Where in the process am I?

[BrianT]

This is a bit of a strange one really, and If I've posted on the wrong board apologies and could one of the mods move me please

About 3 years ago I went to see my GP about my weight (403lb) and he was very sympathetic, and rather than just say you need to loose weight he arranged for me to see a dietician first, and then we would talk about "other options" later.
The dietician looked like she'd never eaten more than a lettuce leaf in her life and her sage advice was to eat less! I followed the advice for as long as I could (nine months) and lost about 20lb. When I went back to see my GP on another mater he'd left. I really didn't want to go through the whole explanation bit again so I foolishly left it for a year and put all the weight back on (sound familiar?)
I finally plucked up the courage to go back to my GP about a year ago and found my new GP to be very sympathetic to the cause. we discussed all available options at the time and she decided to put me on Orlistat.
I've been taking this for about a year now and have lost just under 29lb. Although as with every diet I have tried 29lb is about as far as I get and then it either stops coming off or starts going back on again.

So in July she referred me to Kings College for WLS, and explained about how after seeing the surgeon there would be the whole trying to get funding process and that it could be a long bumpy ride but that she would be there with/for me all the way.

I got an appointment to see a member of the "team" in September and when I turned up it was actually the Surgeon herself.
She discounted the band as she felt that because of my eating habits (big portions as opposed to picking) it would not necessarily give me sufficient weight loss, and so she suggested the Sleeve, and if necessary at a later date the full bypass. We went through all the possible problems with surgery etc, discussed sleep apnoea. She then said it's about a 6 month waiting list, got me to sign a consent form and off I went.

I now have an appointment for November for a lung function test and an overnight sleep apnoea test.

So after all that (sorry) my question is..... has the funding issue gone by the wayside and I'm now in the system and waiting? or..... am I being over optimistic and that still has to be discussed?

I await your pearls of wisdom one and all

Brian
ps typical bloke I probly should have asked the surgeon while I was there

 

[cherry]

hi and welcome, i would say if tests are booked for you then the funding is in place, as it doesnt seem right to spend money doing tests for them to say, actually no he s not having funding for the wls op....

please dont take this as set in stone but id say its highley likely your funding is approved

i wish you well and good luck!

i to am hopefully a sleever! exciting hey

 

[zns]

Its different for different areas but it sounds like the hospital will be applying for it, you can always give them a call to ask.

 

[phatmomma]

Now see i'm swinging the opposite way to Kelly. It could be they are giving you the sleep test so as to secure your funding as sleep apnoea is a comorbidity...

Best advice either myself or anyone could give you is this: Ring the hospital and ask your surgeons secretary and also ring your gp and ask if they've heard anything..

Good luck and i hope you get your surgery, we have a few very successful sleever's on here, Mixxy springs to mind straight off for me...

Please keep us posted as to how you get along xx

 

[SOON SLIM SUE]

hi brian and welcom to wls.
thats good advice from julie, get on the phone tomorrow and find out, it will set your mind at rest.
i had the sleeve in feb and i can highly recomend it.
by the way the sleeve followed by the bypass is known as the DS.

 

[cherry]

actually im sorry i didnt think of that julie... eeek sorrrrry best to ring hey...

im now gonna wonder off with a red face ....

 

[phatmomma]

Kelly you can't be fantastic everytime xxx

 

[cherry]

hahahhahahaha x well thats very true julie xxx

 

[BrianT]

Thank you ladies I'll give them a bell tomorrow.
Can I ask how long you all waited between having been "accepted" and actually having the op? and if your still waiting how long you've been waiting?

I'm just looking to see what the variations are so that I can stop the constant "have you heard yet"

 

[cherry]

i started a year ago, on the 27th of this month i go to my 3rd appointment which should get me onto the list for surgery then its another 16 weeks wait, very long process eh

 

[Mixman]

Hope everything turns out great and good luck! Sheffield is about 4 month from acceptance to surgery!

 

[gaelic girl]

I can't help with nhs advice i'm afraid as i had to go privately and i live in Scotland but i just wanted to say welcome to the site and wanted to wish you lots of luck on your journey xx

 

[phatmomma]

11 months for me x

 

[BrianT]

it's interesting to see the variation in times across the country. I never believed in the post code lottery but I guess it really does exist.
looking at some of the success stories on here my fears are gradually fading away.
I think I've finally got past the "you're having 75% of your stomach removed" concern and I've now moved onto the can I cope with the diet post op. I would hate to go through all of this only to either loose it all and then put it back on, or not loose it in the first place.
Every time I look at peoples stats on here though I know I'm doing the right thing, and if I can achieve half of what some of you have done then I'll be a happier man.
I guess the question I should ask Mixxy is how has it been for you post op?

