Ep. 154: Causes of Midlife Weight Gain from Anxiety Meds & Easy Coping Skills to Reverse It

Are you concerned about weight gain after starting anxiety medication? 

You  don’t have to choose between your mental health and your physical health.

In this episode, you’ll discover:

1. The key reasons why some anxiety medications lead to weight gain and how to identify if it's affecting you.
2. Four effective strategies to prevent and manage medication-related weight changes. 
3. How to work with your doctor to find the right medication for you

Press play now to gain the knowledge and tools to manage medication-related weight changes so you can feel your best—mentally and physically.

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About the Host:
MJ Murray Vachon LCSW is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker with more than 48,000 hours of therapy sessions and 31 years of experience teaching her Mental Wellness curriculum, Inner Challenge. Four years ago she overcame her fear of technology to create a podcast that integrated her vast clinical experience and practical wisdom of cultivating mental wellness using the latest information from neuroscience. MJ was Social Worker of the Year in 2011 for Region 2/IN.

Creating Midlife Calm is a podcast designed to guide you through the challenges of midlife, tackling issues like anxiety, low self-esteem, feeling unworthy, procrastination, and isolation, while offering strategies for improving relationships, family support, emotional wellbeing, mental wellness, and parenting, with a focus on mindfulness, stress management, coping skills, and personal growth to stop rumination, overthinking, and increase confidence through self-care, emotional healing, and mental health support.

