Right temporal lobe resection surgery

In 1992 I had a tumor removed from my right temporal lobe. It was a sizeable tumor.
Within 10 days of the surgery I suffered a serious depression. I approached the neurologist who did the surgery and his response was, "It's probably just post-operative depression. It will go away soon. Just go home and get plenty of rest and the symptoms will likely go in good time."
As it turned out, my depression got progressively worse.
In fact, within 2 months of the surgery I had 3 suicide attempts.
So the doctors placed me in the psychiatric ward to help me get over my depression for a month. It wasn't until the 3rd week there that they tried giving me Lithium. I woke up the next morning feeling elated. They then diagnosed me with bipolar illness, Likely because my right temporal lobe was responsible for distributing positive hormones in my system. That area had been removed. That is what triggered my bipolar illness. To this day I still have some symptoms of bipolar illness. My psychiatrist changed me from taking Lithium to taking Valproic Acid because she wanted me to get my emotions back. I only suffer from just mania because I am taking Valproic Acid to combat the depression. I no longer suffer from depression. I consider Valproic Acid as my 'happy pills.' I love my life because I received great psychotherapy after my placement in the psych ward. Good psychotherapy makes a world of difference in recovering from depression. I believe in myself.

Hi @mgriffiths02
Welcome to our group here at Mayo Clinic Connect!
I also have temporal lobe epilepsy with mesial sclerosis on my left hippocampus, which is highly refractory. I was once considered for LITT surgery, but thankfully, I sought other opinions, which convinced me to try other treatments before going into such surgery. As my current doctor says — he's both a neurologist and a neurosurgeon — surgery should be the last resort, after all alternatives have been tried. Today, I'm thankfully controlling my seizures better through Epidiolex and management of my seizure triggers.
I'm copying here some other members who had surgery on their temporal lobe and might be able to share a bit about their experiences with this kind of surgery. @audo @absentsenior @jemollica @lzbthtyler, I'd really appreciate it if you could share your surgery experience with @mgriffiths02.
Besides traditional medications, have you tried Epidiolex, specific diets, and/or trigger management approaches? Is your current doctor considering LITT or the traditional lobectomy?
Let's stay in touch!
Chris