Gastric balloon, has anyone had one?

[chazz!!]

Hiya I've just gone up another dress size so am now 14/16 and 12 stone I'm only 5ft so can't hold much weight without looking quite fat,

I'm thinking of having a gastric balloon fitted,

Could you share your experience if you have had this. X thanks x

 

[KayaPapaya]

Crikey that's very extreme. If you were dress size 24/26 then maybe.

I don't think you need to do anything as drastic as that.

Would a slimming club help? We're doing the Weight Watchers Thread together. Join!

That being said, I did have hypnotherapy for weight loss- you can do a hypno gastric band too, but I chickened out of that at the last minute.

I have to say, it didn't work too well for me (previous childhood issues around food) and I blocked it. I know hypno works as I had it for smoking, and it worked immediately, but the food issue for me is deeper than dieting if that makes sense.

Good luck, but please don't do anything drastic like surgery. I'd always try hypno first.

 

[chazz!!]

It's not that extreme, it comes out in 6 months and your in and out the hospital same day it's recommended for people that need to loose about 3 stone perhaps from having a baby or quitting smoking if I were a size 24 I would Need to loose more than 3 stone so this would not be suitable. X

 

[KayaPapaya]

It's not that extreme, it comes out in 6 months and your in and out the hospital same day keyhole surgery it's recommended for people that need to loose about 3 stone perhaps from having a baby or quitting smoking if I were a size 24 I would Need to loose more than 3 stone so this would not be suitable. X

I see. I don't know then. Sorry I haven't had it so can't offer any more advice To me it sounds very extreme. But that's me
Good luck x

 

[Dolly6410]

this is my personal opinion, and i am an ex porker, little chubbier than usual but it's coming up to winter and we all need some extra padding to keep us warm. I think it is a waste of money, there is no better feeling than the feeling of I DID IT!!! ME I DID IT!!!!! maybe put the money a side for a holiday instead and lose weight for that... i can only lose weight if i have a target, when i lost all my weight at the beginning it was because i was going on holiday with a group of size 6-8 girls and i was a size 18-20, i got down to a size 12 before i went :wink2: that was with weight watchers but i hear slimming world is just as good, one of my clients got sick of paying for 'fat club' (as she calls it) so she made her own with a group of friends and they take it in turns to go round one anothers houses and have veg sticks and weigh and talk about recipes and so on

YOU CAN DO IT

 

[Macoroni]

I did it yo yo d for 10 years from 12 half stone to just under 10 now have been for a year stopped me eating on my fealings stopped me using food as a crutch etc etc best thing I ever did and not sure where you are but I was in glos and introduced 7 girls to my councillor all kept off two stone plus in a year. My friend had gastric band lost 10 stone but I went say she was healthy they don't seem to give you emotional support good luck xxx

 

[chazz!!]

I don't eat for any emotional reason, I just like food I eat rubbish, and late a night and I get bored after a week of dieting. I don't mind that I wont be able to be proud I did it myself as I'll be slimmer and that will suit me fine..

I just want to know if it has worked for anyone x I don't need emotional support x

I'm just to busy to eat right but once I'm slim I'll think I'll make a big effort to keep it off. X

 

[rachael204]

I speak from experience when I say consider all your options very carefully.

I have had 2 gastric bypasses (at a total personal cost of 20k) and still struggle. I lost 6 stone the first time in 2007 then after giving up smoking I managed to stretch the new stomach pouch the surgeon had created.

I had revisional surgery this June and had the pouch made smaller again and a foby ring inserted which in theory will stop me stretching it again. So physically I cannot eat too much at any one time but it doesn't mean I don't want to.

The hardest part of losing weight is getting your head round it and making it a way of life - surgery is a really extreme solution and it really not as easy as people think is.

Your bmi will help a surgeon decide if surgery is for you - I worked it out to be around 32 which is considered obese but only just!

Key hole surgery is just as dangerous, any anaesthetic carries risks and it can take a couple of weeks to get over it - all things to think about.

