Re: Hello, Im new to the group :)

[Guest guest]

Hi, Hanni, and welcome! This is a great place to get your questions

answered, and a very friendly group. I'm further along than you, but

I'm still pre-op. Right now, I've been accepted to the program and

I've had orientation; I'm trying to lose 10% or so of my original

weight so that I can be scheduled for surgery.

If you go to the group website at and look up post #817

it gives a good outline of the Kaiser process. Some things have

changed slightly (they're always tweaking the program) and some

things differ depending on which center you're assigned to, but you

can at least get an idea of how it works.

As for previous weight loss attempts, the Bariatrics folks really

like to see that you've tried other ways to lose weight before coming

to the decision to have surgery. This is truly a major change in your

life and it doesn't work for everyone. It's also got fairly

significant risks, although (obviously) those of us on this list have

decided that for one reason or another it's worth it. I've had a long

history of different diet attempts, and although many of them have

been on my own and not part of a group some of them at least were

done through Kaiser - they have a weight management program I did

some years back, and I also saw a Kaiser nutritionist while I was

doing Atkins a couple of years ago. So they had a " history " on me to

refer to, and that helped prove my case. You might want to start

noting down anything you can remember about previous diet efforts -

when, how long, etc.

The " Bariatric Overview " class is just that - a very basic overview

of the surgery, the risks, and the possible results. It's pretty

minimal. It's NOT the same as " Orientation " , which is a

comprehensive, full-day session you'll be scheduled for once you're

accepted into the program. The overview class includes a very short

meeting with a nutritionist, who will ask about previous diet

efforts. You may also want to call on your own and schedule a

psychiatric consultation; tell them you're considering WLS and want

an evaluation. That sounds scary, but the psych. will assess if your

expectations and goals are realistic, and will send a recommendation

to your doctor as well. Once the recommendation from the overview

class and from the psych appt. get back to your doctor, she can write

a recommendation for you to the bariatric program.

So it takes a while - this is NOT a fast process by any means - but

it's really worthwhile. Welcome to the beginning of a long journey,

and I hope you'll enjoy the trip!

Cathy C.

[Guest guest]

They may have changed the name from something else, or they may not

have had it when that post was written. Yes, I'd take your diet

history with you - in fact, you'll get into the habit of taking

EVERYTHING with you EVERY time you go in for an appointment! <LOL>

Glad to have you here, Hanni!

Cathy

>

> > Hi, Hanni, and welcome! This is a great place to get your

questions

> > answered, and a very friendly group.  I'm further along than you,

but

> > I'm still pre-op. Right now, I've been accepted to the program and

> > I've had orientation; I'm trying to lose 10% or so of my original

> > weight so that I can be scheduled for surgery.

> >

> > If you go to the group website at and look up post

#817

> > it gives a good outline of the Kaiser process. Some things have

> > changed slightly (they're always tweaking the program) and some

> > things differ depending on which center you're assigned to, but

you

> > can at least get an idea of how it works. 

> >

> > As for previous weight loss attempts, the Bariatrics folks really

> > like to see that you've tried other ways to lose weight before

coming

> > to the decision to have surgery. This is truly a major change in

your

> > life and it doesn't work for everyone. It's also got fairly

> > significant risks, although (obviously) those of us on this list

have

> > decided that for one reason or another it's worth it. I've had a

long

> > history of different diet attempts, and although many of them have

> > been on my own and not part of a group some of them at least were

> > done through Kaiser - they have a weight management program I did

> > some years back, and I also saw a Kaiser nutritionist while I was

> > doing Atkins a couple of years ago. So they had a " history " on me

to

> > refer to, and that helped prove my case.  You might want to start

> > noting down anything you can remember about previous diet

efforts -

> > when, how long, etc.

> >

> > The " Bariatric Overview " class is just that - a very basic

overview

> > of the surgery, the risks, and the possible results. It's pretty

> > minimal. It's NOT the same as " Orientation " , which is a

> > comprehensive, full-day session you'll be scheduled for once

you're

> > accepted into the program.  The overview class includes a very

short

> > meeting with a nutritionist, who will ask about previous diet

> > efforts.  You may also want to call on your own and schedule a

> > psychiatric consultation; tell them you're considering WLS and

want

> > an evaluation. That sounds scary, but the psych. will assess if

your

> > expectations and goals are realistic, and will send a

recommendation

> > to your doctor as well. Once the recommendation from the overview

> > class and from the psych appt. get back to your doctor, she can

write

> > a recommendation for you to the bariatric program.  

> >

> > So it takes a while - this is NOT a fast process by any means -

but

> > it's really worthwhile.  Welcome to the beginning of a long

journey,

> > and I hope you'll enjoy the trip!

> >

> > Cathy C.

>