Coming off of Seroquel and losing weight

My pdoc is taking me off of Seroquel (Yay)

I've been on it since 2007 and gained about 30 - 40 pounds. With diet and exercise I have lost 20 of that and she has been lowering the dosage slowly - I was at 300mg and am now down to 50.

i'm just wondering from anyone else that has been through this, how long does it take after you come off of Seroquel to lose weight a bit more easily. I have struggled for about 18 months to lose this the rest of the weight- I eat healthy, I work out, I have been to diet drs, personal trainers and a well known nutritionist, who told me i was his toughest client in 20 years.

I'm so frustrated to never see the scale move when i'm working so hard.

Did anyone see a big difference in their weight after coming off of this? What about Lamictal because I may come off of that next.

Any info or advice would be greatly appreciated!

I have been on seroguel for a long time. Currently I take 600 mgs. At first I had a weight gain but I've managed to adjust my diet and exercise so my weight is at an acceptable level. It's hard to do but maybe I'm one of the lucky ones who can keep the extra weight off.

Thank you for responding.
The seroquel made me so hungry when I first went on it and took 300mg- like RAVENOUSLY hungry! Now that i'm cutting it down i do notice i'm a bit less hungry, and i can control the cravings better. It's a step.

I have a good diet. I exercise very regularly. i've been on 1000 calorie diets, i've been on 1200 calorie diets. i'm not obese, I'm 15 pounds over the weight I should be for my height and no matter what I do the scale doesn't move. I feel like it's really altered my metabolism. or maybe it's because i'm in my 40s now too - we'll see when it's all out of my system.

i see my pdoc again in a week and a half.

UPDATE
I have lost 2 lbs in the last 4 days. It was taking me weeks to lose 2 lbs when I was working with the nutritionist and diet dr.
I have not drastically altered my diet or workout schedule. In fact, I was away over the weekend.

My dosage of Seroquel has been at 50mg for 2 + weeks. Coincidence? Hmmm.

When I went of antipsychotics (seroquel and abilify), I started steadily losing weight. I have so far lost 16 pounds without really working at it. I still have a long way to go, but I'm already feeling so much better not carrying around those extra pounds.

16 pounds is a lot to lose without working at it. i'm so happy to hear that! I hope you keep losing if that's what you want to do - I'm hoping i do too.

Seroquel can cause "metabolic syndrome" which basically messes up your metabolism which can contribute to weight gain and difficulty losing weight. Seroquel effects histamine receptors which cause the drowsiness and the weight gain. Once you are off of it for about a month I would guess you'll find it much easier to lose weight. It takes a while for the med and its metabolites to clear your system. And if it was causing metabolic syndrome, it will take a while for your system to re-adjust and return to normal.

So hang in there and try to be patient!

Jerry

Thank you...I wish someone had explained it to me so specifically initially

I'm trying to be patient. losing 2 lbs in one week while I'm still taking 50mg is pretty good - I see my dr this Thursday so we'll see what the next step is.

Update

My dr gave her blessing to stop taking the Seroquel last night.

Hoping this will work and I will have good mental health and my weight will slowly come down after it's all out of my system.

sleep was not great last night but I slept before i took Seroquel so I just have to get used to it I guess.

And her scale had me 5 lbs lighter than my home scale so that was nice to see.

I haven't come off of a med in 5 years so this is a huge step for me!

I want to be weened off Seroquel after being on 100mg for 4 years.

The weight gain is horrible and does nothing for my self esteem. Plus, I feel foggy in the mornings, almost like a mild hangover.

I am interested to see how the Seroquel withdrawal goes for you, because I am afraid that I may be addicted to it.

Good luck and best wishes.

Hey Furious George

I actually switched to Seroquel XR towards the end (was able to get free samples), which does not have the same "sledgehammer" effect as regular Seroquel at least for me.

I went from 300 mg for several years to 200 mg for a few months to 100 mg for 2 weeks to 50 mg for 3 weeks to now 0. I did this after many discussions with my doctor and making a lot of lifestyle changes.

Last night was my first night off of it and i definitely didn't get my usual sleep - up for about 2 hrs in the middle of the night - luckily I am not working right now (one of those lifestyle changes) so i wasn't freaking out about it - I know i'll sleep eventually.

Make sure you talk to your dr and make a plan...I'm hoping I don't have too many symptoms! I'll let you know - feel free to PM me if you have any questions.

Sorry to be nosy, but how is the withdrawal going for you? Good I hope.

Not nosy at all - so far so good - not sleeping great but that was to be expected. the first few days i had some stomach issues, but it's been about 10 days now and physically, other than the not sleeping, i think i'm doing ok. mentally, I feel more alert...I'm DYING for the weight loss to start, but I know that will take a few more weeks but i'll be kicking up the exercise now too.

feel free to PM me with any question if you want too.

i really appreciate you asking

Update
3 weeks off of Seroquel
Lost 2 more pounds.

