[pirilin]

Hi Everyone,

I've been on Lithium and Remeron less than a month and have gained
10 pounds. The problem is mostly late night.

I'm sure I'm not alone in this. Any advice?. Thank you for reading.

[RomanJames2014]

I binge eat on lithium too haha. I'm trying to loose weight so that doesn't help.

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[ComfortablyNumb5]

I have an ED where binge eating was a major factor. What follows the binge? I'll keep that to myself lol. But my old pdoc put me on Vyvanse for it. And that's probably the reason he is my OLD pdoc. Though it helped and even when I don't take it now, I've still cut down a lot on the food. However I would leave stimulants as an absolutely last resort as it quite often lead to my hypo. I guess I was in denial for a long time because I didn't get a wake up call until I lost my job. So yea, even though vyvanse is approved for binge eating, I wouldn't recommend it if you are BP. I would just say, practice self control and will power. Realize that there is a consequence to grabbing that bag of chips or pop (I'm from MI, we call "soda" "pop"). I especially have to watch what I eat being on seroquel when diabetes runs in my fam. That scares the crap out of me. Hope you do better! I know it's very hard.

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What do you normally eat when you binge eat?

Could you replace your snacks with healthy options like fruit, low-fat yogurt, cereal, veggies like celery? It doesn't really solve the binge eating problem, but it might help slow down the weight gain if you focus more on eating healthy.

Eating slowly helps too. I know this is random, but I was watching some TV show... it was something like My 600-lb life.. and this girl would binge eat 10,000 calories a day. (yeah, it's insane... i know!) The doctor told her to take a bite of food and count 20 seconds before she swallowed it. That allowed her to feel fuller faster, and it help her cut down on the binge eating.

Also, my dad used to drink soda all the time and realized it was bad for him, so he replaced soda with flavored seltzer water. So that's another thing you could do if you drink lots of soda. I don't like seltzer myself, though... so i can't blame you if you're not into that.

[Ocean Swimmer]

I want to lose weight too.
I think I'll start with portion control. I have skipped the nighttime binge Seraquel eating.
I know it's not good. But a drink at around 4:00 helps. I try only 2 times per week.
My tummy is larger than it's ever been. I thought my butt was ok but my husband told the cat, look at Mommy's big butt!
I told him, there are lots of people who have much bigger butts than me!
All my girlfriends are bigger than me. That's no excuse I know.

[gina_re]

Seroquel. Made me binge eat like crazy. As I was falling asleep I felt the need to get out of bed and each as much sugary stuff I can. My choice at the time were ice cream sandwiches. Madness.

[gina_re]

Originally Posted by bluebicycle

What do you normally eat when you binge eat?

Eating slowly helps too. I know this is random, but I was watching some TV show... it was something like My 600-lb life.. and this girl would binge eat 10,000 calories a day. (yeah, it's insane... i know!) The doctor told her to take a bite of food and count 20 seconds before she swallowed it. That allowed her to feel fuller faster, and it help her cut down on the binge eating.

This does work for me. As soon as I was finished eating a meal, I would automatically get up for seconds. I started pausing instead of getting up out of habit (about 15 minutes). I noticed I actually was satisfied and don't really need that extra helping. But if donuts are involved, well that's a different story...

[BlueInanna]

I've got to do something too! I'm going to try consuming lots of water. I did this before with some success. Cold water, hot water, room temp, add an orange or lemon, mix it up. Helps give the full tummy sensation. Have healthy snacks ready like celery with peanut butter, carrots with hummus. Those fruit & fiber bars are yummy. Some dark chocolate on hand for when I'm cringing. I really have to change, I'm tired of being asked if I'm pregnant. I can do this - it was just last year I was probably 50 lbs lighter. Getting older too, it's just getting harder and harder to lose. It's really hard, not fair!!

[smallwonderer]

I could use tips too - I've gained about 45 lbs since my diagnosis. I always had a problem with food though. I have been thinking about going on a ketogenic diet like someone mentioned or just not buying/having junk food. I walk to and from work but on my way home I pass a convenience store I am *always* tempted to stop in and I don't think that it's a net benefit .

[pirilin]

I wish I could reply properly, but the ideas don't flow. Sorry.

[scatterbrained04]

I'm not skinny by any means but here's what works for me (sorry if I sound like a broken record).

