can't lose any more weight

I'm in therapy and taking medication (Zoloft) for anxiety and OCD, and being treated for hypersomnia (Nuvigil). I have gradually been losing weight since I started the Zoloft 1 year ago, and lost even more when I started taking Nuvigil 4 months ago. I'm now underweight and people criticize me all the time about my thinness. I'm not working out or dieting, and I'm definitely not trying to lose weight. I don't know why it's happening.

Last week, my doctor cut down my Zoloft dosage by half (100mg to 50) to combat the weight loss, to gradually wean me off it. If this doesn't work, they'll cut back on the Nuvigil, too. I can't go off the sleep medication; I sleep up to 14 hours a day without it. But I need the antidepressant too...I'm worried. Haha, worried, get it? Anxiety joke...yeah.

I'm now 25, and I weigh 100 lbs. I can't lose any more weight. I need my medications to function in everyday life. I actually teach middle school, and I love my job. But I hate that being so thin could negatively affect the kids I teach.

When I try to talk to my coworkers and family, they always make fun of my size, weight, etc. I couldn't care less if people gossip about me, because I'm not trying to lose weight and be all Top Model. I know I'm not bulimic or anything. And I'm touched they are concerned about me and my health. But they would never criticize a normal-sized woman so harshly to her face; it's insensitive. I have no one to talk to and I'm starting to hate my body for alienating me from everyone else. I'm becoming depressed and (even more) withdrawn. Not to mention, anxious about possibly backsliding when I go off my medications. Help.

Managing a good, healthy diet can be daunting at times. Make sure that regardless of what else you eat, that you take in plenty of nutrition. Try adding nutrition packed smoothies (I use the ones from Andrew Lessman with Pro cap labs) and eating high protein and complex carbs, no empty calories.

If you just aren't hungry and perhaps forget to eat or eat enough, then try putting an alert on your phone to remind you...always carry a granola bar or something like that to snack on.

Be sure to keep excercising some too, to maintain muscle tone. As you lose weight, if you run out of fat, your body burns muscle. You know that, though, I think.

What recommendations did your MD make? If none, then talk to the dieticians at the local hospital or health food store. Good wishes!

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If your insurance will cover it, I'd strongly recommend seeing a registered dietician. I saw one to help me lose the weight I've gained with meds, and she worked with me to come up with meal plans that are really working for me. I'm sure that one could help you come up with an eating plan to help you gain or at least maintain your weight. But make sure you're seeing a registered dietician - they're regulated and are thoroughly trained. Anyone can call themselves a nutritionist as it's not a regulated profession.

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That same thing happened to me when my pdoc put me on prozac back in 1994 when anxiety & depression hit me after loosing my career. I lost so much (was down to 83 pounds), my pdoc put me in an eating disorders treatment center for 2 months. It had nothing to do with my body image, so their treatment had no effect. My weight was so low that for a over a year after that, I kept landing in the hospital & they kept doing a central line with IV nutrition. It was really a bad time of my life that I don't even have many memories of.

Stress & anxiety is the cause of all my weight loss which happened again when my mother was dying of cancer & I caught the home care person abusing her & me....it was such a frightening situation I lost almost as much as that first time. The pdoc I was seeing then put me on seroquel to help with the nightmares. Seroquel is known for it's weight gain & it had NO EFFECT on my weight....ah, how stress can over power a normal med effect. Landed in the medical hospital for a month because of that weight loss.

It's much better if you are able to take care of your nutrition without going through the IV nutrition. Central lines are dangerous....one time they knicked my lung & punctured it with the needle...had to deal with the wrapping of my legs to keep them from getting blood clots. Had no idea all the complications that could hit me.

Please take care of yourself before it becomes any worse

Thanks for listening guys! I'm still dealing with having almost no appetite, but I'm slowly finding a few things that I can eat anytime, even when I'm not hungry. I discovered that I also like this V8 juice that has a full serving of fruits and vegetables that I can grab on the go, so that helps. I'm eating granola bars...jello, fish, snack cakes...strawberries, soda...whatever I can eat that doesn't suddenly, while I'm eating it, turn gross in my mouth. Like pop tarts, and oatmeal. Ick.

Confession: ok, I've been avoiding making an appointment with my therapist for a few weeks. I don't want to go. I don't want to talk to her! She'll ask me all these questions, and of course, I'll tell the truth, and she'll be disappointed in me because I avoided her and I'm not handling my anxiety well. So, I'm too nervous to go see my therapist...to talk about anxiety. :-(

I haven't gained back any weight in the three or so weeks since I halved my dosage of the Zoloft, so how much longer do I have to go before they will give it back? I mean, is there an anti-depressant that doesn't make you lose weight?

I've just posted on the exact same topic. Sounds like we are in the same boat

It sounds like it is not the antidepressant causing the weight loss but your not eating enough. You have to eat at least 1200 calories a day or your body will go into "starvation" mode; I would get to my therapist to get over the anxiety of putting off seeing her and would also see about getting a dietitian or nutritionist to help with eating more so you get to a better weight. Tell your doctor about food you use to enjoy eating not tasting right (if that's the case; if you never liked oatmeal or pop tarts then no loss :-) and see if there is an interaction with any of the medicines you are taking. When I got home from the hospital my poor husband had to change my bed sheets three times because the medicines were throwing off my sense of smell!

Update: No change--I didn't gain back any weight, but I also didn't lose any more. Eh. Now I'm on Celexa, it's been about 2-3 weeks without Zoloft, and so far I can't tell a difference with my anxiety. There for a while, on the starter dose, my OCD became even worse and my mood was terrible. I was always mad. On a higher dose now, so we'll see.

The other day one of my 6th graders hugged me and picked me up. As in, up off the ground. I didn't yell at him, but I laughed, "excuse me!!! WHAT do you think you're doing?" He said "sorry, you just weigh so little!" I went straight to Wal-Mart after work and bought those high-calorie nutrition shakes full of vitamins and some of the foods I still like, like Nutella, and I'm committed to eating more frequently. Even when I'm not hungry...which is all the time.

I gotta say, I like looking thin--especially when I don't have to work out!--but I have to keep myself well so my medicine will work. Medication is my key to survival right now, so more calories it is.