 

[cah-ching]

I'm not Mixman - sorry

I think with any restrictive surgery it takes some getting used to mentally. However luckily with the bypass and sleeve the restriction is immediate and you can enjoy weight loss immediately. I guess once the surgery is done there is no going back so therefore one HAS to suck it up so to speak .... and I suppose you'll catch up mentally afterwards. I'm surprised at how quickly I've gotten used to eating less but then I've done it gradually (at a slower pace than the majority of banders).

I think you'll be OK. I'm pleased the band was discounted for you as you have a lot of weight to lose.

Take care!

 

[BrianT]

I'm not Mixman - sorry

I think with any restrictive surgery it takes some getting used to mentally. However luckily with the bypass and sleeve the restriction is immediate and you can enjoy weight loss immediately. I guess once the surgery is done there is no going back so therefore one HAS to suck it up so to speak .... and I suppose you'll catch up mentally afterwards. I'm surprised at how quickly I've gotten used to eating less but then I've done it gradually (at a slower pace than the majority of banders).

I think you'll be OK. I'm pleased the band was discounted for you as you have a lot of weight to lose.

Take care!

Oh don't apologise. As I'm finding out all advice on here is good advice, I only picked Mixman because of the similarities in height and weight.
Thank you for chipping in it all helps.

 

[cah-ching]

Oh don't apologise. As I'm finding out all advice on here is good advice, I only picked Mixman because of the similarities in height and weight.
Thank you for chipping in it all helps.

I'm about the same height but about 100Ibs lighter ... I'm still a fat fecker though so I hope my words count for something .

Please keep us posted on how you get on. Good luck

 

[Grace]

Hi Brian and welcome to the forum. Well you're certainly in the system so to speak, but i have found throughout my WLS journey that the only way to know for sure, is to ask.

It took me 18 months from referral to surgery. At the time the waiting seemed to go on for ever, but now it seems like the time us flew by.

I've been very fortunate so far, in that my brain seems also to have been rewired, so that eating less/sticking to a healthy diet has been relatively easy.

 

[Emma Louise]

Hey hun,
I went private so cant help with nhs, but just wanted to wish you all the luck in the world. You wont need it though as you will be fine

We ae near the same starting point and i am a fresh sleever so just thought i would give you my two pence worth if that's ok?

Dur to my weight i was obviously very worried about surgery, and due to my mother having complications when she had wls which has left her disabled made me even more nervous about it all. But i figured being 21 and a few pounds away from 30 stone i was gonna die anyway right? So i tried to go nhs, a year after starting the process me and my family were sick of waiting as i was getting bigger and more depressed so my parents took out a loan and paid for me to go private in the Czeck Republic.

The surgery went absolutly fine, no complications and the surgeon even commented that my organs were perfect, none looked as if they had been abused at all - Score!!

After surgery hungre isnt much of an issue. I survived the first week on about 1 yogurt a day (which took me about an hour to eat) and am still struggling to get down the recommended liquids but i am hoping it will come with time as i am exactly 3 weeks post op today
I will not lie, it is not easy. I have never been a big meat eater but i dreaming about sausages constantly. I am gagging for some meat!!
My post op diet is: 2 weeks on liquid (done), 2 weeks on pureed food (few days left!), 2 weeks soft food, and then i can progress on to normal food. The pureed food stage is gross, i hate all the slop. Bleurgh!

The thing that i am finding at the moment though is that some moments i feel like i could eat a horse, so i go to eat and after 2 tablespoons of soup i feel like i have eaten a full christmas dinner! Other times i can eat a whole tin of soup and still feel like i could eat more. It all depends.

It is th best thing i have ever done though, i do not regrete it for one second.
Everytime someone says how lose my clothes are looking or i realise how much easier im finding doing simple things like walking i feel ita all worth it.
If you want to know anything else feel free to pm me xxxx

 

[ditzeeblonde]

Good luck with yr journey... mine was very quick about 3 months, one of the lucky ones!

I'll be a month out on Saturday & I'm loving it. x