Head Help

Good afternoon all. it has now been 2 1/2 months since my surgery. I am down almost 40#, it sure is a different life.

I have just set up an appointment with a head doctor to make sure my head game stays on track. I guess I am not sure what to expect, I have never seen one, other than my prequalification appointments.

having thoughts of, why did I do this.

I've been on top of (for the most part) squashing any cravings or "oh just one bite wont hurt"

what do we talk about ?

My head gets me in more trouble than any thing else i have had to deal with in my journey. I was seeing a therapist before my surgery and I can tell you, he has helped me focus on so many things that my head tells me about food. If you go to therapist expecting him/ her to perform miracles and just TELL you what is going on you are being naive. A good therapist will make you work it out. Mine helped me to take a look at why my head was telling me to eat, how i could set myself up to fail and why I would.

Recently i had some outpatient surgery. Of course I was not to eat anything the morning of so, when I got home I was starving. I had plenty of good, healthy WLS appropriate food around but, i wanted carbs, I wanted my moms scalloped potatoes, I wanted boxed macaroni and cheese,.. so I had to go through these steps my therapist taught me to figure out why i was craving something I could not have, had not had in months. I figured out that it was because I was not well.I was having some pain from surgery, I wanted comfort. and for me comfort from my childhood is food, mostly carbs. My point is, had I not known this process from my therapist I would have wondered why I wanted all that stuff!on that day particular!

So be honest when you go. Talk about your relationships, your job, your guilt.. talk about it all. For me, it was ALL connected to food.

I would venture to say that therapy is completely individual. The therapist takes his/her cues from the patient, usually. In my experience, the first session(s) are so the therapist can learn your history, ask questions, and work with you to set the goals of your therapy. In my case, I thought I was going in for a specific issue (severe aversion to vegetables) and found that it was rooted in a lot more than that... so therapy ended up being about a lot more than I anticipated. LOL.

Talk with your doctor about any and everything. If you are not comfortable with your doctor, find a new one. Of course you know, you can talk with us ((Obesity Help) anytime about anything. This forum holds a wealth of support.

Your post is vague. It all depends on which kind of head doctor you are referring to.

Every therapist is different. I've seen some that just talk and kinda listen and give general ideas on how you can stay on track. I'm currently seeing a therapist who is very much into giving me things to do to help me stay on track. I have things that I do everyday at certain times to help me.

Like this week, I can only worry for 30 minutes a day. I get 30 minutes first thing in the morning to stress out and freak out about all that I have on my plate. After that I have to practice mindfulness. So, I acknowledge the worry when it comes, but then I redirect my focus to what I'm currently doing, acknowledge my worry/anxiety and then get on with my life and not dwell on it. At least until I start to worry about it again, then I acknowledge and move on. It's not easy, but it is working.

I hope you are able to be open and honest with your therapist about what your issues are, what you want in your life and to work on getting there. Good luck, and congrats on your weight loss.

I have gone to therapists off and on my entire adult life. Never for anything major/specific, just at times I feel it would help to get some extra guidance/assistance if you will.

The one piece of advice I would give you is to find someone you "click" with. If you don't feel you are getting anything out of it, or find after several sessions you aren't comfortable, please don't think "oh, this isn't for me". Try another therapist. It's a total pain because you basically start all over giving the same background, etc. If you have to do it 2-3 times it can be a major hassle, but worth it IMO.

It has been quite awhile since I had seen a therapist regularly (3-5 years probably) and I decided I could use the help as I transitioned into maintenance. I was really worried about that transition and just wanted all the support I could get. For me, I wanted to find a therapist that had experience in eating disorders, but I didn't want that to be the sole focus of their practice. I also know that I need to find someone who will push me pretty hard and call me out on any BS. My experience is that there are a lot of therapists who just listen and ask questions and it never seems to go any further than that. I want someone who will share their insight, and push me to change by giving my "homework assignments", etc.

But as someone said above, each person is different and there are MANY, MANY different types of therapy, so it's a bit of a trial and error process. I wish you the best of luck, because if you find someone you work well with it can be a great experience.

Going to a therapist is one of the best things I did for me.

You will be surprised what you may talk about. A lot of our food issues goes way back. I mean if you ask a lot of us we are food addicts.

The head part is the hardest part. At almost four years out it has been an interesting time in my life. There are things I never knew I actually liked.

It does help if you like the person you are going to. It is not all bad. Somethings in my past I have forgotten about. But with the help of a therapist it has helped me deal with life.

Best wishes to you.