gaining weight on meds

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He was put on risperdal at 9 for suicidal talk and gained 45 lbs in 4 months! The doctors ( Specialist )switched him to abilify and he has gained weight now for3 years now. 4 months ago he was suicidal again and they put him on Zoloft. in 4 months he has gained 12 lbs. We are taking him off of Ability slowly but it looks like the Zoloft is doing the same thing. Is this a common thing?
We have the whole family on a healthy diet because of Dads health issues, so i know and the Dr's agree its the meds. I don't know what to do. I don't want him to be on these meds but I don't want him to be suicidal either. Went to the pediatrician today and he is 5 feet tall and weighs 132.8 lbs . The pediatrician said that he is to heavy. And wanted us to be in a obesity study. That kinda made me mad knowing that the Specialist had said its the meds.
Sorry for rambling, thank you for your time!

I had the same problem. I was on risperdal and buspirone from approx. ages 11-13/14 and at 4'11"-5' I weighed 135 lbs. Than when I went off the risperdal b/c of diet changes I had started prior to going off the meds and exercising, when I went off I dropped down to 110 lbs. in about a month . I'd try to skip fast food and keep his diet low fat b/c these meds make it impossible to lose weight but you may be able to minimize weight gain by being on a healthy diet. Maybe buspirone alone would be a better option? I'd talk to his doctors about your concerns (try and get them on the same page). I can tell you now from personal experience that constantly switching medications and dosages makes a mess of your body. (Which is why I now only take herbal supplements, allergy pills & multivitamins w/ the occasional advil/over the counter med)

p.s. This does not apply to your son but I'm almost certain that risperdal has been linked to loss of menstruation or not allowing it to start.

My son was put on Risperdal because of extreme anxiety that rendered him non functional and gained weight around his midsection. He eventually developed severe tics (facial,verbal and full body) and was taken off. The weight came off right away. Years later he had 2 meltdowns at school because of bullying. The psychiatrist asked him if he ever felt like he didn't want to be alive ( a leading question and besides who hasn't?) and when my son said yes he put him on Remeron where he gained 30 pounds in 3 months. I know what you're talking about. It was fast! The thing is it didn't do a thing for his emotional problem. A teacher that would have protected him would have been a better option. He is off Remeron now and some of the weight has come off slowly. He still has breasts and stretch marks. I think he put him on the Remeron too hastily, but the initial dosing with the Risperdal made a huge change. he started talking, for instance.

Hi I have an 11yr old aspie he is currently on half a 20 mg tablet of Lovan for anxiety/depression this hasn't taken every thing away but it has taken the edge off and made it a little easier to cope. My son is currently being weened off Strattera (adhd and ocd) med. My son also has a tourettes dx so we couldn't use traditional adhd meds. The lovan is staying at the moment. My sons friend is also on Lovan and has been for a few years now. My son hasn't gained weight on either med in fact he lost weight initially and with each dose increase he would lose a little more. Rysperedone (can't spell) was suggested first before the Lovan and the Strattera, I said no. Lovan is working my son also talked about wishing he were dead, being a waste of space etc. Perhaps you could talk to your ped about Lovan?

I was put onto resperdal in 2007 and was on too high of an amount I heard it from my psychiatrist it was the highest she heard. I had to be on 6mg, I believe maybe 7. I am now on .25mg. Between Feb 07 to Feb 09 I gained about 75 pounds. I was on a whole lot of medication as Zoloft being one. It's good to get medication correct amount, maybe even medication that doesn't make others gain weight. I stuck with the medication, now slowly lowering and have dropped 40 pounds.