Depression and Weight Loss

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  • alyjb1121
    alyjb1121 Posts: 186 Member
    cmr3399 wrote: »
    Sorry no experience with Zoloft....I'm on Wellbutrin and Xanax...and the xanax make me so hungry sometimes I binge which then makes me sad...such a horrible cycle

    I am on a very high dose of sertraline which is generic zoloft. I have been for 8 years. I don't notice any particular change in eating habits with it I guess, I just notice when it is not working ( we have upped the dose several times, switched meds once and switched back and upped again.) I am not the majority though, instead of emotionally overeating I tend to not eat and not eat well and feel the physical wrath of those actions unfortunately.
  • shelleygold
    shelleygold Posts: 178 Member
    Hi Tribe,
    How is everyone feeling about the holidays? For many of us this time of the year can be challenging for so many reasons. May I suggest that we give ourselves permission to look after ourselves and not get caught up in the pressure of appearances, materialism, or intrafamily politics. To do this requires self-awareness and boundary setting. How do we find the strength? I'm not sure. I wonder if it makes sense to use this thread to explore how we do that? For me, what I want to be able to do is be myself and not apologise if I am moody or anxious or if I lose my way with my food . im human and I won't be perfect. I do want to create some new memories that include having fun. We will see.
    I wish you all a beautiful Christmas and a meaningful new year.
    Shel
  • loserzack
    loserzack Posts: 10 Member
    I have to say I never though of it but have to agree that i see myself through the number on the scale. I am way happier when I lose weight and not so much as soon as I gain it back. Still struggling to find the way to stay focused and NOT gain the weight back. Good Luck to you all!
  • missjazminenicole
    missjazminenicole Posts: 379 Member
    Hey guys. I have struggled with generalized anxiety and panic attacks for about 8 years and this is my first time dealing with depression. Over the past three months the depression has gotten pretty intense. I have hopes that the new medicine I am taking will help me get back to my normal self. As most of you know, it takes about 8 weeks to really get a feel for it.

    I feel good today. I worry a bit about tomorrow. But I find myself coping a little better each day. I personally handled the weight loss and depression/anxiety issue with my dr by deciding to do meal replacement shakes twice a day. That has actually helped me feel really in control (even if it's only a small portion of my life right now). Depression and anxiety can really make you feel like you have no control or ability to make any clear decision. So it's nice to have a tool to help me through the hard days. Being able to focus on one healthy meal and two snacks has made it much more feasible for me right now as opposed to how overwhelming it can feel to even get out of bed some days when you are depressed, let along make clear decisions all day long.

    I'm happy I found this thread. It helps me know I am not alone. I've certainly felt over the past few months like no one understands what I've been going through, and I see now, that many of you here do. Please feel free to add me.

    I am also of the general consensus that the exercise is helpful with channeling my anxiety and depression into something productive, when I can actually get out of bed... So on my good days, like today, when I've beat the fatigue, and mustered up enough energy, I keep my workout shoes and sweatpants nearby in case I have the urge to squeeze in a workout.


    My thought:
    We can only do what we can do based on the limitations of the moment that we are in. The good thing is, with the passing of each moment, another follows behind it.
  • shelleygold
    shelleygold Posts: 178 Member
    Hey Everyone,
    Hope the holiday season is all you want it to be. Look at each day as a new opportunity to learn something about yourself and let's move forward. By moving forward I mean if we made errors with regards to food then let's leave that in the past and start anew. We can do this. It's about making better choices each day and not making awful judgements that just make us feel worse about ourselves.Tell me how you have been the past few days. I care .
    Shel
  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 28,053 Member
    Thanks Shel. It was tough. Due to a medical condition, I had to cancel or postpone everything. I'm recovered, the sun was out today, and I worked on the trail in the woods behind my house for over an hour, which cheered me up. I'll see family tomorrow.
  • shelleygold
    shelleygold Posts: 178 Member
    kshama2001 wrote: »
    Thanks Shel. It was tough. Due to a medical condition, I had to cancel or postpone everything. I'm recovered, the sun was out today, and I worked on the trail in the woods behind my house for over an hour, which cheered me up. I'll see family tomorrow.

    I'm sorry to hear you have had such a tough time. I hope your time with family makes you feel better
    .Take Care
    Shel
  • soulofgrace
    soulofgrace Posts: 175 Member
    On the 23rd I was feeling so nauseated, I couldn't eat much of anything all day. For a moment that morning I actually hoped that I had norovirus, and that it would be unwise for anyone to come to our house or for us to go out. Unfortunately, on the 25th I felt better and everything went off as planned. I ate cookies, fudge, candy and all the holiday meals. But, I had given myself "permission" to eat freely, so I don't feel bad at all. There was one meal in particular that I stopped eating half way through. It was an emotional evening, and I could feel the lump of emotion in my belly. I am getting better at noticing that feeling. I am so ready for everything to get back to normal. I get anxious, overwhelmed and depressed without my routine. Ready for 2016!
  • mbaker566
    mbaker566 Posts: 11,233 Member
    My anxiety had been rough over the holidays which is unusual. I usually feel pretty stress free.
    I'm still feeling residuals, but i think I'm on the mend.

