Anti-psychotics: how do you not gain weight?

Does anyone have any suggestions on this topic? Besides the obvious fact of eating less; I'm at a loss.

I keep gaining...not as fast but still going up never down. I'm switching from Seroquel to Abilify hoping to change this trend.

I hope it doesn't get to the point of me becoming Jabba the Hut or developing health problems before I become willing to change somehow.

I guess I eat too much & too often BUT how do I reduce cravings to eat while not feeling like I'm starving?

-kby-

I've noticed that when I eat higher protein and lower carbohydrates, the constant hunger and the urge to eat sweets goes away after a few days. I have been following a "40-30-30" type diet for the past year and I lost 60 pounds so far (out of 80 that I need to lose). 40-30-30 means 40% of daily calories from carbs, 30% from protein, and 30% from fat. 40% carbs is quite a bit lower than what people normally eat in a day, and 30% protein is quite a bit higher, without being as extreme as "high protein diets" like Atkins. I use the fitday.com site to track what I eat (it's free to use). It does the calculations for me.

I eat a small meal every 4 hours or so. If I eat more carbs than 40% (like pasta meals, or sweets during the holidays), the between-meal hunger and urge to munch comes back. Then, when I go back to 40%, the hunger subsides again after a few days.

My antipsychotic, by the way, is Geodon, which my doctor keeps saying is weight neutral. I don't know about that. Me gaining 80 pounds in 2 years suggests otherwise, although I've never been able to pinpoint which med was responsible for that weight gain.

Thanks for your reply jadyn. I was on a diet called the 'Zone' in the 90's that was very similar if not the same as the 40-30-30 you're doing. It worked pretty well & I don't know why I ever stopped. I used to prepare my meals ahead of time & I ate a lot of raw veggies & lean protein like tuna.

I think I wait too long to eat then eat too much. I think I will try what you do: eating smaller meals more often. Maybe 4 to 6 hours. I have to remember the 'smaller' part of the deal.

I haven't been able to resist the carb cravings while on Seroquel. If I could suck it u p a couple times & not succumb to the urge the hunger would probably pass ~ like you suggested. Three days seems like a long time but it would definitely be worth it..

Do you have any examples of 40-30-30 meals? I think its more expensive to eat healthy than it is to eat junk food. Thanks again for your feedback.

Kumbaya, I can def. relate to the weight gain on meds... I gained 18 in 3 months on Abilify but I did start a new job at the time and so my stress level was higher and I am sure that played a large factor in it. I went off it because of my white count being low and I could not sleep well on it. I did lose 12 of the 18 but I was in a major depression so that i am sure is where the loss came from. I have just recently started back on Abilify and so far I don't see a major difference in appetite so hopefully the weight won't come back on. I know the seroquel is know for the weight gain but I think you will do better on the Abilify. To me knowledge of these meds causing it helps to be more aware of what we do and how we eat. I will say it is so hard not to eat when you are physically hungry not just "oh some icecream sounds good" I mean physical hunger pains.
I love jaydn's diet plan i will def. check that out! I have always struggled with weight all of my life.... gone from being 80 pounds overweight to 15 underweight ( yes I have def struggled with eating disorder of some sort)

I am really paying attention to what, when and how much I am eating this time around.... when i was on the Abilify I had bad craving for cereal... i could go through boxes of frosted flakes LOL!! I know that was a problem for me so I don't buy them anymore..lol

kumbaya, I don't really have examples of 40-30-30 meals, because I eat mainly proteins (lean meat, fish, lowfat cheese, eggs) and vegetables during the day. This is to compensate for my sleep-eating problem (which I talked about in different discussion thread in this section), when I invariably go for snacky items which are high in carbs. So I eat a 40-30-30 diet on an average daily basis, rather than on a per-meal basis.

You can find a lot of ideas on the web, though, if you search on: 40 30 30 diet meals

One site I found (for example) is: http://recipes.sparkpeople.com...

I think you're right that "The Zone" diet is the original 40-30-30 diet. The idea (those proportions, I mean) has spread to other diets now (such as for diabetics), as well as to general sensible eating. I don't consider it a "diet" but rather a permanent way of eating for me, to avoid gaining weight on the meds. It doesn't mean I'll never have a slice of pie for the rest of my life, but rather, I can have it every so often but balance it into (or return right afterward to) an overall 40-30-30 "baseline" way of eating.

Kumbaya,

Someone just lent me a book called MASTER YOUR METABOLISM by Jillian Michaels. So far, it is really enlightening. It discusses why we become hungry etc. Perhaps your local library would have it.

tluv, jadyn, Rainfly

...thanks so much for the info & for responding. I just got a job working a swing shift where I get off between 12 & 1AM. Its now 5am & I'm starving! I need to sleep but will probably (most likely) have a snack before bed despite the hour!

-kby-

I know how hard it is to not eat when you are literally starving when on anti-psychotics, I had 100 lbs. to lose after going on them, I was on Geodon and Seroquel, so I cut out all red meat and pork, ate ground turkey, chicken, venison, so lean meat, vegs, fruit, gluten free, sea weed in stir frys, no soda pops or juices, no dairies, I make a protien drink in the morning with protien powder and spirulina, bee pollen, soy milk and frozen fruit and it has been a life saver and a great jump start for the day, that started year ago and as of date I have lost 120 lbs. went from a size 20-22 to a 4, a still juggling meds. but feeling alot better about myself and the exercising has helped tremendously.

Make sure you talk to your doctor about weight. Go to the gym and work out. I developed EDNOS according to my trainer due to the amount of weight I have gained over the years while on meds and having children. Granted it was only a total of 70 lbs and I am down over half of it at this point, but I find I cannot eat when I am stressed, and often get sick when I do. It all started out as a simple diet that reduced carbs, and added sugar etc. and eventually got to where 500 every 3 days was a norm for me. It wasnt until i started training at the gym that I found out this was an issue. And only because the trainer wanted me to track my caloric intake for a possibility of retraining my eatting patterns and see where to cut calories to be beneficial. So now when he says cut calories to someone else he says and you need to gain calories, without amble calories for your height your body goes into starvation mode and the metabolism is slowed and weight loss stalls. I start counseling for this on tuesday.