How to pick a therapist.

Not to hijack farm girl71 post but I was wondering how do I pick a therapist other than take a hit or miss approach. I'm not much for opening up to a complete stranger but I want to give this weight loss as much of a chance of succeeding as I can. Is there a list of therapists that specialize in people who have had wls.? I just want to know where else I can start other than looking up who is under my health insurance & just picking one. Thanks!

I would suggest that you start with your surgeon's office and ask if they have someone they refer people to for longer term counseling, and if YOUR surgeon's office doesn't have someone, call around to the offices of other bariatric surgeons in the area and ask if they can recommend someone.

There really aren't many therapists who specialize in working with WLS clients, but most who do will be at least KNOWN to one or more of the surgeons in the area.  

Another helpful resource can be the Psychology Today "Find a Therapist" online tool.  You can specify to search in a particular town or zip code and then you can look at the profiles that various therapists have out there. It will give you a feel for who they are (I am surprised at how the personalities of therapists I know actually do come through in the profiles they create -- some are more formal than others, some are very touchy-feely, some use a wide variety of approaches while others are very rigid about how they approach counseling), what kinds of clients and issues they frequently work with, and (sometimes) what kinds of special training they have.  It will also list insurance plans they accept (but you should double check with your insurance company, of course). 

The most important thing isn't really that they even know anything about WLS (that is convenient, but not at all necessary). The most important thing is that they have the background and inclination to work with whatever weight-related issues you have.  Someone with a background in sexual or physical abuse or other trauma should be sure to see someone who has experience in trauma work.  Someone who has a history of chemical abuse/addiction should see someone with addictions training and experience. If you are looking to change bothersome behaviors (weight related or not), look for someone who indicates they use Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT).

Lora

Thanks!

I can tell you what I did!  I went to my insurance company's website and printed out a list of therapists in my area sorted by distance from my house.  I started off with calling the office closest to me.  They gave me the runaround for about a month which pissed me right off :P  So then I called the second place and got an appointment scheduled with a therapist.  Amazingly enough, she and I clicked really well!  I was expecting that I was going to need to meet a few therapists before I found one that I clicked with, since I have not had luck with therapists in my past.  

Thanks!

I'm a therapist and I replied to farmgirl's post also. Psychology today is great. Look for a center that focuses on eating disorders if you want a therapist specifically trained in CBT or DBT therapy to really get down to to the issues dealing with food. However, depending on the type of issues, a good CBT therapist may be good enough. I have been to many therapists and I am a therapist myself and it wasn't until I had DBT therapy that it made a difference. However, it could have been that it was the time in my journey that made the difference. I don't know.