  • robertw486
    robertw486 Posts: 2,398 Member
    Sorry to hear that a couple had kinks in their holiday plans, or extra stress involved. December is usually a tougher month for me regardless of my mindset. Several deaths in the family happened in December, and I share a birthday with my mom who is also now gone. So for me, as much as we enjoy Christmas, overall December can just be a big reminder of people I care about who are now gone.

    But I just try to make it a positive thing, and I'm glad I cared enough about all of them to miss them.

  • serasmommy
    serasmommy Posts: 61 Member
    How is everyone surviving the past twenty-four hours? It's been hard for me! Black hole type thoughts and emotions..... I'm still fighting.
  • melkd82
    melkd82 Posts: 2 Member
    amypocock wrote: »
    One of the biggest lessons I've been taught, particularly when I'm feeling depressed is to try and just nourish my body with good stuff rather then comfort food. See food as a fuel only and before I know it, the feeling will pass. I've always suffered from depression and emotional eating but right now, with the combination of cutting out refined sugar, good meds, great counsellor and exercise every day, I'm the best I've ever been. But I did change everything in one go, I've very much eased in to this over a three month period.

    Thank you! Food as fuel!
  • melkd82
    melkd82 Posts: 2 Member
    I feel your pain, with the changing of seasons I have a harder time with my depression as well. This is a great thread thank you for asking the question and getting the discussion started :)
  • shelleygold
    shelleygold Posts: 178 Member
    Hi group
    There is little doubt that moods can be correlated with time of year, anniversaries, holidays, medications, medication changes, diet, exercise, genetics, biology, thought processes, and even moods and behaviours of others. So....those of us who have become susceptible to dramatic shifts in moods, such that our daily functionality becomes changed and even impeded have to search for so many possibilities , so many triggers and sources and of course strategies, skills and solutions so that we can continue to carry on and live out our lives with some sense of purpose; dare I say enjoyment and happiness.
    As the calendar year has just turned "over a new leaf" let us take a moment and applaud our courage and persistence in making it to 2016 and claim success! We are hear to tell the story of what we have learned about ourselves and that we will continue to thrive and pursue what is most important to us. I look forward to spending time here in this thread and be a part of something meaningful and important as we journey together to find what is important and necessary. May all of you have a blessed, productive and healthy New Year and lets keep things moving, changing and unfolding as our lives move forward.
    With love and appreciation
    Shel
  • shelleygold
    shelleygold Posts: 178 Member
    Hi again,
    I find it interesting that I stumble upon our thread (daily :) not really knowing if I have much to offer.I still have my moods, still struggle with excessive belly fat (was reading about it on the internet today...awful connotations: mid-life spread, deadly fat which surrounds organs etc.) and my little world which truly reflects the choices I have made until now and the choices of the people around me that I have included in my inner sanctum. So....we all live in a context don't we? I guess we show each other our contexts (bubbles) with each breath we take, each posting, each decision and virtually everything we say and do. Somedays, I think I am in charge of my world and most days I am at it's mercy. I imagine that the instant we are catapulted out of the womb (rather unceremoniously), we find ourselves in the world which we have to continue to negotiate and problem-solve around. For a few years, we rely on the intelligence, values, priorities and choices of others as our brains continue to develop and complete its essential growth and construction...And then, we decide how we are going to manage the uncertainty and complexities of our world, our relationships, our work, our families and our needs. I think where I am going with this is that the expectations we create, and the demands we place on ourselves and others may offer some hints in terms of why we might find ourselves moving into moods and belief systems that stop us from being present, interfere with being content and create deep feelings of unease and ongoing confusion. My big stomach is not the biggest problem. How I respond to it is. MY body is not the enemy of the state. It is a reflection of so many of my patterns and choices first taught to me, then influenced by my world and then solely my responsibility. Wow, if that is true, then I can develop a positive relationship with this persistent and rascally part of me and create for both of us a friendship which would allow me to treat it with respect, dignity and careful, INTENTIONAL choices. Hmmmm. So, when I feel like getting back to old patterns and choices, I may just move myself to this awareness level, one which requires my brain to activate and who knows... I may actually create new patterns and decisions.
    Hey, here is a challenge. If you go along with my rambling.. Let's each start with baby steps.
    Once a week, write on this post ONE thing that you choose to do differently . Something small and easy. And reflect on how that choice changes an outcome or more than one. Let's test this theory of the brain "that changes itself". Lets expand My Fitness Pal to I choose to see myself as my fitness pal. You in????
    S
  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 28,053 Member
    shelleygold wrote: »
    Hi again,
    I find it interesting that I stumble upon our thread (daily :) not really knowing if I have much to offer.I still have my moods, still struggle with excessive belly fat (was reading about it on the internet today...awful connotations: mid-life spread, deadly fat which surrounds organs etc.) and my little world which truly reflects the choices I have made until now and the choices of the people around me that I have included in my inner sanctum. So....we all live in a context don't we? I guess we show each other our contexts (bubbles) with each breath we take, each posting, each decision and virtually everything we say and do. Somedays, I think I am in charge of my world and most days I am at it's mercy. I imagine that the instant we are catapulted out of the womb (rather unceremoniously), we find ourselves in the world which we have to continue to negotiate and problem-solve around. For a few years, we rely on the intelligence, values, priorities and choices of others as our brains continue to develop and complete its essential growth and construction...And then, we decide how we are going to manage the uncertainty and complexities of our world, our relationships, our work, our families and our needs. I think where I am going with this is that the expectations we create, and the demands we place on ourselves and others may offer some hints in terms of why we might find ourselves moving into moods and belief systems that stop us from being present, interfere with being content and create deep feelings of unease and ongoing confusion. My big stomach is not the biggest problem. How I respond to it is. MY body is not the enemy of the state. It is a reflection of so many of my patterns and choices first taught to me, then influenced by my world and then solely my responsibility. Wow, if that is true, then I can develop a positive relationship with this persistent and rascally part of me and create for both of us a friendship which would allow me to treat it with respect, dignity and careful, INTENTIONAL choices. Hmmmm. So, when I feel like getting back to old patterns and choices, I may just move myself to this awareness level, one which requires my brain to activate and who knows... I may actually create new patterns and decisions.
    Hey, here is a challenge. If you go along with my rambling.. Let's each start with baby steps.
    Once a week, write on this post ONE thing that you choose to do differently . Something small and easy. And reflect on how that choice changes an outcome or more than one. Let's test this theory of the brain "that changes itself". Lets expand My Fitness Pal to I choose to see myself as my fitness pal. You in????
    S

