Quetiapine and Increased Appetite: What Users Say (Page 3)

• Pau...
• Taken for 6 months to 1 year
• August 23, 2019

Quetiapine for Bipolar Disorder "Only reason I gave this medication Seroquel 3 stars is because, if you have trouble sleeping, this pill will knock you out! Other than that, it makes you extremely hungry, causing weight gain, may feel sluggish and irritated in the morning, and also I noticed vivid dreams and sometimes nightmares. Sidenote: I experience post-nasal drip that suddenly got better over time. Seroquel makes my allergies worsen, causing extreme post-nasal drip!"

• Anonymous
• November 18, 2010

Quetiapine for Borderline Personality Disorder "This medication is adequate compared to others in its class, despite still causing significant side effects such as weight gain (which is very undesirable). At first, this medicine seemed very strong and made me 'zombie-like' (e.g., slow, unemotional, sleepy), but after a couple of days, these were significantly improved. I was on a dose of up to 75 mg, and as far as the effects of each individual dose; 25 mg helped with sleep and 'anger management,' 50 mg increased my hunger (a lot), and 75 mg helped a little more with anxiety and emotional stability."

• Anonymous
• August 18, 2013

Quetiapine for Schizoaffective Disorder "I take this medication for its side effects primarily. It works great if you have severe insomnia. This medicine makes you very hungry when you take it. It also helps to relieve anxious feelings and help calm feelings of stress. Again, my doctor prescribed this medicine due to weight loss, insomnia, and anxiety. This is not what the medicine is exactly made for, but I have tried dozens of medicines, and this is the only one that has helped with my problems."

• Anonymous
• May 17, 2010

Quetiapine for Generalized Anxiety Disorder "Excellent for sleep onset - up to a point. If things get really bad, I've had to augment it with temazepam and Valium. I also have depression. I was on and off it for about 3 months, and it causes brain fog and word retrieval problems. There is also a significant increase in appetite, but it's not as bad as Remeron."

• Anonymous
• August 6, 2010

Quetiapine for Insomnia "I have had insomnia for almost 30 years, since puberty. Having a child made it worse. Diagnosed with hypomania, which explained why I woke up and started having racing thoughts once the sun went down. Tried every sleeping pill there, in combination at times. This is the only thing that worked. I am doing 50 mg with 4 mg clonazepam 2 hours before bed. I take it on an empty stomach as I have learned within an hour of taking it you will get hungry. So I simply eat my dinner late. Have not gained weight yet."

• Rus...
• December 1, 2016

For Insomnia "So I've just begun the Seroquel drug to treat apparent bipolar disorder. This drug has 110% assisted in my sleeping, but that's also the issue. See, I HATE sleeping through the day, but since taking this drug every night around 8:30 pm, I cannot seem to stay awake all day. I'm either EXTREMELY tired and drowsy sleeping, or I am EXTREMELY hungry. I cannot seem to stop my appetite. I have also noticed a strong increase in my aggressiveness. I am usually a very calm person, however, I have found myself getting angry and/or sad at very little. I am contributing this to my current state of drowsiness, however, even after an 18-hour shift at work, I usually don't get angry. Now this is purely my opinion and my experience, and I am yet to speak with my GP."

• Oli...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• August 11, 2018

Quetiapine for Bipolar Disorder "I'm 18 and was diagnosed with Bipolar type 1 about a year ago. I've been using 200 mg of Seroquel for a couple of months now, and it's really helped my mood. I was suffering from a bad manic episode, and it calmed me down within 1-2 weeks or so. The only bad side effects are increased appetite, sleeping a lot, and nausea, but I got over those within a couple of weeks."

• Anonymous
• September 11, 2010

Quetiapine for Insomnia "My doctor prescribed Seroquel for my insomnia, which I began experiencing during menopause. The Seroquel, 50 mg, works like a charm. If I take it on an empty stomach, I feel sleepy within 1/2 hour and sleep very well through the night. Dreams are more vivid, I agree. I also agree that I often feel hungry before I fall asleep after taking Seroquel. All in all, it has been very helpful."

