Depression and Weight IssuesHave you been diagnosed with depression, are possibly on depression medication, and find it affects your weight loss efforts? Post here for support!
Goodmorning everyone I am new to your forum and just thought I would quickly introduce myself before I head out the door to work.
My name is Charlene, I live in Aldergrove, B.C. (Canada), I'm 31 years old,married and have one son who is 11.
I am struggling with depression and at the same time trying to lose weight, seems to be a tough combination. I have been following Weight Watchers but I seem to just be throwing my money out the door with that. I'm paying $14.00 every week to have them tell me I gained weight. Seems everytime I join WW I start craving things that I wouldn't usually, its all a mind thing I know but its frustrating as heck!!!
So glad you found this forum. It can be a great help to talk to people who know what you are going through with this illness.
Yes, I agree that weight loss combined with clincal depression can be quite a challenge. I have been dealing with depression since 1994, well at least that was when I was diagnosed. Like a lot of people, I suffered with it for years before seeking help. Are you under a doctor's care for this.. meds, therapy.. etc?
A couple of things that I have found that help my depression are free!! One is regular exercise. At first, I didn't notice any change to be honest. It took me a good six weeks to notice even small improvements in my moods. Even today, 8 months later, I look back and am amazed at how much of an impact this change has had on me. Another thing that helps me is a good night's sleep. I know somedays that is next to impossible, but when I can get it , its like a bonus.
Any idea why you are having trouble with Weight Watchers? I am not a ww person myself, but several people who haunt these boards are.. perhaps they can offer you some strategies.. Meg where are you? I am a calorie counter myself.. its all sort of the same thing. Just a way to monitor your intact of food.
I hope you'll hang around the loony bin ( what we affectionately call this place). Glad you found us.
Hi everyone! Well I joined TOPS lastnight as much as I would like to still be able to follow Weight Watchers I just can't justify paying $14.00 everyweek when I'm really have a very hard time staying on program. TOPS on the other hand is quite affordable and the group of ladies seem really friendly, if anything the night out right now will do me some good.
Linda, you asked if I was under a doctors care for my depression. Yes and no, I moved in April, about an hours drive from where I use to live so getting to the doctors right now isn't too easy. I have been going to a walk in Clinic close to work but really don't like the doctor that I see although there was one doctor who I first saw there who I thought was great but he hasn't been there on my other visits. Unfortunately your unable to make appointments. BUT.....I am taking Paxil, was at 10mg then they increased me to 20mg but I had to go back to taking the 10mg as I was experiencing side affects at the 20mg. Any which way I'm not sure if its really working, maybe somewhat but not like I maybe expected.
My depression isn't severe but its there, I perhaps have been suffering from depression for years but never really knew, it got a bit worse back in March. I was pregnant, we were all thrilled and then I miscarried at 3 months and it hit me harder then I expected. I have good days and bad days, its not like I'm sad all the time, I probably have more REALLY irritable days then days that I'm sad. WELL now that you know my life story .......sorry for babbling, I will end here and catch up with you all in the daily tomorrow!!
Hi Charlene,
I'm new to this forum too. My name is Lysa and I am 30 years old and I am struggling with low self esteem. I am constantly grabbing the fat on my body.
"This must go!" I exclaim to myself everyday. Right now, there are four slices of pizza, left-over pasta, cheese and butter rolls in the kitchen and I have been trying to ignore the kitchen all day...
Everytime I think about the cheesy delights, I go to the mirror, lift up my shirt and say "NO NO LYSA ! Down girl Down!". Then I walk away miserable.
I took Paxil four years ago. After a month and a half at 10mg I wasn't feeling very happy at all so the doctor increased the dosage to 20mg. Two weeks later I had turned into a different gal.
I was HAPPY . I still wanted to lose weight, but I wasn't so hard on myself. I saw the positive side in everything( Marlyn Monroe was a@size 16!) and I swore that If life could be beautiful because of 20mg of Paxil...well, hey,...bring on the PAXIL!
But then one day one of my biggest issues hit me hard=Rejection. Even on the Paxil, I cried like a baby and felt alone.
After that experience, I slowed myself down. I went off altogether. I gained weight (cause I ate red licorice all the time) and I hung out with my calm/ down to earth pals.
I think Paxil is a brilliant drug..don't get me wrong..I would go on it again for the high of it. But, Charlene, there is nothing wrong about feeling.. bad about yourself/ feeling tempramental/ aggitated/ disgusting/ ugly/ unworthy etc. Damn, we all go through this...INCLUDING men and psychiatrists and movie stars and mothers with 11 year olds...
I wake up and I am cranky..I can't help this...
I avoid shopping cause I return home cranky..
I feel bad being cranky cause my guy (or anyone for that matter) tries to make me feel better and I feel worse when he (they)can't...
I have been insecure forever and although I have been told that I can change if I want to, I absolutely believe that there are a few aspects of my personality that I don't need to change..
Some people feel deeply...Some people try to improve..some people think about things other than the colours they will wear to the store... Lysa
Hello Charlene~
Weight Watchers is the very best eating plan there is. Not just for weight loss, but for maintenance. It's something we'll do a lifetime. In March 2002, nearly 5 months ago, I joined. I have shed 62# during this time. I was 140# overweight, plus I'm 5.10" so the loss isn't too fast for me.
