joeteposte

**Trigger warning: domestic abuse**

My name is Georgia, I am 27, and I have been 'bigger' for my entire adult life, and a lot of my childhood too.
I have PCOS (Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome) insulin resistant type, and an Underactive Thyroid, both of which cause me to put on weight quickly, retain weight, and makes losing weight extremely difficult.
I can't even remember the countless amounts of fad diets I have been on, or the amount of times I have tried to lose weight, but failed again and again. When I was 18 I was going to the gym 5-6 times a week for over an hour, I was doing HIIT training and Tai Chi, and I was jogging, eating well etc, but I still only managed to lose 2 stone in a year - make it make sense! I didn't know back then that I had underlying conditions that made it hard for me to lose weight, so I internalised a lot of the guilt in not being able to get healthy, and it resulted in me putting on around 6 stone from then until now.
I was also a victim of domestic abuse/violence, and a lot of the verbal abuse that I suffered was centred around my weight - constantly being told by my ex-partner that I was fat, he would pinch my thighs, tummy, arms etc, telling me he was seeing how many inches I could lose. It completely broke me, and I started binge eating in secret. He ended up leaving me, telling me that he could no longer be with me due to my weight and how it made me sexually unattractive.
I think I am probably just over 20 stone now. My back hurts when I walk, I cannot look in any mirrors without feeling low, I don't feel comfortable going out in public, and I am exhausted all the time.
Every time I went to my GP about something, I was always told I needed to lose weight, as if it were a miracle cure and so simple to do just by trying hard enough. It was always blamed on me not putting in enough effort - and those in the UK will know that the NHS isn't a simple thing to navigate and the waiting lists for obesity support are long and often disheartening.
Around 2 years ago I was put on a waiting list for weight loss management with the NHS. I was finally accepted in September of 2023. This is a year long commitment to the weight loss management pathway (Tier 3), in which you have to lose 5% of your weight in order to then be put on to another waiting list for a referral for the actual WLS (Tier 4). I have been told that this can take a further 4-6 years.
I had a harrowing thought that by the time my WLS actually came around, I'd be well into my 30s, still desperately unhappy with myself, and I would have put on even more weight and probably be immobile. I can no longer do this to myself. I deserve better.
I made the decision to look into private weight loss surgery, and I had a free consultation with a recommended surgeon just before Christmas 2023. This was genuinely the first time that a medical professional sat me down and talked to me with some humanity about my weight. He told me that with my conditions (particularly the insulin resistance, and hormonal imbalance), that my metabolic rate needed an entire reset, and this was not possible to do without surgical intervention. He explained that the difficulties I have had in trying to lose weight and being unable to, are not my fault (though of course I accept responsibility that getting here in the first place is my fault), and that surgery is recommended as perhaps the only thing that will enable me to lose the weight. I have never felt so seen, and so heard.
I booked in my surgery for May 2024 there and then.
So, now I start my journey, and I was looking for support, and here I am. I look forward to posting on here and using this thread to update everyone once I have had my surgery!
I am quite an open and honest person, so if anyone wants to reach out to talk, my inbox is open

I had the sleeve in September 2020 after having struggled with my weight for years and trying to lose it on my own. I am 56 and a diabetic.
My A1c has went from 7.4 to 5.7 since my surgery.
I had to have a hernia repair for the second time along with the sleeve and things were going great. I was losing for the first year, around 65 pounds. Then, I found out that I had diverticulosis and have had diverticulitis4 times in less than a year. My hernia came back along with an umbilical hernia and had a gallbladder that had to be removed 18 months after my sleeve.
In the 2 years since my surgery, my acid reflux has never went away and taking Prilosec and Pepcid twice a day.
I also just got done with prolapse surgeries and hoping this is my last surgery.
I have been having bad cravings and not losing, but gained back 10 pounds.
My surgeon decided to try Saxenda to see if it would help and it has helped me lose 12 pounds in 12 weeks.
Hoping that continue to lose and my health improve.
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