Can depression make you feel uglier & fatter?

Question

I was depressed a few months ago, i mean really depressed and i thought i was the ugliest, fattest thing on earth...now ive been on prozac for a few months and feel great and feel like i look great too...i feel pretty & thin now...and i havent changed anything physically.........so was it the depression making me feel gross?

Well yea, i know depression makes you depressed (obviously) but im asking it it can make your self image different (bad)

Answer 1

honey, we are in the same boat!!!!!!!

I am a bi´polar, naturally depressed person who is actually overweight (im 5'7'' and currently weigh 170 pounds). I have been trying to lose down to 130 pounds. I am in the gym and trying to eat right.

My husband found out that Prozac is actually an appetite surpressant also, so I started to take it. Almost immediately I noticed that my mood was much more positive and I was a lot more happy and a lot less worried. I dont find myself disgusting anymore because I can actually notice that my efforts in the gym are paying off even though the scale doesn't reflect it so much (im building muscle). BUT, because of the medication, my mind doesn't automatically see the worst and I can think logically.

I still see myself as overweight but I dont find myself disgusting anymore. Yes, depression is caused by a hormone imbalance in the brain, and it tends to make you see the world in a distorted way, including how you see yourself. You think you are pathetic and horrible and you cry about everything. So yes, it was the fault of your depressed state. However you see yourself now that your brain is functioning properly is most likely correct :)

Answer 2

Over the last five years I had begun to have increasingly withdraw into a downward spiral of depression..

But now with the method I can fully focus my energy and thoughts into a decisive line on how to make my life better constantly. And it works like magic! I'm beginning to attract people to me once again and things have just been looking up since then.

Helping you eliminate depression?

Answer 3

That was definitly the depression making you feel gross. I feel like that too if im depressed. Its great that you feel better now. Good luck!

Answer 4

most certainly. i've been depressed for a while and switching medicines trying to find one that suits me best. when i start feeling fat and ugly, that's when I know that what I am doing for my depression is NOT working. depression makes you self-doubt. it's horrible. but as long as you are feeling good now, keep up what you are doing and good luck!

Answer 5

Yes. Depression can make you feel fat and ugly. You self esteem lowers drastically during a depression.

Answer 6

When you are depressed it is impossible to feel good about much of anything- much less anything to do with your self. Prior to meds I wore dark colors and hid in my clothes...after meds...I felt better .....then because I felt better I looked better...
Depression is an illness. It is really tough to look good when you are sick. Meds can help you get better.

Answer 7

It sure does! Feeling crappy mentally makes your entire view of the world turn around. It makes you feel "less" than you really are in every way.

Answer 8

yes... i have depression and i swear it makes you mad at everything, i mean everything. you do feel fatter and uglier. that's what's going on with me i feel hopeless like nobody cares about me.

Answer 9

Absolutely....

Answer 10

yes.
Good for you that you feel better!
Many blessings!