Que to a endocrinologist & psychiatrist? Hello sir, my wife is 25 years old, mother of 2.5 years toddler and she is on following anti-anxiety and anti-depressants venlor-xr 37.5 (venlafaxine) zapiz 0.25 (clonazepam) pramipex er 0.375 (pramipexole) mirtaz 7.5 (mirtazapine) rosuvas f 10 duration of psychiatric medicine: 3 mnth can these above drugs raise blood sugar levels? Her sugar levels especially post-meal sugars are going high (165 mg/dl, 185 mg/dl etc) her father is diabetic since 20 years she has gain weight with above drugs and now her bmi is 29.5 her physical activity due to her psychological condition has gone low, again in past few months she ate too much of sweet and junk food whenever she had an anxiety attack (to bypass or lower down anxiety) my question to endocrinologist and psychiatrist is that: can these psychiatric medicines raise the blood sugar levels? If yes, what are the alternatives to these psychiatric medicines? A question to psychiatrist?

Dr. Rashmi NavelkarPsychiatrist11yrs exp

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The above mentioned medications can cause some weight gain. But it’s unlikely at such lower doses. Besides it’s been seen that weight gain can be upto 2-3 kgs but that happens over 4-5 months. Hence it’s unlikely that the weight gain is because of psychiatric medications. Since her father has history of Diabetes, she is already at risk for developing diabetes herself. Diabetes in itself is a metabolic disorder and associated with weight gain and high cholesterol. You should get her evaluated by a Diabetologist. 

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Dr. Saranya DevanathanPsychiatrist51yrs exp

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Dear lybrate-user, it is nice of you to care for your wife's health. Mirtaz can increase sleep and appetite. Thereby increasing ishika's chances of diabetes and cholesterol problems. Instead of mirtaz, she can increase venlor itself, if she can tolerate. Most ssri group of antidepressants are weight neutral. As you have rightly put it, her physical activity will be low due to depression. Her eating junk and sweets add to her weight gain more than the lowest dose 7.5 mg of mirtaz. I am sure her psychiatrist would have considering this aspect and treating her anxiety and depression. Once it is treated, she will control her diet and exercise regularly.  

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Dr. AmitaPsychologist23yrs exp

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Your wife's need is relaxation and supportive psychotherapy's.  

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Ms. Kajol BirawatPsychologist6yrs exp

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Hi lybrate-user. I understand this is a confusing situation for you. It may be in your best interest to speak openly to the psychiatrist who prescribed the medication and discuss the effects you noticed after completing their prescribed dosage. Additionally, you could reach out to a therapist. Depression and anxiety is often best dealt with in therapy. Your therapist would help you to bring the thoughts and emotions triggering your anxiety and depression, to your awareness and help you process them in a safe environment. You could reach out to a psychiatrist who would prescribe you appropriate medication to reduce the symptoms. However, therapy would play a crucial role here to help you challenge these thoughts that lead to your symptoms in the first place. You can reach out to a trusted therapist in your city. You can also book a session with us at url/book-a-session/ we are available for online sessions. Hope this helps. Take care! :)  

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Mr. Saul PereiraPsychologist51yrs exp

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Anxiety and depression oftentimes go together. The weight gain is not surprising some due to the medication, and some due to lower metabolic rate, and low exercise, and emotional eating. There may be genetic influences for diabetes and she must take precautions. There seem to be some psychological problems that need investigation and treatment from a counselor too. I believe there may be some genetic predisposition or there has been some childhood issue, related to anger and fear, that needs urgent attention. You must go and meet with a counselor immediately and she must cooperate to her utmost. Please visit these professionals along with her parents. In the meantime please do the following sincerely because she could resolve the problem better with good cooperation: have a good night?s sleep, have a good breakfast of more proteins, meditate often, remain free of stress, eat a lot of fiber, nuts, avocado, exercise regularly, eat dark chocolate, do yoga meditation exercises, spend time in nature or gardening, etc. I suggest she does the opposite of what this depression makes her feel she like doing (actually, not doing): she will need to fight this condition. She must become active; stay upright during the daylight time; meet people; never sleep during the day, wake up by 6 am every day, play some active games, especially contact games (which may be restricted due to covid-19), do physical exercises, talk to people and join some social clubs, attend yoga classes etc. Watch sitcoms on tv or comedies and cheer herself up. Go for excursions in groups, for outings, camps, conferences, and religious conventions. Get a pet dog and spend time training it, exercising it and relating to it. Expose herself to some sunlight every day, at least, 30 minutes but not in the scorching heat. Whatever happens, please incorporate these three important adaptations in her life: always be responsible, be respectful, and be functional. If she did these three, lots of things will go well in life. Please pray and have faith in god to alleviate your sufferings. Don?t wait for others to help. Use her own motivation, which might be at its lowest, but persevere and win this battle. Above all to be really happy, she needs to live in love and for love. Learn all about emotions and how to handle them and that will get her out of the depression and anxiety rather easily and quickly. A counselor is there only to facilitate her, all the hard word must come from her, and her cooperation with that person is very critical for her success. Be positive every day and learn to be contented with what she has. Do some left brain exercises: it is the happy brain. Here are a few suggestions: shut your left nostril and breathe, move your eyes from right to left and vice versa for at least half a minute at a time, and do callisthenic exercises with some form of counting, regularly. Whatever happens please cooperate with the therapy and do not discontinue until the condition is completely resolved.  

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