Emotions running a muck

 It seems that lately every song on the radio, every sweet comercial on TV makes me cry! I don't really know what this is all about. And then there are moments that I wanna RIP my  honeys face off, or scream. I feel pissed off, sad, happy, glad and excited about the upcoming surgery, hopefully in December. I have had 3 visits of 6 and am right on track , have lost 16lbs in 2 months.

Why can't I stop tearing up and crying?

Well for me I went to my therapist for this before surgery and she told me I was more then likely a food addict.  Food was my comfort and it never changes and was always there for me.  You are going to go through those emotions feels like you are losing it.  Do you have someone you can talk to?  For me it was all about "why can't I be just like everyone else, who can eat what they want and lose weight or eat less junk and be able to lose weight... why do I have to go throught all of this"  But I know the struggle will be worth it when my health gets better... Good luck you are not alone.

Thank you so much...I thought I was going CRAZY for a while there. I didn't see the emotinal thing that way,...Hubby is a small man and does eat what he wants when he wants and goes crazy when he loses 10 lbs.  I hear a lot of folks talk about therapy. I would love to get into some and take him along so he can better understand what I am going thru and more of what to expect in the future. 

That is right, we are food addicts.  I am certainly one and, through this process, we are facing our demons... I am now trying to determine why I am eating, what a I feeling, am I really hungry?  And then, why am I feeling that way?  What is triggering the feeling?  Once you are aware of what it is, it is easier to address the feeling.  We hide in food and it doesn't deliver.  We need, I need to address and resolve the feeling rather than bury it in food.  Unlike other addictions, we can't put the addiction down forever.  We need food to sustain our bodies.  That makes this addiction all the more difficult.  In addition to my emotional eating, I do really enjoy food.. the tastes and textures.  So, I am now trying to really savor each bite, take smaller bites, and chew them longer.  My hope is that this will satisfy that piece of the addiction to the extent that I don't overeat.  I'm having a difficult time with all this as well.  What I am saying is easy to say and simple but, it's not easy to carry out.  I hear it is easier after surgery for most and that is my hope for me, as well.  That and therapy will help.  I also hear Overeaters Anonymous is an excellent source of support.  I will be checking that out for me as well.  Maybe it will help you, too.  Hang in there!  We'll get through this together.

I think taking your husband is a great idea... when I need mine to understand something I am going through I take him to therapy that week :) he has been very supportive and is working really hard to understand why I get angry at him eating foods I can't eat - but I am working on not making him pay for it LOL.  Good luck and Overeaters Anonymous might be a good free opportunity for you and your husband.  Take care and OH is perfect place to vent LOL

THanks for posting this - now I know I am not alone either! Not being able to eat the "comfort' is scary! I had a similar day today as you described. I just have surgery last week. I am so happy I can't eat what I was and did this for myself but - was also getting a bit depressed today that I can't. While I cannot eat anything - i am still looking into the refrigerator for "something". I realized I was trying to avoid thinking about something by wanting to eat...my husband just can't understand this emotional tie to food but is trying! This is certainly an interesting process - hang in there and keep sharing!

There are many great articles posted in the blog area to the right, above Patrece's pic.  I am copy/pasting one on hormone weight loss.  Hope this brings light to some of the feelings we go through.  This too will pass, in time.  Hang in there.


Many of us experience some changes in our emotions after weight loss surgery. There are a few things that contribute to this occurance, But, here's one reason you may not have even been aware of.

First, we all have "fat cells" in our bodies. Even thin people. When you are not overweight, these cells are flat, meaning not filled out. As you gain weight these fat cells become more filled out and larger. Your body actually does not create new fat cells. The ones you do have are just no longer flat and basically empty.

So, whats very interesting here is that when you are obese, and begin to lose weight, you are not actually losing fat cells, rather you are losing the "stuff inside" of those fat cells. What I find extremely interesting though, is what exactly some of that "stuff" in our fat cells actually consist of, other than just fat.

When you first began to pack on the pounds, many of your hormones were actually stored in your fat cells. The longer you have been obese, the more hormones are stored in these fat cells. As you begin to lose weight and your fat cells begin to shrink, they excrete hormones that have been stored in these cells for as long as you have been over weight, thus releasing these hormones back into your blood stream.

Once they are back into your blood stream, you begin to feel the effects of these newly released hormones, and it can really get you in a state of upheaval. Did you begin to gain weight during the time of puberty? Remember how hard that time in our lives were? You were going through many hormonal changes then. Now, as your fat cells release these hormones, you begin to feel the effects of them, but more subtly than during puberty.

So it is believed that this is one of the big reasons many wls patients go through mood changes, and emotional changes especially during the rapid loss phase. The good news is, this does not last forever. And as the weight loss slows, so does this release of hormones that have been stored up over the years in the fat cells, as these stored hormones get flushed from our systems.

It can be helpful to enlist the assistance of an antidepressant during you loss time, to help stabilize the emotional effects of this process. If you are currently on antidepressants, you may need the level temporarily increased during this time.

Which, leads me to another point. After wls, you are in a state of malabsorbtion, unless you had the lapband procedure. This being said, any current medications you are taking at the time of your wls procedure, may need to be adjusted by your physician post-operatively. This applies to not only anti-depressants, but all medications. This is something that will be important to discuss with your surgeon, and (s)he may refer you to your pcp after surgery to manage your medication levels.

 

Thank you so Kathy. I definately will remember to talk to the Doc about the medication thing due to being on Celexa for depression.
I just didn't realize that I would or could start going thru the emotional thing before having surgery...I have lost 16 lbs so far. But it is a relief to know this too shall pass.