Tomorrow I meet with my family practicioner to talk about a 3 month weight loss plan that will make my health insurance happy so I can have the surgery. I'm kinda scared that the dr will just say to me "well have you thought about diet and exercise?" I'm kind of expecting that answer from him because he seems the type. The problem is that I need his recommendation for my insurance to approve the surgery. Has anyone else had a problem with their doctor being less than supportive about WLS? What have you done about it? Has anyone had to switch doctors because of this problem?

I was afraid my doctor would not be supportive, and was nervous before my appointment. I could not have been more wrong! So first let me say, don't borrow trouble

However, I have seen other people posting here about their doctors who didn't support wls. All of them found other primary care doctors. Your surgeon's office should be able to refer you to a supportive primary care doctor who is within your insurance plan, if that is an issue. Your doctor doesn't own you -- move on if he or she is not providing the care you need!

I had to find a primary care since I didn't have one near me. Luckily she worked with me and wrote a letter stating my need for surgery in order to get approval..... I also had to do a three mo supervised diet with PCP and the surgeons nutritionist.

In my opinion if my doctor was not supportive of my WLS decision then I would find another doctor. After all, if we hadnt tried diet and exercise numerous times before then we wouldn't have come to the drastic decission to have the surgery in the first place. Majority of people that opt to have WLS have been obese the majority of their lives much like myself. And this is a long journey and if you don't have your doctor on board with your decision then it's in your best interest to find one that is, this is a stressful process and you don't need the added stress of someone you will have to work so closely with not being supportive. Good luck with the doctor and know you can always turn to this page to find people just like yourself to help you along the way!

My original PCP told me to go back to weight watchers and not do the surgery so I switched to a different PCP before surgery. the original doctor still sent my weight history and records and I was approved and now go to a PCP that supports WLS.

I must have easy insurance. My surgeon wrote my letter of necessity and sent a courtesty letter to my pcp that I was having the surgery. I have no idea how my pcp feels about the surgery, I never discussed it with him.

My first PCP told me he does not believe in WLS and was going to give me diet pills. I was so upset I switched PCPs becuase like your insurance I have to have my PCP refer me. My new PCP was amazing. First time to see him he gave me the referrel right then based on family history and my BMI. He is against diet pills and believes i am a great candidate. But if you read my other post you would see how scared i was to talk to him. I just went in there with my head high and told him straight forward. Best of Luck

I guess I was lucky also. My surgeon wrote the insurance company the letter and sent everything to the insurance comany. My PCP filled out paper work for my clearance.

My PCP never really listened to me when I "complained (his word) about my struggle with wl". He always made me feel fat and lazy. Knowing this, i decided to ask my obgyn who has always been wonderfully supportive. If you have another longterm dr, perhaps insurance will accept his/her recommendation.

Best of luck!

Thanks guys for all the replies! I met with my doctor today and he was AWESOME!!! I was shocked that he was so open to the idea of me getting WLS. He even said he'd write a letter to my insurance today if it would help! He said that the sleeve surgery was still considered "new" to many doctors but he thinks it will end up being the most recommended WLS out there because of the low risk and high results! So that was very reassuring. I also told my mom today of my plans and she was SUPER supportive! I am one happy fat girl! LOL! Looks like I am on my way to actually getting this done! Scary, but exciting too! Thanks again for all the replies! It's nice to know I have a team here I can talk to who has actually been thru it!

My PCP is an overweight woman who seemed offended by my desire to lose weight. She tried to talk to me about 'Fat Acceptance'. I explained that if I were merely overweight I could accept it, but I am OBESE. It was a very frustrating conversation. I have asked around here for a PCP recommendation in my area (Portland, OR) but haven't received any good leads. My surgery is at the end of this week in Mexico and I am dreading seeing this PCP for aftercare / follow up appts.

If any fellow Portlanders see this, I'd love to hear about your PCP!