Ok, I know for some of the pre-ops that attending meetings are required to qualify for surgery...but for those of us who are now on the other side...

Do you willingly and happily attend bariatric group support meetings? If so, how often do you have these meetings in your area? Does your doc office run them or are they independent?

2 minutes ago, jess9395 said:

I find the thought of a WLS support group offering food sort of odd. I think they should encourage breaking the habit of associating food with events like that. We can make it through a few hour meeting without food.

I'm pretty sure gr8ful1 was making a joke.

I'm pretty sure gr8ful1 was making a joke.

Ah! Hard to tell on a message board sometimes!

18 hours ago, jess9395 said:

I find the thought of a WLS support group offering food sort of odd. I think they should encourage breaking the habit of associating food with events like that. We can make it through a few hour meeting without food.

Good point. I said that in jest. In my opinion, food is probably ok as long as it's only because the guest speaker of the night is a bariatric chef, as @jenn1mentioned. Everyone should be responsible enough to either try a sample, take one home, or not take one. I'd have a problem with it if the group is always serving ou d'oeuvres or asks someone to bring "snacks to share" every evening. Yikes!

18 hours ago, jess9395 said:

I wish my doc’s Office had a better one. It’s once a month and aimed mostly at pre ops and those in the first couple of months.

You might want to ask around for other options. The leaders of my doctor's group said it was open to everyone, not just his patients. I think the groups tend to attract a lot of those types of people because they are the ones who have the most questions.

I find the thought of a WLS support group offering [mention=216224]jenn1[/mention]mentioned. Everyone should be responsible enough to either try a sample, take one home, or not take one. I'd have a problem with it if the group is always serving ou d'oeuvres or asks someone to bring "snacks to share" every evening. Yikes!

Sampling products or recepies is one thing, but in general I think everyone—not just Bariatric patients—needs to get away from the idea of associating all social activities with food, whether it is offered or pushed. From movies to business meetings to dates to celebrations, we always feel the need to involve food and personally I think that’s a good habit to break, and I think a WLS support group is a good place to do that. Heck I remember scout meetings of an hour or hour and a half and we all needed to take turns as snack parent. Even now at my kids HS drama performances we do the same for intermission fund raising. One of the shows is only 95 mins long. We can all go without food for that long.

You might want to ask around for other options. The leaders of my doctor's group said it was open to everyone, not just his patients. I think the groups tend to attract a lot of those types of people because they are the ones who have the most questions.

Yup. My surgeon is the only one writhin a 90 min radius and while the meetings are open to anyone, only the pre ops and newbies go.

My surgeon's office staff (psych and NUT) are relatively new to doing a group, they have had maybe 6 meetings, our surgeon is newer here, maybe two years in this area?

Anyway the mtgs are a mix of postop and nearly scheduled preops, and attendance is around 17 people, I have been to 3 mtgs. The NUT acts uninterested in being there, and contributes as required. The Psych is amazing and engaging, my intuition has me thinking he is a wls patient himself? There have been testimonials, a plastic surgeon, a physical trainer presenting. It's okay. I would like it to be more of a collaboration and that might happen because this last time they emailed attendees for feedback on the group.

I have contributed clothing for a possible clothing closet, protein shakes I just could not tolerate after surgery, and a bunch of self help books and WW cookbooks that I didn't want anymore. All in the hopes that it would help someone and promote the group spirit.