I have a history of depression and anxiety, in fact, bipolar disorder for past 40 years. During those 40 years have been on every single antidepressant. They all were effective for 3-5 months, then I began developing adverse side effects and had to be taken off of them. There are several new ones since the last time I took them, but psychiatrist won't put me on them due to my history, as the side effects are worse than the depression. I do have medication for the times the anxiety just hits like a bolt of lightening. Luckily for me, it's lasts only a few days, and haven't recorded the frequency, a few times a year with nothing outward going on.
Perhaps this will help you. First of all......nothing, absolutely nothing is off limits with Weight Watchers, as long as you are willing to spend the points on it. That piece of cake, or candy bar often will cost me the points of a meal, and it's just not worth it.
In the frozen section. Healthy Choice, Lean Cuisine and WW offer Pizza's. No, they aren't like the Pizza Parlor ones, but they aren't filled with fat and oil and are much, much less. I don't know what foods it is you crave, but probably you can find an alternative.
As far as I'm concerned what helps me the most is I have 3 meals and 2 snacks, every day. I start my day with a 32 oz glass of ice water with lemon, and then fix coffee. Used to be one of those that believed there was no life until I drank a cup of coffee. Then, I'll eat breakfast. Oatmeal with rasins, Splenda and Apple Pie Spice, a 2Point Bagel or English Muffin and some sort of fruit.
Lunch is usually a sandwich with Pita Bread, or reduced calorie bread and raw veggies, and I count out FF chips or reduced calorie ones. For snack, usually have yogurt and count out 12 almonds, or my favorite is an Apple sliced really thin and 15 pretzels. Dinner is some sort of meat/fish/poultry a huge salad with FF dressing or Reduced calorie and a veggie, plus a small baked potato, sweet potato or rice. Night snack is usually Sugar Free Jello and a dallop of FF Cool Whip. I prepare and eat the entire 3oz box which is 40 calories (1 point), just for me. It's better than icecream to me now.
In the evening, after dinner, I Journal what I will have for meals the next day and point them. Usually I leave a few points over in the event I want something else, otherwise, they are banked for another day if I need them.
Don't know what type of depression you have, but mine and that of countless others will be with us a lifetime. It is imperative you find a food plan that will let you shed weight and keep it off for the rest of your life. Otherwise, you will find yourself as I did, at 320#, still suffering depression and experiening a lot of other problems due to the obesity.
I cannot do anything about my depression, except make the most of it and use all the advice and "tricks" to keep it at bay. Having suffered the pains of being morbidly obese, it is something I have control over. Many women can develop a healthy attitude about being overweight/obese. I tried and bought some very expensive clothing for Big Beautiful Women to contribute to sense of well-being, but it didn't work. I never, ever want to experience the health problems I had or be so ashamed of my body did not want to be out in public. I never, ever want to forget that.
If I can help you in any other way, feel free to eMail me: [email protected]
Hello. Just thought I'd drop a line or two . I'm fairly new to this so forgive the question, but what is the daily board? Any way, I can relate to the depression issue. I was diagnosed in 95. They had me on zoloft during the day and surmontil at night. I have to say I hated the fact of taking meds. Plus the zoloft (may I say) zaps your sex drive to zilch. I finally went off the meds and was doing very well for years, but it has recently gotten pretty bad. I can't sleep, I can't concentrate, I'm irritable, short tempered, moody, weepy, have no ambition to exercise (which I know would make me feel like a million bucks), in fact the only thing I can seem to do is eat and eat and eat some more. So this really great counseler that I'm seeing is going to have me try some new antidepressent,,,, lets hope it works because I hate living with this. It makes me feel trapped in a very big body that isn't mine. Does that make sense? Well I certainly hope it works for all of us. Not one of us in here deserves to be unhappy.
Till next time, Mila.
The daily board is where we all meet each day to discuss anything and everything, its easier to post every day on a different thread than to post on a thread thats a mile long.
I understand how you feel about Zoloft (sex drive - ditto for me) plus Zoloft was some days making me high and the next day dropping me like a hot potato (gee everything relates to food huh ) I am on welbutrin now and for me its great, I'm at a steady feeling not a rollercoaster. And well as far as it helping with the weight loss NOT !!!!
Hi Leens. Thanks for the welcome!
Thanks for the info. on the daily, but how do I get to it? I'm new to this and don't know my way around yet. Also, do you know how to get those pictures under your name? I don't know any of this stuff and am eager to learn. I'm glad you could relate to the zoloft issue. That's great you're doing well on wellbutrin! Well, hope to talk with you again, hopefully on the daily if I can get there. Later, Mila
Leens has gone home for the day and won't be posting until tomorrow, so I thought I'd point you in right direction.
When you come to the forum, I am assuming you came through the main page, then clicked on message boards and then clicked on Depression and weight issues? Once you get to this point, stop and take a look at some of the other threads listed.
Some of the other threads ( discussions) you will see some of them have dates next to them.. for example today's thread is Wednesday, August 21st - Daily. So tomorrows will be Thursday August 22nd- Daily.. and so on and so on.. a new discussion for each day. That is the daily thread where we touch base, share a laugh, a tear a struggle, a success or just whatever.
As far as adding a picture under your name, you can go http://www.3fatchicks.com/forum/index.php then click the control panel option near the top. Then click EDIT Options. Scroll to the bottom, click change avatar.. and you are off to the races.
New to your forum
I am new to your forum and just thought I would quickly introduce myself before I head out the door to work.
Welcome!
.......sorry for babbling, I will end here and catch up with you all in the daily tomorrow!!
I'm new here too
Lysa
