Abilify & Monster Binge Eating

[AbilifyedBunny]

Hello crazyboards forum,

Anyone else experience binge eating and other impulsive/compulsive behaviors with Abilify?  As you may or may not know there are lawsuits against Abilify for this sort of thing (gambling, hyper sexuality, binge eating, as well as impulsive spending.)  I am thinking about trying to get some sort of compensation for pain and suffering for the nightmare I went through with Abilify and binge eating/eating disorder.  Abilify now bears a warning label against these behaviors as of 2016.  It messes with the impulse centers of the brain and can cause those who are taking it to struggle with impulsivity.  

I have taken Abilify before (obvs) but it wasn't until my doctor increased the drug that this nightmare began.  I've observed that being medicated always makes dieting more difficult, but never this difficult.  I have always had struggles with my weight but I am usually good about it when I set my mind to it.  I have always had success with weight watchers when I gain weight and need to shed the pounds or get back on track.  My doctor increased my Abilify in October when I was hitting a rough patch with my (now) ex.  I have been trying to do weight watchers since October and I have not had one ounce of success or lost a single pound.  I try (and fail) every single day (except for the days when I would get fed up and say "screw it.")  I go to Over Eaters Anonymous, reach out to other members when I need help, et cetera.   Since the increase, I have gained a large amount of weight (I am honestly afraid to weigh myself and will probably not do so for a while as it will only get me discouraged.)  I have never experienced binge eating or urges to eat this bad.  At what I thought would be my rock bottom, I ordered a massive amount of take out every day and ate sweets which I usually don't even enjoy.  Every time I thought I'd hit rock bottom, I would hit a new one.There were times where I would be eating but didn't know why I was eating.  I seldom got any enjoyment out of it as it was a compulsion that I felt I "needed" to do.  The feeling of satiation or being satisfied was never there.  The more and more pressure I put on myself to do weight watchers, the worse it would get.  I felt sick, low in energy, hopeless, disgusted, and all around crappy.  My will had been broken over and over again.  It got so bad that I found myself saying, "I will be better off dead if I keep eating like this."  I found myself reaching the epitome of misery.  I started having the low self esteem of a junkie.

Finally, I decided I had had enough.  I quit Abilify.  The first day there was no difference, but already by the second day I started noticing something I hadn't noticed in a long time...The feeling of being full after a modest meal.  Already, I've significantly cut back on eating and as of today I am on weight watchers.  This is only my third day being off of the drug but already I feel so much better and more in control.

Abilify didn't only contribute to an eating disorder, I was all around impulsive in general.  Some of it is too personal to disclose, but I had a lot of difficulty with impulse control while on the higher dose of the drug.  I would impulsively get into arguments with people (which I never do.)  I began spending a lot of money (as if all of the food hadn't already put enough of a dent in my wallet) and I felt the impulsive need to have sex with my ex.  When I wanted sex it had to be "right now."  

I am very sensitive to medication and manage on very low doses for years now.  I told my psychiatrist about three weeks ago that I felt the higher dose was doing me more harm than good, but she started getting fed up with me and my sensitivity to medication and said something along the lines of "you are already on an unusually low dose."  All of the medications cause intolerable side effects for me, so it has really been a struggle over the past couple of years to find the right med.  I have taken her advice and have been riding it out for three weeks, but I finally realized that the Abilify was probably the culprit for my sudden insatiability with food so I finally just quit (which I know is not advisable.)  All I know is that I have gotten through one whole day without constantly thinking about food, making runs to the store for snacks, and stuffing myself senseless.  I was also experiencing a lot of anhedonia and simply felt like nothing mattered in my life (common symptoms of being over medicated.)  Today, I feel more clear headed, in control, and hopeful.  I seem to have moods instead of just an over all sentiment of being fed up.  It is a relief.  The higher dose of Abilify seemed to put me into some kind of coma, so to speak, of apathy and lack of respect for myself and body.  Already, I feel a lot more like myself.  I do not recommend anyone go off of medication abruptly without consulting a doctor, but for me it was either that or buy a whole new set of larger clothes to fit into by the time I see my doctor.                   

