Roadblock

Hi everyone. I've hit a roadblock and just need some support. As it turns out, my bariatric clinic is considering me a high risk candidate for the VSG as of yesterday. Surgery, if it ever even happens is moved to next June. The surgical team has to really think about whether the risks exceed the benefits or not in my case. It's even more complicated because a medication one of my doctors gave me caused a weight gain of 50 pounds as a side effect. I guess he thought the benefits exceeded the risks on that one! I sure don't think they did. I'm off that med now, finally.

I've spent heaps of time researching WLS and all your posts here have been so helpful. My husband and I are using the pre-surgery diet that was handed out to us at my WLS orientation (which I found out yesterday that we shouldn't have been allowed to attend. A staff member got mixed up...). Anyway, the goof ups have turned out OK because we're both losing weight. I'm down 15 pounds in a 5 weeks and Hubby is down 20. We're both hungry all the time, but are doing our best to just ignore the pangs. I'm trying to take in 1200 calories and most of the time am getting more...about 1400 on average. Hubby is a tall feller, 6'6" so he's making do on 1750 and is slipping over the mark most days, too. We'll keep on fine tuning. Maybe our stomachs will shrink some and it will get easier...maybe. We'll have out 40th wedding anniversary tomorrow. We'll each have a sliver of cake.

So, I'm down in my cups with disappointment, yet excited about tomorrow and just all mixed up. Thanks for letting me vent.

Psych meds can do that 50 pound weight gain thing to you overnight.

You don't say what the surgeons' hesitation is, but maybe if you lose a good chunk of weight on this diet it will convince them you're a better bet. Good luck and good job!

Thanks, CatLady!

It did seem as if that carrot of weight loss was being dangled out there. I asked how much I would need to lose and the only answer I got was, "the more, the better". I'll just steer this little ship in the general direction of GW and see what happens,

The roadblock happened at my psych eval. I was very honest in filling out the questionnaire and held nothing back, which was a good thing because the psychologist had access to all my MH records anyway. I wasn't even nervous about the interview going in and was eager to meet the psychologist. I think of all my MH clinicians as very important parts of my support team. Anyway, she handled me very roughly, and purposefully, to create stress to see how I would handle it. I had no awareness that it was being staged at the time and her handling traumatized me as she hoped that it would (I have PTSD, and bipolar I illness with schizoaffective disorder...yep...complicated). SHE was the nervous party going into this interview.

My MH training over the last 3 years worked for me wonderfully and I came through with flying colors, but some of the things that she said just cut me so deeply. She apologized later and told me how it was all staged, but then went on to say that VSG surgery for me is unlikely because of my diagnoses. It's a yellow flag now, but has to pass muster with the surgeons, who of course have to deal with complicated outcomes all the time and probably will not want to deal with the potential outcomes concerning me, even though I'm so stable now. And even though it was one of my psychiatrists who prescribed the med that brought me to my knees with severe obesity in the first place. I'm beginning to have some trust issues with my MH "support team" now.

She indicated that I might face some MD stigma as not all the surgeons are on board with mental health issues. She complimented me on being "present" with her during the interview and all I could think of was, "Well gee...it sure is better than being absent", though I was hard pressed to figure out how. So I ended with a lame "thank you" and shook her hand warmly, even though I felt so very much betrayed by her. I won't see my therapist until November, but I should probably reach out to her now. Part of me is telling me not to do that because my contacting my therapist at this point will be taken as a sign of unfitness for the VSG.

So it's complicated. I'm so sorry for the long post. We all suffer stigma as obese persons, but this is like another layer of the same old stuff, multiplied. I'll get through this. It's hard work, but so is losing weight!

Yikes, I can't imagine a mental health professional intentionally creating a stressful situation to "test" you. That doesn't feel right.

I dont understand reaching out to your usual, supportive counselor being interpreted as a bad thing. It seems like that will be part of the long term plan when you run into difficulty after surgery, you reach out for help and deal with stress in healthy ways. I say get with your counselor l, get boosted back up and make a game plan!!

my team required a psych evaluation too but I was allowed to use my already established counselor for the evaluation.

since you're going for the sleeve you shouldn't have some of the medication absorption issues that a bypass would cause. Seems like as long as you show that you will follow up with psych during the journey in case you need adjustments, and have personal support available in your life, it should be a go!!

Good luck.

Thanks so much Cat. I'll get in touch with my therapist.

As others have said, something is out of joint here. Definitely talk to your established therapist and get their take. I don't see how seeking help can possibly be interpreted as making you unfit for surgery.

Purposely triggering a patient's mental illness is likely unethical. If this is what truly happened (and I'm admittedly a bit skeptical), I would suggest reporting it to your state board.

A licensed professional purposefully set out to push known issues with someone's mental disorders to see if they would crack under stress? I have trouble seeing how that isn't some malpractice suit waiting to happen and I find it hard to wrap my brain around why a psychiatrist would want to stage anything like that since to me it seems unethical and a little fishy.

I agree. It sounds implausible.

This is a very confusing post and follow-up comment. I can't imagine a doctor specifically trying to trigger you. Do you have a case manager you can speak with? Or a surgeon directly? Talking with your actual therapist seems wise - perhaps they can write a letter to your bariatric program on your behalf.