Weightloss Surgery on the NHS

[angelandbump]

Sorry is this has already been posted.

What does people think of weightloss surgery being carried out on the NHS?

 

[Eternal]

I think that the cost of the small number of people who are eligible cost the NHS in o earth related illness is more longer term than the surgery, so in a strange way it's cost effective and life threatening not to.

I think it's easy to look at it as, why should she get that surgery because they are fat, but it's only a small number of very obese people who qualify and their have to have a chronic disease like diabetics too.

It's not a quick fix, either, and I know someone who has had it, privately, and it has been hellish for her and it still takes a long time.

I think it's all been tightened up a lot recently, I would have a breast reduction and it causes major back pain, but I know I wouldn't qualify and if i did the surgery reconstruction isn't the same. So ill wait until one day I can afford it.

 

[Tasha]

I use to think the same as Eternal for pretty much the reasons she said, but my dad's GP has been pushing him to have it done, yes he is morbidly obese but not like massive, plenty are bigger and more than that he has been losing 1-2lb a week but they are saying it isnt fast enough, so thats why they want him to have it done. I dont think its a good enough reason and I am wondering how many others *could* could lose the weight on their own.

 

[angelandbump]

I was just interested to hear peoples views. I am not embarressed to say a week ago tomorrow I had a gastric balloon fitted and my word it is far from easy at the moment. I have lost 9lbs in 6 days and thats basically because anything i have ate has came back. For the next 6 months I have to decide if I would like the sleeve or bypass.
I have had mixed reviews from friends and family. I am 24 and I was only 16st 3lbs and a size 22. Even ladies on the ward were confused to why i was offered it.
My doctor suggested it for me because my weight seems to go up and up after various diets and treatments and I also have PCOS (which im not blaming). Plus my heart is showing signs of being under stress.
The majority of people think its a great idea and the results when a person trys hard is amazing but i have came across people who told me they should spend the money on finding a cure for cancer than treat fat people as they don't want to help them selves. I'm sure if being slim and loosing wieght was as easy as some people think, the would would be a slimmer place.

 

[ILoveShoes]

Out of interest, have you been offered any 'education' type sessions around healthy eating? Or sessions with a counsellor/psychologist to understand why you were overweight?
I'm not having a dig by saying these things, but I don't think that weight loss surgery gets to the 'root' of the problem, if you know what I mean.
I hope this makes sense and doesn't come out wrong!
xx

 

[angelandbump]

Out of interest, have you been offered any 'education' type sessions around healthy eating? Or sessions with a counsellor/psychologist to understand why you were overweight?
I'm not having a dig by saying these things, but I don't think that weight loss surgery gets to the 'root' of the problem, if you know what I mean.
I hope this makes sense and doesn't come out wrong!
xx

No you are right by asking. Yes, I am under the care of the psychologist who works with the bariatric team. He was the one who recommended the balloon first as he feels i can loose all my weight with the balloon but the consultant disagrees and would like me to under go something more longterm once the balloon is out.

I also see a dietitian when ever i like and i take my mum along as she is on the larger side too so we both get educated in healthy heating. The dietitian actually said the slimmingworld diet is a great diet so me and my mum have been using their recipes lol x

 

[angelandbump]

Oh i forgot to say, I am what they called a 'gainer after trauma'

Example: my childhood sweetheard and partner of 2 years suddenly passed away before my eyes in 2005. After i put two stones on.

My daughter died in 2008 and with in weeks, I had gained alot of weight.

I didn't even realise just how much i ate to supress my emotions but this past week i have been tearful, VERY moody and snappy and lost. My temptation to bindge is actually pathetic and i get so angry at my self but eating has been a coping mechanism for me for many years and its hard to break the cycle xx

 

[ILoveShoes]

I think that's really fantastic. You're being treated in a really 'holistic' way, rather than just having the surgery and being left to get on with it.
Good luck to you xx

 

[ILoveShoes]

Sorry - I mustve posted at the same time as you posted your second reply.
I'm really sorry to hear about your losses.
I'm currently under a psychologist for an eating disorder (bingeing/restricting).
xx

 

[Andypanda6570]

I am in the US, so I don't know about this. I just wanted to say I was so deeply sorry for your losses

 

[ZoMo]

I am sorry for your losses, it must have been heartbreaking on both occasions and I think I would have weighed double what you did if I had gone through that. I am 16.9 stone and a 20/22. I too am doing slimming world as it has always worked in the past for me. I am a boredom and major comfort eater. To be honest, I think if you qualify on the NHS then I dont see a problem although I was surprised as I always thought you had to be mega supersized for it! People may say that overweight people choose to eat and therefore it is their own fault for becoming overweight. I dont disagree, I didnt get to my weight by starving myself, but it is not always that simple. There is also an emotional and psychological element in many cases. I also think that if people go on the face value of 'choice' when forming their opinion on who should be eligible for surgery, then smokers are just as valid in that argument - they choose to put the cigarette into their mouths knowing the horrific health risks associated and they will all qualify for NHS intervention to rectify this damage. Yes I believe there is an addiction to nicotine, there is habit and there may be an emotional element there too. With eating there is habit, emotional reliance, and addiction in a vicious circle. Its just a shame that I think a lot of people dont consider this when voicing their opinions on what they often see as purely a greed issue.

