Hi all,

I wonder what answers would cause me to be denied the band?

My surgeon's program seems really excellent. As part of the first appointment there is a questionnaire to bring along. I'm not really a classic binge eater, but most evenings I do eat too much at dinner and am beyond full. One of the questions is "I eat until severely overfull" or something like that - if I say yes, will I then be told Oh you're a binge eater, you'll screw up your band and shouldn't have it.

Another question is "what are you most afraid of in regards to the band?" - I feel like my answer should be postoperative pain or something like that. My real fear is not finding a healthy replacement for my emotional eating.

I'm also afraid I'll "fail" the psych eval for similar reasons.

Has anyone faced this and what do you suggest?

Its very important to answer each question honestly so they know how to help you the best. I am a grazer and never quit eatting and I was approved.

Blessing to you on your journey

Carol

I was nervous about the psych eval too, and I know me telling you not to worry won't calm down those fears, but you really don't have to.

Thing is, they're not allowed to ask you if you do narcotics, drugs, engage in risky bodily activities unless you're in a confidential setting. They can hold you back from surgery if you engage in illegal drug use or something that will mess with your recovery. They want to make sure they know all your addictions, including food.

Hope that helps.

A quality program is going to counsel you pre-op. The answers you give will help them design a program for you... a program that is going to make you and your band successful. Please don't hold back, otherwise you won't have the tools you need to address the issues and habits that got you here in the first place.

I agree with a previous poster...in order to help YOU they need to know what your trigger issues are, and then work with you to address them. By not answering honestly you are more likely to not find the support you need when you have the surgery, because the clinic won't know your needs. Be honest.

Christine, I can't add a whole lot more than others said here. However, I will help you with two things I think can be addressed.

First, overeating is not the same as binge eating. Binging is different in that somebody USUALLY purges with it. That is, they eat TONS of stuff at a sitting -- a whole pizza AND a box of Ho-Hos AND a half-gallon of ice cream AND a bag of Cookies AND... you get the idea. It's TONS of food at a sitting -- so much so that one must purge (throw up) either because it's too much or simply to give them the benefit of having eaten the food but not having the repurcussions of the caloric intake.

Secondly, I understand your concern about finding a healthy replacement for overeating. I am a huge believer in supporting your weight loss with therapy to help you through these issues, not only WHY you ate for emotional comfort, but also to help you deal with becoming visible to people again (I don't know about you, but I feel invisible as a fat person). Obviously you will do what is right for you, but I too believe that the only way your doctor and staff can give you whatever you need is to be honest.

I agree, overeating is not the same as binging. If overeating is an issue, I think there is no harm in bringing it up. I remember being honest about overeating . . . and one of the follow-up questions was whether I think I have ever eaten more than 5,000 calories or more than a days allotment in one setting. I know I was an overeater wanted 2nds or even 3rds on occasion, but never to the tune of 5,000 calories. I wouldn't really worry about the overeating part, after all, how many of us who became obese didn't overeat . . . you have to overeat to be obese and there is no way around it.

Another thing they are trying to determine is if you really, truly understand what is required of you post banding and how to make this lifestyle choice work for you, and if you are capable of committing to it.

If a person has regular purging activities to go along with it such as with bulimia, then I would think there is a definite possibility that they would not be approved. However, for anyone who has this issue I think it is good to be honest because banding will not fix it and it needs to be addressed to find ultimate weight loss success.

I had some of the same concerns you do before all my eval. stuff. But when I met with my psychologist for that part, it became clear that all of this is not to weed people out from the surgery, but to identify where YOU might need help so that your surgery will be a success for you. It was about helping you not to fail on the band! So yes, be honest! It will only do you good.

I know this is a very old post, and I know that I am a very new member, so forgive me if this is out of place or inappropriate.

As someone who found this thread (and site) by browsing around for exactly the OPs concerns, I can't help but feel that while all of the advice given was sound and probably helpful, none of it seemed to address the OPs actual issue.

As I understand it (and perhaps this is just because it is my feeling as well so I may be projecting), the question was more geared toward the possibility of being denied the opportunity for this seemingly magnificent process to alter the OPs life simply because of saying the wrong thing on a form.

Being honest about eating is obviously a good thing, but not even being able to give that information to your health care provider because you've said a taboo word on a questionnaire is the concern I have and I believe was the original spirit of the question.

I've filled out the entire (initial) packet of information provided to me at my seminar attendance, save for three essay-styled question that I worry are not going to come down to truth or accuracy, but more down to getting past the gate keeper.

I know that I'm chronically overweight. I also know that I can alter my lifestyle and lose. Unfortunately, I also know that while I know that this procedure can help me permanently lose weight, I know that if I say the wrong thing on a form, I can be denied this opportunity.

I'll give you a breakdown of what questions are tripping me up here and the answers that I would like to provide in response and we'll see if anyone gets my concern.

a.) Why do you believe you are overweight?

- Because I have been steadily gaining weight every year for decades because I cannot get enough exercise to make up for my enjoyment of food compared to my sedentary career and home life.

b.) How is your weight interfering with your health and life?

- Given that I have a BMI of 50+ it's obviously killing me, and when it's not killing me, it's making every aspect of my life more painful than it was the day before.

c.) Why do you feel this surgery will allow you to successfully lose weight, despite the extreme lifestyle and dietary changes required?

- Is this a trick question? "Despite?" I think the whole point is that the surgery will allow me to successfully lose weight BECAUSE of the extreme lifestyle and dietary changes required.

That make sense?

P.S. ohai, nü forums!