Imagine this. You and your doctor agree that you need to lose weight. You tell your doctor you’ve been thinking about weight loss surgery. Your doctor lets you know his or her thoughts about WLS, and they’re very negative.

You may not need to imagine it because it may have happened – or be happening – to you. What should your next step be when your own doctor is not supportive of WLS?

Doctor’s Orders: Lose the Weight

Almost all Weight Loss Surgery patients and nearly everyone who’s considering getting WLS had a similar experience to the following. You go for a routine visit to your primary care physician, endocrinologist, or regular doctor, and you get the news you’ve come to expect: you’ve gained a little weight since the last appointment and you’re developing obesity-related problems. Bottom line, your doctor says, is that you need to lose weight.

It’s no secret that you need to lose weight. You’ve probably tried a thousand different diets. They may have worked, but only for a time. Then any weight that left came right back, with a few extra pounds. You recently started thinking about weight loss surgery, and you bring up that idea to your doctor.

“Weight Loss Surgery Is the Wrong Choice”

Some doctors are against weight loss surgery. They have the same reasons as anyone else who may be against weight loss surgery. They say it’s the easy way out, or you can lose weight on your own, or you might have complications. It’s great for them to express their concerns to you since that’s their job. But it’s not okay to deny you the opportunity to lose weight just because they don’t like the idea of WLS and may not have ever done any research into it.

The Ideal

Doctors are supposed to be compassionate, understanding, and competent. If that sounds like a tall order, it is. But it’s not unrealistic. You need to feel comfortable discussing your health and health decisions with your doctor without your doctor making you feel like a failure for not losing weight already and for considering Weight Loss Surgery.

You Come First

Your doctor should put you first. Putting you first means taking into consideration your future health, your dieting and weight history, and your own beliefs about whether weight loss surgery is right for you. Your doctor should put you ahead of any personal beliefs or biases about weight loss surgery, or lack of knowledge about it.

Seeking a “Second Opinion”

You’re always entitled to a second opinion when it comes to your health and healthcare decisions. You may not need an official “second opinion” on whether you should get WLS if you’ve already decided you’re going for it. What you do need is an opinion from a doctor who will support you.

You can consider switching your primary care doctor if it’s important to you that your PCP be supportive of your WLS journey and during it. You may even want to find a doctor with some understanding of WLS and how to help you prepare for and recover from it. That’s not always possible, for insurance and logistical reasons. It may not be desirable if you like your PCP otherwise and don’t want to jump ship.

A Supportive Bariatric Surgeon

Whether or not your family doctor approves of Weight Loss Surgery, your surgeon absolutely needs to be on your side. While you can expect bariatric surgeons to be supportive of you getting WLS, that’s not the only thing to consider. Consider whether the surgeon makes you feel confident you’ll get the support you need and that you will succeed.

Whether because of their poor bedside manners or lack of attention to detail, some surgeons will keep you in doubt about your decision. Those are not the right surgeons for you! You may need to have initial consults with one, two, three, or even more surgeons before settling on the one that’s going to boost you up.

A Personal Decision

Ultimately, weight loss surgery is your decision. You can decide to get it, or not to get it. It should be a decision based on what you think will help you lose weight, how much risk you’re willing to take by going “under the knife” (although it’s laparoscopic these days!), and how you think it stacks up against your other options.

It should NOT be a decision based on what your doctor thinks or how uncomfortable you feel talking to your doctor or surgeon about it. It’s up to you.

My PCP won't be for it, luckily she isn't part of the decision. My rheumatologist perked up when I asked her if it would be a good idea, and she started telling me benefits to the surgery that I hadn't even heard of. She referred me to a surgeon who I meet with tomorrow. My PCP probably won't know until it's over, if I decide to go through with it. Funnily, my PCP is the one who's been on me about my weight forever, but she thinks Atkins or gluten free is the way to go. Not for me.

I have a history of not taking any BS from doctors. I have switched doctors for having bad staff, stood up to them when I was not really in a strong position to do so (Literally on my back at a charity clinic).

YOU are the expert. YOU pay the money, call the shots and wake up with your body. Your doctor can certainly express concern, that is their job..but that is about where it stops.

I am a strong believer in being your own advocate. And yes, choosing to have WLS was MY decision, not my doctor's. I actually didn't even tell him about it until a month postop. And after seeing my VSG recovery and results, my PCP now refers his patients who don't have insurance that covers WLS to the surgeon I used in Mexico.

But my proactive participation in my own healthcare isn't just limited to WLS. I also researched and chose the neurosurgeon who did my cervical fusion after my PCP diagnosed the problem. My PCP called the surgeon he normally uses in order to discuss my case. Turns out the guy I chose was top of the field and is the specialist my PCP's surgeon uses for his harder cases.

Fortunately my PCP fully respects and supports my independent medical decisions. He's perfectly happy to work as a team. And in turn, I totally respect and trust in his medical expertise. He's always provided outstanding care and is truly an amazing Doctor.

My PCP doesn't even know I had a procedure and never reacted to my weight gain, increasing blood pressure and cholesterol over the years. Agree with all posters. Bariatric practices are masterful at dealing with insurance issues. Bypass the PCP if you are getting any pushback.