Any Advice Welcome :)

[vavavoom1983 0]

hi all,

I live in the isle of man (in the UK). Unfortuntely we do not have another medical support here to have the sleeve completed here and I have reviewed some sites and decided to go for the WLS group sleeve in Belguim. Im quite nervous and luckily have just come into enough money for the surgery but dont have a date of when i can get the op done (hopefully early in the new year!!).

Sooooo to get to the point I will welcome any advise - im mostly scared of lose skin after the op is it really bad? ive managed to lose 4 stone by diet and excerise recently so im not afraid of hard work but would be interested to know your experiences good and bad!!!

also someone mentioned dumping?? - whats that!!!

and

others have mentioned lack of results and restretching of the stomach???

after the op do you have low energy or is the food enough to excerise on etc??

any side affects ie wind etc or headaches and sickness!

sorry for all the questions and i appeciate your help!

Vicki xxxx

[Rev Me Up! 75]

HI Vicki-

A lot of the answers depend on your situation.

Skin: you didn;t metion how much weight you need to lose. The more weight, the more likelihood of sagging skin. I did not have as much to lose as others, but my skiin sags from my pregnancy 7 years ago. I was obese and pregnant and my stomach and boobs are the worst sagging areas. I am not too upset about it, but I wil never be able to wear a bikini, no matter how small I get.

Dumping: a reaction your body has to too much sugar. Generally, you don't have that problem with the sleeve because your intestines and everything are intact. This is a gastric bypass issue, I believe. That does not mean you won't have weird reactions to food for a while. I still can't eat ice cream, but that's OK with me. I eat other sweet things with no problems.

Lack of results: Hasn't been a problem for me, but there are some active threads out there about it. You have to try and keep perspective with your weight loss. There will be times when you are not losing (stalls) but they always pass. Keep your mind focused toward the long term result and don't get too addicted to your scale.

Energy: I had terrible energy problems, but I also didn't do Protein drinks or anything like that. Most people report having a great amount of energy after the surgery. Most important to stay hydrated and do everything you can to stick to your doctors plan 100%

side affects: right after surgery there are all sorts of weird sensations. I felt like I had morning sickness all day long. Nothing sounded good to eat, everything smelled weird. It was a real challenge to get in any Protein. But, my experience is different from others.

Good luck!

[coops 1,790]

Hiya Vicki...

welcome to the board, I am a Uk sleever, Wales! There are a few Brits on here flying the flag...lol! I am 17mths out now and not quite at goal... I will get there though, I am sure of that. I didn't pay over 8k not to...lol

I think everyone's journey is very different. There is a wealth of information on here... try to go through the older posts as I am sure that a lot of your questions will be answered there.

I'll try to answer some of your questions, but I am no means an expert!

So, dumping... this is not so common with the sleeve, but can occasionally happen. It is when you feel 'weird' after eating certain foods, generally, like Rev me up said sugar.

As far as lack of results go, again that is very individual and very subjective. What one might perceive as a successs another might perceive as a failure! I feel that this is the best thing that I have ever done. I have never, and I really do mean NEVER been able to lose more that 7lbs before. I have lost over 70lbs now and I feel like a different person. I also don't think the sleeve will ever stretch to a normal size. However, in saying that I can certainly eat more now than I could this time last year, but I still have good restriction. An example would be... this time last year, I couldn't eat two piecese of wholemeal toast. Now, I can, just about... and I am very full!

With regards to energy, post op I was really tired... I cat napped on and off for at least two weeks .. it did get better though. I found that when I started to exercise, in the early days it was walking and the wii fit, I felt energised and I feel that helped my energy levels. I started this at around 6 weeks post op. Now I LOVE exercise... and I mean love it. I used to enjoy all sorts of sports in my youth and as I got fatter I just couldn't face them; squash, swimming, hockey, the gym, badminton... all sorts! Now I go boxing twice a week and use the treadmill in work once a week... no problem. I want to start swimming again in the new year... this is more of a mental block though ie being seen in public with my costume on! I am working on it!

I don't want to sound like I am repeating myself, but again, the side effects are very different from person to person. I didn't have a real issue with acid or gas, just minor... nothing a Renni wouldn't sort out. I used to suffer from headaches on a regular basis and Migraines would put me out of action for days.. these are rare now. I haven't had a Migraine since Feb and that was caused by HRT patches! As far as sickness goes... that is a different matter for me. I have been quite poorly since my sleeve; I was in hospital with pneumonia, I am peri menopausal (early menopause as I was 39 when it all started!), I've had bronchitis and I recently had problems with my back/groin that put me out of action for many weeks. Now, I am not sure that this is related to the sleeve? I probably would have had these issues, if not worse/more if I had stayed at 17stone!

Lastly, loose skin! Ahhhh, I can't lie to you here... I have a lot on my belly and upper arms. I am ok in the face/throat at the moment and not too bad on my thighs. The girls are virtually non exsisitant!! However, in clothes it is all covered and looking better daily! I would have a Tummy Tuck and an uplift tomorrow if I could afford it!

Well, I hope that helps!! Shout if I can help ... =]

[cludgie 81]

Hi Vicki,

Sorry to jump into your thread, but I'm a UK sleever too, and I went to belgium for mine last January (Dr Toone Sonnevill with SOS), the others have answered your questions, but feel free to shout me if you want to chat through the Belgian experience, or ask anything else - I was more than happy, and still am.

Goos luck xx

[vavavoom1983 0]

Hi Vicki,

Sorry to jump into your thread, but I'm a UK sleever too, and I went to belgium for mine last January (Dr Toone Sonnevill with SOS), the others have answered your questions, but feel free to shout me if you want to chat through the Belgian experience, or ask anything else - I was more than happy, and still am.

Goos luck xx

cludgie

will defo be keen to chat more about this with you SOS - not heard of them? what is it short for! - by the way loving the pics such a dramatic loss well done! - and how random we share the same birthday......!

thanks

x

[cludgie 81]

Hiya,

More than happy to share advice/experiences - sos is surgical obesity solutions.

link to their site is; http://www.obesity-solutions.co.uk/ I was particularly swayed buy the fact that vanessa feltz used them and her uncle is a surgeon, who apparently recommended them to her!

I'll always go with a recommendation any surgeon would make to a family member.

Good luck xx