Hi,

I am gonna make a consult appt. here in s. florida for possibly lap band surgery. Do all doctors make you go for a psych appt.? If so what kind of questions do the psychs ask you? LOL . I am intimidated by the thought of this.

Lisa

I believe they all require it. Mine just wanted to know if I had any eating disorders/if I was thinking of killing myself or anyone else. Questions like that, it was nothing to it you will be fine. They want to know if you have family support or any other support system...

For my psych eval, I have to go in one morning and take a really long multiple-choice test called an MMPI. It takes around two hours, maybe? Maybe less. Then I have to have a follow-up appointment and talk with the doctor who will be analyzing my test results. He said he wants to talk about my mindset about the surgery, whether or not it will be a success for me, and make sure I'm in a good place and prepared for the difficulties, etc.

He sounded like he'll be pretty thorough. But I suppose that will help me in the long run. Assuming he gives his thumbs up! If not, well, I get the impression that he could make or break this opportunity. I'm kinda nervous.

I didn't have a psych eval. At my consutation, I told my surgeon I had done a lot of research and he asked me if I was sure in my heart that lap band was the right decision for me. I said yes and that was it.

I think it is often insurance that requires the psych eval and I guess mine didn't because they paid.

My psych eval was pretty stress-free. Basically he wanted to make sure I knew what I was doing. He was impressed that I had studied up on it so much. He also wanted me to be aware that my life would change in many subtle but not so subtle ways after losing weight. He wanted to make sure my relationship with my husband was strong enough to weather it...he told me that other people would look at me differently, and being faced with so much attention might make me go a little crazy, lol. Overall it was a very interesting conversation we had! Just be strong in your conviction that this is the right decision for you, that you are aware that you will have to work hard to accomplish your goals and that lap band is just a tool to help you get there. Also, make sure to let him or her know that you have a strong support network at least in your immediate family and/or close friends. You'll be fine.

I had to have a psych eval. I think it's a good idea. My lady just asked a bunch of questions, similar to someone else who posted - about depression and stuff. Also talked to me about when I am prone to eating (emotional eater) and stuff.

It was helpful, actually. They want to make sure you realize the surgery is a tool to lose weight, but isn't an answer. She wanted to make sure I knew that I'd have to change all my own habits and attitudes towards food. No one else would do it for me.

She also gave me a list of resources (books and websites) where I could find information about surgery, and a list of suggested stress-releasing exercises like breathing techniques, and (I forget what it's called) but suggested ideas of what to do instead of eating, like go for a walk or read a book or paint, etc.

It's normal to be worried about the appt. You might want to think about whether or not you're ready to face anything they might bring up. I knew that my appt would be the time I had to really deal with why I eat and why I'm overweight (out loud!). It's pretty rough, acknowledging what your problem is and that now you'll have to face it. But the tough love truth is if you're going to make a change to your whole life and lifestyle, you have to look inside yourself, and find the deeper set problems. Eating broccoli isn't gonna cut it. Ya know?

Good luck, it's going to be fine!

Yeah I had to do the MMPI test too. I wonder if that is a Minnesota thing?

It made me laugh because it asked a lot of questions you would expect about moods and what not but then it would ask things like "Do you want to be a Nurse" "Have you ever walked sideways down the street with a popsicle stick on your head" "did you ever want to be a bird?" "Are you afraid of Blood?" "Are you afraid of the dark?"

Ok so I *may have exaggerated a little bit on one of those.

Some of them, although weird, I was able to see a "Big Picture" for but some were just so off the wall zaney that the other girl who was testing and I were just laughing. Oh I just remembered another one...it was something like "Have you ever felt like exiting a plane even though it's mid flight?"

They said it would take about 2hrs but it only took me 40mins so it wasn't too bad.

Then I met with the psych Dr. The one I had was very nice. She just went over the test and talked about what I wanted from the surgery and she kind of went over what the surgery would not provide, like will power...lol

I was a little nervous about it too but really everything I have done has been so totally painless.

You'll do fine!

~Amy

My insurance required that I have a psych evaluation done. I am not sure if the doctor required, but the insurance definitely did.