I am writing this blog one week post op today! This first week has gone by so fast! I have had lots of messages asking me about how I chose what surgery to have, where I went and the big important question as to why. I thought I could use this blog to answer some of those questions…
Probably the biggest question that needs answering is why? For my whole life I have always battled with my weight. I always felt massive in comparison to friends at school and my three siblings. I often felt like I wasn’t the same as my family as they didn’t struggle the same way I did, even though we were brought up in the same environment. I was horrendously bullied my whole way through school and later in life I was in an emotionally abusive relationship where I was constantly told that no one would ever love me because of my body. Whenever I contemplated having weight loss surgery, I was against it as I didn’t want to lose the emotional relationship I have with food and strongly believed I could do it on my own with diet and exercise. Over the last 10 years I have done several diets and achieved good results, however after 6 months my willpower would dwindle, and I would consequently gain the weight back plus more.
In addition to this, my dad and sister have diabetes, my mum had a DVT (blood clot) last year and my nan has high cholesterol and high blood pressure. One of my biggest concerns is I will develop one or many of these conditions if I don’t sort my weight out. The biggest and most important reason as to why I have chosen to have a gastric sleeve relates entirely to wanting to start a family and to improve my self- image and self- worth. I am currently going through the process of being diagnosed with polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS) which can make it more difficult to conceive however symptoms can be improved by losing weight. From a mental health perspective, I am hoping this surgery will change my life. I have battled with anxiety and depression for many years and one of my aims is to love my body and love who I am as a person (something I have never been able to do). After being on anti-depressants for the last 6 years I would love to be able to cope without taking them and see myself how others see me.
Once I had made the decision to investigate surgery, I started researching the various options that are available: the gastric band, gastric sleeve and gastric bypass. The gastric band reduces the size of the stomach using an adjustable silicone band around the upper part of the stomach which means you can only eat small meals. It must be regularly tightened, and weight loss tends to be slower. The gastric sleeve involves removing 70-80% of the stomach and then reshaping the remaining stomach into a tube so you can only eat small meals. Finally, the gastric bypass works by making the stomach smaller and by bypassing part of the digestive system. This means you can only eat small meals and less food is absorbed by the body. I used the NHS website and spoke to two people who have had surgery themselves and decided the sleeve was the better option for me. I was concerned about the slow weight loss associated with the band alongside the common complication of it slipping and having to have further surgery. The gastric bypass worried me as malnutrition issues are more common and I didn’t like the idea of my digestive system being altered. The choice of surgery is very much an individual choice, and I would encourage anyone considering surgery to fully research the different types before making any decisions.
Once my decision was made to have a gastric sleeve, I started researching where I could go. My first instinct was to enquire about having it on the NHS. However, when I investigated it further it was unclear whether I would qualify for it as I have no health conditions associated with a high BMI and if I did qualify, I could be waiting for up to 3 years. The thought of waiting so long for the surgery terrified me as I was worried, I would drop out and change my mind. I therefore started looking into the options of going privately in the UK or going abroad to turkey or Egypt. Initially when I saw the prices in the UK (anywhere between £8500-12,000) I thought there is no way I can afford that, so I contacted a surgeon in Egypt who would charge me £4000 plus flights. The more I investigated it the more anxious I was about going abroad for surgery. I have only ever flown once in my lifetime and that was in June of this year so the prospect of flying out for major surgery terrified me. Also, I was scared a complication would happen and I wouldn’t be able to come home. I know 2 people who have had surgery abroad and both have had brilliant experiences. I am not trying to discourage anyone who does decide to go abroad as it’s a personal decision, it just wasn’t the right one for me.
I ended up talking to my own mum and Jacks mum about my plans to have surgery. They were both shocked initially but wanted to support me in any way they could. They mutually agreed going abroad wasn’t an option for me and started researching private healthcare in the UK. I settled on going with Ramsey Healthcare who had a hospital close to me and had one of the lowest prices of £8500 which can be paid over 5 years with a payment plan. My surgeon was going to be Mr. Agrawal who has a bariatric surgeon of excellence award and was the first surgeon to be awarded with this in the UK. After researching Mr Agrawal, myself I felt like he was best man for the job (ha-ha). The next step of the process was to book a consultation with him and see if could be approved for surgery. One bit of advice about surgeons is to research them and look for patient reviews and experiences. It really does guide your decision as you want someone who knows what they are doing to operate on you.
I apologise that this has been such a long blog and appreciate anyone who has taken the time to read it all! I have planned out the next few blogs and will be talking about the consultations I had with Mr Agrawal, the dietician and phycologist and about preparing for surgery. Please let me know if you have any questions or queries! Thanks again for reading!
Heather AKA The Sleeved Midwife