 

[protectmepls]

This post scares me as I have binge eating disorder and my doctor is deciding which atypical antipsychotic to add to my antidepressant for adjunct therapy Latuda or Abilify 

[AbilifyedBunny]

14 hours ago, cryinginmoscow said:

This post scares me as I have binge eating disorder and my doctor is deciding which atypical antipsychotic to add to my antidepressant for adjunct therapy Latuda or Abilify 

Be very very careful with the higher doses of Abilify.  I am fine at 5 mg for years but as soon as I went up to 10 I became a binge eating monster.

[protectmepls]

1 hour ago, AbilifyedBunny said:

Be very very careful with the higher doses of Abilify.  I am fine at 5 mg for years but as soon as I went up to 10 I became a binge eating monster.

Okay, I think I will stay at 5mg. Thank you. Also, have you tried Vyvanse it's licensed for binge eating disorder? It's helping me. I feel like if I take too many of the medications that suppress the addiction, I just end up with more side effects like nausea, worsened depression, feeling warm in my cheeks and forehead. 

Edited December 18, 2017 by cryinginmoscow

[AbilifyedBunny]

1 hour ago, cryinginmoscow said:

Okay, I think I will stay at 5mg. Thank you. Also, have you tried Vyvanse it's licensed for binge eating disorder? It's helping me. I feel like if I take too many of the medications that suppress the addiction, I just end up with more side effects like nausea, worsened depression, feeling warm in my cheeks and forehead. 

My doctor never mentioned that.  She told me there are no safe appetite suppressants for people who have mood disorders because they are all stimulants.  Maybe she was wrong.  I tried Topomax but it stopped working after a few weeks, which is actually pretty common from what I hear :-\

[protectmepls]

7 minutes ago, AbilifyedBunny said:

My doctor never mentioned that.  She told me there are no safe appetite suppressants for people who have mood disorders because they are all stimulants.  Maybe she was wrong.  I tried Topomax but it stopped working after a few weeks, which is actually pretty common from what I hear :-\

Wellbutrin is safer antidepressant for patients with mania. You can combine this with Naltrexone or Topomax. 

[AbilifyedBunny]

10 hours ago, cryinginmoscow said:

Wellbutrin is safer antidepressant for patients with mania. You can combine this with Naltrexone or Topomax.   

I loved welbutrin to counteract the side effects of antipsychotics but unfortunately it caused hair thinning/mild hair loss for me.  But maybe I will look into Naltrexone.

Edited December 19, 2017 by AbilifyedBunny

[AbilifyedBunny]

****Update:

So I figured out what happened.  The higher dose of Abilify exacerbated and triggered an existing eating disorder, which now set an unhealthy habit and addiction.  I knew that quitting the medication would not be a quick fix.  I'm still stuck in the habit of starvation/dieting/deprivation versus binging and indulging.  There is no in between.  

I am going to try to go to an eating disorder rehab for thirty days (yes they exist) and see if that might help me to get back on track.  I will only go if my insurance covers it, however.  Sometimes, if you reach too much into the cookie jar...you just need someone to lock that cookie jar for you lol  I would really like the opportunity to get "clean" and break the addiction.  I don't see it happening independently until things get much worse (ie. weight gain so bad that I *have* no choice but to get "clean"/eat clean.) 

[protectmepls]

9 hours ago, AbilifyedBunny said:

****Update:

So I figured out what happened.  The higher dose of Abilify exacerbated and triggered an existing eating disorder, which now set an unhealthy habit and addiction.  I knew that quitting the medication would not be a quick fix.  I'm still stuck in the habit of starvation/dieting/deprivation versus binging and indulging.  There is no in between.  

