No disrespect to people who have had weight loss surgery but..

[weemissnaughty]

Hey sorry to jump in lol but ive had a similar experience, i used to work in greggs and a few of us were on weight watchers (i lost 2stone while working there lol i suppose i just got sick of cake!) anyway, there was this one woman who was large but not huge, size 22 at most, she never attempted to join with us when we were having a cuppa and ww biscuit she would have a cream cake etc, each to their own BUT ithen found out that she had went abroad and got a gastric band, which she then burst due to ivereating. Again, each to their own, its her money.... Then she was granted an nhs gastric band if she lost a stone on her own which she did, i cant help but thinking since she managed that much couldnt she just have kept going?? As she wasnt huge to start with and perfectly healthy for excersise, i dont work there but now occasionally pop in for a wee weigh in day cupcake and she lost weight for a bit and has since put ut back on, its the fact that the nhs funded it that got me, especially as i have a friend who has lost 15srone and has a lot of excess skin but has just been refused for getting the excess skin removed, he did it himself over years of hard work and is genuinly gutted.

 

[faery_lights]

The problem with the surgery is that surgery needs to be accompanied with fully dietary and psychological support. The surgery fixes your body, yes, but it doesn't fix your mind or address the many issues that people have with food. I think the services provided to people should be more comprehensive so that those who have surgery, have a greater chance of success.

 

[Toria 1]

I'm alarmed (!) by the statement a size 14 is too big for most!
I am 5ft 10 and a 14 looks fab on me (when I get back there)
My friend is 5ft 3 and a 14 and she does not look fat at all.

A healthy weight is more important than trying to be a size 10

 

[cat yoyo greaves]

I'm alarmed (!) by the statement a size 14 is too big for most!
I am 5ft 10 and a 14 looks fab on me (when I get back there)
My friend is 5ft 3 and a 14 and she does not look fat at all.

A healthy weight is more important than trying to be a size 10

Definately im now a 12-14 and wouldnt say im fat just at the top end of where i want to be weight wise some look fab as a size 14 some dont it all depends on each individual

 

[mantha16]

I'm actually a little bit annoyed tht people are claiming not to be judgemental then making judgemental statements so I thought I'd jump in and add my story and let you judge me lol

I had a gastric band on the NHS in 2006 I lost bout 3 stone then I started university and I was too ashamed to tell my new friends why I couldn't drink nd eat like the rest of them so I just did which obv lead to putting on weight and stretching the band so essentially it failed on me. plus i never addressed my complicated relationship with food. I don't feel bad about the cost to the nhs becuse i pay my national insurance same as everyone else im also a smoker so i pay crap loads in taxes and im a citizen, i do feel bad tht I went through all the pain etc to blow it cos of my own stupid fault. if someone gets drunk and injures themselves lets deny them treatment if someone is doing diy and injures themselves lets deny them treatment i mean they are self inflicted too right??

the problem with bariatic surgery generally is that they address the results not the cause of obesity it should be done alongside comprehensive psychological support too.

as for how the system treats the elderley I used to work for the office of the public guardian and I cn tell you stories that would make you weep about how family members treat the elderly and how they fight over the wills etc of someone who has dementia nd isnt even dead yet so lets just say how the elderly are treated full stop sucks.

People should also remember the purpose of the nhs - free treatment for all not free treatment for everyone except this person or that person

and yes its my fault i blew the band but if i explained some of the reasons for my relationship with food then maybe you would realise its not as simple as just saying I wasted the opportunity. I'm not going to but let me say this compulsive overeating is just as much of a problem as anorexia or bulimia but there is way less support so for me I thought tht surgery was my only option and I ws desparate so please don't judge people who make tht decision nd then blow its as its rarely black and white food is about the only addiction you cannot beat by cutting the addiction out of your life so unlike drugs alcohol sex gambling whatever you still have to eat which mkes it much more complex

I wasnt even gonna tell anyone here id had surgery but I thought maybe sharing my perspective might help

 

[mantha16]

also 1 in 50 people die from gastric bypass either during surgery or from complications and 1 in 200 for gastric bands so its actually a very high risk surgery so we are prepared to risk out lives for what we think we will save them to find out it doesnt is heartbreaking I could also tell you about the issues having had the band still cause me today but its kinda not pleasant lol

 

[faery_lights]

I'm actually a little bit annoyed tht people are claiming not to be judgemental then making judgemental statements so I thought I'd jump in and add my story and let you judge me lol