Definitely feel less hungry all around and don't have that starving feeling at night that I used to get.

Sleeping about 4-4.5 hours per night in a row, then I wake up and usually doze back off for a little. i think I've developed a tolerance to Ambien and I'm going to bring it up in T today and see if she will mention it to the dr who I'm not seeing for 2 weeks.

Mentally I feel ok - having some issues at home but I feel like I'm handling them well considering I just dropped a major medication - will also speak to T about that this afternoon.

Good job jadedmoonbeam!
How encouraging your posts are. I know how hard it is to loose the weight-especially when you are doing everything "right"
Good work on weaning off your meds and doing well without them! You go girl!!! I really appreciate the updates too-that's where the hope comes in-you can see your progress and it's wonderful!
Good luck in the future to you!
noneedtoknow

Thanks noneedtoknow
This site has given me so much more support to do this - - posts like yours really make me feel encouraged!

I was able to see my pdoc today - she's in the same group with my T - She said everyone who stops Seroquel has trouble sleeping and she doesn't want me to go without sleep - she gave me a prescription for Lunesta to try instead of Ambien. I'll let you know how that works in the morning!

I am on abilify, celexa, klonopin plus vitamins and I feel ravenously hungry, and even if I eat a ton of food I still feel extremely hungry and like my stomach is empty and growling. My pdoc won't take me off anything so you are lucky. I have gained 45 pounds since november.

I'm sorry you're going through it. When I started working out regularly and eating very healthy i was able to maintain my weight. I don't know a lot about Abilify and Celexa - they might slow down your metabolism or thyroid - maybe you can have your thyroid checked?

One of the major side effects of seroquel is weight gain. I have been on it for over ten years and continue to struggle with that as well. I have bipolar disorder. Although, I am also on lithium which can make you gain weight too. I have, "fallen off the ban wagon" lately but for several years I ate extreamily healthy and jogged. Still couldn't lower the scale. However, it keeps me alive. If the dose is lowered, I struggle with both anxiety and depression. At times when I have been at the end of my rope, the doctor upped the dosage and it made me feel better. Can't live with it, can't live without it I guess.

So it's been 2 months since I stopped taking Seroquel.

I am happy to report that I can finally sleep about 6 hours a night which is a huge improvement from the 2-3 hours of restless sleep that immediately followed. I'd been trying all different sleeping remedies - i'd originally been on Ambien CR, switched to Lunesta with Ativan, then Sonata, added some Benadryl, took some extra Xanax, and am now back to taking Ambien CR.

My appetite and control of my appetite is finally back in check. That ravenous feeling is pretty much gone and the scale is moving a little bit.

My mood...well...i have a LOT of stuff going on at home, but I am not falling into deep depression or getting super manic...i am seeing my pdoc very regularly and trying to avoid going on any other meds at this point.

Hi Jaded,

Glad to hear that you have successfully tapered off and have regained your sleep. The 2 months must have been rough.

I've tapered Seroquel down to 50mg so far, and have had interrupted sleep. I can't seem to sleep for more than 1.5 hours at a time. Although I'm still getting 4-6 hours a night. The idea of being off it completely kind of scares me. I easily go manic if I don't sleep for a night or two.

Would you have any sleep aid suggestions? I'd like to discuss this with my pdoc before I go off the quel.

Thanks and good luck.

Definitely a rough 2 months in terms of sleep. do you use any other sleep aids like Ambien? it worked for me before i took Seroquel and it's working again now. i don't feel sleepy or hung over in the morning either.
also melatonin, Benadryl or even Tylenol PM all make other people tired. I've been having trouble sleeping since the late 80s so i think I actually make myself worse about it.
Another person i know takes Restoril which is a benzo type drug.
some people like Trazodone too - personally I had nightmares from it but it does work for other people -
i was actually getting really really close to taking a low dose of Seroquel to sleep if i didn't start sleeping this week - I still have some 25 mg in my drawer....my pdoc was suggesting it last time and I fought it.
SIGH....
One battle down.

ive been on seraquel for 8 years and am trying to get off it for the past year ive been taking 400mg and two months ago i started taking 500mg the past two weeks ive gone from 400mg to 200mg the past few nights my weight has been going down by the day and i sleep a little bit less but i feel a lot better. i also take 3mg of klonopin a day. well taking it for so long ive got my body accustomed to only eat at night when i take it so know that ive cut down im not hungrey at night. theway ive always takin it was 200mg and then another an hour later .

I gained a LOT of weight on Seroquel and Depakote. I tried exercise, diet... nothing worked. I went off both cold turkey (with my Dr.'s consent), with no ill effects, went on some new meds and have slowly been losing weight ever since. I miss the great sleep I had with the Seroquel, but that's about it.

since the lowering of three hundred mg a nigh off seroquel i notice that im less what they call by polar and in a really good mood all the time and im still losing weight and my constant random movements have become less and less of a problem

and i still sleep around eight to nine hours a night