starpirate555 Posted June 23, 2009 Share Posted June 23, 2009 lithium is a very powerful drug. i have had the hardest time in the past 17 years to try to adjust to lithium and its side effect of weight gain. is it going to take a special kind of diet and exercise to get rid of the weight or is it something as simple as eating less calories, i don't know anymore. i know lithium causes 3 major side effects of hypothyroidism, increased appetite and water retention. please somebody out there help me find the right diet and exercise for lithium and give it to me in detail. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AirMarshall Posted June 23, 2009 Share Posted June 23, 2009 [link=http://www.crazyboards.org/forums/index.php?showtopic=30188"'>http://www.crazyboards.org/forums/index.php?showtopic=30188" target="_blank]http://www.crazyboards.org/forums/index.php?showtopic=30188[/link] Lithium and weight loss Discussed 20 days ago. Well, have a lot of bipolars on the board. As many a 30% of bipolars have thyroid disorders regardless of their medication. Some medications, esp. Lithium are often associated with hypothryroidism. However, in this case, no mechanism of action has been proven, and again I'll point out the figures above. One theory is that Lithium doesn't cause thryoid problems, but unmasks them. Whatever the cause, gettting a thyroid dx, is actuall godsend since it is easily treated, the meds are cheap and have essentially no side effects. a.m. From another topic about lithium and hypothyroidism. Eskalith PI sheet, www.http://www.rxlist.com/ Gastrointestinal: Anorexia, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, gastritis, salivary gland swelling, abdominal pain, excessive salivation, flatulence, indigestion. PI sheet doesn't list increased appetite as being reported in trials or post marketing. My observation is that any weight loss is due to decreased activity, which may be caused by the mild sedation lithium can cause. a.m. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SashaSue Posted June 23, 2009 Share Posted June 23, 2009 Oh, no. Since starting lithium, I am hungry all the time. I don't care what it says on the PI sheets. It was like no med ever before. Wasn't about food cravings, it was physical hunger. Plus, within like two weeks of starting li, I'd gained 12 lbs. That's some kind of something going on besides either activity or increased appetite. Hasn't continued like that, but it did start that way. I've lost some of my lithium weight by doing more yoga, and eating as little as possible most of the time. Not really great advice, but, there you have it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AirMarshall Posted June 23, 2009 Share Posted June 23, 2009 One thing to consider intially is that lithium can cause nausea. I had that for about he first month, and started off with nibbling cracker and sipping ginger ale, later as the nausea subsided I still often had a bit of a stomach ache and keeping something in my stomach probably made me eat more than i normallly would. a.m Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
starpirate555 Posted June 23, 2009 Author Share Posted June 23, 2009 Oh, no. Since starting lithium, I am hungry all the time. I don't care what it says on the PI sheets. It was like no med ever before. Wasn't about food cravings, it was physical hunger. Plus, within like two weeks of starting li, I'd gained 12 lbs. That's some kind of something going on besides either activity or increased appetite. Hasn't continued like that, but it did start that way. I've lost some of my lithium weight by doing more yoga, and eating as little as possible most of the time. Not really great advice, but, there you have it. what do you mean eating as little as possible, low calorie, 1200 calories or what? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scatty Posted June 23, 2009 Share Posted June 23, 2009 I don't have any appetite since I started lithium, so I better not gain weight! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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