[RacerBill]

Nice work linking a lot of things that really needed to be linked.

I think you're dead on. An unhappy person won't become happy just by losing weight. Otherwise, liposuction could be used for therapy. Losing the weight, keeping it off, and remaining motivated are all related to one's outlook on life. And I will say that once you get exercising, it CAN change your outlook on life and the way you feel about yourself.

Re depression medication, I can say when I was on it that it messes with your impulse control. It's very difficult to put into words if you haven't experienced that feeling. The meds didn't affect my weight much at all (this was back in my fat days), but I can see how they can affect someone, especially one who was either too depressed to eat or was so depressed that they were attempting to self-medicate through comfort food.

Greg -- absolutely right. Internalized anger is a (perhaps THE) source of depression.

Thanks for some reflections on a tough topic. I'm going to have to think on this stuff for a while.