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Getting depressed after surgeries and pain

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Bipolar Disorder
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Posted 4/29/2008 8:33 PM (GMT 0)
Hi, I posted a note on someone else's thread and was told this is the proper way to introduce myself. I am 48 and have had the diagnosis of bipolar/schizoaffective since 1995. It started late in life thankfully. Anyway, I had two major surgeries in one week and ended up in the er Sunday with another complication and have been in bed and on pain meds. I am starting to not care about getting dressed for the day and have not had an appetite since before the surgeries but also feel like I am apathetic and getting depressed. I will call my therapist and just needed to vent. Thanks. Denise
Posted 4/29/2008 8:51 PM (GMT 0)
For depression cymbalta helps both and for anxity; lyrica helps as a pain drug and as an anti-anxiety drug. Ask your doctor about these two medications.

quietpain
Posted 4/30/2008 3:55 AM (GMT 0)
Hi quietpain thanks for your reply. I do take cymbalta and I have fibromyalgia but take other med for that instead of lyrica for the pain and it is working. Have a good night. Denise

Posted 4/30/2008 6:28 PM (GMT 0)
Denise,

I'm sorry you're feeling the depression coming on again. I think you need to call your psych as well as your therapist, at the first sign of depression. Maybe your psych meds could use some refreshing right now while you go through this stressful time. You might need a little more help than you normally do.

In addition to that, fall back on your support system a bit more. You mentioned your therapist, that's good. Who else do you have on your side that you can talk to? Family? Friends? Bring in the troops to help you out right now. Make them take you out to movies, if you can go. Entertain you, keep you busy so that you don't stay home alone and let the depression spiral downward.

Hope this is helpful,
serafena
Posted 5/1/2008 2:35 AM (GMT 0)
Hi Serafena, I have been bedridden the past few days since the er and am going for an ultrasound on Friday to see what is going on now with the ruptured ovarian cyst in my upper abdomen. I will call my therapist. Unfortunately, I moved from Fl and do not know many friends here yet in S.C. but do have them in Fl and they are very supportive as is my brother in Ca and my dad and stepmom. I am staying with them and am trying not to let them know I am depressed but they probably see it. I will be going to see my cats at home with my dad tomorrow who will drive and that will be great. I will be able to go home hopefully soon. It has been 6 weeks since I have been home. I think that is hard too. I appreciate the support and will continue to talk on here.
Posted 5/1/2008 2:25 PM (GMT 0)
Being away from home definitely is adding to the depression. I know I had a terrible time right after a major move. Bedridden is awful too. It's no wonder you're feeling depressed. I wonder if once you're back up and moving around that will help a little bit? When will that be?
Posted 5/1/2008 2:59 PM (GMT 0)

Hi Serafina, I hope to be going home in about two weeks. I am going to make an attempt to stay the night tonight and just being home will make me feel better probably. I see the psychiatrist in two weeks and cannot make it sooner since I can't drive and my dad is on chemo and can't make it to take me until then which is okay. I can call my therapist and will do that today. I just don't seem to care about anything and everything seems so superficial to me. I guess I have just been through too much too soon. I had a hernia operation for one hernia, they found three. They ripped apart and then my intestines got tangled up in the mesh and I had small bowel obstructions and  had my adhesions removed from last year when I had my colon removed and he took out all of my intestines and had to unkink them and put them back. I am sure I may have said this earlier but I don't think so. Then 2 weeks later is when this happened with my ruptured ovarian cyst going into my abdomen instead of the other way. So, it has been a long recovery and will be long just due to the intestinal stuff. Well, thanks for all of your support you have no idea how much it has helped just being able to talk with someone. Denise

Posted 5/2/2008 12:28 AM (GMT 0)
Anytime, darlin'. That sounds like an absolute mess and I am so sorry you've had to go through it all. It sounds painful and frustrating. And your dad's having chemo at the same time? You've got a lot on your plate. Keep in touch with that therapist!

(((Hugs)))

serafena
Posted 5/3/2008 12:15 AM (GMT 0)

Hello Denise,

Wow, you certainly do have a lot on your plate right now. Stress alone can wreak so much havoc and you are dealing with so many stressful issues in your life right now.

I totally agree with serafena. Please keep in close contact with your therapist so he/she can help keep you afloat through all of this.

I don't know how I would have got through so many issues in my life if it weren't for me seeing my therapist on a consistent basis.

Best wishes.

Posted 5/5/2008 6:17 PM (GMT 0)

denise,

i empathise with you.  i've4 been through two back surgeries and 15 yrs of debilitating chronic pain.  just a thought based on my hospitalization experiences.  after my first surgery i was hospitalized for about a month.  i discovered that they were feeding me lots of morphine and other pain meds but zero psych meds.  my wife confirmed my findings (i was so out of it from pain and narcotics i couldn't even tell anybody my name).  the dr responsible for my rehab said that with the pain meds i didn't need any psych meds!  i blew what was left of my stack and my wife went ballistic.  she called my pdoc who laid down the law to the rehab doc.  after that i began receiving most of my other meds some of the time.  that's one reason that i'm glad to be out of texas and in alabamma:  there is absolutely no chance of my going back to that "fracking" (for battlestar galactica fans) hospital,  lol

hope your problems are not caused by this insanity, but it something to check on.  remember, a person in the hospital for anything but having blood taken MUST have an advocate.  if you don't have one and you don't feel comfortable with the people in you new location, use your minister.  they LOVE "helping" and being "advocated."  i'd pit a rabbi against any priest or protestant minister any day of the week (except saterday, which is our sabbath).   devil   if you don't have a minister, find one - everybody needs someone to disagree with!  :-)

hospitals and hospital staffs all mean well (i can only guess).  they are underpai8d, under appreciated, understaffed, and often have more problems than we do.  having an advocate just makes you the squeaky wheel so that you can get your psych meds if you are not currently doing so.

hope this helps.

warren

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