GP says to do Weight Watchers instead

[Alex Benton 2]

Yeah you need a new dr someone who will support you in whatever decision you choose.

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[bevewhite 25]

Weight Watcher is great if you need to lose just a little, but it is not sustaining. I have been successful with WW, but the weight alway came back on. I needed a tool greater than my knowledge on what I should and should not eat. I needed help with Portion Control. That is what the sleeve is providing me. I am sorry to hear that your PCP was not supportive. That is sad. My internal medicine doc was very glad to hear that I was planning on the surgery.

[lifsvr74 31]

When I told my GP I was considering WLS, he gave me the name of the surgeon at the bariatric clinic at Loyola University Medical Center Hospital.

Get a copy of your medical records. Call a hospital that has a bariatric program and ask them if they could recommend a GP who is supportive of WLS.

Are you at the Loyola center in Maywood?

[JCP 619]

GP is ignorant about obesity and WLS. Ditch him. There are supportive docs out there. He is not one of them.

[koddie 44]

Find another doctor

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[Meggie617 3]

When I first went to my GP and asked about WLS he wasn't overly enthused with the idea but told me if I tried a restricted diet for 3 months and didn't love it, as well as the weight loss he would recommend me for surgery. I tried it his way and HATED it. When I returned and told him how awful I thought it was he gave me the pamphlet for WLS. I saw him yesterday and he applauded me for trying it his way but understood why I had surgery.

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[BCs 1000 364]

I listed the dozen weight loss programs I had tried over the past 20 years to my GP. I had lost over 80lbs seven times, each time putting it back on plus another ten lbs. I told her I wanted surgery.

No joke, she asked me if I had tried X brand Meal Replacement shakes

I was so upset because she either hadn't listened to me or didn't believe me. This GP must have weighed around 100lbs.

I left it another 2 years until I was having spirometry at the same clinic with an RN. She was telling me I needed to lose weight and I just lost it. I told her everything I had tried and what the GP had told me. All I wanted was a referral to a weight loss surgeon.

She grabbed another GP and must have had a few words because when I went in to see him he straight away gave me the referral.

Fortunately in Australia you don't have to fight for approval with your insurer, if the surgeon says you need it, and your insurance covers it, that is all you need.

One day I might write a letter to that first GP. I don't want anyone else to go through this.

[VSGAnn2014 12,992]

All the above horrific stories of how inconsistently many patients' qualifications for WLS are considered by PCPs and GPs illustrate how antiquated the treatment of obesity still is.

In @@BCs 1000 case, she presented the identical weight and weight-loss history and actual facts to two different GPs and got two radically different levels of support -- one failed to support her at all (and also seemed incompetent to observe information and analyze it) while the other GP, after being lobbied heavily by an RN, offered the support the patient needed and deserved all along.

This situation doesn't describe a scientifically-based medical practice at all. I look forward to the improvements "big data" can and will make to medical decision trees. Medicine is still such a hit-or-miss affair and dependent on doctors' personal opinions that are shockingly ungrounded in actual medical science.

[DRene 12]

Hi careya123

It sounds like we might have the same pcp! It was a very unpsetting visit but u continued to tell him I checked with the insurance co, it's covered, I'm following protocol and ultimately it's my decision and if he didn't work with me then I would change Drs! Stay strong and insist!!! Good luck

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[BestDayEver 418]

My pcp was reluctant to support my decision to have surgery and I needed a letter from him. He said he had another patient that had surgery and she was sad because she couldn't eat her favorite foods . . . really? But he did say he would support my decision and wrote the letter. I will see this doctor in a couple of weeks where I hope to assure him he has at least one patient who is more than happy with their results!

[KristenLe 5,979]

You should go to a Bariatric Program that includes Nutritionist, Psych/Social Workers and a reputable surgeon. WLS isn't for everyone. If you have a BMI under 40 it's only recommended if you have comorbities. Go to an informational session and get more information to make the best decision for you. You should have the support of your PCP and if you don't have a good relationship with them - find another. My PCP encouraged surgery but I had already tried everything else including WW. She knew (better than I did) that I needed a tool to help me eat less and of course has always encouraged exercise. She knows my history and current health status and I will need her support.

