Telling your doc

[Caren]

If you have the op privately, do you tell your doc before or after? got to be honest i'll be soooo scared of telling him I dont know how he is going to react, he wasnt happy when i asked him for the op in the first place :cry:

 

[Neeta]

If you have the op privately, do you tell your doc before or after? got to be honest i'll be soooo scared of telling him I dont know how he is going to react, he wasnt happy when i asked him for the op in the first place :cry:

I think that you will still need to tell him as I was going to go private and I still needed a referral from my GP with the name of the consultant who was going to do the op privately.

If you are going privately though he should be glad as you wouldn't be costing his practice the money and so he should be more than willing to give you a referral. It may be a good idea to speak to the place you are going to for your surgery and ask them if they require a referral from your GP in the first instance, don't want to waste time by not having one. Good luck. xx

 

[Caren]

oh really? thanks so much for that Neeta!!

 

[Caren]

well I thought they would be glad as saving them money, but ive heard that they dont like you going private!

 

[Neeta]

I work for the NHS as a secretary to a Consultant Surgeon and I can assure you that if the doctors can save money then they will, but saying that, the surgeon who I asked to see me privately works in the office next to me and he said that he didn't want to take my money and to go and get myself a referral from my GP. I did this two years ago this coming April, so you have to weigh up the pros and cons, do you get it done privately and not have such a long wait or do you go through the motions, see eveyone under the sun from respiratory doctors to psychiatrists and save yoruself money. I wish I had had it all done and dusted - I feel as though I have wasted a couple of years, but on the bright side I look at what I can spend on new clothes lol . xx

 

[Caren]

oh id rather just go and have it done! I so dont want to wait. And I cant wait to spend on new clothes, enjoy it mate, enjoy it! x

 

[TwinkleTwinkle]

Oh Caren, Is there anything you don't worry about??? It is your choice to go private & as a health professional he will know that you have this privilege. Even if he is a bit sniffy about it, he still needs to go along with your decision. He is only a man, after all. You might get a surprise & he may be all for you doing it this way. Do you know anyone else at his practise who has had WLS either with NHS or private? Would your mum go with you for emotional support? My previous doctor before we moved house was SOOO anti surgery that it put me off even broaching the subject with my current doctor for several years, & she is wonderfully supportive but now I feel I have wasted so much time. Carpe diem, hunnie xxx

 

[MrsSmith]

I went private and completely bottled telling my doctor (don't think I've ever actually seen my own doctor anyway).
Told the asthma nurse at the surgery and she just said it must have been a hard decision.
I was given a letter from the hospital after my op to take into my doctor; husband dropped the letter in, that was 3 weeks ago and heard nothing since!
Guess it only becomes an issue if anything goes wrong, but consultant said to ring the hospital if I was ever worried about anything between appointments.

 

[Caren]

Oh Caren, Is there anything you don't worry about??? It is your choice to go private & as a health professional he will know that you have this privilege. Even if he is a bit sniffy about it, he still needs to go along with your decision. He is only a man, after all. You might get a surprise & he may be all for you doing it this way. Do you know anyone else at his practise who has had WLS either with NHS or private? Would your mum go with you for emotional support? My previous doctor before we moved house was SOOO anti surgery that it put me off even broaching the subject with my current doctor for several years, & she is wonderfully supportive but now I feel I have wasted so much time. Carpe diem, hunnie xxx

lol do i come across as worrying? sorryyyyyyyyyy lol I just think of things and ask!! Im so glad you have a supportive gp now x

 

[Caren]

I went private and completely bottled telling my doctor (don't think I've ever actually seen my own doctor anyway).
Told the asthma nurse at the surgery and she just said it must have been a hard decision.
I was given a letter from the hospital after my op to take into my doctor; husband dropped the letter in, that was 3 weeks ago and heard nothing since!
Guess it only becomes an issue if anything goes wrong, but consultant said to ring the hospital if I was ever worried about anything between appointments.

Thanks Mrs Smith I think thats what i'll do if i can, go have the op then give the doc a letter lol im a coward! lol

 

[SARAH S]

Hi guys , as you know I'm going private and fortunately I have a brilliant doctor.

I did ask him last October about surgery but I wasn't very pushy with it and I think he thought I was joking:cry:In hindsight I should have persued it but didn't.

After my intial decision to have surgery I went to him to get the stuff I needed to hear ( as opposed to what the private staff wanted me to hear!!) and he was fab mainly because I knew it was what I wanted and what I was going to do

Although you don't need his referral if you have him on side you can save quite a bit of money by having all your bloods etc done at the surgery...the private hospitals will charge for them. Plus afterwards you'll need B12 injections and his support with other stuff so its worth having a good chat and getting a nice relationship going.

I've heard people say that the NHS doesn't like "clearing up" after private treatments but they have little choice as thats what they are there for, helping in the case of medical need.

My surgery is fully supportive of me and I think would have fought for me if I wanted to get done on the NHS. But like you I don't want to wait 18months -2years

Go get em kid!!

