Having been here a few months now, it’s become obvious that it’s so different for people having weight loss surgery in the UK. Procedures here before WLS is different. Most of the people over the pond have it through their insurance and this means a lot of pre operation meetings/assessments/work, over many months. In some ways I feel this is good, as people get to learn so much before having their surgery. However that’s not the usual way here in the UK. You tend to learn ‘in the moment’. If you are eligible for WLS through the National Health Service, you may have to wait for a long time, 2 to 3 or up to 10 years unless you are at the stage where your weight is life or death. So, many fund it themselves.

I think this site is excellent for advice and support however it does mainly tend to show what happens in the States, where you can buy certain things and what’s available. So here’s a few things (not exclusive, would love it if others add stuff here too) I have learnt in my very short weeks since surgery.

PLEASE can we all add our own likes/dislikes, UK advice etc etc

1. Bariatric cookery books are excellent however there are many other options to learn about pre and post op foods. My dietitian is great but I have learnt so much through researching online. There are so many Bariatric Centres all over the world showing what you can eat pre ad post op and as long as you add a dash of common sense, it can work well. For example; if I read from a Bariatric Centre that I could eat tuna on day 3, I would be clicking the X asap!!

1. Centrum advantage chewable Vitamins are lovely and recommended by UK Dietitians for post bariatric surgery. Tesco’s have them on offer at the moment, 3 for 2. They have carbs, but balancing a few carbs for nice tasting vitamins isn’t going to kill me for the time being.

1. Keep your fridge/cupboard stocked once you know what goes down well for you. Don’t spend too much in advance in case you don’t like it. I spent a lot on liquid Iron without asking around and my god, it was disgusting. I took it twice then threw it away. I could have asked here and go advice but I didn’t. (see below)

1. Use this UK forum to keep in touch with others in the UK to ask for and pass on advice. We aren’t the minority in the world for WLS however we are a small group here. Make friends here, they can be the best support you can ask for!

OVER TO YOU !!!

12 minutes ago, Possum220 said:

Yay! Thanks for your help summerseeker. That was successful. I think I will have to write that down so I dont forget how to do it next time. I will see if I can dig that little ticker up. You are doing well by your stats. Do you feel better in yourself?

Hello Possum, Yes I do feel great. I am 62 and can not remember when I was not breathless. I can clean my home again. I walk without a stick. My knees don't hurt any more. I was told I was diabetic 6 months before my surgery and now I am not. I feel free and independent again. Its wonderful. I have had a rough ride because my new stomach had swellings and eating and drinking was difficult for the first couple of months but I got through it. Its all been worth it and I would do it again in a heartbeat. Nice to speak to you

TBH it took me until I could eat enough to get to about 500 calories. Then little by little I got stronger and begun to clean the house again. I still have days where I am vomiting a lot but they are getting less and less. Then all I do is huddle on the sofa again. Keep up with your liquids if you can x

Thank you sooo much. It's good to know that I'm not the only one that feels this way. So many seem to be back in work and back to life quickly. I was wondering what I'm doing wrong! [emoji3059]

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17 minutes ago, summerseeker said:

Hello Possum, Yes I do feel great. I am 62 and can not remember when I was not breathless. I can clean my home again. I walk without a stick. My knees don't hurt any more. I was told I was diabetic 6 months before my surgery and now I am not. I feel free and independent again. Its wonderful. I have had a rough ride because my new stomach had swellings and eating and drinking was difficult for the first couple of months but I got through it. Its all been worth it and I would do it again in a heartbeat. Nice to speak to you

Hello summerseeker, I am so glad that your body is feeling so much better now. You give me hope when I am treading the path that you trod. Being breathless, needing walking aides, Walking to the grocery shop and to the hospital yesterday was frightening as my balance was so bad.

I am also diabetic T2cand on insulin. It must be wonderful to have gotten rid of that, It feels like I am well over due for a fall that is going to break something. People talk about an out of body experiences but yesterday was a very unpleasantt innerbody experience, Haha.... not so much.

Being on this side of the operation kinda daunting. Thankyou for sharing what happening with swelling and that you did get through it. Every persons journey is so different.

PS Is there a chat room here?

There is a chat room for Bariatric Members who have had surgery 3 years. I dont think there is any other. I just chat and post on the general world wide part of this site

Hi all. I hope everyone is doing well.

I have a question re vitamins. The stuff I’m on is disgusting and I couldn’t stomach them long term. I have a 4 week supply and after that it says I can move on to tablets, but I wondered what are people using? I don’t really fancy trying to get a doctors appointment and having to go down the prescription route, so in terms of multi vitamins, vitamin d, calcium and iron, what are you guys doing please?

1 hour ago, Charlie1810 said:

Hi all. I hope everyone is doing well.

I have a question re Vitamins. The stuff I’m on is disgusting and I couldn’t stomach them long term. I have a 4 week supply and after that it says I can move on to tablets, but I wondered what are people using? I don’t really fancy trying to get a doctors appointment and having to go down the prescription route, so in terms of Multi Vitamins, Vitamin D, Calcium and Iron, what are you guys doing please?

