Wellness

[sidsmom]

You might try out your local chapter of Overeaters Anonymous.

[151949]

On 9/20/2014 sidsmom said:

You might try out your local chapter of Overeaters Anonymous.

Not available in my small town - not even a WW. I was hoping someone had tried therapy for this and had some success.

[haddon9]

If your insurance covers visits for seeing a therapist why would the reason you are going matter? If you feel like you are stuck with this problem and need professional help I think it's a good idea to see why a possible emotional problem could be blocking your success.

I tried to do the same thing several years ago to see why I was just not being successful with weight loss but it was more of an exercise in frustration and I didn't get any answers. At the time the way our insurance was set up if I wanted to see a counselor I could only ask for one by gender and location not specialty or years of experience.

I had to go through the insurance co who in turn gave me contact information regarding getting an appointment with a therapist. They in turn told me who they would make an appointment for me to see but I could not make the appointment myself and talk to the therapist! I told them I wanted to see someone as soon as possible. (Once I made up my mind to do this I really wanted to get things going!)...Yet when I mentioned this I was told that I should go to the emergency room if I felt that I needed to speak to someone right away!!....how frustrating this was!

So after playing a bit of phone tag I finally got an appointment with someone. She was very young and specialized helping young children. I sat in a room surrounded with toys which I found distracting and the only ""help"" she could give me was to make weight watchers type of suggestions! I KNOW what to do....I just wanted someone to help me to figure out WHY I wasn't doing it!...what was stopping me?

I'm a bit better now with my weight and try to eat really well now but still find it very hard. I would try seeing someone again if I felt that I could find just the right therapist who understands that overeating can be very complex and it would be helpful for the patient to understand what is blocking him or her.

[Colonel Meow]

In response to the question about insurance coverage: a co-worker of mine recently tried to get her insurance to cover therapy to address her depression due to the recent loss of her mother. They would only cover 4 sessions over a 6 month period of time, and she and her PCP really had to fight for even that much.

[glmama]

I think a therapist that specializes in weight issues/body image would be most helpful. However, I don't think that this would be covered by insurance. I would call your insurance # and see what outpatient mental health services are covered. You could get lucky. Also, I would highly recommend a nutritionist. They often ARE covered by insurance. And often work in tandem in a group setting with an MD and even, in some cases, a therapist.

[Nuttmeg]

On 9/20/2014 Colonel Meow said:

In response to the question about insurance coverage: a co-worker of mine recently tried to get her insurance to cover therapy to address her depression due to the recent loss of her mother. They would only cover 4 sessions over a 6 month period of time, and she and her PCP really had to fight for even that much.

This is a very sad situation. I do hope you co-worker can get the care that is needed.

[151949]

On 9/20/2014 haddon9 said:

I'm a bit better now with my weight and try to eat really well now but still find it very hard. I would try seeing someone again if I felt that I could find just the right therapist who understands that overeating can be very complex and it would be helpful for the patient to understand what is blocking him or her.

I agree with you , I think, like most issues such as this , it is not a simple thing and is somehow related to a loss in your life. I don't think an individual can deal with it until they understand it - which is what I am seeking to do.

[violann]

Thanks to you, caf in va- excellent post just loaded with useful information!

[caf in va]

On 9/20/2014 violann said: Thanks to you, caf in va- excellent post just loaded with useful information!

Glad I could help. It really involved a lot of thought about me not being able to control many issues in my life, and learning that I was inflicting on on myself and that was probably the turning point. I wish I had figured it out when my children were younger, but I am grateful I did. This isn't a fast process and being willing to admit you are doing this to yourself and no one is making you overeat is hard.

[adelle38]

In my experience, the only thing insurance covers for weight loss is diabetes counseling and that is restricted to a few visits. Since a therapist has to submit diagnostic codes, I doubt your insurance will cover it. Perhaps you could contact WW, TOPS or OE about starting a group in your area. Surely there are others in the same boat. You could do WW online but if motivation is the issue that might not work. Perhaps you could suggest another class to the Y?