Good luck with whatever you choose xxx

 

[Redduck]

My worry would be that once it was removed I could gradually put the weight on again and be back to square one. Only you know what's best for you. Whatever route you choose the best of luck with it xx

 

[Dolly6410]

I don't eat for any emotional reason, I just like food I eat rubbish, and late a night and I get bored after a week of dieting. I don't mind that I wont be able to be proud I did it myself as I'll be slimmer and that will suit me fine..

I just want to know if it has worked for anyone x I don't need emotional support x

I'm just to busy to eat right but once I'm slim I'll think I'll make a big effort to keep it off. X

if i were you i would google in for a forum dedicated to the surgery. when i had my boobs done thats what i did and it was sooo helpful. good luck with whatever you decide to do :hug:

 

[rachael204]

WLS - Weight Loss Surgery Information and Support

 

[chazz!!]

Thanks all, yes I've been all over the net for info, but thought I would ask hear as well.

Yes my BMI is 32 so I'm only allowed the balloon so their not going to be chopping cutting bypassing or stapling anything,

It seams very simple they put an empty balloon in then blow in up so it takes up space so can't eat as much. Then remove in 6month just a tiny scar. It he whole thing only takes a few mins once I'm asleep.

Need to do some more research as have read a lot that people didn't loose that much weight haven't read anything about anything going wrong tho so that's good. X

 

[chazz!!]

WLS - Weight Loss Surgery Information and Support

Hiya thanks for the link,, tho it doesn't have much about the gastric balloon, it's talking about much more serious surgery like a bypass or band. X

 

[no1chris]

I am in the process of arranging a Gastric Balloon at a Hospital in Lodz in Poland. The procedure (it is not an operation), is costing me £1860 pounds, that includes the hotel and the flights (the cheapest I have found it in the UK for, is £3950, and in London it is £4995).

I have had a two month or so, long hard look at the Gastric Balloon and it seems the perfect way to lose about a stone or so a month. Theoretically it can be dangerous, theoretically it is possible for the balloon to 'deflate' (it is actually filled with saline solution, ie salty water), in the stomach, and possible it could then block the bowel instead of simply passing through the body - this has never in fact been known to happen even though tens of thousands of these procedures have been carried out.

As such it is an order of magnitude safer than operations such as the Gastric Band, which is really for people who are suffering from life threatening obesity, rather than simply wanting to lose 2 to 3 stone, which is what I intend to do...

I am about to pay the deposit today, and will be having the procedure on the 22nd of this month.. I anticipate it will be an uncomfortable experience for a week or so, but after that it will settle down... I am not looking forward to the procedure, which is done under a local anasthetic, and involves putting a very small tube down the throat and into the stomach, the balloon at the end of the tube is then filled with the salt water to a specific size.

Feel free to contact me for any further information...

 

[Andrea85]

I don't eat for any emotional reason, I just like food I eat rubbish, and late a night and I get bored after a week of dieting. I don't mind that I wont be able to be proud I did it myself as I'll be slimmer and that will suit me fine..

I just want to know if it has worked for anyone x I don't need emotional support x

I'm just to busy to eat right but once I'm slim I'll think I'll make a big effort to keep it off. X

If you're admitting that you don't eat well then it's not just your weight that you should be concerned about but your general health. Are you going to continue to eat "rubbish" but just less of it? I think that you should really look at your diet and lifestyle rather than resorting to expensive surgery. You haven't mentioned exercise at any point, do you do any? If not, I suggest giving that a go as a way to lose weight, along with a balanced diet. Exercise is very important to your general health and wellbeing, being thinner doesn't mean that you'll be healthy!

 

[chazz!!]

If you're admitting that you don't eat well then it's not just your weight that you should be concerned about but your general health. Are you going to continue to eat "rubbish" but just less of it? I think that you should really look at your diet and lifestyle rather than resorting to expensive surgery. You haven't mentioned exercise at any point, do you do any? If not, I suggest giving that a go as a way to lose weight, along with a balanced diet. Exercise is very important to your general health and wellbeing, being thinner doesn't mean that you'll be healthy!

