Donepezil and Weight Loss: What Users Say

• Anonymous
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• October 27, 2016

For Alzheimer's Disease "My 65-year-old husband started the 1/2 pill regimen 5 weeks ago. Big improvement in conversations, no longer accusing people of stealing from him. Then we had to wait 5 days for the prescription to be refilled. That was a decline, back to talking to imaginary people, aggressive behavior, no energy. Now he is on the whole pill. Wow, almost back to being pleasant. He takes his in the morning, so no sleep interrupted. Energy back, never had a side effect as far as loss of appetite, weight loss, diarrhea. Early stage of Alzheimer's/dementia. Glad he is doing better, still a day-to-day."

• Mar...
• August 31, 2016

For Alzheimer's Disease "My mother-in-law was on this drug for 2 months. While her short-term memory continued to fail, she also seemed more confused. We took her off, and she has started to seem less confused-this is week 3 without. She has also experienced diarrhea and has lost weight. I am not sure there is a reliable study that can tell how well this drug might work for some because everyone's disease is different. We can't go back and see how they would have done without the drug. We will not be putting her back on."

• Anonymous
• Taken for 1 to 2 years
• August 12, 2012

For Alzheimer's Disease "Our mother has been on this medicine for some time now and I'm not sure if it's helping or not. She gets angry all the time and sees things and people. She wants to go home even when she is home and doesn't understand why she can't see her family. She seems to be stuck at this stage and isn't moving forward (not getting better, not getting worse). She is losing weight, not sleeping, and falling a lot. I don't know what to do: take her off or leave her on it."

• Lyn...
• July 15, 2017

For Alzheimer's Disease "My mum has been on donepezil for 2 years. Over the past 6 months, her appetite had deteriorated, she's losing weight, getting aggressive, and she was falling a lot. I have recently discovered she wasn't taking her pills and hiding them in her gums and pretending to swallow, then, when I moved away, she was taking them out of her mouth and putting them in the bin. She's 82. I have changed the routine of nighttime meds to morning, as this seems easier. Without this pill, 10 mg a day, she deteriorates badly. There is a massive difference in her vocabulary and attitude more than anything else. For those bad comments talking about the drug when it hasn't been taken for at least 12 weeks, please ignore. This needs to be given time to work."

• Son...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• December 22, 2022

For Alzheimer's Disease "Don’t use this. Immediate negative side effects for my 87-year-old mom. No appetite led to weight loss. Also, she had depression, constant crying, and anger. Stopping donepezil saw immediate improvement."

• ken...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• August 2, 2012

For Mild Cognitive Impairment "Nausea, diarrhea, loss of appetite, weight loss, dizziness, drowsiness, weakness, memory loss worsening."

• Don...
• July 30, 2024

For Mild Cognitive Impairment "Dizziness, thirst, confusion, weight loss, constipation, trouble sleeping, tiredness, loss of appetite."