Gastric ByPass and Psychological Side Effects

My wife had this done in 05 and left me in October 06. She filed for divorce and is having what I believe are psychological side effects from the surgery. She has gone through a severe personality change which has impacted our whole family. She denies that there is anything wrong even though our children have noticed the "change" in her attitude and her inabillity to cope with stress or give our children the type of attention she once did. She has had a past history of stress/depression in her family and combined with her imeadiate entry into LPN school, a VERY high stress course, and her inability to tend to our children that she is not thinking correctly. She's gone to bars, given up her faith based beliefs and has taken with a rich man. I URGE people to look at what the World Journal of Surgery has to say about following up with a psychologists concerning the possible psychological problems that may well follow.

I know where you are coming from. My wife changed DRAMATICALLY over the last two years. She also had a history of depression. She has told me that she hasn't been attracted to me for a few months now. I'm just waiting for the bombshell...I love you, but I'm not IN love with you. I'm to the point of thinking that any woman that wants this surgery should be required to undergo at least six months of psychotherapy. Let's face it, most have eating disorders and, or depression to begin with.

Hi guys, I am a wife btw lol my husband and I are BOTH going to classes in order to hopefully have WLS. Recently I went to a seminar/orentation at UCLA for the Bariatric surgery program. They said anyone who has psycological disorders might not be able to make the best decision. I have a past history of Bipolar disorder, and I do jump into things right away without thinking sometimes. But at some point all women are like that. I'm the exact opposite from you men, I've already lost 81lbs and I'm doing quite well with diet and excersize alone. I am going back and forth and I can't make up my mind weather or not I want to have the surgery. My husband is going to finish the classes and then decide if he wants to go through with it. I was wondering what the spousal impact was if I didn't go through with the surgery. My husband is a steadfast man, but I still wonder what would happen if he has the surgery and I don't. this kind of a post makes me want to go ahead and have the surgery just so we'll be living the same lifestyle. -Dawnyel

NEVER consider having this surgery just to please your spouse...If you do it, do it for yourself. Considering the bi-polar disorder, I am sure you would have some issues after the weight loss. The lifestyle has nothing to do with bad results. It is mainly if the person getting the surgery has past psychological issues that have not been completely delt with. If you can loose weight without surgery, don't even consider doing it. Just support him as much as you can and try living healthy. My wife had a history of depression and now she sometimes wishes she didn't have the WLS surgery. She doesn't feel like she belongs anywhere and is no longer the "happy-go-lucky" person she once was. Chris