Promoting
Healthy Lifestyle
Changes
Maximizing
Success After
Surgery
Improving
Adherence to Treatment
Building
Relapse Prevention
Strategies
Improving Coping Skills
Psychological
Services for
Bariatric Surgery Patients
There
is a real need for psychological
interventions for patients who are considering or undergoing bariatric
surgery. It stands to
reason that any overeating problem a
person may have pre-operatively will likely cause some degree of
difficulty
after surgery. Additionally, the emotional and psychological
ramifications of
gastric bypass surgery are very significant. Consequently, these patients
must have the cognitive ability,
emotional resources, and personal motivation to adhere to a life-long
commitment of self-care and healthy choices, in order to
increase the likelihood of a successful
post-surgical outcome.
Dr.
Rawson’s clinical practice can provide the
psychological evaluations that some insurance companies require prior
to
surgery, and also
provide the crucial
follow-up one-on-one coaching and group counseling to support
successful
outcomes.
Assessment Services
Dr. Rawson’s assessment
services can help to:
-
Determine your
emotional
pre-surgical readiness
-
Determine if
you have a
psychological or psychiatric condition that may be a barrier to your
surgical
readiness and that may indicate a need for referral for psychological
treatment
-
Assess your
psychological
assets and liabilities, giving you a road map to follow for
communicating with
your doctors
-
Teach you how
you are likely
to react after surgery — your coping
style and how you respond to stress
that may be affecting your medical condition
-
Identify
psychological factors that may affect
your course of recovery
Counseling Services
Additionally,
there are the
unique demands and requirements of the post-surgery period for patients who are undergoing
major life
changes and needing help in working through troubling issues. Many
patients
find counseling very helpful in dealing with fears, anxiety,
depression,
emotional problems, compulsive eating, family conflicts, and other
kinds of
problems.
Dr.
Rawson’s counseling services can help to address concerns
involving:
-
Embracing
change
-
Managing cues
and triggers
-
Dealing with
physiological
versus psychological hunger
-
Building
self-esteem and
confidence
-
Planning ahead
for a successful psychological
adjustment
-
Managing
stress effectively
-
Setting clear
limits with
oneself and with others, and maintaining clear boundaries
-
Reframing
faulty thoughts about
food, eating, and oneself
-
Engaging in
basic self-care
behavior (e.g., eating balanced meals at regular intervals, drinking
the
appropriate fluids, taking daily vitamins as directed, pacing oneself,
and
incorporating an adequate amount of sleep and physical activity into
each day)
-
Understanding
the basic
principles of healthy eating, including the consequences of food
deprivation
-
Understanding
the basic
principles of habit formation and habit change
-
Setting
realistic expectations for surgery, especially weight expectations that
are
within a weight range that is both medically and psychologically
healthy for
the patient
Read
the Talking Points from Dr. Rawson's recent presentation to a gathering
of bariatric patients and professionals at the Staple Club Meeting on
January 2, 2006. This support group meets on the 1st
Monday of the
month from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. at Fair Oaks Medical Plaza building, 3700
Joseph Siewick Drive, Fairfax, VA. Go to the Talking Points page now.
Psychological
Services for Chronic Pain Patients
Pain
resulting from injury, illness, or disease is a multidimensional
phenomenon
composed of physiologic, psychological, and other influencing variables.
Factors such as depression, anxiety, and excessive somatic thought are
specifically identified in the medical literature as actively
contributing to
the etiology, maintenance, and intensity of pain. When these factors
are
appropriately identified and clinically addressed, treatment outcomes
resulting
from non-surgical, surgical, and rehabilitative interventions are
significantly
improved.
Dr.
Rawson’s clinical practice can provide the
psychological assessment services and the crucial
follow-up one-on-one coaching and group counseling to support
successful pain
management outcomes.
Assessment
Services
Dr. Rawson’s assessment
services can help to:
-
Support
medication management
decisions—including the use of psychotropic and analgesic
drugs—and determine
your emotional pre-surgical readiness
-
Determine if
you have a
psychological or psychiatric condition that may be a barrier to your
recovery
and that may indicate a need for referral for psychological treatment
-
Identify your
medical coping style
and how
you respond to stress that may be affecting your medical condition and
its
treatment
-
Assess your
psychological
assets and liabilities, giving you a road map to follow for
communicating with
your doctors
-
Pinpoint
personal and social assets that may facilitate adjustment to physical
limitations or lifestyle changes.
-
Identify
individuals who may need more communication and
support in order to comply with prescribed medical regimens.
-
Structure
post-treatment plans and self-care
responsibilities in the context of the your social network.
Counseling Services
When
depression and anxiety undermine a
patient’s ability to tolerate pain, psychological
interventions to address
these factors improve treatment outcomes.
Dr. Rawson’s counseling
services can help to address concerns involving:
-
Understanding
the mind/body connection with regard to pain
symptomatology
-
Planning
ahead for a successful psychological adjustment
-
Dealing with
physiological
versus psychological pain
-
Accepting
the diagnosis of chronic pain
-
Changing
from a passive to an active orientation regarding self-management
-
Enabling
patients to become more functional and manage pain more effectively
-
Identifying
beliefs that influence pain
-
Reorienting
patients towards implementing basic
self-care behavior
-
Managing
stress effectively
-
Building
self-esteem and
confidence
-
Setting
realistic expectations for surgical, non-surgical, and rehabilitative
interventions.
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