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[2Anne 10]

I went to the dr yesterday and told my GP I'm considering WLS. He said I wouldn't be successful unless I controlled my eating first, or else I'd gain the weight back. He recommended Weight Watchers. I've done that a few too many times already, and told him that it wasn't sustainable for me--I always gained it back. He said if I couldn't be successful on WW, I wouldn't be on WLS either. I said I the sleeve would give me an advantage that would allow me to be successful. He responded by saying I'd lose weight at first but then I'd learn to eat around it, and the whole thing would be a waste. A heated discussion ensued.

When I was researching WLS, the first thing I did was look up the five year outcomes of diet and exercise alone (specifically Weight Watchers) compared to WLS. There's no comparison. WLS has a success rate of 50-80%, depending on the type of surgery. Diet and exercise is under 5%. Also, the definition of "success" was much more strict for WLS.

I'm so frustrated. I think I'm doing the right thing. I need some encouragement, folks!

EDIT: He seems to think I sit around and eat donuts all day.

I saw a TV prog today about obese teenagers. There was a doc who said they had done a huge study on obese people in the US over 10 years. Literally thousands of people.

The conclusion was that only people who had surgery lost weight. The main reason given for this was that overweight people ruin their metabolism. Apparantly when you get to a large size the metabolism is permanently damaged and even if you do starve yourself on a diet/weightwatchers as soon as you go off a restrictive programme the weight returns. Hence the yo yo dieters. On this basis I would say that for most people WW is a waste of time(except for emotional eaters who may not benefit from WLS). The restrictive qualities of WLS permanently reduce intake and also should offer a feeling of saiety after eating. This is the case with the gastric sleeve and bypasses.

I've had the gastric band for 15 years and although I lost 56 lbs max I was still overweight and always hungry.

I simply do not recommend it. From what I've now read my loss was average and few people lose all their excess weight.

Currently I am investigating the gastric sleeve as since my GB was removed six months ago I have gained 10 lbs and this is with constant weight watching and low calorie intake.

I'm phoning tomorrow to make an appt. at a hospital recommended by my daughter who is a doc. Its the private wing of a NHS hospital with ITU and the surgeon on tap.

A lot of places that offer this surgery do not have these facilities and the surgeon flies in/operates/flies out. If you have problems he is not there for you.

I think we can make up our own minds about WLS and as well as being unsympathetic some GP's are negative and their only offering to help is Xenical.

Go for it and have the WLS.

[ebonymc 52]

Well, here I go again. Back and forth, back and forth. This time my PCP has talked me into another option other than WLS. I told him that WW only lasted 1 week with me and I had only done it per his request. Now he has prescribed diet pills and I can't continue with those either b/c I'm too afraid to even take half a day.. Therefore, they're not working for me. So I'm back to wanting surgery again. I told him about things and he seems to be ok with what ever I decide to do. Good luck to all!

[jenmv 13]

When you do this you're going to wonder why you waited so long. I'm only two weeks out but I have friends and family who are much farther along ...over a year etc and I can tell you that this is absolutely not anything comparable to WW. It is a very big decision it is a huge commitment and change but to compare the two is not appropriate there are two very different things. I don't know what your BMI is but if you have a lower BMI and are not morbidly obese you even have a higher likely success rate ????????????????Good luck with your decision.

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[2Anne 10]

Because I am 68 it could be the case that I will be refused the surgery as one surgeon has already said he will not do the sleeve or bypass on me due to this. I am seeing a surgeon on 27th April so hope he will give me the go ahead. If not as a diabetic I can try Forxiga which aids weight loss or there is Byetta or Eraglatide which are anorectics. These drugs are only used in type 2 diabetes.

I know the surgery is risky but so is being very obese as my BMI is 38 and rising.

My gastric band was in for 15 years and a lot changed in Bariatric surgery during this time. If there had been a revision say 7 years ago there would be no problem re my age so my advice is if you are fit and well and have a BMI over 37 and a chronic weight gain problem WLS is the way forward.