I had a gastric band on the NHS in 2006 I lost bout 3 stone then I started university and I was too ashamed to tell my new friends why I couldn't drink nd eat like the rest of them so I just did which obv lead to putting on weight and stretching the band so essentially it failed on me. plus i never addressed my complicated relationship with food. I don't feel bad about the cost to the nhs becuse i pay my national insurance same as everyone else im also a smoker so i pay crap loads in taxes and im a citizen, i do feel bad tht I went through all the pain etc to blow it cos of my own stupid fault. if someone gets drunk and injures themselves lets deny them treatment if someone is doing diy and injures themselves lets deny them treatment i mean they are self inflicted too right??

the problem with bariatic surgery generally is that they address the results not the cause of obesity it should be done alongside comprehensive psychological support too.

as for how the system treats the elderley I used to work for the office of the public guardian and I cn tell you stories that would make you weep about how family members treat the elderly and how they fight over the wills etc of someone who has dementia nd isnt even dead yet so lets just say how the elderly are treated full stop sucks.

People should also remember the purpose of the nhs - free treatment for all not free treatment for everyone except this person or that person

and yes its my fault i blew the band but if i explained some of the reasons for my relationship with food then maybe you would realise its not as simple as just saying I wasted the opportunity. I'm not going to but let me say this compulsive overeating is just as much of a problem as anorexia or bulimia but there is way less support so for me I thought tht surgery was my only option and I ws desparate so please don't judge people who make tht decision nd then blow its as its rarely black and white food is about the only addiction you cannot beat by cutting the addiction out of your life so unlike drugs alcohol sex gambling whatever you still have to eat which mkes it much more complex

I wasnt even gonna tell anyone here id had surgery but I thought maybe sharing my perspective might help

Thank you for sharing you experience!

I agree with you whole-heartedly! People act like the operation should fix your whole attitude to food and it doesn't and you are totally right about food addiction- I've never thought about it like that before!

More than anything, getting your head in the right place to lose weight is the most important thing. Regardless of whether or not you are having surgery or doing it the traditional way, nothing will work until you are in a good enough place in your life to tackle your food issues.

 

[mantha16]

which FL I think I am now i still have a lot of issues with food but I think im much more determined. and I am determined that Im not gonna enter my 40s in 3.5 years as morbidly obese

 

[frenchfancy]

I thought I should share my experience with you. I tried every diet under the sun and never manaaged to lose weight and keep it off. I did Lighterlife with the CBT and then transfered to Cambridge diet as it was cheaper. I soon found a slimmer fitter happier me and lost over 5 stone in total. I was a Cambridge diet slimmer of the year finalist and went on to become a cambridge diet counsellor and pretty much maintained most of my weight loss for 5 years. I then emigrated and so had to give cambridge counselling up as it was not transferable and at that time even the product was unavailable in france. I knew what I should have been doing to maintain my weight; I was happy with the move but over 2 years all of my weight returned. Without the constraints and motivation of supporting other cd users I reverted to my old ways.

It is all well and good whilst on CD to say you have changed your eating habits and see food as the enemy/devil. But please be aware that the feeling wains over time. Once your weight loss becomes "old news" and people stop telling you "how fabulous you look" it can be so easy to slip back into old ways. I know; here I am 6 years down the line with just as much weight to lose. This time I am going to do it differently. I have started doing rosemary conley exercise dvds at home and following her diet. I have also started 2 zumba followed by yoga classes a week and am planning to lose this weight more slowly and change my eating habits from day 1.

On the topic of weight loss surgery it has been said before the hard work still has to be done, eating the right foods and exercising and anyone who feels they want to follow this route should be applauded that they are trying to do something about their weight. No matter what method people choose I feel they should not be judged. We all need help and support to lose and maintain our losses and picked back up when we stumble; we all have bad days no matter what we are doing. So please let people be free to make their own choices and be supported in their weight loss journeys.

To the original poster I would wish you well on the rest of your cambridge journey

 

[Miss_J]

I don't care who has surgery. or what diet you follow. As long as you don't harm yourself or others then it's no business of mine how you go about battling the bulge.

