phentermine or topamax or wellbutrin

Hello I had my weight RNY in 2004.  I lost 130 pounds.  I have slowly regained about 35 to 40 pounds and weigh about 235.  I am curious if anyone has tried any of these medications for weight loss or anything else that has helped them.  I wonder about absorption of the medications too.  Or if yu have any new ideas that I maybe havent thought of to get myself back on track.  

Just low carb diet works for me.   I eliminate any starches, dairy and most fruits. Proteins, fat and veggies. Fruits - only berries, and that not every day.  

I agree what the other poster said about food. Adding exercise, water, sleep. That being said, any of the medications you mentioned CAN make someone feel not hungry, and don't seem to be absorbed differently, MOST of the time, according to the companies, AND, that is an individual experience, that can't be guaranteed. If it was me, I would be getting to the roots of what was making me want to eat too much again, start weighing and measuring my food, and getting back to basics. there is no ONE solution....it's got to be a combination of tools. People on those medications have eaten even tho they were not hungry and gained.

Before WLS surgery I tried both Qsymia and Belviq.  I had better luck with Qsymia but it made me extremely constipated so I had to stop it.  Belviq did nothing for me.

I have never personally taken any of them myself, but I do know a bit about each of them and personally, I would stay away from them.  None of them have showed much efficacy in clinical trials.  Although they do tend to elicit more weight loss and in a higher number of people than what a placebo did, the average weight loss was not that much higher than a placebo.  Also, none of them have shown that they can actually keep the weight off over time.  They'll help you lose 'a few' pounds in the beginning, but your weight will slowly creep back up again, and if you decide to stop them, your weight will typically rebound and you'll end up back where you started from, or worse, higher.  Plus, they come with their own set of potential adverse effects.  The ones that you've mentioned are all centrally acting drugs, meaning they act on the brain, but their primary indications are not for weight loss, they are for other effects (eg., wellbutrin is an anti-depressant), so sometimes you take them intending one effect but get another entirely different and unwanted effect (like migraines or aggression or whatever).

The final thing i'll say on them is that which drug a person takes may be dependent on why they are gaining weight.  For example, if they have a food addiction problem they are grappling with, then Contrave may be the best, if they have a satiety issue, then Belviq may be the best, if they have a slow metabolism then Qsymia may be better and if they have a binge-eating problem they're trying to deal with, then Vyvanse may be the solution.  But just know that all of these drugs are far from perfect, come with terrible side effects, and for many, just not worth it to go on them (thus their poor performance in the stock markets).

I hope you figure out what is best for you and I wish you the best of luck!

I've been on Topomax and Wellbutrin for different reasons. I can't imagine why they'd be WL drugs. 

FWIW, Topomax has the nickname Dopomax for good reason: you become stupid on it. (I was on it for migraine prevention.) It's very disconcerting. I was on Wellbutrin for depression. I'm on a different med now. I didn't lose any weight while on it.

Phentermine made my heart race terribly.  It is a great appetite suppressant but I didn't have long term success with it and I have never seen anyone else either.  Weight seems to come back extra fast as soon as you stop it.

I took Topomax for about 2 months once.  I reacted so badly (tingling sensations, forgetting entire blocks of time) that my doctor said to add it to my allergy list just to be sure I never took it again.

I take the generic Wellbutrin daily for depression.  I didn't lose any weight after starting it but there are some reports of people doing so, I hear.  I would never take it just for weight loss, though. 

I take topomax for migrane both pre and post op. I don't think i absorb it "as well" after, and it makes me VERY DEHYDRATED. in the summer, i have to cut the dose in half (always have even pre op) because a side effect can be that a person does not sweat and therefore overheats. This side effect is WORSE for me as a post op. It does seem to curb my apetite still, although not nearly as much as it did pre op.  I should say i have a TON of other meds I take including ulcer meds, so there may be some interferance from those.

Dehydration worse,

not sure about absorbption, seems to be slower

appetite sppressant--meh

headache relief.......have not had one, but if i stop the med i get bad migraines so I think it works for that.