Hiya, thank you for your advice, I know I'm unhealthy in what I eat but mainly I eat to much surgery is not my first route to go down.

I have of course tried to do it the normal way dieting exercise! Without much success unfortunately. I still eat rubbish as its seams pointless not to as weight loss is so slow I think this will give me the boost I need and once it's off I will try very hard not to get back in bad shape.

I will also go to the gym to help with the weightless and will also find things easier to do hopefully with less weight to will be easier to stick to.

I'm not a stupid person I know how to do it the right way, but I am at a point now were I would just like it off now at whatever expense nessassery I just don't want to waste money if it doesn't work. x x

 

[chazz!!]

I am in the process of arranging a Gastric Balloon at a Hospital in Lodz in Poland. The procedure (it is not an operation), is costing me £1860 pounds, that includes the hotel and the flights (the cheapest I have found it in the UK for, is £3950, and in London it is £4995).

I have had a two month or so, long hard look at the Gastric Balloon and it seems the perfect way to lose about a stone or so a month. Theoretically it can be dangerous, theoretically it is possible for the balloon to 'deflate' (it is actually filled with saline solution, ie salty water), in the stomach, and possible it could then block the bowel instead of simply passing through the body - this has never in fact been known to happen even though tens of thousands of these procedures have been carried out.

As such it is an order of magnitude safer than operations such as the Gastric Band, which is really for people who are suffering from life threatening obesity, rather than simply wanting to lose 2 to 3 stone, which is what I intend to do...

I am about to pay the deposit today, and will be having the procedure on the 22nd of this month.. I anticipate it will be an uncomfortable experience for a week or so, but after that it will settle down... I am not looking forward to the procedure, which is done under a local anasthetic, and involves putting a very small tube down the throat and into the stomach, the balloon at the end of the tube is then filled with the salt water to a specific size.

Feel free to contact me for any further information...

Hiya, does this include going back for removal are you worried at all about in being done away from home. X

 

[no1chris]

It is at a clinic called Top-Medics, which as far as I can tell seems reputable, and specialises in this kind of procedure.

There is not actually much that can go wrong with a Gastric Balloon insertion, as it does not involve general anasthetic or opening the body up in any way. The price does include removal, which of course will mean a further flight, though it will not involve a stay over, just fly in, streight to the hospital and they remove it, and then back to the airport to fly back. If I can get removed on the NHS somehow I will do so.

I anticipate reaching my desired weight with three months or so, and will then make the appointment to have it removed, the trick is then to keep the weight off.

 

[Andrea85]

Hiya, thank you for your advice, I know I'm unhealthy in what I eat but mainly I eat to much surgery is not my first route to go down.

I have of course tried to do it the normal way dieting exercise! Without much success unfortunately. I still eat rubbish as its seams pointless not to as weight loss is so slow I think this will give me the boost I need and once it's off I will try very hard not to get back in bad shape.

I will also go to the gym to help with the weightless and will also find things easier to do hopefully with less weight to will be easier to stick to.

I'm not a stupid person I know how to do it the right way, but I am at a point now were I would just like it off now at whatever expense nessassery I just don't want to waste money if it doesn't work. x x

I absolutleyly did not think that you are a stupid person, I was just concerned as some people are looking for a "quick fix" and avoid doing it the through diet and exercise. If you've tried eveything else then fine, do what you have to do, and I wish you luck x

 

[gr8nailz]

Chazz, here in the U.S. this procedure isn't approved. I've read about it though.

Is lap-band surgery an option for you? Lap-band surgery is permanent but can be removed if you choose. I did it 5 years ago and I've lost over 100 lbs. I've gone from a size 22/24 to a size 10.

My doctor required me to see a psychologist for 3 months prior to surgery to determine by food issues. During that time I also had to keep a food journal to track my eating habits. I also had to begin an exercise regimen. If the psychologist felt I was psychologically fit and ready to take on the life change, I was approved for surgery.

I have thrived and feel absolutely amazing.