Paying to save my own life.

[Barry Atricks]

Good afternoon wonderful world of PH.

As is the trend with such topics, I am posting under an all new username. I am a regular PH'er but woul like to remain anonymous for the time being.

I have decided that I will soon undergo surgery to 'Save myself from myself'

The surgery I will be having is to have a Gastric Band fitted.

I have thought long and hard about it, it's not an easy decision to willingly go under the knife, but I have resolved it's my way forward.

I'm nearing 30 years old, 6ft in height and currently weigh in at just over 23 stone I'm roughly 10 stone over the weight I should be. With a gastric band I am predicted to lose 60-75% of this excess weight in 24 months. I'm a victim of my own self and I'm not afraid to admit it.

Lots of people who are overweight will blame other factors, I don't. I eat too much, I have an emotional attachment to food, When I'm happy I eat lots, when I'm upset I eat more. I don't have the will power to stop myself.

Because I am so overweight, I find it hard to excersise, I find it hard to walk more than half a mile and if I manage to go for a bike ride, I feel it in my shins for a week.

I have sought medical advice, and the only advice I've been given is to 'eat better and excercise', which although solid advice for 99% of people is no good to me.

As such, I am booked in for a gastric bad to be fitted. I am paying for it myself as I don't believe in grovelling and selling my soul to the NHS to get on a waiting list for someone else to pay for it.

It's not cheap at £6.5k inc all the aftercare, adjustments for life and nutritional and physcological help I will need, but can you put a price on health? I don't want to die at 35 of a heart attack.

So what's the PH view on this? I know it will mean I won't be able to eat whatever I want and I need to educate myself on food more. No more red bull, but maybe I will be able to fit in an MX5

I'm aware of the risks involved, what I'm committing too etc so don't really need lectures, but if it's what you want to say, go ahead.

[DLovett]

Belongs in The Lounge.

[sleep envy]

good luck, hope it works for you

not too sure what you're expecting to gain from this thread though

[julian64]

It seems a shame you are havnig to go through it because it isn't the right operation for you.

[Barry Atricks]

sleep envy said:

good luck, hope it works for you

not too sure what you're expecting to gain from this thread though

Just thoughts, opinions etc. Hoping someone on here will know someone who has been through it

[Barry Atricks]

julian64 said:

It seems a shame you are havnig to go through it because it isn't the right operation for you.

Why do you say that?

[thinfourth2]

Go swimming as the water supports the lard


P.S. No bellyflops

[koolchris99]

your not that heavy, 23 stone.. You can shift that easily.

[Deluded]

I don't want to come across as patronising in any way as I don't mean to be but why can't you just get out and do some exercise?

I'm a fat arse too, although admittedly not quite 23 stone (I'm a touch over 16) and will freely admit that the only reason I'm not slimmer is a lack of will power with what I eat. I will happily (and enjoy it too) go out and do the exercise, my problem is that I like to wash it down with some sweets and maybe throw in a bottle of full fat coke too.

Why can you not get a personal trainer and go to the gym? Why can't you eat more healthily and cut down on all the crap?

If it's the same reason as me then it's not surgery you need.

Edited by Deluded on Monday 19th September 14:33

[davidjpowell]

My mother has had one fitted. She dreaded getting older and larger (she was large, but not stupidly so), like her mother.

Since that day it has been adjusted in and out. It either makes no difference, or she literally throws up her dinner.

We rarely eat with them now, as a meal will generally be interrupted by her saying excuse me and going off to vomit.

Please do look carefully.

On the other side, a relation of the other half had a gastric bypass, and it has made a huge difference.

[joebongo]

You can do this without the band - and remember the band's not without it's own risks either.

Force yourself to have only fruit or celery or something else benign except for normal meal portions - and be hard and real about portions as well.

It'll take a week or two to adjust and once you've adjusted to this keep going. Add exercise. 5 mins on the bike, then 10 mins a few days or a week later. Build up slow but be persistent and committed like your life depended on it.

Remember the band won't sort it for you so don't think this is a magic bullet cos it's not.

