Depression, body image, and self-esteem before and after gastric bypass surgery

The questions for this study were: Are morbidly obese individuals less depressed after undergoing a gastric bypass procedure? Are morbidly obese individuals more satisfied with their body image after undergoing a gastric bypass procedure? Do morbidly obese individuals have increased levels of self-esteem after undergoing a gastric bypass procedure?

A pre-experimental, repeated measures longitudinal design examined depression, body image, and self-esteem before surgery and at 30 and 60 day intervals following a gastric bypass procedure using the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI), the Body Shape Questionnaire (BSQ), and the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale (RSES). Twenty-seven individuals completed all three surveys.

Three one-way repeated measures ANOVAs were computed and revealed significant differences in depression, body image, and self-esteem over time. Post hoc measures revealed significant differences for all pairs tested. Levels of depression dropped from severe levels of depression at baseline to moderate levels of depression, with steady indicators of improvement at 30 and 60 days post surgery. Body image improved to normal levels within 60 days after surgery and self-esteem improved from marginal at baseline to solidly normal levels within 60 days after surgery. These findings indicate gastric bypass is associated with lower depression scores, less body image distortion, and greater self-esteem in morbidly obese individuals.