Question:
I currently suffer from depression, is it going to get worse post-op?
Depression runs in my family, I am on prozac and have been hearing about people getting depressed after surgery. I was hoping that losing weight would help with my depression I don't want it to get worse. — LaKeAffy (posted on April 22, 2002)
April 22, 2002
Some go COMPLETELY away like Me. Sadly some get worse early on like my wife
who had a rough time and missed her buddy food. At 5 months out she is
DOING GREAT and happy to be alive. I think its your pre op mindset. I
decided if I were fortunate enough to survive surgery I wouldnt let
ANYTHING stop me. I was also concerned to keep a good attitude, so I
wouldnt scare Jen my wife from getting surgery too. I sugar coated :) BAD
PUN some stuff but its worked FANTASTIC for us. See my profile.
— bob-haller
April 22, 2002
I suffered from depression prior to surgery as well. My depression DID
worsen after surgery. I am now 6 weeks out. My antidepressant medication
(Zoloft) was increased two weeks ago and it seems to be helping. I am
pretty certain my depression was worse because I MISS FOOD. Yes, I still
do, however, I think it is getting better. Don't mean to sound negative,
but if I was more prepared mentally BEFORE surgery then maybe my depression
would not have been so bad. If you are really concerned about this please
speak to your docotr and see if they recomend increasing your meds BEFORE
surgery. Hope I helped. Please feel free to email me if you have any other
questions. Good Luck!
— Sandra C.
April 22, 2002
Bob is correct, you won't know until you are there. I too was very
depressed before surgery and took Effexor off and on fighting it but after
my surgery, even in pain, I had hope in my life. I felt there was a light
at the end of the tunnel! I have days I feel down. and I have some
emotional days when I'll be laughing at something funny on the radio in the
afternoon and then crying at a sad movie that night! I am expressing my
emotions much better now. I was safe under my "Fat Armor" and
not I am feeling life's ups and downs. If you are taking Prozac now,
continue taking it after your surgery. Loosing weight might even lower the
dosage you take! and one day you might feel so good you can ask to have
the dosage lowered stage by stage and get off of it totally and see how you
feel!! Remember, thin people suffer from depression too! So becoming thin
may not change the fact that you take Prozac! but becoming thin might help
your doctors treat your depression with accurate dosages and newly
developed drug therapy!! Good luck!! Becky!
— blank first name B.
April 22, 2002
I wish I could tell you it would magically go away after surgery but it
doesn't. All of your other problems are still there. I am now five months
out and am starting down that road again. I talked to my family doctor the
other day and I have started on Wellbutrin (spelling?). I am far enough out
that losing weight isn't quite as easy as before. I am starting to get
hungry and get food cravings. This is the time I was scared about. I was
diagnosed with an eating disorder in 1993 and it is rearing its ugly head
again. I think in some way we all have an 'eating disorder' or we wouldn't
have gotten to this point. I am scheduled for a consult with a
psychiatrist who specializes in eating disorders. I knew this going into
the surgery and am going to work like crazy to make it work. I hope for
you that it is not that tough, but if it is please don't hesitate to get
help. If you want to talk, please get in touch with me.
— purdue_1993
April 22, 2002
I was diagnosed with depression and was on Zoloft for 2.5 years prior to
surgery. My family also has a history for depression. The first few
months following surgery were hard, not really from the depression, but
coming to grips with why you eat. That was the tough one for me. I really
didnt know why until I was unable to do it. However, now I am 6.5 months
post op, and am no longer taking antidepressants. I feel wonderful! But
you have to understand that clinical depression is somthing that will be a
life long battle, fat or thin. Losing the weight changes many aspects in
your life, but does not change your entire life. Your problems will still
be there, and you will still have to confront them. But the confidence
that I gained made it much easier to deal with depression.
— RebeccaP
April 22, 2002
It seems the answer to this question is very individual since there are
lots of different answers. I am currently 5-weeks post-op and suffered from
depression for five years prior to my surgery. I, too, was worried about
what to do about antidepressants after surgery. However, since the
surgery, the emotional ups and downs are no longer there. I attribute it
to the fact that I no longer eat sugar or junk food, and my diet is now
extremely limited. The food restriction seems like a small price to pay
for feeling so good now. I finally have hope, and am genuinely happy, and
feel that I have a bright future. Since food is no longer my "drug of
choice", I am forced to feel the feelings I stuffed before with fried
foods and ice cream. But the feelings I was afraid of before aren't so
scary anymore. Weird how that is.
— Judith H.
April 22, 2002
I was severely depressed prior to surgery. Went through a plethora of
meds, none of which helped. It was either temporary or the side effects
were as bad as my depression. Friday is my two-year wls anniversary, and I
am doing great. No depression, no meds!
— [Deactivated Member]
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