Before Bariatric Surgery: Meeting the Psychologist

     We want you to be successful.  We appreciate that having surgery is a major decision and for some of you, surgery is the last chance to get control of your weight problem. We want to meet with you to better understand you; what motivates you and makes you stronger, as well as what may be a stumbling block to your success.

      We have studied patients who undergo bariatric surgery and found two things:  First, they have few differences from other surgical patients, despite common beliefs to the contrary.  And second, the effectiveness of bariatric surgery depends on the patient’s long-term success in following through with drastic lifestyle changes. Ironically, a lack of success in maintaining lifestyle changes is what usually leads patients to consider bariatric surgery. Many patients have tried several different weight loss programs in the past and failed at every attempt. This time, we want to go into surgery open-eyed, with realistic goals and plans to cope with the pressures that not only come with the changes in eating, but also with the changes that come with your success; with a slimmer, fitter you.   

      We believe that by knowing you personally, we can anticipate problems and face them with confidence. We can avoid being blindsided by issues that may interfere with your good results. We won’t meet with you without getting together later to tell you what we’ve learned; what your liabilities are and also what your strengths and assets are.  We want to know your strengths well and how to build on them and rely on them as you work through the process of reaching your goal.

      If you are the type of person who has trouble complaining about your problems, we want to encourage you to tell us what those problems are. We don’t want you to minimize them.  We want you to tell us so that we can work with you together to face them.

      Some people don’t like to complain, but later they may get anxious, withdraw, and fail to keep follow-up appointments. For this type of patient, we discuss previous behavior to find out how the medical team can help you remain engaged in the treatment program this time.

     Your treatment doesn’t end with surgery.  We are here to help you for the long term.

Please contact me for more information or to book an appointment.