Please make the right choice

I got the date to have my VSG, and just like the last time in Feb. of this year I am starting to have those negative thoughts and second guessing myself as to whether or not I can do this. One half of the day Im all psyched up about it and the other half I'm thinking about what all I have to give up. I am an emotional eater and have been all my life. I just don't want to regret having this done after it is over cause when its done its done. I feel so silly that I having such a hard time with this. Maybe its because I suffer from depression and anxiety, I don't know, I just know that I don't do well at all when I do without my meds, and they didn't give my mom hers while she was in the hospital. I just need to know if anyone else has had these feelings and what they did or do about them.

hi,

i too have depression,bi polar.

i am on day 5 of my pre op liquids i must say i am doing pretty well with it.

i have my head so wrapped around what it is going to be like post op

being more mobile hopefully more out going i lost alot of me when the depression

got very bad 4 yrs ago i just sank back into myself.

i am looking forward to going out walking the track,hiking,disneyland,riding my bike..living again 

as for my meds i take effexor xr and it is a med you just dont go without

i told my surgeon on my first meeting that it is something you just dont take a couple days

on my last appointment with him he stated oh i will just take you off of it for a couple day

i told my shrink what he said and i got an absolute oh no he is not she gave me the same med to take after surgery i just have to take it twice a day. i have yet to tlk to me surgeon about it i will tell him the dy before surgery when i see him again.

i have yet to do any second guessing i have had food funerals in my head but nothing has crossed my lips other then shakes and kool aid.

to me this is the best thing that could ever happen to me!

you got this!

If you are an emotional eater now, you will still be one after surgery.  It fixes your stomach, not your head.  Do you see a therapist?   I find that I have a much reduced desire to eat since surgery, emotional or not.  And I can't eat  much. I still sometimes turn to the fridge when I am bored or stressed, but nothing there will appeal to me, or I will eat 2-4 ounces of yogurt, cottage cheese or beans, or have a cup of hot flavored skim milk. 

Since the SSRI's and SNRI's have been implicated in higher complications during surgery, many surgeons have you discontinue them prior to surgery for a short time.  If it is critical that you continue your antidepressants, talk with your surgeon beforehand about the risk of staying on the SSRI or SNRI or talk to your psychiatrist about switching to a non-seratonin type anti-depressant before surgery. 

I am two weeks out and Bipolar. I am here to say it is soooooo true that if you suffer from emotional eating before you definitely will after. I don't know if you read my previous post about all of the troubles I had first week. I did everything wrong and thought I was loosing my mind because I didn't have my food. I even put myself at risk of really hurting myself by eating when I should have been on liquids. I am doing much better now. But I think if you go to a counselor before surgery and start working on your food issues it would probably help. As for meds. I am on a pretty big med for my Bipolar and they said I could take it as long as it was broken into a piece the size of an asprin. They DID tell me to bring my meds with me to the hospital but they ended up giving me meds from their supply. All of that said I wouldn't change the fact that I had surgery even when I was going through the first terrible week. I have not for a second regretted the surgery. I hope you make the right personal decision but if it were me I would do it again and again.

Like others have said, for most folks, you need therapy to get past the emotional eating.  Talk to the doctor and see if you can take your current meds right after surgery.  If not, perhaps you can switch to something else for the short term.  You may have some periods of depression from not being able to get comfort from your old friend -- food -- but after you have lost some weight, you will find joy in being able to do things you could not at your current weight.  If you stay as you are, it will be more of the same.   I can't speak for you, but being overweight and in pain depresses the hell out of me.

First of all, your second guessing and nerves are normal, whether or not you suffer from depression or anxiety - we all went through it!  Until they wheeled me into the operating room I felt like backing out.

I too am an emotional eater.  I had lap band surgery 7 years ago and a revision to VSG on 5/8/2013.  Over the years, I looked at it as kind of a grief process.  Think of food as a friend that isn't good for you - they're an emotional vampire, sucking the life out of you, yet you still love them, and feel compelled to be with them.  Finally you make the painful decision to separate from them, knowing that it's the right thing to do.  You'll miss them terribly for awhile, and will even be tempted to call them.  The grief gets a little better every day, until you wake up one day remembering them fondly, but healthy enough to never go back to them.  

Good luck to you!  It's a good decision, and you'll realize that soon.

It was so nice for all of you to help me by sharing your experiences with me, it really means alot to me, I went to the Dr. office today and I talked to my Dr. and his nurse and I have finally decided to do the surgery that was originally suggested to be the best for me by my Dr, the RNY, My surgery date is June 19th and my liquid diet starts on June 5th, ready or not hear I come and this time I'm going to take care of myself.