Weight loss surgery.

[Sammi38]

Hi all,

Has anyone had or soon to have weight loss surgery?

I’m having a gastric sleeve procedure this month, so wondering if there’s anyone in the same boat?

I’ve got 5-6 stone to lose. Getting nervous as op day is fast approaching.

Sounds like you're doing well!

I'm also looking at Ramsay, so its encouraging to hear your positive review.

What was the period of time between your initial consultation and your surgery? Am trying to work out if I can have it done and be recovered before a holiday in Jan x

Hi Little, thank you ,i feel I'm doing ok
there was a 6 week delay between consultation and surgery only because I had a gastric balloon in my stomach which had to be removed and time for my my stomach to settle
FWIW the gastric balloon was a complete waste of time and money for me in case anyone is thinking about it
In fact my surgeon stopped doing them and my dietitian who works with other surgeons say that they are not considered a particularly effective form of WLS any more and only 1 HP does them in my area
So yes he could have done it straight away otherwise, you have to do the Liver shrinking Diet before or to make the Liver smaller for easier access which for me was 2 weeks
I am going back to work next week and feel fully fit and well enough to do so but then I only do 6 hrs a day 3 days a week in a office
HTH

That's amazing @carblover that you feel so good and are able to go back to work so quickly

Glad you’re doing well @Carblover. I also struggled with fluids in the beginning, and the taking little sips, I was terrified if I took a gulp I’d split my new stomach!

I’m now just over 5 weeks post op, have lost in 6 weeks (including the week before my surgery when I did my diet) 2 stone and 4 lbs. pretty chuffed as my bmi is now 31 something.

I’m now on normal food after my 2 weeks of liquids and 2 weeks of purées. It’s going well, I’m trying to make sure I’m getting enough protein in. I do still eat some carbs, maybe a tablespoon of rice here and there with some tender meat and green veg (usually broccoli as I quite like the taste now).

I haven’t had any sickness or pain as I’ve transitioned on to solid foods, and seem to be tolerating everything quite well. Although, I did have an omelette yesterday and it laid very heavily after I’d eaten it, so I don’t think I’ll be having that again, which is crazy, because I can mama get soft boiled eggs and scrambled eggs just fine.

Had all my bloods done on Friday so just waiting for the results of those to come through, which should be the middle of next week sometime.

Good luck all.

*managed, not mama get.

That's brilliant Sammi, you must be so pleased
I'm starting purees today but i have purees then soft then normal and I'm not supposed to do normal till 8th dec, not sure i can hold out that long , different surgeons and dietitians have different lengths of time but the average seems to be 4 to 5 weeks mines is 8 weeks so will probably speed up to normal slightly as I'm not sure there is a huge amount of difference between puree and soft
But I totally agree it's all about the protein ,I'm drinking normally now and looking forward to getting some protein from other sources rather than yoghurt shakes or soup although it's fair to say I'm not hungry
and i dont think about food all the time like i used too (next meal etc)
I bought the bariatric bible which is quite good and joined a couple of forums for support so early days but KOKO

That's fantastic you must be feeling great . It is good to hear how it is afterwards and all the different stages as that is what I'm actually worried about the most rather than the actual surgery ! I'm having my surgery on 11th January so all this I formation has helped me make my decision to go for it ! Thanks for sharing your experiences and tips xx

@Carblover that does seem quite a long time before you get on the good stuff! I know what you mean about the shakes, soups etc... I was craving flavour so badly when I was on liquids and purées, during the purée stage though, I did like to eat a teaspoon of smooth Brussels pate and Philadelphia light with chives, really nice flavour and hit the spot.

Feeling good about it all, actually, considering how few calories I’m on still. I woke up from the op feeling terrified I’d made the wrong decision, but now I can start seeing the results, it’s definitely made me realise it was the right option for me.

Tiny bit of heartburn last night, had a chicken fajita mix thing (no wrap though). Think it was probably a touch too spicy for this stage for me, will try spicy food again in a week or two. I adore spicy foods so would be a shame to never eat it again.

Not sure if I’ve said upthread, but my absolute fave during purée stage was oven baked salmon, broccoli, light cheese triangles and a splash of milk blended together to a reasonably thick consistency.

I went to Wetherspoons with my dad at the weekend, and they do small plates, so I ended up eating 1 halloumi fry and 1 and 1/2 macaroni cheese balls. Definitely felt the restriction kicking in after that.

@donebeingfat good luck for your upcoming op! How are you feeling about it all?

I am grateful for all the information posted as it gives an idea what to expect together with my info I have got from the company I am going with. I don't feel too worried about the procedure as I'm sure they know what they are doing ! It's more how I'm going to deal with it afterwards psychologically as I'm someone who has a very unhealthy relationship with food and the amount I eat

@Sammi38, I'm going onto a soft diet and so far tolerating fish and mash with cheese sauce and i got my first feeling I've eaten too much today as im very full on a small piece of cod and small amount of
mash so now i know i need to leave that last mouthful,
I'm not sorry it's happened because I wanted to know so what it felt like to be honest and at least it's only a full feeling with no dumping symptoms
, I know it's early days but I'm absolutely thrilled with how it's gone so far away today I weighed myself I've lost 2 stone in cluding my my pre diet loss so I don't think that's bad in a month
Only another 3 to go ko ko
@donebeingfat

Good luck with yours and hopefully we will support each other in the coming weeks and months

Jumping on board with you ladies, if that's ok?

I've just reached the weight loss goal I was given to lose but won't be referred until June time 2020 (NHS referral) so I'm just concentrating on losing what I can myself.