I am going to try to go to an eating disorder rehab for thirty days (yes they exist) and see if that might help me to get back on track.  I will only go if my insurance covers it, however.  Sometimes, if you reach too much into the cookie jar...you just need someone to lock that cookie jar for you lol  I would really like the opportunity to get "clean" and break the addiction.  I don't see it happening independently until things get much worse (ie. weight gain so bad that I *have* no choice but to get "clean"/eat clean.) 

This sounds like a good idea but if your insurance doesn't cover it, just try to do the rehab setting in your own environment and it will be an even bigger achievement and make you feel stronger because you did it by yourself. 

[T.Daniels]

Hi,

from 2013 through -14 the only med i had was Abilify 15mg. I cant say i was having problems with over eating/binge eating..

To be truthfull i was losing weight steadily since i had no appetite at all. All that wonderful came to an end when escitalopram and lamictal were added. From there on it’s been struggling with my weight problems.

[AbilifyedBunny]

On 12/19/2017 at 5:42 AM, cryinginmoscow said:

This sounds like a good idea but if your insurance doesn't cover it, just try to do the rehab setting in your own environment and it will be an even bigger achievement and make you feel stronger because you did it by yourself. 

About a week ago, that would not have been possible.  But it is, now   **Update below**

[AbilifyedBunny]

****Another upate****

I did not go to rehab, but I have still been successful nonetheless.  I have successfully gone two whole days without binge eating.  (That is the most I have gone in a long while.)  I have also had two whole days of success with watching my weight/dieting.  Technically, since Sunday I have gradually cut way way back on food (four days.)  I haven't exactly been doing weight watchers yet, I've simply been "intuitively dieting."  I've been doing weight watchers off and on long enough, that I know the points values of many things and a general idea of most.  I know how to intuitively create a balanced day where I am consuming not too many, and not too little calories.  I know which foods are lower in points values, and which are higher. For the past two days that is what I have been doing.  As a general rule, I will only have a small cup of something (eg. one cup of rice with chicken & sauce, one cup of pasta, light on the sauce et cetera.)  That is how you're supposed to do it on weight watchers.  If I have alcohol (since it's Holiday season) I will only have one (generous) shot.  I skip breakfast, as usual when I am dieting, and simply consume a caffeinated beverage with artificial sweetener (if you're  a health nut you can use stevia) and a low calorie dairy-free creamer.  When I have food cravings, I have resumed my old habit of drinking a cup of tea either plain or with artificial sweetener and dairy-free creamer.  On Christmas day, I am going to go one whole day without dieting but after that it's right back on the wagon, and no cheating on Christmas Eve either.  If you would have asked me about a week ago, I would have never thought this was possible.  I think quitting the Abilify definitely helped and there is absolutely no doubt about it.  I am probably going to resume Abilify on the low dose after the Holidays (after I have had the opportunity to do a little bit of drinking) but I don't dare go back on the higher dose for risk of once again becoming a foodaholic.  When I lose the weight I can go back on my medication of choice (but that is a topic for another post.)  I will keep you updated and see how this is going a month from now.   Yes, I feel deprived but at the end of the day it's better than being overweight.  I only think this became possible both by quitting the Abilify and hitting my rock bottom.  I have such a tormented relationship with food now, it has a bad connotation for me.  I view food the same way an alcoholic views a drink.  I simply won't "touch that" in good conscience.  (At least that is what I say to myself every time I see a dessert or rich calorie-laden dish.)  

Edited December 21, 2017 by AbilifyedBunny

[AbilifyedBunny]

5 hours ago, T.Daniels said:

Hi,

from 2013 through -14 the only med i had was Abilify 15mg. I cant say i was having problems with over eating/binge eating..

To be truthfull i was losing weight steadily since i had no appetite at all. All that wonderful came to an end when escitalopram and lamictal were added. From there on it’s been struggling with my weight problems.

I hear ya, it's amazing how much a medication can throw you off in that department.  I never had weight problems on Abilify before either, in fact I lost a lot of weight, but as I get older and my chemistry adjusts from taking medication for so long, that doesn't seem to be the case.  Years back when I was taking the high doses of Abilify, I had gone years and years off of meds and was very symptomatic.