[Funk]

Sounds like I could have written that myself. I'm 32, 5'11 and tip the scales at 23st 5lbs at the moment. Difference is that I really don't feel like I weigh as much as I do. I've been starting to take health more seriously of late, the first major step being stopping smoking at the beginning of the year. I was very concerned about the stories of putting on weight when giving up the fags, so a conscious decision was made to ensure that didn't happen. As it happens I'm actually lighter than I was in Jan by around a stone, so I'm doing something right. It took me a long time to get to this weight, it'll take a while to come off safely.

Fair play to the OP for taking such a drastic decision, but I'd be doing everything I could to avoid surgery that can have serious ramifications. I think it's as much about a mental shift as it is a physical one. As for me? Well I've conquered smoking, I'll apply the same determination and application to losing weight - and I will get there.

Good luck OP, I hope you achieve your goal.

Edited by Funk on Monday 19th September 14:41

[anonymous-user]

i think that is a cop out.

I have an emotional attachment to food and i am lazy. my weight goes up from 13 stone to 17 stone in a year and a half, due to eating, drinking and being lazy.

but i know i can lose the weight on my own. you start slowly, make small changes, set yourself realistic goals and then you can do it yourself.

I know people who have had the band and to me it is a temporary solution to a long term problem. :Lose weight yourself and save the money for a nice car when you get to about 16 stone.

The outlook you have now will totally change once you start exercising..

[0a]

You'll get no criticism for me. You have a problem and are dealing with it yourself, paying for your surgery rather than relying on others. I can't say whether this is the right approach, but good luck I hope all goes well.

[julian64]

Barry Atricks said:

julian64 said:

It seems a shame you are havnig to go through it because it isn't the right operation for you.

Why do you say that?

Because of all the people I send off on the NHS for gastric banding, they all have one thing in common. They all suffer from a lack of any insight, whereas unless you are playing to the crowd here, you do.

When you are trying to get someone to lose weight the ONLY thing you really have to lever someone around with is their insight into their condition. Most common comments you get from the obese are ,I hardly eat anything, I just can't lose weight. When you hear that you have pretty much lost.

If you've decided your problem is the emotional attachment you have to food, you just have to learn to break that. Although difficult you can break associations. Unfortunately if you go into the gastric banding with your current emotional attachment you'll go through a fairly nasty operation.

Gastric banding works, not by reducing the calories you take, but by breaking your emotional attachment. Patient often admit to liquidizing mars bars etc for treats and therefore can still get in enough calories to maintain their weight. In other words they can circumvent the gastric banding and often do. There is usually a significant initial weight loss and then after six months to a year the weight starts to go back on. What gastric band people do say though is that they don't enjoy food as much, because feeling full or sick after a small meal (filling quickly) and having to choose the type of food they can take isn't enjoyable.

Spend your money on changing your lifestyle, or ongoing counselling to help break the addiction, go to an american type fat camp with the money, to have the comfort of trying this as a group. Not the operation.

[Leptons]

Barry Atricks said:

I'm fat

Firstly let me say how refreshing it is that you recognise your fat because you are lazy and eat too much.

Secondly, stop being a lazy fat bd. Spend your £6.5k on hiring a private pool for an hour a day. I'm sure you could strike up a deal with the pool owner for a discount. Or if your happy to use a public pool even better. You say you can't resist food but by the sounds of it you WILL HAVE TO if you go through with the op.

A lifetime of not being able to eat what you want, Or a treat now and again for your hard work?

[okgo]

http://theamazing39stonecyclist.wordpress.com/abou...

you are wasting £7k.

[BenM77]

Would the money not be better spent on a personal trainer and nutritionist.

There are many more benefits to eating right and exercising than just weight loss.

If you are dead set on it then good luck, I hope everything goes well.

[anonymous-user]

0a said:

You'll get no criticism for me. You have a problem and are dealing with it yourself, paying for your surgery rather than relying on others. I can't say whether this is the right approach, but good luck I hope all goes well.

+1

Do it. Your money, your choice. Bravo for getting off your arse and doing something about it.

Although, as has been said above, you admit that you are attached to food and the band will mean that you simply cannot indulge your passion - your mind will still think the same way, and it may become a huge source (sauce ) of frustration that you can't have a blow out once in a while.

BUT it will make you healthier, and that is only a good thing. Get it done, boyo.

[anonymous-user]

okgo said:

http://theamazing39stonecyclist.wordpress.com/abou...

you are wasting £7k.

and you could buy 3 top quality bikes for that.