• riv...
• Taken for 10 years or more
• January 17, 2020

For Bipolar Disorder "Waking up on Seroquel is honestly like you have returned from the dead and are coming back to life. Waking up for me is literally like being a corpse and trying to dig myself out of my grave. It takes 3-4 hours to feel awake/alive again. It also gives me extreme hunger and has made me gain a lot of weight over the past decade, at least 50 lbs. It really stimulates my appetite, and also I don’t seem to feel full after eating. The exhaustion I feel throughout most of the day makes it hard to exercise regularly. That being said, it’s the only drug that can successfully knock me out for 6-8 hours. But it’s literally like having my lights punched out. It is the sleep of the dead. The worst for me is when I take my regular dose when I am anxious or physically sick...the drowsiness comes on full force, but my body refuses to pass out, and I spend the night feeling like I am both in a coma and having a mild manic episode...nightmares, sleeplessness, fever."

• Anonymous
• July 27, 2011

Quetiapine for Insomnia "I am a 34 y/o female in the Army with post-traumatic stress disorder and insomnia. I may take it around 9 pm and won’t fall asleep until 1 or 2 am. I will remain asleep, but it makes me hungry. I have been observed eating while asleep."

• Pez...
• Taken for 6 months to 1 year
• February 2, 2019

For Borderline Personality Disorder "I have reviewed this drug before, and this time, I am just posting an update. I'm on 100 mg in the morning, 200 mg at night. My moods are regulated with minimal inappropriate reactions and outbursts, my sleep is regulated, my anxiety and paranoia are minimal. All in all, quetiapine is doing a wonderful job for me. The only thing is I've put on 3 stone in the recent months. It gives me the mega munchies for sweet goodies."

• Pet...
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• July 26, 2017

Quetiapine for Bipolar Disorder "I first took Seroquel about five years ago. I liked it because it didn't have the same side effects, such as feeling extremely anxious, as other antipsychotic medications have. The problem that I had with it was that it gave me a huge appetite. The medication alone caused me to gain weight. Needless to say, I no longer take it."

• joh...
• Taken for 5 to 10 years
• June 11, 2018

Quetiapine for Bipolar Disorder "The cons: higher appetite, weight gain, diabetes, cognitive dulling. The pros: I take 800 mg a day all at night, and once a quarter I accidentally double dose and feel perfect after that. I just slept for 24 hours during a staycation, and wow do I feel good and sharp. So my employer is aware of my condition, and we structure my workload such that I do serious creative computer programming in the afternoon after the 'dulling' wears off. My advice is to take it all at 8 pm and get in bed at 8:30 - 9:00. Then you will be able to do normal work at 9 am and complex work after noon. Diet and exercise are key because you have to manage the diabetes that comes with it. If I feel depressed or manic, I might add 400 mg, and that usually fixes it, but that is probably risky. Also note that the generic is really cheap now, under $25 a month at max legal dose, or $54 for 3 months' worth."

• Anonymous
• October 29, 2011

Quetiapine for Depression "This medicine really helped me with both depression and sleeplessness, the only negative side effects were that I tended to need at least 9-10 hours of sleep a night rather than my usual 7-8. Also, I had some weight gain due to a significantly increased appetite after each dosage."

• 411...
• June 23, 2011

Quetiapine for Insomnia "I have been taking Seroquel for a while now. Aside from being extremely hungry when I wake up, groggy, and the weight gain, it is a really good sleep aid. I am currently on 200 mg. Not only am I less stressed and anxious, but it slows me down to a point where I can actually think clearly rather than having racing thoughts, and it tones down the late night activity greatly. I still work out and am very active, but it is a lot less extreme thanks to Seroquel."

• Sav...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• October 3, 2021

Quetiapine for Bipolar Disorder "Everyone is different, and I’ve known people who Seroquel worked wonders for. For me personally, it did more harm than good. It gave me insane heart palpitations and extreme hunger. I gained almost 100 pounds on this medication. It did help me sleep, but that was the only positive. I stopped taking it and feel much better and have already dropped 35 lbs."

• HCC...
• February 20, 2012

Quetiapine for Bipolar Disorder "I've taken these pills since I was 19, and I'm 24 now. First, I had to take 600 mg, and I managed to lower them to 450 mg. I wish I could leave them, but I have learned I need them. So far, they have helped me a lot. I do wish I could fight anxiety, weird feelings in my legs while I sleep, and the hunger I experience 24/7. But it's a love/hate relationship between this medicine and me. I hate it, but I don't think I can ever quit it. Sad for me, good for the pharmacies."

