Question:
Can you be denied surgery if you have had therapy for 5 years?

I have been in psychotherapy for 5 years. I first started therapy to be hypnotized for weight loss and to deal with depression. I have continued with my therapy, even though the hypnosis did not help me lose weight, because I have made and continue to made progress in dealing with many issues. I asked my therapist to do my psych eval. I met with him today and he read me his evaluation. To my great surprise he wrote an extremely loooonnng, very detailed report outlining my entire life history IE sexual abuse as a child, physical and emotional abuse from my mother, abandonment by my father...depression when my children went away to college...depression when I was laid off from my job...depression when my children moved out of state...that I am "adversarial" and willingness to exercise like I should.....and on and on. I feel he had gone overboard in his lengthy and detailed report and that all this information could jeopardize my chances of approval. He suggested I have someone else do the eval. My insurance has been paying for my therapy with him. Won't they think it is odd that my psych eval was done by a different psychologist?? I am angry to think I have been in therapy to get the help I have needed and now even though I may be mentally much healthier than lots of people I could be denied approval. I would really like to hear from anyone who has had lots of counseling and has been able to get approval. Any words of wisdom would be very much appreciated.    — [Anonymous] (posted on June 6, 2001)

June 6, 2001
I have been approved for my surgury and have been in therapy for many years. (due to a really bad childhood) My doctor would not do my surgury until he spoke with my therapist, and also I had to see a therapist that my doctor requested. MY psych. said I was in perfect shape for the surgury. However, the psych that my doctor recommended said I was not. I had to go through six more weeks of counseling just to talk about the surgury. My insurance ok'd everything just fine. My biggest fight was just to get my surgeon to do the surgury since his psych gave me a bad report. Hope this helps a little. Gosh, I really just hope it makes sense, I am very nervous this is my first time posting. Also nervous because I see my surgeon for my surgury date on Friday. ***basket case****
   — charlotte D.

June 6, 2001
Does your surgeon's office have a therapist they usually use? I have been in therapy for roughly four and a half years. I told my surgeon's office up front that I was currently in therapy. They felt this was good because I would need long term follow-up to deal with all the issues involved. In fact, they require you to have some type of plan for mental health care post-op. However, my surgeon's office does their own psych evaluations. They have you fill out a questionaire and talk to a psych resident. Mostly they are concerned with your expectaions of the surgery and after care. My insurance didn't question the psych evaluation being done by someone other than my therapist. Besides, your therapist doesn't have any right to share that much information with anyone else. Usually they will only share what is relevant and ABSOLUTELY necessary. Good luck with your process.
   — Maria H.

June 9, 2001
I realize that on here we are supposed to be supportive and that actually, you were asking for a way to get around your therapists report but...as many on here know, I am known to take the road less traveled at times when answering so here goes.... Possibly, your therapist honestly feels that you might not deal with this surgery well. You have seemed to have many bouts of depression when things in your life are not well and have had to really try and deal with those. I feel that I can talk about this because I too, had dealt with depression before the surgery. I had been off of meds for a year before surgery but soon after having the surgery, I had to get back on them. These surgeries have a way of changing your inner workings and my seratonin levels dropped dramatically. I have yet to find a med that works now as my body absorbs things so differently. This can be a real problem for those of us who need the meds. As for depression after surgery, you can almost count on it at least for awhile if you were prone to it beforehand. Definately weigh the pros and cons before surgery and know that this problem "might" get worse after surgery. Not trying to scare you just stating the facts. Good luck.
   — Barbara H.

December 13, 2001
Depression isn't the problem, as a rule, unless it is severe. Having health issues is typically depressing all by itself, so some depression and the therapy attendant to it are understandable. My surgeon also called my psychiatrist, who had been prescribing prozac. After talking with her, he had no problem with the surgery. The trouble with mental or emotional disorders and surgery is usually related to entities like schizophrenia. Reconciling the new image in the mirror and what your mind says the mirror should look like can raise a hell of a problem for individuals as the body changes. Dr. Vance
   — Dr. Vance R.