Hi all!
I've been reading this forum since a few months before my surgery for a Mini Gastric Bypass in April of this year.
I found the whole forum not only deeply informative but very very inspiring. Reading people's stories of transformation and regaining health really confirmed to me that my choice of undergoing surgery was the right one!
I just wanted to share my story in the hopes that I too may inspire or reassure somebody reading who is also thinking about undergoing bariatric surgery.
My weight pre op was 165KG/26st and my BMI was almost 50. My waist was 56 inches, I had severe sleep aponea managed by cpap and stage three hypertension - I was in bad shape and worse I was struggling to play with my beautiful 2yr old daughter and was worried at 32yrs old that I wouldn't be around for the long term!
So I booked a Mini Gastric Bypass with Dr Chris De Bruyne in Belgium after a bit of research and reading some feedback here and elsewhere.
I had the operation in the middle of April this year and it all went great. No complications.
I took 8 weeks off work, I could have went back much much sooner physically but I wanted to give myself plenty of time to get used to the diet and make the lifestyle changes needed.
So fast forward five and a half months later and I've already passed my target weight! Was was aiming to become 16 stone-ish or around 100kg over two years but as of this morning I just hit 14 stone/98kg!!
My sleep aponea is cured, my blood pressure is now low normal and I'm wearing jeans with a 34 inch waist for the time since school and I can see stomach muscles for the first time ever!
My BMI has been cut in half and is now healthy/normal at 25.
I have so much more energy for my daughter and it has literally changed my life. Because this has happened so fast it's sometimes hard to understand in my mind that I've lost 12 stone of weight - I still sometimes think in my head that I'm still big and don't always recognise my reflection in shop windows and alike!
I would urge anybody thinking of undergoing bariatric surgery to really give it a chance - if you stick to the rules it will change your life.
My biggest tip to anybody in the months after surgery is to get into the habit very fast and start exercising. Take advantage of new energy you'll have and put it to use. I started cycling to work two months after my op and I returned. This is 20 miles a day and I believe that's why I've been able to lose as much as I have so far. Keeping your muscles in use means you will have less muscle wastage and that could mean less loose skin in some areas - something I've been lucky with for the most part.
I've put some before and after pics in the link to imgur below - apologies, I couldn't work out how to upload directly to the forum here itself!
Cheers for reading, Rob.
Before and after pics:
https://imgur.com/a/cLgG6
I've been reading this forum since a few months before my surgery for a Mini Gastric Bypass in April of this year.
I found the whole forum not only deeply informative but very very inspiring. Reading people's stories of transformation and regaining health really confirmed to me that my choice of undergoing surgery was the right one!
I just wanted to share my story in the hopes that I too may inspire or reassure somebody reading who is also thinking about undergoing bariatric surgery.
My weight pre op was 165KG/26st and my BMI was almost 50. My waist was 56 inches, I had severe sleep aponea managed by cpap and stage three hypertension - I was in bad shape and worse I was struggling to play with my beautiful 2yr old daughter and was worried at 32yrs old that I wouldn't be around for the long term!
So I booked a Mini Gastric Bypass with Dr Chris De Bruyne in Belgium after a bit of research and reading some feedback here and elsewhere.
I had the operation in the middle of April this year and it all went great. No complications.
I took 8 weeks off work, I could have went back much much sooner physically but I wanted to give myself plenty of time to get used to the diet and make the lifestyle changes needed.
So fast forward five and a half months later and I've already passed my target weight! Was was aiming to become 16 stone-ish or around 100kg over two years but as of this morning I just hit 14 stone/98kg!!
My sleep aponea is cured, my blood pressure is now low normal and I'm wearing jeans with a 34 inch waist for the time since school and I can see stomach muscles for the first time ever!
My BMI has been cut in half and is now healthy/normal at 25.
I have so much more energy for my daughter and it has literally changed my life. Because this has happened so fast it's sometimes hard to understand in my mind that I've lost 12 stone of weight - I still sometimes think in my head that I'm still big and don't always recognise my reflection in shop windows and alike!
I would urge anybody thinking of undergoing bariatric surgery to really give it a chance - if you stick to the rules it will change your life.
My biggest tip to anybody in the months after surgery is to get into the habit very fast and start exercising. Take advantage of new energy you'll have and put it to use. I started cycling to work two months after my op and I returned. This is 20 miles a day and I believe that's why I've been able to lose as much as I have so far. Keeping your muscles in use means you will have less muscle wastage and that could mean less loose skin in some areas - something I've been lucky with for the most part.
I've put some before and after pics in the link to imgur below - apologies, I couldn't work out how to upload directly to the forum here itself!
Cheers for reading, Rob.
Before and after pics:
https://imgur.com/a/cLgG6
