Psych Evaluation

Hi Everyone, I have my Psych Eval coming up next week and I wanted to get some info. What sorts of questions do they ask? I've been dealing with Depression for the past 6 years, does that automatically disqualify you? Any info would be greatly appreciated, Wendy

My psych eval was a joke... but they all differ. Basically the purpose of mine was to determine if I understood the decision I was making and that I was competant enough to make it. Depression is a "side effect" of WLS so that shouldnt disqualify you.

My eval was pretty cool. I was open and honest about everything because I'm not a good lier anyway. I affirmed that I understood WLS wasn't going to make my life perfect or solve all my problems, it was a TOOL to use and I was ready to make the necessary life changes to effectively use that tool. I continue to struggle with that last bit even 9 months out. I know someone who went to the same doc for her eval and he almost didn't approve her because she'd been institutionalized for suicide attempts as a kid and had a long history of depression. He was afraid she may not be stable enough to handle the surgery and the resulting changes in her life. She managed to convince him she was and was able to get approved but I thought the doc was being pretty conservative. I mean, her suicide attempt was like over 12 years ago and she's a totally functioning adult by now. The doc will ask about person diet history, medical history and probably will ask about the depression. Are you on meds? That may be something they'll want to know all about. I never took any so I may have gotten off easy on that portion of the interview. This may not make you feel any less anxious but I think it's safe to be open and honest with the doctor. The point of the eval is to make sure you're mentally ready to handle the surgery and for the most part, everyone who gets this far in the process is.

Its funny, I just had mine yesterday. It wasnt to bad, but I was nervous. She just asked me questions about my diet, my background, my life now. She wanted to know if I understood the effects of WLS and that its not a cure. I also had to take this test, it was like a stress level test. The were 90 things (headaches, if u feel people dont understand you, etc) and on a level from 0-4 I had to estimate how they stressed me out in the past 2 weeks. Weird, but I got through it, now I'm just waiting approval. Im sure you will be fine. ;) Danielle