 

[Tasha]

I am sorry for your loses I also put on quite a bit of weight in the months after my girls were born sleeping.

 

[angelandbump]

Thanks girls.

I always thought stress made people loose weight and thats why i never really thought my weight gain had anything to do with stress/depression following both losses but it is amazing how many people do gain.

ILoveShoes: I hope your care helps and supports you in all the ways you need xx

Andypanda6570 and Tasha I'm sorry for the loss of your girls also xx

 

[Eternal]

So sorry for your losses.

I think it's great you are getting help, don't worry what others think. You are doing it for you and your family.

My friend had a difficult few weeks after her bypass but a year later it's behind her and life is normal now.

 

[fantastica]

So sorry for your losses


I'm a bit mixed about it...I do think it should be offered but only when it is in tandem with psychological support and support from a dietitian - which from what you've said it looks like it is. I know many people think it's easy to just lose the weight/people are lazy, but there is normally some kind of deeper issue, and those should be treated first...as surely otherwise people would just lose the weight and it could be possible to just resort back to the same behaviours once the band had stretched again?

But it should be there...to me it's almost on par with saying anorexics shouldn't receive any treatment, they shouldn't be force fed or receive any psychological care under the NHS, it would be ridiculous and the same goes for anyone seriously over-weight or with issues which cause them to over-eat. It would essentially be allowing someone to die, and that just isn't right.

Hope it goes well for you xx

 

[Foogirl]

Whilst I wish the NHS didn't have to spend money on this kind of surgery, I think it is a dangerous route to start judging who should get treatment and who shouldn't based on their lifestyle. I can understand the thought process around donor organs, that's a separate issue but should we not treat lung cancer in smokers? Or liver disease in drinkers? What about the motor cyclist who risks his life by travelling at 120mph and has an accident or the skydiver with a broken leg? If the rising cost of obesity can be lessened by surgery, it's a more cost effective way of dealing with it than a lifetime of heart problems and other associated illnesses. Good luck to those who have had the surgery here. It's not as easy a fix as many would believe.

 

[Fergie]

It should be offered on the NHS as part as a whole person treatment. As a PP has said it does reduce the lifelong cost of obese treatment for the NHS as a whole, prevention is better than cure and all that. I'm currently 17+ stone & size 18 but i know that the only reason i'm this size is my own fault. I drink far too much fizzy juice and do very little exercise. However once Jnr is out i will be back to my old ways of walking everywhere and back to my usual eating pattern. I used pregnancy as an excuse to eat whatever and whenever i wanted.

 

[angelandbump]

What about people who get the surgery and are offered all the help in the world but choose to ignore and gain weight.

Should they be made to pay the NHS back the money they wasted?

My nurse was telling me about a women who had a bypass and at her 3 years weigh in had only lost 1 stone. The women said she could not understand why until her daughter handed the consultant a typical weeks meal plan. The woman had managed to restretch her stomach and some how could eat pizza's burgers and other fast foods and would eat 5 large meals instead of 3 normal meals aday.

 

[Foogirl]

what about the alcoholic or the smoker who has the heart bypass and continues to drink or smoke.

You can't have a universal healthcare system who only treats those who are deemed to deserve it.

I'd also question what other help that lady was given. Maybe the root cause of what makes her eat that way went un treated, probably because she's on a years waiting list for counselling.

 

[Pixelle]

Personally I'd like to see the whole person being treated before anything so drastic as surgery.

In many, many people its a psychological or medical problem but the GP's (in my experience) just fob people off.

I personally went to my gp as I was seriously concerned about my weight. I was eating so, so healthy and doing lots of exercise yet I was still putting on weight. I was told to have smaller portions and that was it!
I asked for a diabetes check as I had gestational diabetes a year before, but was refuses. I also asked if the implant could be having an affect, was told no. Since then I've learned that many women put on weight while on the implant so I'm planning on having it removed.

My point is, there must be a reason for this weight gain (not over eating), but my gp and another fobbed me off. How many people does this happen to?
I will admit that since then I've kinda given up on a diet and healthy eating but that's due to stress and other stuff but if I'd had the help I needed at the time, I would have stuck to it.

Its not always as easy to go to weight watchers or slimming world etc, its expensive, so is the gym and that's all most gp's advise.

I just think a little help at the beginning would save the need for surgery for a lot of people.

Of course, if that doesn't work then surgery should be available, along with the appropriate dietician, counselling etc.