Nervous about psych exam..

Hi everyone I am having my psych exam wed morning and I am really nervous . I have never been to a psych. before and have no clue on what to expect. I am going through Vocational Rehab. to have my WLS and they are paying for everything. My case worker through VR said that the exam will be for 3 HOURS!! What has got me nervous is he told me that we will talk about the good, bad and the ugly. So what i'm wondering is will he ask personal questions? Questions about my sexuality? I dont want to get in there and break down crying telling my coming out story Can I fail this exam? Ok, please pray for me. I need prayer. Thanks for listening to me and letting me get this out! Kay

Hi Kay, It's normal to be nervous about this, but don't let it get to you. All you have to do is go in there and be honest. They aren't looking to lock you away or anything, they just want to be sure that you are in the right place for the surgery. Calm is good, queer is fine, and the weight issues are part of it. Look at it as a chance to look at yourself and the first step in the process of getting to know a new and better you. Listen to the questions, answer them honestly, and think of it as a 3 hour chance for you to get to know you session . All is good, and all will be just fine. As for your case worker, poo on him. Life is full of the good the bad and the ugly, so just go in there and relax. Best, Amy

Amy Thanks so much for the support! I am a little more calm than I was yesterday. I had all kind of thoughts about this eval but I'm just going to be honest and be happy that its a step towards me having WLS. Take Care, Kay

Kay, You're a mess girl! You will be fine. I'm a certified counselor and work with Psychologists all the time and went through the eval in January. Mine was not as extensive as yours sounds more like a clinical interview. The key is to be very honest with the evaluator. He or she is there to get a feel for if you can handle the emotional drain of the surgery/weight loss program. It is really not a big deal as long as you are honest. There are very very few people who are not recommended for surgery as a result of the psych eval. If you are one of them then it is important to get your mental health taken care of before you have surgery. However, that is very unlikely. If they give you a written battery (as I have heard many do) there are questions built in that will let them know if you are being honest. They sometimes ask if you like a certain band or a certain type of food product. The band or food product does not really exist so if you say "yes" you like them, they know you are not being 100 % truthful. Bottom line be honest. They will likely ask personal questions to make sure you have suports. If you don't have supports in place you need to get them before tackling this surgery! They absolutly will not prevent you from having the surgery for being gay! The Psych that did my clinical interview was very happy to learn I had a life partner who would be there when I returned home from the hospital. He even told me to make sure to have a power of attorney and a living will written up before the surgery just in case. He was awesome! You will be fine just relax go in with you head high, proud to be gay and BE HONEST with them! Chip

Hey Chip Thanks for responding to my post. I will relax and just be HONEST like everyone says. My partner is laughing at me because yesterday I told her that I was so nervous that I might walk in there and start confessing to him things i did like breaking my moms vase back in 1982 and blaiming it on my brothers But Seriously, Thanks again for your kind words! Kay

I just had my psych eval this afternoon. I was a little nervous, but it really was pretty straightforward. I did a 100+ questionaire that I think was meant to tell how I'd cope with the surgery and any unexpected complications, as well as if I had a support system. Then I met with the psychologist who did a clinical interview, basically just questions about my health and my support system. The whole thing lasted about 1-1/2 hours. Also, she was someone recommended by my surgeon's office. And she said right up front that she was on my side and that she wanted to help me do what was right for me. (I suppose you could take that either way, but I found it reassuring.) Good luck! Jen

I just had mine today and it was a piece of cake. eeeeeeh more like cheesecake. Relax you'll be fine. BobbyBear ps The Cardiologist cleared me today too. I'm stoked!!!! One more appointment to go at the Pulminary Dr. and I'm good to go. I'm ready to ride baby.

Just like you, I was nervous as hell about my own psych eval. I went in and found that my fears were unfounded. Be open and genuine, that's about all the actual advice I can give. My own sexuality didn't even come into question at all during the interview, the psychiatrist seemed to be more interested in childhood experiences, any history of violence or sexual abuse and what my expectations were about having this procedure. I was also told to allow for a lot of time, but I wound up being there for less than an hour. Let us know how your eval goes! Good luck!!

I'd like to know how you made out. I took a test at the WISH center. I've worked in mental health for years but when it came to this test I freaked. Other then my health around my weight I felt pretty good. But the Doc. said by how I answered if it was him he'd be on meds. I was really depressed after that. I thought I answered the way they wanted me to. I don't know what I did. I'm going to try again, not with the WISH center. Anyway I'm wondering how you did. Marge

Hi Marge I went in nervous as ever and he asked me right away if i was nervous and that they did take that in consideration. I did a lot of different kind of test.. math and spelling. I looked at some ink blobs and told him what i thought it looked like. Then he asked me about my family and how was my childhood. He asked me when did I think my weight got out of control.. I stumbled over this question because I did not know if I should tell him about me getting depressed and eating through my depression when my mom "flipped" out on me when she found out about me being gay. So I just told him that I had a "bad period" in my life when I ate too much to get through difficult times then I also made bad food choices. Like you, I just pretty much said what I thought he wanted to hear so I could get the Ok to have WLS. I kinda felt like i made him think i was silly cause I was so nervous. He would not tell me how I did right then and there. So i dont know whats gonna come out of that... I just know I did not like it at all. I felt like he was looking for me to mess up. I dont know it was probably my nerves. My results are in the mail being sent to me. I hope i did ok. Good Luck with your outcome! Kay