The Serotonin Power Diet: Eat Carbs--Nature's Own Appetite Suppressant--to Stop Emotional Overeating and Halt Antidepressant-Associated Weight Gain

I took Zoloft for two years and I gained 30 pounds. I was absolutely miserable. Sure, the depression and anxiety were down a little, but I was so unhappy with my body and my inability to stop myself from bingeing on chips and cookies and crackers that the depression and self-loathing came back with a vengeance. I reached a point where I never felt full. I could spend an entire day eating and not feel any sort of fullness. Because of that, ten of those 30 pounds were gained in a month! I gained 10 pounds in one month! How does that happen?! It happened, this book explained, because I didn't have enough serotonin in my brain to tell my body that I was full and I could stop eating.It's no secret that high protein, low carb diets work. And, honestly, weight loss is faster with those sorts of diets. The downside to those diets, however, is that nagging little ball of anger that constantly threatens to bust out of my chest if I don't eat some carbohydrates right this very minute. Deprivation works for weight loss, but it makes the mood issues so much more visible. The Serotonin Power Diet let me have my carbs. The anger and irritability went away. Along with the wonderful mental effects, I lost 15 of the 30 pounds I gained while taking Zoloft. The weight fell off in just three months of following this diet and engaging in moderate exercise. I am no longer on an antidepressant, but I continue this diet to keep my mood up and help me lose the rest of the weight.The Serotonin Power Diet just makes so much sense. You should eat to not only feed your body, but to also feed your brain. This book teaches you how to do that. If you are struggling with weight gain from antidepressants or from weight gain from overeating because you never feel full, please read this book. The diet is easy to stick with and for me it quickly became a lifestyle change rather than a "diet". It doesn't require supplements and powders. It's just good, healthy food eaten at the right times to give your body and brain the fuel they need to thrive.

Nearly 15 years ago I was prescribed Lexapro. Didn't really know what it was, and didn't take it for a few months. I'm sorry that I ever tried it, and don't think I ever really needed it.I gained 30 pounds in about 2 months. I was active duty in the military with 2 years left to retire and I was being threatened with being processed out for being too fat. I went on multiple other diets, and the challenge was, the medication changed something in my body so that it wouldn't loose weight. And any diet I tried I was STARVING!This is the first of dozens of diets I've tried that has me loosing weight, without being light-headed and fainting (a result of the Accupressure and HTP diets that had me living on about 500 calories a day). I'm rarely hungry, but if I am it's quite manageable and temporary. It's feasible to continue eating this way post diet - I'm not craving anything.I always knew Lexapro did something to mess me up, and I've tried so many different approaches to try to un-do it: raw food diet; raw milk (thinking some enzymes might be off); cabbage diet; weight watchers (I was starving and the scale barely budged); Atkins; Accupressure; HCG including daily injections; Food Combining; Metabolism boosting diet; Low Glycemic: and more. Even if some weight came off, it was typically slower than pre-lexapro and a non-sustainable diet.I'm down 16 pounds in 5 weeks. Without hunger. Without cravings. I'm just so glad I found this, and grateful to the author for developing and putting this out there. For the first time in nearly 15 years, I feel hopeful that I can get down to pre-Lexapro weight AND stay there. It's important to understand that anti-depressant/anti-anxiety weight gain is unlike any other kind - and typically won't respond to typical diets. Especially it seems for women.

I got this book on Amazon using the new free Kindle App for your PC. I love the App. Easy to download. Easy to order and no commitment to buying a Kindle. As for the book it was an easy read. The science seems solid. I found putting the diet together a little difficult. Not sure if I was paying attention enough or it was confusing. I just re-read and got back on track. I found the information on how to stick to the diet and develope new life style habits helpful. I like the different stories about different people and their unique circumstances helpful. This helped me to tailor the diet to my needs. I also found having carbs being a part of the diet helped me feel like I wasn't being deprived. The bottom line is changing your health habits is hard work. You have to eat vegetables, watch your portions, say no to temptations and you have to excersize. But I thought this booked helped make this hard work a little easier.