Did not pass psychiatric visit

Hi All: I am beside myself with sadness. Why didn't anybody tell me to lie before going into the psychiatrist for clearance, lol.

Both of my boys were adopted and have mental health issues. The doctor asked why I get rashes and I told the truth. That my boys cause me a lot of stress and I break out in rashes.

So at the end, he tells me it is not sure if I am a good fit for the RNY because I seem fragile and am under too much stress. That and I have binge eating disorder. I fought back the tears.

He tells me that he will talk to my therapist who I have been seeing for along time now. My therapist is against my therapy because he thinks I should be able to do it myself. He says I had a lap band and failed that so what makes this surgery any different. So when he talks to the psychiatrist I am doomed.

I have an endoscopy scheduled for tomorrow and the psychiatrist said to go. He will talk to my therapist and have me see someone of his choosing choosing for more therapy.

I am so upset. I truly looked at this therapy as a way to help my health. I am 53 and have been trying for 40 years to lose weight. I can lose some and then put it back on.

I have been proud that I have been working on my life for several years now. So upset now.

Wow. I don't even know what to say. It almost seems like you are being penalized for being honest about your challenges. To me, that makes you MORE capable of handling the effects of surgery precisely because you are honest and reach out for help.

:/ hmm. I've never had a therapist come right out and tell me how to live my life. Isn't that against the therapist rule book or something?

I think you need a new therapist. If you were diabetic would he tell you to take care of it yourself? Or high blood pressure? Or other health issues? The lap band was a crappy surgery for 99% of the people that had it. Your results with it are not indicitive of how you will do with a better weight loss surgery.

Do not give up!!

Your therapist obviously has a bias against WLS and is also uneducated about it to boot. He/she shouldn't have an opinion and they should also brush up on how ineffective the Lapband is for the majority of the people who have tried it.

THank you. THe therapist who said no for now is the therapist Crozer made me go to for clearance. The second therapist is my therapist who I see regularly.

Ditch the one giving you bad weight loss advice!

If I understood her correctly the program therapist said he didn't feel she was a candidate for the surgery and her doctor is not for it apparently for anyone. I would ask the program doctor, not therapist if I could see someone else. Is this the same office that cleared you for the band? If so ask how come you were cleared for one and not the other. I do had band to RNY. I didn't do well at all with the band but the RNY I did fairly well until my dad died and then my only nephew was killed by a druggie, although they ruled that as suicide from PTSD, but we know who killed him and so do the police but they won't change it and it is best for his girls if they don't so we don't pu**** Although I hope I live long enough to tell them what really happened. Try again.

Hi Nancy,

So sorry to hear about your setback. I hope you will think of it as such though, not the end of the road. I am having RNY in about a month, but I am also an Addictions Counselor and. If I was you, I would try to find a therapist who specializes in bariatric surgery, or at the very least, addiction. It does not sound like he has much experience or education with WLS. I am sorry he was so insensitive and questioned your abilities to succeed. As mental health professionals our job is to support you and your life choices. He is giving our profession a very bad image. I hope you will continue fighting the good fight!

Sorry to read you are understandably beside yourself with sadness. From the doctor's words, "seem fragile and under too much stress" does sound like there is some genuine concern more so than a bias against WLS. You haven't failed; you just haven't succeeded yet. A good sign in the positive direction is being told to continue on with other pre-WLS requirements. Often times, things have a way of working out and I wish that for you.