I do however currently object to NHS funded weight loss or cosmetic (following weight loss) surgery. That's purely down to me believing that NOBODY should get a free tummy tuck etc until we are properly caring for every single elderly or seriously ill patient we have. When there is money to spare for these surgeries then I have no issue as I firmly believe in live and let live. But presently I don't believe it's morally right to spend that kind of budget on it while dementia patients are dying of dehydration for want of nurse to hold a cup. Normally I wouldn't begrudge anyone something that will change their lives but I've recently been forced to see how dire the situation is in our dementia wards firsthand and do you know what? I treat my dog better than the NHS treats the elderly.

Well bloody said!!!

I personally would love a gastric band on NHS or a tummy tuck or whatever i can get to help me along with my weightloss. Anything to get me to my target quicker.

I agree whole heartedly with the above comment there are far more pressing problems than obesity in my opinion, everyone knows the state of the NHS right now and they should be fixing those first.

But to anyone who is lucky enough to have the opportunity to have weightloss surgery good luck too them and i just hope that they use it to their advantage as there is so many people out their who need help with this.

 

[lisajade]

also 1 in 50 people die from gastric bypass either during surgery or from complications and 1 in 200 for gastric bands so its actually a very high risk surgery so we are prepared to risk out lives for what we think we will save them to find out it doesnt is heartbreaking I could also tell you about the issues having had the band still cause me today but its kinda not pleasant lol

Your story is fairly similar to mine. I had a gastric band and lost 9 stone. I ate as I did before, binging and vomiting constantly. I had learnet absolutely nothing. After years of this self-abuse, I suddenly could eat nothing - my stomach had started to reject the band and grow a tumour-like growth around my stomack and the band Anyway, I had it removed, and can never have another one. I then gained back 7 of the stones I had lost. I still have some problems with my swallowing and reflux. Totally idiotic, but thats what happened. I have now realised that I need to LEARN how to eat properly, and make it a habit through sheer repetition. I am actually glad now to be without the restriction of the band, it feels good to eat normally again, and it feels good that I have now managed to lose over 2 stone on my own

 

[suzie290304]

I was lucky enough to be giving a gastric sleeve on the nhs and honestly the best thing I have ever done and feel so grateful to the nhs to give me a tool to help me tackle obesity hopefully forever I went from 19.6 to 15.3 from referral to op day dieting by myself to show commitment, this is normally where I get stuck and now with the help of my sleeve in 11.1 and still going down. For me it was the fact I was always hungry and it took a lot to fill me which now it doesn't. Their is a failure rate with all surgery options and I think it depends if your honest at assessment about you eating habits as if you have a sweet tooth a band would never work as it only restricts you intake where a sleeve and bypass control what you put into your mouth and how much. Also with a band the aftercare is crucial as it's the fills that control how much you eat which can take a year to get and you will always need yearly fills just to top you up other wise the restriction goes. I think which ever route people take as long as it works for them then great I'm just so grateful that I got given the option to live my life again not revolved around food. I also wish that all forms of dieting could be provided free of charge through the doctors as some can be quite expensive like Lighter life as some people who could do quite well on these diets can't do them due to cost x

 

[FunnyFarm]

The NHS don't give out weight loss surgery to help people look pretty. How much does it cost to replace hips and knees? Treat diabetes? Heart disease? All of the other problems that stem from being overweight?

Is the issue that it isn't life threatening (even though it is), because if so, let's stop treating deafness or arthritis.

Perhaps it's because surgery has an impact on people's well being and that's frivolous? Best start withholding treatment for mental health problems too.

Maybe the reason people object is because overweight people did it themselves. No more NHS support for alcoholics or substance misusers then.

The notion that fat people are sub human is endemic in our culture, even amongst other people who have struggled with weight. We're always being told this.

Food issues are very real. The fact people put themselves through surgery is a sign of desperation, whatever they say.

Incidentally, my friend had a gastric bypass a few years ago. She looks amazing now, and it's changed her life in so many ways. I'm very happy for her. She went private, but she's saved the NHS more than the op would've cost them in the long term.

 

[FunnyFarm]

Shorter version of the previous post:

If you oppose NHS funded obesity treatment, then I hope you feel the same way about anorexia treatment.