I get Multivitamins with iron from the supermarket or Amazon. I take 2, spread over the day, The Gummy ones went in the bin. I couldn't stomach the dissolvable calcium, the thought of drinking them again make me heave, so I take Calci-D chewable { after breakfast } these I get on my repeat prescription. I also get anti nausea meds on Prescription. My team at Spire told me what to ask the Doc for

18 hours ago, summerseeker said:

I get Multivitamins with Iron from the supermarket or Amazon. I take 2, spread over the day, The Gummy ones went in the bin. I couldn't stomach the dissolvable Calcium, the thought of drinking them again make me heave, so I take Calci-D chewable { after Breakfast } these I get on my repeat prescription. I also get anti nausea meds on Prescription. My team at Spire told me what to ask the Doc for

Oops forgot to say also have Vitamin B12 shots every 3 months at docs as per directed by my team at Spire

Hi all. I hope everyone is doing well.
I have a question re vitamins. The stuff I’m on is disgusting and I couldn’t stomach them long term. I have a 4 week supply and after that it says I can move on to tablets, but I wondered what are people using? I don’t really fancy trying to get a doctors appointment and having to go down the prescription route, so in terms of multi vitamins, vitamin d, calcium and iron, what are you guys doing please?

Hi Charlie,

Hope you're well. I am four weeks out from surgery and since week 3 I have taken Calceos chewable vit D and calcium (combined) twice a day, centrum or Tesco chewable multivitamin and now have my iron in tablet form from doctor. I really struggled taking the effervescent kind [emoji1785][emoji2961] x

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Hi, hope everyone is well. I was wondering if anyone had their surgery via a Spire hospital and had an unexpected bill?

I’ve just had two invoices through for blood tests totalling £1,200 that I thought was covered in the overall £11,500 cost!

nobody mentioned these additional costs and I’m wondering if there’s anymore.

Yes I did have extra costs on top of the £10,999. I did expect them though. I paid £150 twice to see the surgeon, one for initial consult and then a few days before my surgery. £150 for a half hour phone call with the psychiatrist [daylight robbery] I also paid for a dieticians chat in person £90. I had a test to see if I had some bad bacteria in my stomach at my own doctors, free. Then I had bloods done the day before surgery, this was all included in the package price. I had to stay in hospital 6 days due to extreme nausea. I can see the dietician for 2 years included.

I would ask the hospital if you need to pay for your blood tests, the telephone ladies are very approachable and friendly. Good luck

55 minutes ago, Charlie1810 said:

Hi, hope everyone is well. I was wondering if anyone had their surgery via a Spire hospital and had an unexpected bill?

I’ve just had two invoices through for blood tests totalling £1,200 that I thought was covered in the overall £11,500 cost!

nobody mentioned these additional costs and I’m wondering if there’s anymore.

Hi all - after two cancelled surgeries earlier this year, I'm now three days away from my gastric sleeve appointment!

I've needed to stay away from this board whilst waiting as I was thinking 'what if...' far too much, but it's been great catching up with all the posts and seeing how supportive and helpful everyone is to each other.

@Nikki@50 Hope your surgery went ok and that recovery hasn't been too tough so far?

I'm a mixture of nerves and excitement; one good thing about the delay is that I feel more confident than ever in my decision to take this step. I've been doing some work with a psychologist for a few months about emotional eating and I feel stronger and more confident than I have in a long while.

Look forward to continue reading about your experiences, and I'm sure I'll be asking loads of questions over the coming weeks and months xx

Glad you're finally on your way to a new you

Thank you

Hi all - after two cancelled surgeries earlier this year, I'm now three days away from my gastric sleeve appointment!
I've needed to stay away from this board whilst waiting as I was thinking 'what if...' far too much, but it's been great catching up with all the posts and seeing how supportive and helpful everyone is to each other.
[mention=404553]Nikki@50[/mention] Hope your surgery went ok and that recovery hasn't been too tough so far?
I'm a mixture of nerves and excitement; one good thing about the delay is that I feel more confident than ever in my decision to take this step. I've been doing some work with a psychologist for a few months about emotional eating and I feel stronger and more confident than I have in a long while.
Look forward to continue reading about your experiences, and I'm sure I'll be asking loads of questions over the coming weeks and months xx

@Woodstock23 Hi [emoji3059], I'm not too bad thank you. My surgery went well but I'll be honest it's been a tough journey for me so far. I'm now nearly 8 weeks post op and the smell of meat of any kind revolts me. I'm struggling to eat more than a few teaspoons of food and am no where near my protein and water consumption that I should be yet! But saying all that, I know things will get better with time and I do not regret surgery. I have already lost 34lb, I haven't been this weight since I was 23 and I'm 50 this year! [emoji16] My surgeon has told me that I have responded extremely well to the surgery and that the change in my hormones has caused the extreme sensitivity to the taste and smells of meat proteins. Would love any tips you can give me on emotional eating. I still find myself reaching for food and then feel disappointed when I can't have it. I'm trying to distract myself but sometimes I just go to bed to avoid the emotions, which I know isn't ideal. Ask as many questions as you want, I'm more then happy to support you in anyway I can. Good luck for your surgery [emoji3059], it's the beginning of a new you x

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