Question:
Has anyone else been denied psych clearance? What did you do?

I was very honest about my past and family history. He never asked me a single ?? about my readiness for this surgery. I feel he heard my family history and broad brushed me right out, saying that I need a psychiatrist to monitor the meds I take and I need to "establish a relationship with a therapist" before he can recommend the surgery. I know in my heart that I want this surgery for the right reasons - to improve my health and quality of life. I don't think that this surgery will make everything in my life rosy and wonderful. has anyone had this happen and what did you do? I have another appointment with a different psychiatrist. But I am definitely shaken over my first rejection and scared about the next appointment.    — Irene S. (posted on April 12, 2003)

April 12, 2003
Hi! I know that the reason my surgeon requires a psych clearance is because she wants the surgery to be as effective as possible.A lot of people use food for emotional reasons and the psych eval can help show who might be at risk for unintentionally sabotaging the surgery.I'm an emotional eater and I was very honest at my psych eval.They did ask me alot of questions about my past family history and that is usually standard for a complete psych eval....The psychiatrist's suggestion was for me to obtain therapy prior to surgery and for one year after surgery.I was fine with that because I know that I'm going to have issues with all of the changes regarding surgery.A psych denial doesn't automatically mean you can't have surgery....usually they just want you to have some sort of therapy in place first.Good Luck! :)
   — jennifer A.

April 12, 2003
I think that you should find another pysch that can give you another evalution, good luck & god bless.
   — Nicky-28

April 13, 2003
I had the same thing happen to me my psych. sent in my evaluation and he didnt clear me for the surgery I called my surgeons office and they told me I was on a psych. hold until he cleared me then I had to see my psych. for 5 months 1 time a week he finally cleared me.I wanted to see another psych. but my surgeon said he wanted to make sure I was really ready to have surgery and he told me he was going to only accept the first psych. evaluation until I was cleared . I dont know if your evaluation went to your surgeon or not but just make sure your surgeon will accept another psych. evaluation.I did feel better after I seen my psych. longer he helped me with other issues I was having and I realized family problems I was having did make me overeat ,so now I feel after I have my surgery I can use the tools he gave me and not fall into the same patterns..GOOD LUCK
   — marie M.

April 13, 2003
i also failed my first psych evaluation. i went to go see the dr. my sergeons office recomended. needless to say i had another evaluation with my own psychatrist that i currenly saw/see and they took his recomendation over the one who failed me. why didn't i use my own in the first place you might ask? he was/is against wls and had me write an essay with my reasons for wanting surgery. once he saw how serious i was he wrote up the report and gave it to me in the same visit. best of luck to you, kimberly open distal bypass 11/12/02 -80lbs
   — kimberly T.

April 14, 2003
I don't want to rain on anyone's parade, but SOMETIMES psychiatrists do know what they're doing. SOME people really shouldn't have this surgery because they won't be able to adjust to the new lifestyle. I'm not saying this is the situation for you, but psych's do tend to get a bad rap here. I had to get therapy before surgery. It turned out to be one of the best things I ever did FOR MYSELF. If you have a lot of issues with family or other areas, then therapy is a good thing provided you have a good relationship with a professional. By all means, please don't let being turned down for surgery stop you from being honest with another psych. Good luck.
   — Diane S.

April 14, 2003
I agree with Diane.. it's always sad when I encounter people who are post op and having a huge amount of trouble dealing with the emotional issues that go with WLS..and honestly quite often I find out that either their surgeon DIDN'T require a psych evaluation, or that the person in question did a bunch of stuff to get around it, or to 'force' approval. As much as we all want to get this weight off and be happy, sometimes there are other issues that no amount of weight loss will fix.. and it's for these reasons that counseling can be a huge benefit. You did the right thing by being upfront in the first place. Please try and see the big picture and do the same in your subsequent appointments. Take care and good luck. ~Peace
   — Joscelin

April 14, 2003
Thanks for all the opinions. I agree that SOMETIMES psychiatrists know what they're talking about. I will even go as far as to say that perhaps this guy saw something that "scared" him and made him wonder if I was a good candidate for this surgery. I spoke at length with my brother in law who has his masters degree in psychology and works in the mental health field. I'm pretty sure that there was a bit of a "culture gap" with this first psychiatrist. I won't lie about my past history for my next interview, but I will be sure to "put the best spin on it as possible". If I get the same response again, I will definitely delay surgery for a while, but under no circumstances will I go "shopping" for a different surgeon. Thanks for the support. I'll try to get back for an update.
   — Irene S.