Happiness improvement?

I know it probably can't be cured indefinetly and you'll have deal with demons all the time. However, I was just wondering, has weight loss surgery improved any bouts of depression you had or thought you might have had? In whats ways besides just making yourself healthier. How much happiness did you gain overall from the surgery? Do you feel like you are a more happier person?

WLS only operates on your body, not on your brain.  Knowing that, though, I worked to find a therapist I clicked with to help me through this whole thing.  Probably one of the best things I did pre-op and one of the best things I continue to do for myself post-op.  

I have had one depression flare up post-op, but it passed relatively swiftly for me.  My life has changed 100% since surgery.  I was looking at my calendar from a year ago and it was filled with doctor and radiology appointments.  Now?  Now my calendar is will with my exercise schedule.  It's an amazing and unfathomable change.  It's also quite a mind screw - I feel like I'm living some else's life.  Yet another thing that therapy is helping me come to grips with.  

Do I feel like I'm a better person?  I never felt like I was a bad person.  Being obese certainly doesn't make someone bad or lazy or anything else like that.  I don't feel like I'm a better person now, I just feel like I'm a different person.  I'm happier and I'm healthier.  These are all super wonderful things.  I love all things things I can, and want, to do now.  

I struggled with depression from puberty. Most anti-depressants worked, for a while, then I'd have to change to a different one. Finally, I just gave up on taking them.

When I had my pre-op psych eval, I told the doc I would go back on them if he thought I needed to. He took a 'wait and see' approach, and I'm really glad he did---because about ten days after surgery my ddepression was GONE. Apparently changing my gut hormones also changed my brain chemistry.

That was over ten years ago. About five years ago, my mom got very sick, and my elderly dog was in the slow process of dying. Very depressing situations, and I did go back on the meds for a while. I don't know it the newer anti-depressants work better than the old ones did, but they did the trick. I am once again off them, though, and I feel fine.

I am a happier person, because I am a healthier person. I am able to do so much more---play with my dogs, work in my garden, DANCE!

I can't really say I've gained any happiness from wls. I really haven't had bouts of depression b4 wls & I don't have them now. I might feel a little sad every now & then, but nothing really major. I've read there is this hormone dumping thing that goes on from losing the fat, but I hadn't really noticed. I was happy b4 & only happier now because of the lifestyle changes & getting healthier & being able to do more that I couldn't b4, but surgery didn't do that. It's just a tool, the rest is up to me, at least that's how I see it.

I've had clinical depression for most of my life and no, WLS didn't make that better.  I don't see how stomach surgery would cure mental illness.  Even brain surgery wasn't real effective at that, which is why they stopped doing lobotomies.

For me it did not make me happier per se, but being thinner does make it easier for me to deal with everyday problems. 

Actually, losing weight did the opposite for me.  I had such high expectations of how great life would be once I was thin that reality was a let down.  Losing weight made me feel good but really all it did was leave me normal.  

I am not really talking about after WLS but anytime I had a large weight loss.  I remember the first time I ever lost weight I so thought I would be beautiful and then I realized there are a lot of unattractive people out that who are thin.  I just automatically assumed that being thin equaled being attractive.

Also, I heard someone way once, you know, there are a lot of thin people in mental hospitals. 

After WLS I did go through a period of kind of a high, followed by a let down once all the applause stopped and people no longer commented on how good I looked.  Then it was my new normal and no one said anything anymore.  Then I had to find motivation for myself to keep on going.

Before surgery I took Prozac for about ten years.  After surgery I stopped taking it.  A few years later depression started to set in and I went to a therapist and some self-help groups.  The therapist said that weight loss surgery patients who went on anti-depressants often had regain of weight.  I did not want to risk that and worked through my issues with talk and support from others.  The issues that I dealt with were the things that put me on Prozac years ago.  I was finally able to face those fears and put them to rest (hopefully permanently).

If depression hits again, I will do what I need to get healthy again.  I am happier now than I ever have been in my life and being strong and thin helps a lot with that for me.

Professional response: Several clinical studies have shown that most people who suffered with major depressive disorder (often referred to as clinical depression) before they had WLS experience a significant decrease in depression during the first year post-op -- although some experience an increase during the weeks or couple of months immediately post-op -- but then by 2-3 years out (the timeframe depends on which study you read) more than half (again, exact numbers depend on the study) experience depression levels that are similar to those they had pre-op.

Not surprisingly, for people who had other mental health issues in addition to the depression (e.g., Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) or other anxiety disorders), the number is significantly higher than 50% and often the long-term decrease in depression levels is smaller.

People who experienced dysthymia (low level depression) before WLS (which is often what people are referring to when they talk about "bouts of depression") fared better once they lost weight. That is the group who experiences longer-term relief from depressed moods. The theory is that the dysthymia is often tied closely to the excess weight and the decreased quality of life, and that when the weight is then gone, the depressed mood is significantly improved. With major depression, however, weight is usually only one of many contributors, so changing someone's weight doesn't change the depression much.

Personal response:  I suffer from both PTSD (primary Dx) and Major Depressive Disorder (secondary Dx).  I experienced a significant increase in depression right after surgery and then an even more significant decrease in depression for the first 12 months or so.  I am now 7 years out and although I do still suffer from clinical depression, it is not as bad as it was when I was SMO.  Life is easier and I am definitely "happier" than I was at over 330 pounds, but the depression is still there.  To just isn't as deep as it was when it was exacerbated by the extra 190 pounds,

Unfortunately, the PTSD was not made better or worse by losing weight.

Lora

Thank you every for your responses. It helped me open up my eyes a bit. I know that WLS surgery can not solve your depression completley, and for some maybe not at all. I know that I deal with low self-esteem and I think that causes the majority of my sadness, so I think I was just looking to see if WLS boosted any of your self-esteem and in return made things a little happier for you. I am going to start seeing a therapist for low-self esteem and depression that will help me work towards decreasing my overall depression. I just didn't want to go into WLS with a obscured sense of reality, so I really appreciate all the responses, I've recieved :)