I'm not sure if I'll be steered more towards bypass or sleeve but bands aren't offered in my area (I've read very few good things about them anyway and I wouldn't have one) but hopefully this time next year I'll have had my surgery.

Anyone watched the programme on BBC 2 on Monday & Tuesday night "Who are you calling fat " very interesting !!

Hi Poopy ,your very welcome to join us, from what my surgeon told me bands are on the decline and VSG and bypass is the gold standard
I chose VSG as i wanted to reduce risks of malabsortion although im on shed loads of supplements
He told me VSG was suitable as i didn't have reflux otherwise bypass was the better option
I have no regrets ,so far so good

@Carblover I know what you mean, it’s good to feel that restriction to know your limits. I had a small wrap with cheese and ham, but ate it too fast, and had the worst crushing type pain in my chest. Well done on your weight loss that’s brilliant!

Welcome @pooopypants. Good luck with your journey. I’m not surprised the band isn’t an option, it has a high failure rate and complications such as slippage and erosion are on the increase. I personally chose a sleeve over a bypass, as I don’t have a sweet tooth, my issue is volume and dense foods, which the sleeve helps control. I also don’t suffer with reflux. Bypass is still the gold standard for bariatric surgery, although when comparing statistics 1 year post op, the percentage of weight lost was pretty much the same between bypass and sleeve patients. Also as pointed out above, bypass puts you at risk of malabsorption, which you don’t get with the sleeve.

@donebeingfat yes I saw that, the woman referring to the bloke who had a gastric sleeve as a ‘stomach amputee’ made my blood boil.

@sammi38 I know she was so annoying and rude and patronising to anyone who didn't agree with her !
@pooopypants It's great lots of peop!e using this to support each other and share experiences as it's not an easy decision. I am going abroad to have my op as not available to me on NHS and I have decided to have gastric sleeve.
@Carblover what supplements do you have to take and do you have to pay for them or will you be able to get on prescription ? Fantastic weight loss, well done !! I can't wait !!
@LittleScottish Are you any further forward with finding a surgeon ?

Whereabouts are you going for your op donebeingfat? I went abroad for mine. Best decision I ever made, I didn’t qualify for nhs, and private was 11k where I am.

I'm going to KCM clinic in Poland for mine and I was quoted 10k here and it's 5490 euros plus my flight which was under £60 return so it's a huge difference ! Could have had it done sooner than January but using holidays for time I'm away for op as don't want to tell my work I'm having it done and hoping will be able to go back to work quite quickly and if I can't will need to say I've got cold/flu lol !

That flight price is a bargain. Have you joined a Facebook group for your hospital? All the international ones tend to have a support group for their patients/clients.

I was quite lucky in the fact I work from home, so I didn’t have to deal with intrusive questions.

On a slightly fouler note, I think I’ve caught norovirus from my toddler, and it isn’t good when you’re sleeved.

@sammi38 they did send me a link to Facebook page but couldn't access it so will need to contact them about it, just not got round to it yet !
Oh no poor you ! Is there problems with the toilet when you had gastric sleeve ? Hope that's not too personal but not read anything about that ? I have ordered the bariatric bible so should get lots of info in that.

I’ve not had any toilet issues at all, bar a little constipation in the early days, but drinking an aptamil a day kept it moving. No, not to personal at all, some people do get a bit of diorheaa while their body gets used to the liquids, such as your protein shakes etc...

The bug is making me feel sick and it just feels strange, as I can’t eat or really drink anything, so it’s made me super tired, and although I’m 6 weeks out I think the retching can still make my new stomach sore and tender.

I had a by-pass last Tuesday at the Clementine Churchill in Harrow. My health insurance covered 75% so I paid £2800, I looked into the NHS route, but couldn't face the drawn out process and group therapy!

I'm doing really well, feel much better than I thought I would the only issues are drinking enough water and getting enough protein.

I've been told it's a month on purées, then a month on soft food before trying real food.

I haven't felt hungry at all, or over full, but have been strictly sticking to 120ml maximum at each meal. I'm supposed to have 3 meals and 2-3 snacks, but am not really doing the snacks. Right now eating just feels like an interruption to my day, I'm doing it to stop my hair falling out, but I'm not fussed about it. Not sure if I will feel the same once I can eat proper food.

I weighed myself today and including the pre surgery diet I have lost 20kg which is pretty cool.

@ Magenta82. Hi and welcome to the group sounds like you're doing really well and that's a fantastic result already I love that this group gives so much that encourages and helps each other. I look forward to the posts to see how everyone is doing and can't wait until it's my turn !!

Sorry for my typo, it is 10kg not 20! 20 would be amazing but probably impossible in 3 weeks!! I'm still massively pleased with the results.
Feeling good, have managed 9500 steps today and I've been out of hospital less than a week!

Hi Magenta welcome and congratulations
I'm a month post VSG and my plan is 2 weeks fluids then 3 weeks puree(am starting 3 week today) then 3 weeks soft before solid food 8/12/19 (and i can't wait for that day)

To be fair I'm probably more soft than puree and have had no issues so far.....

But like all of us i have read and researched the post op diets and do feel even in the UK the diet varies massively in the length of time at each stage
Can I ask how long you were on fluids,? as i was made to feel my staples would be put under pressure if went too quickly
But i do feel its a marathon not a sprint and each day gets easier in getting all the supplements, fluids,meals and protein in , i must be getting better it certainly needed a lot of thought and organisation of my brain

Hi Sammi
I hope your fully recovered now and your back on track