    I'm in! I am going to go to bed earlier!
  • 68myra
    68myra Posts: 975 Member
    I'm in as well. thought i posted last night, but apparently a case "operator error"

    I am going to wake up before my children, have at least 10 minutes of meditation/stretching/focus before starting the morning "get ready for school" routine :)
  • mbaker566
    mbaker566 Posts: 11,233 Member
    danced my butt off on new years which made me happy, ran 13 miles sunday and still had a "rough" few days. thank you TOM. i'm looking forward to settling down.
  • shrcpr
    shrcpr Posts: 885 Member
    Hi, there. I've been lurking around this thread for quite some time now and appreciate everyone's candid thoughts and feel for your struggles. (And, hi, Myra! We're friends from the JFT commitment thread - honestly not stalking you - I have some issues but that's not one of them! :))

    One thing that's I've been trying to change lately is the way I talk to myself. I've managed my depression fairly well over the years with diet and exercise, although there have been long periods of time where it got the better of me. My secret weapon has always been high-intensity, high-impact workouts where I am so physically exhausted that there is no room for mental noise. Doing that a few times a week really seems to keep me on more of an even keel. Well, recently I got plantar fasciitis and was told no more high-impact workouts. So now I'm terrified of falling back into my old pattern of drinking to dull the mental noise.

    The doctor recommended swimming as an alternative exercise for me. She thinks it will be physically hard enough and yet easy enough on my foot to help. Except to swim you have to wear a swim suit. So yesterday I went to look for swim wear suitable for lap swimming. I had several moments of panic when trying them on and really felt like I wanted to give up right then and drown myself in a bottle of vodka. But, I've been practicing talking myself out of panic thinking and into rationale thinking and instead of reaching for the bottle of vodka I talked myself off the ledge and was able to move forward and find a suitable suit. I still don't love the thought of wearing it but at least I bought one and didn't drink myself into oblivion. My conversation with myself went something like this:

    Panic me: OMG. I look horrible. My legs are so huge. I am so disgusting. I'm never going to be able to do this. I might as well give up. I'll never be able to wear a swim suit or shorts or be out in the summer or do anything fun ever again in my entire life. I'm just old and blah, blah, blah.

    Rationale me: Breathe. Calm down. You've lost 15 pounds so far. You can either cave in and make this worse or you can suck it up and focus on what you can do in this moment to make it better later. The only thing you can do to change how you look and feel is make decisions that move you toward your goal and not away from it.

    So, this time anyway, I was able to change my course instead of giving in to the panic and self-pity. Today I am really happy that it worked out. Plus, I'm really happy that I don't have a hangover right now. That was a super long post but that seems to be acceptable in this thread so I won't feel too bad about it. :smile:
  • shelleygold
    shelleygold Posts: 178 Member
    Dear shrcpr
    What courage and focus. In a very pertinent way,you decided which voices in your head to listen to and which ones to ignore. You are already successful and don't even know it. I'm so impressed with your story. Well done

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