 

[1978Emma]

I think the reason I would personally never go for weight loss surgery was that I always knew it wouldn't work for me long term as I have a diagnosed binge eating disorder, I have mega issues with using food to deal with my emotions, an operation wouldn't fix that!. I have always had starvation and binge tendencies and the only way to deal with that in my opinion if you want long term recovery is through working on your mind set and your relationship with food and your emotions. I am undergoing intensive dialectical behaviour therapy for people with serious eating disorders, there are binge eaters, compulsive eaters, people with anorexia and bulimia in the group I attend, we all have one group session together each week and one individual therapy session each week as well, its tough going but I have never seen so many changes in myself in years. I am changing my whole relationship with food and am learning new ways of coping with the painful emotions that I used to push down with food inc facing up to traumas that led to my weight gain in the first place. I get this help free through an eating disorder charity, you have to go through a thorough assessment to get this help of course but I would much rather see this help being made more widely available than say weight loss surgery as I personally think dealing with the issues that caused the weight gain in the first place and learning new ways of coping without turning to food and creating new healthier habits is the way to go. I am not saying surgery should never be considered but I would rather see people given this sort of help first before surgery is even brought up as a possible solution. I have never managed to lose weight long term, never managed to give up my daily binges, have had binges since I was aged 8 and I'm now 34 and for the first time in years thanks to the hard work I am doing in therapy I am not having any binges, it feels like a miracle in itself. What I find amazing is in the group sessions I have become aware of just how similar the way I think is to that of someone with anorexia or bulimia, to look at us, we look like polar opposites yet mentally we fundamentally are very similar. Em

 

[Lynn8124]

i'm glad to see a couple of people being honest about their food issues. I identify as a compulsive overeater and enjoyed reading emma's post. I feel something similar could be of help to me but unfortunately in NI there's nothing available. and what is available is focussed on anorexia/bulimia.:sigh:

I'd thought about wls for years and finally had a date for surgery this year. I was turned down because i couldnt stick with the preop diet longer than six days. i have accepted it's not my solution and as i quite often say myself it wouldnt fix my mind anyhow.

 

[1978Emma]

Lynn you have done so well on your weight loss so far, thats amazing!

I totally feel for you though Lynn as sadly as soon as anyone thinks of eating disorders they think of anorexia or bulimia and so you tend to find tv programmes focus on those and the services in each area mainly focus on those and in truth there are four main ones often need help inc binge eating disorder and compulsive eating disorder as well but sadly so many health professionals look upon them as not being as serious or that its self inflicted when really the person with the binge or compulsive eating disorders has no more chosen to be that way than a person with anorexia or bulimia, they are all serious mental health conditions often brought about by various underlying issues. I realised for the first time in therapy just how connected my binge eating was to things like abuse I suffered etc and just how for years it had provided me with a protective body shield almost, the extra weight enabled me to keep people at arms length so to speak. I guess thats why I am not a huge fan of say weight loss surgery before say trying other options purely because I think many very overweight people have "issues" with the use of food to deal with the emotions to varying degrees and I think it would be so beneficial if the type of therapy I am going through was made more widely available to help people face up to what they are trying to hide from by using food, why did they develop their relationship with food? learning new ways of coping etc, its so crucial I believe to not only losing the weight but self acceptance and increasing the chances of being able to keep any weight loss off. Em x

 

[Lynn8124]

Yeah. So true. I have been trying to figure out how my problem started and to be honest it's so long ago I am not 100% sure. Started gaining weight at five years old and having a dad who thinks food=love didnt help lol. it's a work in progress though. I am glad you have found a councillor you can speak to and is helping you and I wish you well with everything. :hug99:

 

[1978Emma]

thanks Lynn, it seems many of us who battle with our weight come from families who tend to use food as a comfort to varying degrees, my family have always used food not in a binge way like me but always as a major comfort, you are upset you eat, you are angry you eat, you are happy well lets eat to celebrate ha ha its no wonder so many of us use food as an emotional crutch in life. I really hope you get the help you want, it doesn't help at the moment with all the service cuts as well, what little is available is now being cut, makes me see red! Em xx

 

[cat yoyo greaves]

Shorter version of the previous post:

If you oppose NHS funded obesity treatment, then I hope you feel the same way about anorexia treatment.

i was watching super size v superskinny the other night and there is a lot of help and support out there for ppl suffering from eating disorders. what alot fail to realise is alot of overweight peoples weight problems stem from food issues just like a person with bulemia or anorexia and there is no support for them the problem i have with weightloss surgery is people dont seem to be getting the support after surgery to overcome the food issues that got them to the size they were at before surgery and some actually end up reverting back to old ways and putting weight back on because of the lack of councelling and support.
propper councelling to help people overcome their overeating habits would be a fantastic step i think