrific hours I was "discharged out into the 101 degree heat with no ID, money or cell phone! I walked/crawled 1/2 mile to a gas station where the clerk took pity on me and called my husbands work. After dropping me off at home, my husband, in a rage, went to the doctors office where a clerk informed him that I had said the "hurt" work and they followed protocal! Another man came in with my chart and said, Oh, I just looked it up and found out that Viibryd and Deplin cause serious interactions! Can you say "legal case"!!!!

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16

I have been taking Viibryd 10 mg for six month, and I can not loose weight. I am 54 years old, menopause. Taking Viibryd, compare to the first antidepressant that I took. I feel more active during the day. Viibryd for me is two problems: starving and diffcultie to fall asleep at night. I gained 10 pounds. Still I can not loose weight. Over all my belly is getting bigger and sweling my legs everyday. After reading all your comments, I feel that maybe the Viibryd does not help to keep me in shape. I will talk to my doctor. Thanks for your comments.

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17

I have taken 40mg of viibryd for 5 months and have gained 40lbs. I look like I am pregnant and have terrible abdominal cramps. These effects didn't start until about one month on the 40mg dosage. I am weaning off right now and switching to buspar and hope that I will be able to lose this weight. It did help with my anxiety but the weight gain I feel counteracts the health benefit. I have never been this heavy. I will be curious to see the results. I guess it is time to call a personal trainer to get ME back!

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23

I have been on Viibryd for a year and a half now. I have ALWAYS been thin, and I have gained around 25 lbs doing the same thing I have always been doing. It's impossible for me to lose weight on this med. I have gained weight on other Antidepressants in the past, yet never this much weight.

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26

Im so glad to finally find somebody having the same issues I am with Viibryd. I also have weird nightmares that I can't even explain. I can go all day & not feel hungry but I still eat so my tummy won't hurt yet around bedtime I feel like I'm starving. Idk what to do I have severe depression but I also need to loose a lot of weight & by taking this med isn't gonna help me.

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8

I have been on Viibryd for just over a year and couldn't figure out where the weight gain was coming from. (Approx 80lbs gained) I am currently weening off (down to 5mg every other day) and have already noticed a difference in the cravings. My doctor has also prescribed phentermine to help me lose the weight as diet and exercise was not helping while on the Viibryd. Between weening, phentermine, diet, and exercise, I'm happy to say that I'm starting to drop the weight.

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9

Has the joint pain gone away since stopping the drug?

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12

I am on 10 mg of Viibryd right now. I lost twenty pounds last spring, however, I was not very happy due to high anxiety. I was on Zoloft and slowly gained back all the weight I lost and could not figure out why! Switched to Viibryd and while I haven't gained weight, it is EXTREMELY hard to lose weight. I'm 19 and workout everyday for 40 minutes and eat clean, healthy foods 90% of the time. I haven't lost more than 3 pounds and find that I gain weight easier if I don't pay attention. I think the lower dosage is much better for weight, as I was on 100 mg of the Zoloft.

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15

Same boat. I was on Lexapro, gained 20lbs, craved carbs and sugar. Switched to Viibryd, thought it was fantastic at first, was able to lose 5-6 lbs, then after a few weeks the weight loss plateaued despite increased exercise and calorie tracking, etc. Now starting to feel the familiar 'puff' in the stomach area, so I am weaning off over the next two weeks to see if I can undo the SSRI damage that has been done to my body.

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27

Thank you for your post. I have been on Viibryd for 2 years, 40 mg. and have gained 70 lbs. I was told I would not gain weight on this antidepressant.

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28

I have been on viibryd for 3 weeks and have too gained weight. Very depressing as weight/eating disorder is what I am in counseling for. Was told viibryd is weight neutral and I can guarantee this is not true. I have had less bingeing with my eating disorder and exercising the same but still gained weight. Don't even want to go to the gym anymore cause I'm embarrassed about my weight.

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31

Re: Nic (# 10) Expand Referenced Message

I gained 40 pounds over a year on viibryd 40mg. I was on 20mg for 6 weeks then increased to 40mg. No weight gain on the 20mg

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