Weight Gain After Nervous Breakdown

Hello

I have been depressed since I was a teenager...it hit bad when I was 15 and had my first nervous breakdown...things got a little better and I married and had 2 children, but the marriage was very abusive emotionally and physically. I kept gaining weight. I finally divorced after 28 years...a long time I know, but I am a Christian and figured God would work things out...finally decided either I kill myself or leave...decided leaving was better....

Then I met a wonderful man from Germany. My life totally turned around! I moved to Germany and lived there for 2 years.

Well, I learnt that things aren't always what they seem to be and found my new true love was a jerk. I was working while he stayed home and played with his friends on the computer. He finally had a job offer here in Toronto so while we were here I told him to go back and sell everything and we would move back to Canada. He thought that was a great idea so he went back to Germany, leaving me here to wait for his arrival.  Well, he sold everything and then spent the money to run off with another woman.

I was devastated and started back on medications....then my sister whom I was living with passed away and I took over watching her 3 daughters which she left behind and my father who lived downstairs.

The eldest daughter didn't like the way I was doing things and decided to get together with my other sister and have her daughter (my other niece) move in and take over. I was glad in a way as my arthritis in my knees was getting worse day by day and my degenerated back disc got worse to the point that I could not stand for more than 5 minutes at a time.

Niece moved in with her kids and I was put downstairs again with my dad. He was going through something, I have no idea what but he was out to make my life miserable. I was not allowed out without a big deal and when I did go out I had to be back before 11:00 pm. I had to be in bed by 11:00 pm according to his rules.  Hello! I was 50 years old!  Anyways, dad will be dad and he is set in his ways. At the time I didn't feel that way and he didn't appreciate me living downstairs with him and made it very clear that he wanted me out.

My boyfriend said I could move in with him if I paid $500.00 Rent per month!!!!!!!!!! Yes, he's a jerk...I don't know why I am still with him :( 

Anyways, that is when the nervous breakdown hit. I just wanted to go out and walk in front of a truck. I finally started getting help from a physcologist and psychiatrist and then boom! My brother died.

Well they started me on all kinds of medication and I gained 60lbs. I was big to start out...weighing in at 250 before the meds...Long story short. I am doing better but am still on meds and still with the boyfriend but I have my own place in a low cost housing place that the psychologist found for me.

I joined Weight Watchers 2 weeks ago and haven't lost a pound even though I am religiously following instructions. I joined CC about 3 days ago and found out I should be eating like 15-1600 a day and 1200 like I thought, so I have upped the calories.

The medications is what I think is stopping me from losing weight. I am on 100 mg SEROQUEL, 75 mg Surmontil and 2 mg Ativan.  Yes, I need to sleep alot with these meds....generally 10-12 hours a night. They don't' want to lower the meds so I feel discouraged about the whole weight loss thing.

I still see my psychologist every 2 weeks and this is a big help. They can't understand why I still have the boyfriend...lol...something we are trying to figure out....can we say co-dependence? That's probably it.

I want to know if anyone else is finding that their meds are wreaking havoc with weight loss efforts and if there are any work arounds or ideas I might try to give my weight loss efforts a boost.

Thanks

Sharron

Hi Sharron,

I think it's great that you're motivated and want your life to be healthy in spite of the experiences you've had. I'm sorry to hear about your sister. My mother passed away in December, and it's never easy. Kudos to you.

I recently started taking Seroquel also, and I was told by the members of another group that weight gain is often a side effect, in addition to increased risk of Diabetes type 2. I have not experienced the weight gain on it, so I'm hoping that it doesn't make it more difficult for me to lose it either. I only started this diet a week ago, so time will tell.

Be well,

lunaria

Hi Sharron,

I also gained weight from my meds. While my weight remained high I walked, more as a means to clear my head  than trying to loss the weight which depressed me even more. It was hard getting started because I thought everyone was watching the "fat guy" therefore I walked at night.

Whatever you do STAY ON YOUR MEDS! After nearly 11 months my meds were reduced and the weight started to come off. The good thing was that the walking had increased my engery level so that as the weight came off my activity level increased. Finding this site was a great help. The weight is coming off and I feel great.

I am still on my meds and unfortunately will always have to take them. I have come off time twice just to feel "normal", both times I ended up in the psych ward for a 3 mth stay and then 7 mths. I sometimes want to quit taking them but I have family that making me feel normal is not worth the risk. But the one thing I hate is them asking me "did you take your meds". 

Hang in there.

Freeman

Thanks for the replies guys. Yes, I also tried coming off of them last year and it was very depressing. I think I am stuck with them for life even though they too have been reduced in amounts taken. I still need a certain amount to keep my sanity. Not that I'm wacko or anything like that, I just cry alot and take things too personally sometimes.

The Good News is that finally after 4 weeks of counting calories and going to Weight Watchers I lost a whole 2 pounds!...It took forever to come off but maybe now that my body is starting to react and lose maybe, just maybe it will start being a little bit more cooperative with my counting calories.

I am thinking I probably was in starvation mode before I started because I would eat like a piece of bread with a very thin coating of peanut butter and then maybe when I went out for dinner I would have a chicken sandwich, no mayo. I still generally order this when I go out with my boyfriend because it is one of the lesser calorie foods available, but it gets boring. But at least I am eating more during the day and forcing myself to get to the 1500 calories I am supposed to have so I acutally start my day with food in my stomach. Not to much, usually a banana and applesauce and snack on a fat free yogurt here and there and sometimes a treat with a piece of cheddar cheese :)

But the important thing is that the scale is finally moving!

Thanks again

Sharron