If I had known before surgery what I know after surgery I would never have gone through with it. I'm bipolar and was very stable pre-surgery. From the moment I woke up in recovery, however, I've been on a down hill slide. Depression with uncontrollable crying jags, anxiety, and a very hot temper. After being off my meds for four days, I saw my psychiatrist yesterday and he prescribed two new meds for me to take that were more compatible with my new plumbing. One was okay with insurance. The other, the mood stabilizer, was not, but I didn't find this out until after the psychiatrist's office closed and of course he's out today for Good Friday. I've spent today fighting with the insurance company, the nurse on call and the pharmacy trying to find some resolution but so far to no avail. Even though the surgery itself was an unqualified success, I'm very sorry that I went through it. Maybe when things improve for me emotionally I'll feel differently, but right now all I can say is that I regret it.

My best advice is that if you have a mental illness, think very carefully before going through with WLS, and if you decide to go through with it, make sure that your doctor(s) will be available to you for several days afterward.

 Sorry you are going through this post op.  Hopefully once your physicians get your meds straightened out you will feel much better.

Hang in there.

 Sorry you're struggling. Good luck! 

I am so sorry that you are going through this right now. I can see how hard it must be. I do believe given time things will get better. They will get your meds right and you will be happy you made this decision. I wish there was something I could say it make it better. I will pray for you!! It was hard after surgery for me. I was depressed for about 3 weeks. I was angry, and sad. I loved everything about food and with it taken away I didnt know what to do with myself. I cant imagine having an mental illness to begin with and then having to deal with the emotional stuff from surgery. Hold on best you can. Help will come. We are here for you. Maybe you can vent to us to help. Good luck.

I am sorry that your psychiatrist did not have the foresight to switch your medication BEFORE surgery and made the (very questionable, IMO) decision to take you off your medication completely for surgery.  Most psychiatrists don't choose that course, fortunately.

Is your psychiatrist  not available through the medical society for emergencies?  I would say that thi qualifies as one.

I am sure that once you get your mood stabilized, you will feel much better about your choice to have surgery.

Lora 

I'm sorry you're struggling. I'm right there with you. Not regretting the surgery, but frustrated I'm not loosing weight as fast as some other people seem too. My depression has ROARED back with a vengence, not that it was really great before hand but it's making sure I notice it now.

Makes me pretty nasty and hard to live with as well and an unsupportive husband doesn't help.

Making these life changes are hard but I remind myself that I had a very good reason for having surgery which hasn't changed. I'm off my blood pressure meds and it's remaining fairly stable. I'm off my diabetes meds and will see my PCP for a check next week.

I've been reading alot lately that as we loose weight we release alot of hormones that are in the fat, so I'm hoping that might be some of my issues too. Maybe it is for you too.

Keep advocating for yourself and good luck!

Hi there... I so agree with Lora about the doctor taking you off your meds. Give them time to get back into your system. I have bipolar disorder and suffer from severe persistent depression... The doctor wanted to titrate me off of my meds before surgery and I refused because I had been stabilized for a long time.

Two things that happened to me after surgery. I am taking Prilosec to protect my stomach since I had a few strictures. I would take the Prilosec and my psychotropic meds at the same time. I was struggling with symptoms and could not figure out why. I mentioned it to my doctor and he said to take the psychotropic meds when I first got up and the Prilosec about one hour later. This helped - but I was still struggling somewhat. Another suggestion he had was to break the pill in half to allow for better absorption in the pouch. That was the key for me. I break the pill in half and take it about one hour before the Prilosec.

I knew that the way some meds are absorbed can be changed once you have surgery and I am glad this worked for me.

This is just something that worked for me personally. I am not suggesting that anyone do this unless you speak to a medical professional first as some pills can't be crushed or broken.

One other thing - sometimes if you contact the manufacturer of the medication that your insurance company denied they will help you out with the cost.

Take care and hang in there.

i HOPE THIS ALL WORKS OUT FOR YOU! i know it will all workout for you! :) just give it some time! thats what everyone telles me, and it works! :)

I have not had the surgery yet and I am sorry you are having to go thru this. I would either call the pharmacy and ask how much 3 or 4 pills would be and maybe pay for them yourself until you can hash this out on Monday or go to the local ER, they always have a Psychiatrist on call and they can prescribe and get you settled until you can see your reg doctor. If it were me, I would be looking for new Psychiatrist that would know better. GOOD LUCK !

I'm sorry you're having such a hard time.  why were you off your meds for four days?  That seems like a bad idea.  Especially since some meds cause terrible withdrawal symptoms as you come off them.

I was wondering the same thing. Are you not able to be on your current meds any longer? I know that tapering slowly has always been incredibly important when I come off an anti-depressant. I once tried to get off of Zoloft cold turkey. I was fine for a couple of days and then I felt complete and utter despair. It was downright scary. So I decided to get back on it and taper off of it very slowly. It sounds to me that  your depression is a result of the lack of medication more than the surgery. Switching meds can also be really traumatic. I am surprised that a doctor would switch your meds during such a big event in  your life (wls).
 
I hope you get some relief!! Know that this is temporary.

Hugs,
Pam

 So sorry to hear this.  We were all told about depression after surgery  from the anesthetic, and this can go on for weeks.  Were you not informed of any of this by your doctor?  All these emotions you are having were discussed in our pre-surgery classes months before our surgery.  Sorry if you weren't given important imformation.  So what you are experiencing is normal even if you weren't bipolar.  Wishing you the best.

Even if your doctor is out, there should be someone in his coverage group who takes calls. Eve solo practitioners band together to do this for each other when they are unavialable, on vacation, etc. for emergencies. Its unethical to just abandon you.

Thank you all for all your support. No one ever mentioned depression after the surgery. In fact all I heard were feel good stories and how everything would be rosey. The only bad stories I heard came after months post-op, not right out of the gate. My psychiatrist's office had a nurse practioner on call who, at the recommendation of the insurance company, prescribed a different but similar antidepressant to the one the psychiatrist had prescribed. It reacted with the other one the doctor had given me samples of and I ended up in the ER tonight barely able to stand. Then they decided that despite pushing as many fluids as I could that I am also a bit dehydrated and gave me a liter of fluids. There apparently is no psychiatrist on call unless I go to the ER threatening to harm myself then they ship would ship me off to the state mental hospital and I don't want to go there. Talk about going from the frying pan into the fire! So I was told to make a choice between the two new meds I was prescribed then hang tough until Monday when I could finally get hold of my doctor. Since I've taken the mood stabilizer in the past with no problems, and the other new med is not one commonly prescribed, I think I'm going to stick with the mood stabilizer and try to focus on all the good things I was focused on before they put me to sleep for surgery. There's no going back, at least for the foreseeable future, so I need to do the best I can for the time being.

 Hang in there, hang in there, hang in there. So easy for me to say because this is traumatic what is happening.  Will be thinking of you.  Keep posting because alot of great people out here to support you.  

I pray things are getting better.