[Sabrina_saw]

You guys don't know me (well ..... hello Genevieve) but I would like to introduce myself and I would also like to make use of the very reason we have these boards. I need to whine and moan and feel sorry for myself. I don't mind if no one cares to listen.

I am overweight due to anti depressants. Up to now, I have been eating a well balanced, very low fat diet and have been excersising. My weight has continued to go up and up. Over the last two weeks I have become so frustrated with the continued weight gain that I have rebelled and I have started eating everything I can get my hands on. Night time is particularly painful for me. I cook a healthy supper, have a small helping, wait for husband to go to bed and promptly plough into bread, cheese and lately, sweets. All this on top of my nightly gallon of wine.

I am binging out of control and constantly crave salty junk food. I continue to eat when I am not even hungry. I have even tried drinking litres of water when I am hungry but my stomach continues to growl.

I know I am to blame for the last bit of weight gain. I know I am to blame!! It just really sucks to be me right now and to feel my stomach, not even wobbly any more, just so distended that I look about 7 months pregnant.

I am at my wits end. I eat well, I gain weight. I binge, of course I gain weight. I go off the meds, I will die.

Thanks for letting me get this out.

[wanttoheal]

(((((((((((((sabrina))))))))))))))) Im sorry you are having a difficult time. I hope it gets better for you soon.

[Sabrina_saw]

Thank you wanttoheal. I appreciate your thoughts.

[silver_queen]

Perhaps you could change anti-depressants to some that would not contribute to weight gain? Also, drinking the wine will add weight as well, so maybe you could try cutting down a little on that?

[Sabrina_saw]

Thank you silver_queen.

You are quite right about cutting down on the wine. I am an alcoholic and the best I have been able to do so far is spritz my wine which is a low alcohol, low calorie version for what that is worth. Prior to AD's I drank my usual amout without weight gain. (Though I didn't indulge in this kind of binge eating).

I have tried about 15 different AD's of which the last 4 have spiralled my weight. The one I am on now is supposed to be weight neutral as were the last 3. In fact - one drug I took known for weight loss, added to my weight.

I am usually a side-effect text book but have done the reverse with all the weight gain. I suspect I cannot metabolize the AD's, but then again, what do I know?

Thanks for your kind suggestions.

Have you ever tried Topamax? It's an anti-seizure med, but pdocs prescribe it to decrease alcohol cravings. It's also prescribed as an appetite suppressant. It worked GREAT for me for about a year. For some people it seems to work indefinately.

emsky

[kimmydawn]

(((((((((((((((((((((( sabrina ))))))))))))))))))))))))))

i'm so sorry. i really am. i've been where you're at and woke up having to lose 87 lbs. it was so hard and discouraging.

i don't have an answer for you but to hope that soon you'll be able to get some meds that might not pack on the weight.

i can just say...i do understand and it's not a good feeling place to be in

good wishes to you

[Genevieve]

Hi, Dear.

Aside from the obvious -- that wine is not only bad for the alcoholism, but it reduces your inhibitions so that it's harder to avoid that binge -- I can only offer this piece of advice: hie thee to a Registered Dietitian yesterday.

Yeah, those ADs can pack on the pounds, and a lot of doctors still practice the time honored tradition of blaming the patient, but an RD can help you figure out a way to minimize the gain, and maybe lose some. Also, the RD can just act as support to you specifically around the weight issues. You know that I'm in a boat in that same ocean, even if it's in a different current, and the RD I'm seeing is without a doubt the most central figure in any sort of recovery I'm doing.

(Oh, and I've fallen off that wagon lately -- and am still packing on the pounds. Methinks Cymbalta is going to turn out to be a pound packer...)

You know you have my full support, so I'll just close here.

[MacD]

i went through a similar period of compulsive overeating in my life (& our tastes in binge food sound the same) lol...Like you, i was unhappy, ashamed with my appearance yet seemingly unable to stop....then i read something..don't even remember where, but it was the beginning of the end of compulsive eating for me..Maybe it will help you too -
Basically, the writer said that compulsive eating, like just about any addictive behaviour, is a desperate attempt to take care of oneself..to soothe the pain, so to speak...the writer went on to advise that we in this situation should be kind to ourselves..in fact..maybe do the unthinkable and give ourselves permission to eat/feed as we feel that we need to...For Some Reason, this freed me....I did have a few more binging incidents, but then with the change in perspective, i found other ways to care for myself..I hope that you can find the same peace....love Mac

[Sabrina_saw]

Mood stabilizers tend to have the opposite effect on me turning me into a raging psychotic.

In December last year, I had an ......... ummm ............ counting accident with my Topomax and instead of taking the prescribed one a day, decided to take the whole 2 bottles.

So I guess I blew my chances he!

[Sabrina_saw]

Thank you everyone - for your kind thoughts, suggestions and support. I am proud to say that I behaved far better last night and only indulged in a dry wholewheat roll and some raw unsalted (good grief!) nuts.

I will keep you posted of my progress.

McDonald - thank you for those words - I will be giving them much thought!

I am happy I posted this here.