Check Your Head

It's been a few days since I've posted. Today, I went to the psychologist. I was nervous about this one. Mainly, just because I did not really know what to expect. My surgeon had recommended a couple places for this pre-surgery requirement, and I confirmed with this selected doctor that they took my insurance. Luckily, they were able to get me in with only about a week and a half notice.

I think it's important to understand that you don't have to be nervous about this appointment. First off, it's no mystery to the doctor why you're there. There's no weird, awkward silences. Secondly, they're not there to judge you, or to determine if your reasons for wanting the surgeon are virtuous enough. What I learned quickly, is that it was simply an insurance requirement for the psychologist to gain information from me about my lifestyle and motivation for the surgery, to just deem whether I am mentally stable or not. They are trying to rule out any major mental health concerns that could have someone seeking such a surgery for unhealthy reasons.

After talking to the doctor for about fifteen minutes in a relaxed atmosphere, he sat me privately in a small room where I took approximately thirty minutes and answered ~160 True/False questions that were part of a personality test, of sorts. Again, it sounds worse than it was. The test actually went quite quickly, and the questions were along the lines of - "True or False: I often think I am not worthwhile of my family's affections," or: "True or False: I have one or more friends I can turn to in times of need." Now, those aren't verbatim, but they give a general idea. As you can see, it's easy to discern how they are likely trying to disseminate whether someone is suffering from major mental health concern or not.

Doctor said he'd write up my results over the weekend and send them over Monday! Easy-peasy!

Next up is my Nutritionist visit on Monday. I am super excited for this appointment, as I know it's going to be the best insight so far into what I will be expecting after the surgery, and as I move forward with my weight loss.