interview

[thinblueline 63]

I was called the other day and told i have an interview with the surgeon to see if i am a " good canidate " for surgery " seeing i have never been through this process before will i be approved , what are my chances i would hate to have him\her say Mr. Cooper I'm sorry but you don't qualify for surgery.

[Jessica1024 49]

I had to be accepted to get an appointment. Meet BMI and coinciding morbidities and insurance coverage. My initial visit consisted of weigh in. General Health review, an assessment of what I understood of the surgery. They reviewed dedication involved in the process, diets tried and failed in the past. Nutrition questionnaire. Detailed checklist of approval process for surgeon and health insurance.

[lizonaplane 1,613]

That depends on the surgeon and anything about your life, medical/psychological history, etc that we don't know. The surgeon wants to know you will follow instructions and don't have any underlying health issues that could cause you to die during or after surgery, and that you are healthy enough for surgery. For example, if you have uncontrolled diabetes, they might ask you to get that under control first. Or, if you have heart issues, they may want you to meet with a cardiologist for clearance. You also will likely need to meet with a psychologist to confirm that you are in a good place for surgery.

[thinblueline 63]

Just now, lizonaplane said:

That depends on the surgeon and anything about your life, medical/psychological history, etc that we don't know. The surgeon wants to know you will follow instructions and don't have any underlying health issues that could cause you to die during or after surgery, and that you are healthy enough for surgery. For example, if you have uncontrolled diabetes, they might ask you to get that under control first. Or, if you have heart issues, they may want you to meet with a cardiologist for clearance. You also will likely need to meet with a psychologist to confirm that you are in a good place for surgery.

I had both hips replaced in 2012 and literally breezed through it with no problems , i'm not diabetic , no heart issues , i have been in psychotherapy for 9 years for PTSD from the Navy otherwise i think in my opinion i am pretty healthy aside from the obesity issue.

[lizonaplane 1,613]

2 minutes ago, thinblueline said:

I had both hips replaced in 2012 and literally breezed through it with no problems , i'm not diabetic , no heart issues , i have been in psychotherapy for 9 years for PTSD from the Navy otherwise i think in my opinion i am pretty healthy aside from the obesity issue.

You'll probably do fine. Just be honest. They may want to know about your insurance or whether you are self-pay to make sure you can manage financially. Where is MA are you? I had my surgery at MGH.

[thinblueline 63]

7 minutes ago, lizonaplane said:

You'll probably do fine. Just be honest. They may want to know about your insurance or whether you are self-pay to make sure you can manage financially. Where is MA are you? I had my surgery at MGH.

I'm actually a veteran and the VA is doing the surgery so i can have the surgery done for nothing although i do have Medicare yet if i decided to go with them id have a co - pay and i can't even imagine what that would be.

[thinblueline 63]

Mass General is an outstanding hospital , seeing that its a teaching hospitsal people all over the world go there i couldnt say enough about it .

[summerseeker 2,249]

I think we all are the same at the initial surgeons meeting. Its the unknown element. I was exactly the same as you. Why would I be worthy ? I had such a low self esteem that even though I paid myself, I was sure I couldn't get it done. The hospital staff quickly made me at ease and the surgeon was delightful. I go back gladly every month to see the dietician and love the place, after all its the place that gave me my life back. Good luck Coop

[thinblueline 63]

13 minutes ago, summerseeker said:

I think we all are the same at the initial surgeons meeting. Its the unknown element. I was exactly the same as you. Why would I be worthy ? I had such a low self esteem that even though I paid myself, I was sure I couldn't get it done. The hospital staff quickly made me at ease and the surgeon was delightful. I go back gladly every month to see the dietician and love the place, after all its the place that gave me my life back. Good luck Coop

I felt ( and still do at times) that I'm not good enough therefore i will fail or others will fail me , i just wish i could get this appt over with because it is pretty much all i think about and then once i have it and it goes smoothly i will think about the next one so its a vicious cycle we go through, i know it ties to my low self esteem but i can truly say i have gotten so much better with accepting that i have made mistakes and will continue to make more of them but i know i am NOT a failure but this weight thing i just cant accept because its been an issue for most of my adult life and it drags me down emotionally however like i said i am much better at accepting me for who i am and this sx will play a big role in my life anyway i am rambling if you ever feel like chatting i will be here babbling my Irish head off...LOL take care and i will talk with you soon.

Coop

[lizonaplane 1,613]

1 hour ago, thinblueline said:

Mass General is an outstanding hospital , seeing that its a teaching hospitsal people all over the world go there i couldnt say enough about it .

I found them to be disorganized and impossible to work with. It took me 7.5 months to have surgery. I could never get return phone calls, they would schedule me without asking if a time worked, etc. The individual providers are very good, but I would not recommend them if you are trying to minimize stress.

[GradyCat 3,695]

The main things they're looking for are your overall health, okay from a cardiac standpoint, okay from a respiratory standpoint, okay from a psychiatric standpoint. They want to make sure you'll be successful and not set you up for failure. They want to make sure your thoughts about WLS are realistic and reasonable. They need you to have a BMI over 35 with comorbidities or 40 without comorbidities.

[ShoppGirl 5,024]

It’s a medical decision not a personal one. It’s not like a job interview where they are judging your personality and All that they just want to know you are healthy physically and mentally to withstand the surgery and the lifestyle changes you will need to make post surgery.

[thinblueline 63]

4 hours ago, ShoppGirl said:

It’s a medical decision not a personal one. It’s not like a job interview where they are judging your personality and All that they just want to know you are healthy physically and mentally to withstand the surgery and the lifestyle changes you will need to make post surgery.

Thank you to all of you for helping me better understand this process , i have never taken a chance like this before which will have such a dramatic ( positive) impact on my life i am looking forward to it yet still a little nervous just the same , which i am sure is to be expected right ?

Coop

[ShoppGirl 5,024]

1 minute ago, thinblueline said:

Thank you to all of you for helping me better understand this process , i have never taken a chance like this before which will have such a dramatic ( positive) impact on my life i am looking forward to it yet still a little nervous just the same , which i am sure is to be expected right ?

Coop

Absolutely. I was extremely nervous through the whole process. It’s worth it though.

[thinblueline 63]

I think if i can just get past the interview with the surgeon i will be fine.