I go grocery shopping once per week. I plan meals a bit before I go. I try to stay relatively low carb most days, but I don't deprive myself. I try to get most carbs from fruit. Since binging on junk is my nature, I get myself into a super healthy eating mindset...just for the time I'm at the store. I don't by junk. I don't buy pop/soda. I'll by one "treat" item once in a while though. I do most of my shopping on the outside of the store (meat, produce, dairy). Since I have a full week's worth of meals, I do not eat out or make unplanned trips to stores. I eat what I bought. I can binge on all the fruits and veggies I want. I allow myself to eat out Friday nights ONLY. Anyway, that's what works for me.

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[hahayeahtotallylol]

I binge eat when im hypomanic

[violetgreen]

I have cravings for lots of carbs after finishing supper. So I wait a bit then brew a cup of decaf black tea, and add stevia and plenty of skim milk. That helps distract me some, but I still have the cravings and mostly try to ignore them. I've "lost" 2 pounds since the new year, and I'm about 35 pounds overweight. I'm putting up with the cravings because I'm on Seroquel and want to avoid diabetes. No easy solution for this dilemma, I really empathize with you, and all of us with this problem.

How about not keeping any foods in the house that you are likely to binge on? Replace with apples, low fat yogurt, etc.

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[BlackSheep79]

I'm on Seroquel for the third time and have gained thirteen pounds. The last time I was on Seroquel my pdoc put me on Topamax to control the cravings. I didn't lose weight but I stopped gaining weight. He just put me on it again for this third round of Seroquel. I will only go as high as 50 mg on Topamax, any higher and I'm as dumb as a box of rocks.

[BastetsMuse]

Originally Posted by pirilin

Hi Everyone,

I've been on Lithium and Remeron less than a month and have gained
10 pounds. The problem is mostly late night.

I'm sure I'm not alone in this. Any advice?. Thank you for reading.

Yeah.... eat "skinny" stuff.... carrots, apples, celery, and drink lots and lots of water. So many of the psych meds cause weight gain that even if you're not overeating you could gain the weight.... but watch yourself carefully and keep a food log if you can.

[Icare dixit]

I'd suggest not storing any food for later (buy just for one, two or three days, depending on how many meals you can prepare from food bought versus the cost thereof). Any stuff you don't have to buy in large quantities you should buy daily (preferably).

I'd also suggest going to the store to buy food by bike, running or walking. Going more often helps (obviously).

Then I'd suggest water and coffee or (black) tea fasting for a long time: absolute fasting with the exception of water, coffee and/or black tea, for 24-48 hours (48 preferred in most cases, but dizziness or really extreme headaches may be cause for going for 24 hours). Then you may eat during a few hours (say 6) and after that you again fast, but now for two-thirds of the time. Eat during a few hours then fast for a third of the original time. Then, again eat during some hours. Finally start over the entire thing and do this at least for a month. Being deprived of sleep due to this is no excuse (can't be that bad with many of the atypical antipsychotics). During fasting, try not to drink only tea. Water is best. Coffee might help with some "side-effects". Do combine this with (some) exercise, even though it is very difficult.

Lastly, I'd suggest (mild and controlled: use of an alarm clock and/or coffee/tea) sleep deprivation.

The last two are to "reset" your appetite instrumentation. Combining fasting and exercise will increase your body's capacity to store energy in other ways than by fat. The first is just common sense, but it may require some careful planning.

[furiousfever]

The things that help me are:
1) outburst "no sugar added" Popsicles.25 calories. They also take a while to eat so it slows me down
2) la croix grapefruit soda water. No calories and the bubbles make me feel full
3) coloring books. Busy hands can't put things in my mouth. My favorite are the scientific ones. I can learn while I color. Also good for anxiety.

[violetgreen]

Food cravings are much more persistent for me than the alcohol cravings I first had when I stopped drinking. I get carb cravings every night, not during the day. I'm drinking my milky decaf tea as we speak. That's to remind me that I'm done eating for the day. I'm trying.

[TishaBuv]

The meds make it harder to control weight.

I eat Activia and take fiber supplements. Drink only water, coffee, tea. Fresh fruit, gluten free cereal, fat free milk for breakfast and for dinner. I eat my big meal for lunch and then don't really eat dinner now at all (or just cereal).

I sometimes slip and can't stop myself from a big, fattening desert.

I am very, very slowly taking off weight.

If I can get myself to start exercising it'll be much better.

I tell myself 'no' all the time, always have. But I at least have a couple bites of everything.

I've been doing really well the past eight days just trying to eat healthier and in moderation. I've failed at dieting so many times i can't bear another time. But i am comfortable eating in an orderly fashion, on a schedule. I blew it over the Winter and was eating chaotically and really effing up my digestive system. I'm just happy to be feeling well and not having all that intestinal distress. Really proud of myself.