thank you so much Donna
i am still reeling from the pharmacy call and now i see that i did gain a lot of weight. i feel as if i am falling apart. I have abby on my lap and am petting her. she is a doll even if she uses her nails to climb up on me. as soon as she starts i pick her up to avoid pain.
thank you for being so kind
bobby

I know and i hate to think about it. i heard that some people had to cut their medicine in half because they couldn't afford to buy the whole prescription. I wondered if it would be effective. I know i am cutting back on klonopin until i can get it cheaper. who said life was supposed to be fair?
take care
bobby

thank you Mari
I wish him well too and hopes he has a grand time with his children and grandchildren. the depression got worse when last night i started thinking about Yuki my dead cat. I thought i saw a flash of white which reminded me of her. she was such a docile cat. then the scale this morning wasn't a shock. i knew i gained weight and don't know what i am going to do. the anxiety is making me eat and eat and eat.
bobby

Dear Bobby,

i hear your dismay about the weight gain, after the hard work to lose it. i comfort-eat out of depression or anxiety also. we have to try though, not to get the double-depression version of anxiety (getting anxious about being anxious).

i wonder if you can remind yourself you are going through an anxious phase - i.e., this is temporary. you are not always this anxious. comfort eating is a symptom that will pass, when this acute phase passes. meanwhile, just do the best you can to eat healthy foods, but try not to blame yourself for having this anxiety.

for now, the best i can suggest is to try to snick snack on low-calorie, filling foods - like raw veggies. carrot sticks, celery, broccoli, cauliflower and bell peppers and fennel bulb are all good eaten raw. if you "need" some sort of condiment, try "dipping" in a shallow saucer where you put a small amount of olive oil, salt and pepper. a little goes a much longer way, and it's healthier than a dairy-based dip.

another thing i can suggest is to try to find a comforting activity to replace eating.

but remember this is a phase, and the loss of control over food is a symptom. it is not permanent.

You have my sympathy in this new unexpected wave of grieving for Yuki. i know how grief can suddenly come back like this. (((hugs)))

love

~ waves ~

food and anxiety
 

Waves and Bobby,

I have a question. I don't think I eat for comfort when I have anxiety. I think I eat as an attempt to balance the wacky brain activity causing the anxiety.

In my case, carbs are a temporary fix but, depending on the amount, they can be horrible for the body and not much good for long term mood stability. I love medication.

M

Hi bobby, waves and mari,
 

You are not alone in the weight gain dept. Here I have been doing so well. since Christmas I put back on 10 pounds, or two chickens and I am freaking! I ate way too much on superball sunday, and now am paying the price. I have to get back on track. I find since my depression is better, I am hungry alot. I have the opposite happen to me when depression occurs, I Don't eat much...When I am happy I am hungry, go figure. I have to figure now how to get back the figure .:grouphug::rolleyes:. :D ginnie

Dear Mari

i comfort eat out of anxiety and out of depression. they are different behaviours.

with anxiety i don't usually gain weight! it's possible i am doing what you are doing. i often have specific cravings and the foods are not necessarily carbs. my most recent kick was raw broccoli/cauliflower like every day.

when i am depressed is when things go haywire with the carbs, but not only. i basically tend to want easy things to eat. bread, crackers etc... things that don't require any preparation. i eat hunks of cheese, bread with oil salt and cayenne, peanuts. i don't necessarily crave any of these things, but if, say i make a sandwich and want mayo on it, i do think about weight gain but the moment of "tastes good now" is more precious to me right then. i am usually having thoughts like, i never did get back to my optimum weight and never will so who cares... (depression talks.)

at least, i am no longer buying the real bad stuff like potato chips, icecream, cookies. at one time, i did that.

~ waves ~

Dear Ginnie,

loss or gain of appetite is possible with depression. however, loss of appetite is more typical in depression than increased appetite or comfort eating. so what happens to you is not unusual, statistically speaking. not that knowing that is of any comfort to you, in regard to the "two chickens" (ROFL) you recently added to your figure. :o:eek: good luck getting back on track.

Bobby and i once figured out that she and i both get "atypical" depression.

~ waves ~

eating oatmeal waves
 

[Today I started to behave once again. Eating oatmeal (steal cut) right now. I don't like gaining the weight when I worked so hard to loose it. I sure do wish all of us the best in this weight struggle. Take care Waves, you are always in my prayers too. ginnie:::hug:

thanks waves
i got on the scale today and i weighed two pounds less. i have to find out if oatmeal is fattening. I decided not to take any more bagels or sandwiches from the senior center when they have them for free. it feels as if my anxiety is going to last and last. my depression is still awful. last night i got about two hours of sleep again. a friend went to the dental clinic to have her tooth pulled and had a panic attack and they took her blood pressure as they usually do and refused to pull the tooth because the blood pressure was too high. i spent a long time on the phone with her to try to comfort her. it really hit home that we have an illness we shouldn't be embarrassed about. it stirred up a lot in me. she found out they give aesthesia and since i am going to have to have all my teeth pulled i will go for that. i have no idea how much it will cost. I have no idea what will happen with my blood pressure. I take blood pressure medication. I have trouble eating raw things because of my teeth although last night i had a cucumber. it was good.
I just spoke with my friend again. she is ashamed of what happened. I told her i used to be ashamed of myself until i found out i was bipolar which explained a lot of my behavior.
love
bobby