managing weight gain from pain meds
 

This can up in another thread but I can't remember which one, so I am starting a new one. I discussed how doctors can balance meds that cause weight gain like neurotin with one that cause weight loss like lexipro so you don't have so much of a problem.

Here's the article I was thinking of. It's on antidepressants but those are commonly used as pain meds so it might still be helpful


Cleve Clin J Med. 2003 Jul;70(7):614, 616, 618, passim.Links
Managing weight gain as a side effect of antidepressant therapy.
Deshmukh R, Franco K.

Department of Psychiatry and Psychology, The Cleveland Clinic Foundation, OH 44195, USA.

Weight gain caused by antidepressant drugs is a major reason for patient noncompliance with treatment and poor treatment outcome. Knowing which drugs are more likely to cause weight gain in the short term and the long term is essential to any discussion with the patient about the risks vs the benefits of antidepressant therapy. Informing the patient up front about the chances of weight gain and what can be done if it occurs helps build a strong physician-patient relationship and promotes good treatment outcomes.

Well if I knew all this before I started down this road, I wouldn't about 70 pounds overweight right now.:rolleyes:
I really wish that docs would come right out and say that weight gain, especially for CPers, could cause problems.

Yes -- this really is a problem. Besides the meds, we women of a "certain age" tend to gain weight more easily than in our early years, plus now being in a wheelchair, unable to use my legs......YIKES!!!! Any suggestions for losing some out there????

I have accepted some weight gain [about 30 lbs] from my meds to gain better pain control is a trade off I am willing to make. It would be better if doctors talked about this more. I have watched my wife give up ADs that work well and improve our relationship because she gains weight. Knowing she will create problems in our marriage she still chooses to go off the AD. I know that it would help my wife to have meds balanced to eliminate the big weight gain.

(((((((lisa tos))))))))

I LOVE your post!

I had several accidents about 15 years ago and my doctor put me on some anti depressant. I forget which.

She didn't tell me that the side affects were weight gain and hair loss.

Which has always been a source of black humor for me... I mean what two things are more depressing than weight gain and hair loss...

I gained 60 pounds. (But I no longer had to shave my legs) :rolleyes:


Okay... moving on... what happened was that after I tried to kill myself and I was in hospital, they discovered that I have a B12 deficiency...

and once I was adequately treated for that I ceased being depressed.

But the "adequately" was not easy to attain.

Here's my favorite article... (because I don't feel as if I'm tracking any more as I write)
http://www.health-boundaries-bite.co...B12-Level.html

:)

And you know what else?
 

And to add to our problems is the fact that being overweight puts a bigger strain on our bodies and makes our conditions WORSE! It really is a Catch 22 because I pretty much have to have the meds or I'd be in the corner of my room wimpering in pain.

Earlier this year both my husband and I went on Weight Watchers. It's really quite easy, (we work the "Core Plan") and the recipes are very, very tasty.

I have lost 23 lbs. which is basically the weight I gained from the meds. I'm kind of stuck right now but sticking to the plan because I like it. I am an internet Weight Watcher so I don't attend meetings, something that works out for me because I would miss meetings due to my health.

Other than finding a program that works for you, I have no other ideas. You'd think with all the money they get for research, the drug companies would figure something out ;) .

Take care, all;
Nancy

Hi Nancy,

(Smiling because of your little dogs)

The weight watchers on line sounds really good.

I admire you for losing 23 pounds. Well done!!!!!

I can't bear to weigh myself any more. I get totally obsessed and then terrified that I'm going to gain it back... so then I'm on the scale every hour (or more), so I have to avoid that whole downward spiral.

I started walking around my garden, really minimal exercise, and I've lost more than ten inches from around my waist... and, I no longer have to measure my "waist" right under my bust line in order to have a place where the measuring tape will go around me. :)

Yes, it was a totally horrifying situation.

And yes, it does affect health.

But when you can barely move... well, what are our poor bodies supposed to do? Mine just put on weight... sort of like some people play crosswords... ;)

I have another 13 or so inches to go...

I try to measure once a month... that way the results tend to be consistently encouraging...

but in between I'm often beset by fear....

Well, thanks for the post. :)

And for the smile from your little dogs.

:)

I have RSD and went from 135lbs (having been super thin my entire life) to 240lbs @ 5'9".... I gained all this over 8 years time. I can NOT seem to loose the weight and now makes my foot and knee kill me even worse! They just discovered that I have a B12 deficiency also. weird? I wonder if its connected to my dystrophy in some way?

Try Pool Therapy
 

:)Try to get into a pool therapy program, the water works wonders and relieves joint and muscle pain just by reducing the pressure points on your body...floating, doing exercises with your body in the water. It's a known fact that water therapy/excercises are very good for building back up the muscles you can't use out of water and burning calories at the same time without the pain. Some insurance companies pay for Water Therapy you'll just have to call to find out. Hope this helps!:hug:

Such a great thread!! I have always had a little problems with weight...little...lol. what do you do to balance it out?

Dr Helping Me
 

When my Dr put me on Lyrica and Cymbalta (for nerve pain and depression) I asked him about weight gain side effects from these drugs. He said they were caused by increased appetite, and to loose weight I should follow a low carb diet. I started that and have been loosing 2lbs a week. I hope it continues, I've lost a total of 30 Lbs and my goal is to loose 55 more. We'll see then if my back pain goes away, like so many have suggested.

I was put on lyrica and the Dr had the nerve to tell me weight gain was not a side effect! While I was sitting there holding the startup pamphlet that listed weight gain as a side effect! I do not find that Dr's are very sympathetic about concerns with weight gain.

I will not accept weight gain as a side effect. I suffer from poor body image when my weight is under control and I am not going to gain weight on medications like lyrica and gabapentitn(sp?) that do not even help my pain and make me gain weight and need to buy clothes that I can't afford! Its not fair and Dr's are really (in my experience) not prepared to deal with what it is like to be a woman in chronic pain and depressed because of that pain and then gaining weight on top of that and not even having their pain controlled. Maybe if the pain was gone! I could tolerate that, I could make a decision pain and no weight gain or pain free with weight gain but gaining weight and being in pain and having the Dr's just keep saying the need to "up the dose" and I "have to wait".

aargh!!!! :mad::eek:

ok sorry for the rant this is just a really sore spot for me!

Vitamin B-12
 

I have RSD and severe cervical spinal stenois. The first few times I received injections of vitamin B-12, my pain was reduced. After that, I did not feel better after the B-12 injections.

When I took lyrcia, I gained 2 pounds a weeks for two months. When I stopped taking the lyrica, I lost the weight.

The best drug for my RSD was thalidomide. It worked better than methadone. I have RSD in my hands. Thalidomide can cause temporary or permanent nerve damage. I felt like I was developing nerve damage in my legs, so I stopped taking the thalidomide.

I also found 10% topical ketamine gel helpful. It is complicated: you need a doctor who is very familiar with RSD to write you a script, then you have to find a compounding pharmacy to make it for you. Many insurance plans do not cover custom compounded drugs.

The Alpha Stim Tens 100 helps my insomnia, but not my pain. It is a battle to get the insurance company to pay for it because it cost almost a thousand dollars, which is much more expensive thna a typical tens unit.