Seroquel and Weight Gain

I have found that BP meds make me gain weight. No big surprise there. Seroquel in particular is a real culprit in making me fat. I get sleepy and then I eat. It's a terrible habit. Seroquel makes me so sleepy that I eat just to stay awake..or something. I have fallen asleep with food in my mouth. I'm not proud of it, but it's true.

Sometimes I accept weight gain in trade for mental health. For the first year on medication, my thought process was: I've already given up so much, why should I give up food I love, too. Not fair, not fair, etc....

On December 26, 2006, I decided to turn my 12-step experience to being overweight, so I started reading Overeater's Anonymous literature. I decided to stop overeating, one day at a time. It worked great for about two years. I lost 35 pounds simply by maintaining that I was a compulsive overeater. I never went to a meeting. Now, I look back and realize that I'm not a compulsive overeater. Not really. I'm bipolar and on meds. So I overeat. Also, when I had lost 35 pounds and felt really great about that, my (former) doctor said that I needed to lose some more weight and go on a particular diet to do it. Not the way to talk to me. That's when I started to gain weight and went back up about 25 pounds again.

It's not his fault. He meant well. He just doesn't know how to talk to a person with a mood disorder. That's not the only reason I changed docs. There were issues of location and availability, too.

I can choose not to overeat. I can choose exercise and make healthy eating choices. I was never "skinny" before, and I'm not likely to be skinny now, but I can choose to be healthy for myself, my kids, and my husband. So I joined Weight Watchers online. Again, it's working. Also, I signed up for personal training at the nearest YMCA.

My exercise goal for last week was to hike the Mossy Ridge Trail at Percy Warner Park here in Nashville. It is 4.5 miles of up and down. I have done a lot of hiking, and I would classify it as a moderate trail. Some portions are very steep and long. It took me 2 hours to hike it, but I did it! When I took this picture, I was heading up the last really big hill. I was drenched and tired but so happy! Never mind that some people run this trail and many walk it faster than me. I completed it, and that just felt so good.

Bottom line is I must carve out time to exercise and stop letting obligations to others get in the way of my recovery! When school starts again in August I will have let time and energy for exercise, so now I'm developing an exercise support network. I've already talked to my trainer about it.

Today is my day off.

Blessings!
Kathy