Transcript

M.J. Murray Vachon LCSW: 0:00

In this episode, you'll discover why some anxiety medications cause weight gain, welcome to Creating Midlife Calm, a podcast dedicated to empowering midlife minds to overcome anxiety, stop feeling like crap and become more present with your family, all while achieving greater success at work. I'm MJ Murray Vachon, a licensed clinical social worker with over 48, 000 hours of therapy sessions and 31 years of experience teaching mental wellness. Welcome to the podcast. Did you know that some anxiety medications can lead to weight gain, but not all do. If you're experiencing this side effect, you might feel frustrated, like you're stuck between choosing your mental health and your physical health. But here's the good news, you don't have to pick one over the other. Weight gain is not inevitable, and there are ways to manage it. In today's episode we'll talk about why some anxiety medications can lead to weight gain, four effective ways to counter it, and three ways you can assist your doctor in finding the right medication for you. Concerns about weight gain is something I hear all the time from my clients. So if you're feeling discouraged, please know you're not alone. There are real solutions and you don't have to figure this out on your own. The majority of doctors are so happy to work with you to find a solution to this particular side effect. And as always, I am not giving medical advice. What I'm sharing today comes from 38 years of experience helping clients navigate medication side effects while still feeling healthy and calm. While not all anxiety, medications lead to weight gain, if yours does, that's what matters to you. If you've noticed changes in your weight since starting medication, it's not just in your head and there could be a real biological reason behind it. By understanding why this happens, you'll be better equipped to make small but effective changes. Let's look at the science behind weight gain and how to manage it. Reason number one. Some medications, slow metabolism, making it easier to gain weight. Even if your diet and activity level stay the same. Know that muscle burns more calories and fat even when you're at rest. That's why adding strength training and resistant workouts can help counteract a sluggish metabolism. Also, prioritizing protein-rich foods can slightly boost your metabolism and help you feel fuller longer. A second reason to explain weight gain is that you're experiencing increased appetite and cravings. Some medications, especially SSRIs, increase hunger and especially carb and sugar cravings. This can lead to overeating. What you can do is to be mindful of portion sizes and try swapping high carb snacks for protein, fiber, and healthy fats. Drinking a glass of water before meals can help curb your cravings naturally. The mental wellness tool, a self-awareness can be so helpful if this is part of what's causing this side effect. Another reason that some medications cause weight gain is that some medications cause fatigue or sluggishness, making it harder to stay active, which can lead to gradual weight gain. What can you do if exercise feels overwhelming? Start with small bursts of movement. A five to 10 minute walk or taking the stairs at work can make a huge difference. One of my clients started doing three sets of stairs at 10:00 AM and 3:00 PM and noticed a big shift in his energy. Energizing foods like lean proteins, complex carbs, and staying hydrated also help. And if your fatigue is severe, talk to your doctor about adjusting the dosage or the timing of when you take your medicine. Some medications cause fluid retention, making your body feel heavier, even if actual fat gain is minimal. In this situation, what you can do is decrease your excess sodium, stay hydrated and add potassium rich foods like bananas, leafy greens and sweet potatoes to help balance your fluid levels. Gentle movement and elevating your legs can also reduce swelling. If you're experiencing weight gain from medication. Don't panic. Track your body's response and experiment with small changes to see what helps. Sometimes weight gain isn't just a little frustrating. It can feel completely out of control. Let me share a story that proves just how important tracking your body's response can be. A few years ago, I worked with a client who was very petite and had never struggled with her weight. She started a common anxiety medication that rarely causes weight gain. Within two weeks, she couldn't stop eating potato chips, something she had never craved before. I asked her to keep track of what she was eating for another two weeks, as well as her weight changes. Two weeks later, she sent me a picture from the grocery store. She was holding an open bag of ruffles with a text that said, help. This is ridiculous. I feel outta control. By the end of the first month, she had gained 10 pounds. Because she had hard data on her weight and cravings, her doctor took her concerns seriously. He switched her medication and with two months, the weight naturally came off. And more importantly, her new medication worked just as well without the side effect, the takeaway. Weight gain from medication isn't always inevitable. Sometimes it's about finding the right fit. If you notice dramatic appetite changes, don't be afraid to advocate for yourself and explore other options with your doctor or nurse practitioner. If you are considering going on a medication for your anxiety, or if you've recently started one and are having side effects, make sure you talk to your doctor about testing, which examines your genetics so they can have a higher chance of predicting how your body will react to different medications. These tests can be very helpful, especially if your insurance covers them. Anytime you start a new medication, it will really help you if you do two things from the very beginning, weigh yourself weekly so you can monitor changes and track your appetite and cravings to notice any unusual shifts. If you don't like weighing yourself, you can ask your doctor for blind weighing where you can stop into the office, and a nurse or a CNA will weigh you without telling you the number. In general, what doctors have told me is any weight gain more than 5% within the first month can be a strong indicator that this particular medication may be a long-term problem for you in the area of weight gain. Sometimes weight gain isn't just about medication. It can also be linked to hormone imbalances. In episodes 1 31 and 1 32, Dr. Connie Chalko Ph.D explains how vitamin D, cortisol, and insulin levels impact both weight gain and anxiety. If these levels are off, your anxiety medication won't work as effectively, which is why getting them checked is really important. Lastly, and perhaps the most surprising reason why people gain weight on medication because the medication is working. Anxiety can keep you from socializing, and when you start feeling better, you may go out more, which often means eating and drinking more. I can't tell you how many clients have said to me after four and five, six months being on medication. My anxiety is so much less, but my pants are really tight. The solution, a little self-awareness on how their social life has picked up and the impact that that has had on their weight leads them to making some changes so they can mentally and physically be at the top of their game. I encourage my clients to think of medication like a pair of glasses. Glasses don't cure your eyesight, but they will help you see more clearly so you can navigate life with more success. Your medication should do the same. It's there to support you, not do all the work for you. My experience again and again is that when people are on medication, if they can up their nests, nutrition, exercise, sleep, technology use, and stress coping skills, they're going to be able to create a life with the best conditions, not only for their medicine to work effectively, but for them to feel really good day in and day out. Taking medication is just one piece of treating anxiety. What you do alongside it makes all the difference. In this episode, we've talked about why some anxiety medications, cause weight gain and I have offered some simple ways to successfully manage it, and some important ways that you can partner with your doctor to make sure that you are on the right medication for you. Your Inner Challenge this week is for the next three days, pay attention to how your medication affects your appetite, cravings, and energy levels. Do you notice any patterns? Becoming aware of small changes helps you make informed decisions about your health. Remember, your medication is a tool, not a sentence. With the right balance, you can manage your mental health and your physical health. Track the changes. Advocate for yourself and know that you deserve to feel good inside and out. And I'll be back on Thursday with a follow-up episode focusing on why medication alone isn't enough to fully manage your anxiety. Thanks for listening to Creating Midlife Calm.