Welcome D-Rule!
You are a wise man to care for yourself now rather than later! Depression is very common in chronically ill people. I came to Healing Well through the lupus forum and I think most all of us lupans use an anti-depressant med. Depression can come on for several reasons. You have: chronic illness, you just had surgery, you are a man feeling responsible for your family, and we just came thru the a lengthy period of short daylight hours. Each of those issues can contribute to depression. Chronic illness and other things can deplete, or stifle the brain's uptake of, brain chemicals like seratonin (seratonin is one of the neuro-transmitters which help brain cells communicate with each other). Anti-depressants like prozac (a class of drugs called SSRI's) take a number of weeks to work because they don't give you seratonin, they simply allow your body to stop spilling so much of it and start using it better. Counseling is a great idea because it helps us see patterns of thinking that are contributing to negative thinking, poor self esteem etc. (those feelings are intensified w/o sufficient brain chemicals)
So, you see, it isn't always about how strong you are or how determined you are. I hope you get some good feedback from your counselor and I'll try to find a web-site where you can learn more about brain chemicals and depression. It is very helpful to understand because it takes some of the pressure off of you when you understand more about how your brain functions.
Please keep us posted about your progress (or lack of progressive). Your posts will help lots of people who never sign in, but read the forum for help. Plus we just want to know how you are doing.
BTW: I have no medical background and I'm just sharing as a friend.
Blessings!
In His Grip,
AlwaysRosie
Psalms: 139
UCTD (Undifferentiated Connective Tissue Disease),
Hashimoto's Thyroiditis, Depression, GI Probs, High BP, Glucose Intolerance