• Bariatric Pre-surgical Evaluation
  
  What It Is
  It may seem surprising that you are asked to see a psychologist. However, there are two very good reasons for this evaluation. First, many insurance companies realize its importance and require a psychological evaluation before they will approve bariatric surgery. More importantly, your entire surgery team of physicians, nurses and dietitians want you to maximize your success – to lose excess body weight, become a healthier person and improve the quality your life to the greatest possible extent. The psychological evaluation can help identify your strengths, such as a strong motivation to exercise as your weight is coming off, a complete understanding of the effects of surgery or supportive relationships. It can also help find areas where you might need support after surgery, such as depression or mood swings, lack of family support or triggers for past emotional eating. It is important for you to understand that people with obesity are usually psychologically normal and do not fit any specific psychological profile. The psychologist’s main purpose is not to find underlying problems and conflicts that might have caused you to become obese. Most psychologists who perform these evaluations specialize in health psychology, and as such, are looking for ways to help you prevent disease and promote health in the future. The psychologist’s purpose is never to “fail” people and exclude them from surgery. In fact, studies have shown that a very small number (perhaps four percent) of individuals are found to be poor candidates based on their psychological evaluation results.
  
  Scheduling an Appointment
  Please call 908-279-4030 to schedule an appointment for an initial consultation. After the consultation has been completed, we will schedule additional sessions.