Psych Eval

Hello all-I had my psych eval today, needless to say I am NOT happy, and I need some opinions. Is this normal and am I over reacting? First of all I printed out all of my new patient paperwork ahead of time. So when I arrived I turned in my paperwork a check for $150.00 for their office visit, and gave them both of my insurance cards. I get called back to her office in which I am thinking this is a hour tops process and expecting MY paperwork from my surgeon/insurance to be signed by the end of this little shin dig! She asks me the exact same questions that were on the new patient forms, which could be protocol..who knows. Then we get into " Are you or have you ever been addicted to drugs or alcohol?" which my answer is "no" .."Do you ever become outraged or burst into violent episodes"..once again "no"... Her response absolutely astounds me..."Well arent we just perfect"...Lets just say it went downhill from here. Its like she was purposely trying to dig to find something wrong with me. She kept making reference to horror stories of people who had gastric bypass, and all of the risks envolved. After the 3rd time I finally had to say "well lucky for me, I'm getting sleeved." The questions became more absurd as the time went on. Like ...when did I learn to dress myself as a child,when did I speak my first sentence,when did I learn to ride my bicycle with no training wheels. Fast forward 2 HOURS later, she explains to me that she can not properly evaluate me in such a short period of time and she feels that it would be forgery to sign any paperwork that would consent to me having "gastric bypass" and she would like to see me every week for the next month!!! I would love any opinions that you guys have. Either way I'm not going back, but it would be nice to feel validated that shes a QUACK!!

Yeah, thats weird.  I had 2 visits  in the first it was a bunch of questionnaires and a big computer test with some of the same questions.  We spoke just about 20 minutes about me professionally and my home life.  The second visit was about an hour where she talked about head hunger, stress, overeating triggers, that kind of stuff.  I enjoyed the sessions and learned from them.  That was pretty much it.  I walked out with a copy of the stuff she sent to the doc and insurance and that was it. 

You might want another doc.

I already have another appointment scheduled with another doc! Thank god, I just had to get my experience out, thanks for the response. By the way I see your from Festus. Iam from Marshall, Mo...were practically neighbors!!

I hope you asked how long it would take wiht this one! 

Cool!  My sister went to cmsu.  I have spent some time up in your neck of the woods.

This sounds very, very odd.  My interview was mostly talking about my relationship with food and my expectations for the surgery.  Plus general questions about my health and my outlook on life.  It seemed that the doctor wanted to hear that I was not expecting miracle and knew I had to make lifestyle changes.

Sounds like this woman just wanted another $150 from you.  It's is so NOT her place to judge surgeries!

That's pretty much completely opposite of my experience.  I found my psych for the eval through my insurance company's site, since they have a list of people who specifically do this WLS eval.  It was super easy and felt like a rubber stamp.  

Oh, and the cost of my appointment was a normal co-pay, which is like $25.

My Psych was a part of the practice I used for surgery. He specializes in bariatric psychology. We went over a detailed medical AND psychological history. He made sure I am aware of my basic surroundings aware of the risks of surgery (what's the worst thing that could happen? I could die). He had me identify triggers, alternative coping mechanisms, and my personal anxiety and depression symptoms. He then told me about the risks of addiction transference and post-op suicide and explained to me how important it is to seek help immediately if I start feeling more depressed. It took 2 visits to cover everything, he was very thorough, but he stayed on topic. Everything related to whether or not I would be eligible for surgery.

My psych eval took 3 visits, and it was about 2.5 hours each visit. The paperwork and testing was about my weight/diet/exercise history, as well as some personality questions. Sorry you had a bad experience :-( I hope you can get it all sorted out!

Hi: My Psych Eval took about one hour. A few question about my eating and why I wanted the surgery and that was it. I paid $125, my doctor's office sent me to see their psych, It was a walk in the park. Got my paperwork a few days later and all went well. Now waiting for my surgery date. 

Best of luck next time.

88