• Sha...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• January 21, 2018

Quetiapine for Bipolar Disorder "It does help with sleeping, and my brain was so calm, but I was only on 25 mg, and I gained 15 pounds in 3 months. I was constantly hungry, but even if I only ate salad, it would just keep me at the same weight. It was the gross, cellulite, chunky fat! My metabolism and thyroid were changed. I went off Seroquel to stop my body from changing so much."

• Skr...
• Taken for 6 months to 1 year
• December 27, 2014

Quetiapine for Schizophrenia "When I was 14, I was put on 450 mg/day before bedtime, and within 6 months, I gained 25-30 pounds. It worked super well to get rid of my hallucinations (including the tactile ones), but it made me extremely zombie-like. My grades slipped at school, and I slept as soon as I got home till the next morning. The first day, I slept 22 hours. This medicine made me so hungry all the time, and no matter how much I ate, I was never full."

• Gwe...
• Taken for 1 to 2 years
• June 1, 2013

For Borderline Personality Disorder "I have been on Seroquel XR for almost 2 years now and am at a dose of 400 mg. If I drop down to 300 mg, I become unstable in my mood again. This medication has helped me become stable, I rarely become 'high.' Due to this, I have not self-harmed in a year and 6 months. The weight gain has made me uncomfortable, especially considering that the medication can make me very hungry. However, my weight has now stabilized, and I have a BMI of 28, so it's not too bad. I still become very angry sometimes but attribute this to my own behavior and coping mechanisms. Overall, this has given me my life back. My family and friends have noticed the change in me, and I feel that I can appear 'normal.'"

• mar...
• Taken for 5 to 10 years
• November 4, 2020

For Generalized Anxiety Disorder "Was first put on quetiapine 300 mg when I experienced severe anxiety before they found out I had thyroiditis. This may have triggered bipolar, depression, and anxiety? Anyway, was on 300 mg a day and put on 20 kg while doing manual work and martial arts. I was sleeping 12 hours at least on the weekend. And it makes you really hungry after you take it, so you eat more as well. But this medication did stabilize me up to a point where I could work. The thing is my cognitive ability has dropped, I have a shocking memory, get confused, my mind goes blank, and have lost jobs because of it, so reducing my dose has to be done slowly, otherwise you could get bad withdrawals and give up. It is a powerful drug but not addictive like the benzos."

• Alo...
• April 20, 2017

Quetiapine for Bipolar Disorder "I have bipolar, most of the time, being on Seroquel has helped settle my racing thoughts, helps me sleep at night, and helps me regulate my moods. At times I still get the highs and lows, but not as severe without Seroquel. The side effects that I get are dry mouth, dry skin, increased appetite, and high cholesterol. Most of the time, this medication helps me out."

• Mad...
• January 25, 2019

For Major Depressive Disorder "My doctor prescribed this to me after my depression and anxiety started getting worse, and I found myself actually getting very angry and combative (which is odd because I never used to be an angry person). I've taken this for a few months, and I can honestly say this was the worst medication I've taken for my depression/anxiety. There were way more negatives than positives for this medication for me. First off, my face broke out in acne, which isn't normal for me. Secondly, it increases your appetite majorly, which may not be a problem to some, but I have a binge eating disorder, so that clearly isn't very good, and I just instantly started gaining weight. And the worst one of them all was it made me WAY more angry and mad. Someone could just look at me, and I was ready to tear them apart. Instead of trying to calm me down, it was like I was always ready to blow up at someone. The only good thing that came out of it was I found I could fall into a deep sleep pretty quickly."

• kin...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• August 19, 2015

Quetiapine for Bipolar Disorder "Took Seroquel XR for about 2 months, experienced help with sleep issues for about a week before that wore off. Gained at least 20 lbs in this time frame, due to increased appetite and general weight gain due to the drug. Never really seemed to help my bipolar disorder-the other medicines I take do that."

• Gem...
• July 28, 2016

For Bipolar Disorder "I love Seroquel. I do. I've been on as much as 200 mg/day for the last 8 months and now am currently hoping 75-100 mg/day will prove as effective as 200 at eliminating bipolar depression. I've honestly never been happier or more stable in my memorable life, and I'm 34. The sleep is fantastic, anxiety is an issue of the past, and I just have such a high but stable mood. As for the reviewers promising this drug will not cause you to gain unless you increase your food consumption: Don't believe it! Research it! You might be lucky, but this drug does NOT only increase appetite, it can decrease some core metabolic functions. Many people have to really restrict calories and up exercise just to maintain pre-Seroquel weight!"