“Eating makes me sad.” My husband said this to me the other day, and repeated it today. He was talking about eating at lunch, then in the afternoon feeling sad / depressed emotionally. Not like the sugar sleepies, but actually sad.
He is (IMO) having major depressive symptoms and has for a while, but he hasn’t agreed to any sort of treatment yet. However, this is a very specific-seeming cause and effect, and I was wondering if anyone else had ever heard of this.
I could guess at celiac disease or gluten intolerance, or maybe even blood glucose issues, but I thought I’d see if anyone else has experienced this, and what (if anything) they found to help it.
I’m putting this here because it’s “medical” in nature, but it’s not really a GQ sort of thing. Any input is welcome.
Is he overweight? The reaction might be psychological in origin, especially if he has issues with guilt and shame about his weight, rather than physiological.
He has recently lost about 30-40 lbs and weighs less than he did even when we met 9 years ago. It’s still possible it’s psychological, though. Good idea.
Does he feel the same way after breakfast or dinner? I have noticed myself feeling sad at lunch on working days, but I think it is because there is little camaraderie in my workplace, I feel as though I have nothing in common with my coworkers, and I always eat alone, which makes me feel lonely and depressed. I’m also dissatisfied with my job, and there is the sense of , “Jesus, I have to go back there now?” when I get done with lunch. But when I eat with my family, I feel fine. So for me, it’s not the eating so much as the context, I think. Could it be something like that with your husband?
Does he always eat the same thing for lunch? Could he try skipping lunch entirely, or changing it up to something new, and see if that makes him feel better? Like if he usually eats a peanut butter sandwich, experiment by bringing in a frozen dinner or some fresh veggies and cheese cubes or a bag of pita chips with hummus.
Or not eating lunch at all, and doing something else during that time. Get outside and walk, listen to music or informative podcasts through earbuds, read for pleasure. Planning healthy, filling snacks for break times like rachelellogram suggested should tide him over until dinner.
ETA: or take up knitting! I taught myself to knit at my last really boring job, and it’s great therapy.
He eats lunch alone, usually, but doesn’t always eat the same thing. I’ve asked him to keep track of what times of day it’s happening and what he’s eaten when it does. So far, the trend does seem to be gluten=sad, but we’re still tracking.