I'm on Day 21 of my recovery from my VSG. I am told the op went very well but I had a post-op bleed and had to go back into laproscopic surgery after twelve hours. Obviously I survived the experience and I generally feel emotionally okay, but when evening comes I tend to feel depressed and anxious particularly if I have been feeling tired that day.

I imagined that I would gradually get better each day but I seem to go up and down, although the longer term trend is definitely up.

Is this pattern common?

So sorry you've had some complications but hopefully it is all resolved for the better now!

The mood swings and sadness and depressed feelings (and even rage, joy, irritability) can be chalked up to hormone swings because of the fat you're losing (fat is a very efficient hormone storage medium and as you lose fat, the hormones are flushed into your system to cause all sorts of mood changes).

It is normal to feel down after having this procedure, especially the "what the @#! did I just do" type of depression and I imagine it's multiplied by having complications.

Be kind to yourself and just know it does get better and once you start really improving weight and activity wise. Good luck to you!

Edited March 21, 201610 yr by FrankiesGirl

As @@FrankiesGirl said, hormones are stored in fat. As you begin to rapidly lose weight in the early weeks post-op, those hormones are released back into your blood stream and can cause mood swings, irritability, depression, etc. The can even cause increased fertility, which is why it's recommended that women use backup birth control the first couple of months.