Dropped 60 pounds AND antidepressants!

First of all, congrats to everyone who is here because you ARE on the right track.

My story starts way back when I was a kid. I went through a rough time as a teenager and was told I had "genetic depression" and went on and off different antidepressants for most of my life. I was very thin and active, and weight was never a problem.

Fast forward to after I had my second baby. I went through what I now understand was postpartum depression that got out of control. I was put on some heavy medication meant for a severe mental condition (which I do not have) to control my bouts of crying and depression. It didn't work. It made me a complete zombie and made me gain 65 pounds in less than a year. I also developed an alcohol problem and my personality changed. Let's just say, it may have been the wrong medication for me, but the doctor insisted I needed it, and that I would HAVE to be on this med for the rest of my life.

So, a couple of years into this, then something happened (a traumatic experience which I'd rather not get into). I "woke up". It was actually a series of events, that made me realize that I needed to change the trajectory because things were not going to end well.

I went off the medication cold turkey. It was like turning on a light. I started my journey to health and weight loss. I began a weight loss program that just had me counting calories and exercising (I lost 10 pounds that way.) Then I started running. It was so painful. The depression was so bad that I cried whenever I went walking around the block, at first. It was just so much easier to sit on the couch and feel bad. But after, I don't know, a month or two, slowly it started to become easier, and after a couple of months I was feeling okay enough to try jogging.

I literally felt something happen in my brain when I ran. Like little electric sparks. I don't know what that was but it must have been a good thing, because the depression started really going away!

Now, a couple of years later, I've run a half-marathon and have lost most of the weight. For me, this is something I HAVE to do to feel OK. I need exercise as much as I need food or water. If I miss too many days of exercise, the depression and anxiety starts creeping back. But for the most part, it's gone. I've been med-free for three years and life has NEVER been better. Also-- my personality went back to normal, I am regaining my confidence and rebuilding my relationships that suffered during that horrible time. And I do not drink anymore, not even a drop.

Here's my story on Shapefit:
https://www.shapefit.com/success/weight-loss-success-stories-lara.html