 

[Caren]

Hi guys , as you know I'm going private and fortunately I have a brilliant doctor.

I did ask him last October about surgery but I wasn't very pushy with it and I think he thought I was joking:cry:In hindsight I should have persued it but didn't.

After my intial decision to have surgery I went to him to get the stuff I needed to hear ( as opposed to what the private staff wanted me to hear!!) and he was fab mainly because I knew it was what I wanted and what I was going to do

Although you don't need his referral if you have him on side you can save quite a bit of money by having all your bloods etc done at the surgery...the private hospitals will charge for them. Plus afterwards you'll need B12 injections and his support with other stuff so its worth having a good chat and getting a nice relationship going.

I've heard people say that the NHS doesn't like "clearing up" after private treatments but they have little choice as thats what they are there for, helping in the case of medical need.

My surgery is fully supportive of me and I think would have fought for me if I wanted to get done on the NHS. But like you I don't want to wait 18months -2years

Go get em kid!!

what you say makes total sense sarah, thank you. I guess i'll wait till i have booked it then go and see him, hopefully he will be ok x

 

[minxie]

Hi Caren, I first went to my GP practice and saw a different doc from usual and asked her about possibility of funding. She was a bit sniffy about it, didn't rate my chances and wasn't especially supportive. She did take all my bloods though and they all came back normal!

After deciding to go privately and making that commitment I went to see the doc who I normally see to ask if they would give me the prescriptions etc that I will need forever after - he was soooooo wonderful I could have kissed him! He said he thought it was a brave but brilliant thing to do, that the NHS is short-sighted in not helping more people, or waiting until they are unwell before offering any surgery, and he said he'd be happy to give me any prescriptions necessary. I have to say it made my day and gave me so much confidence about my decision to have a bypass. Your doctor might surprise you

 

[Gaz]

Have to agree with all the above. I was a bit wary about telling my doctor as i thought she'd be against it. Couldnt have been further from the truth, told me she admired me for making the decision and has been nothing but helpful. Got all my bloods done and the Omeprazol prescription for nothing as well

 

[Caren]

Hi Caren, I first went to my GP practice and saw a different doc from usual and asked her about possibility of funding. She was a bit sniffy about it, didn't rate my chances and wasn't especially supportive. She did take all my bloods though and they all came back normal!

After deciding to go privately and making that commitment I went to see the doc who I normally see to ask if they would give me the prescriptions etc that I will need forever after - he was soooooo wonderful I could have kissed him! He said he thought it was a brave but brilliant thing to do, that the NHS is short-sighted in not helping more people, or waiting until they are unwell before offering any surgery, and he said he'd be happy to give me any prescriptions necessary. I have to say it made my day and gave me so much confidence about my decision to have a bypass. Your doctor might surprise you

thats very encouraging minxie thank you maybe im selling him short, he may be wonderful :thankyou:

 

[Tatiana]

I had a chat with my GP about it last month when I went in to see him about something else altogether. He was quite candid and said that usually, when a patient comes to see him about wls, he advises them to get their trainers out and look at other ways to lose weight. However, he said that with my other health issues (arthritis, asthma and back problems) he was aware that exercising isn't that easy for me and knew I'd tried other methods with his support over the last few years so was happy to refer me.

When I go and see him tomorrow about meds for the pre and post-op periods (supplements and liquid preparations) and tell him that I've got my surgery date I know he's going to be pleased and supportive as he has been all the way through my journey!

Tatiana

 

[Josiegirl]

When I asked my doctor about wls I got a horrible reaction. Quite put me off so I changed surgery and am now with a husband and wife team and it is fantastic. However, when I asked about wls with them they said that they didn't think I would qualify etc etc, blah blah. So I went ahead and had a gastric band fitted nearly two years ago and when I went to see her and told her about it she asked me how much it had cost. I told her and she replied that it was very cheap considering it would add another 30 years to my life. She had a big beaming smile when she said it too

Saw her three days ago when I went with my husband and thought I had better mention the bypass so she is prepared and she was thrilled for me. Told me to get my prescriptions for hubby and myself early so I didn't need to stress after the op and was so genuinly thrilled for me as she knew the problems I had been having with the band.

 

[Caren]

When I asked my doctor about wls I got a horrible reaction. Quite put me off so I changed surgery and am now with a husband and wife team and it is fantastic. However, when I asked about wls with them they said that they didn't think I would qualify etc etc, blah blah. So I went ahead and had a gastric band fitted nearly two years ago and when I went to see her and told her about it she asked me how much it had cost. I told her and she replied that it was very cheap considering it would add another 30 years to my life. She had a big beaming smile when she said it too

Saw her three days ago when I went with my husband and thought I had better mention the bypass so she is prepared and she was thrilled for me. Told me to get my prescriptions for hubby and myself early so I didn't need to stress after the op and was so genuinly thrilled for me as she knew the problems I had been having with the band.

wow you are lucky to have such great support, glad its all going great for you x