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 !!!

30 minutes ago, Shrink&Grow said:

Hello CLC I had mine this week just down the road at Washington, most of the staff also work on the Sunderland service. Have you spoken to the dietitian about your stall? (Or better still, broken it?!)

Hi shrink&Grow hope your doing well after surgery and recovering well. I lost 2 pounds im gutted as its coming off so slow im down to 12 stone, want another 2 stone off ideally, havnt spoke to any of the dieticians yet but if this carries on i. going to have to.

30 minutes ago, CLC1981 said:

Hi shrink&Grow hope your doing well after surgery and recovering well. I lost 2 pounds im gutted as its coming off so slow im down to 12 stone, want another 2 stone off ideally, havnt spoke to any of the dieticians yet but if this carries on i. going to have to.

Sounds like you've done absolutely amazing so far, but can imagine you're feeling pretty frustrated. I'm recovering ok, just got a touch of the blues tonight. Hope a bit of oramorph and a good night's sleep will sort me out!

Hope your feeling better soon, try and wean off the oramorph, it doesnt help with your mood, and the sweetness of the stuff is no good.

1 hour ago, CLC1981 said:

Hope your feeling better soon, try and wean off the oramorph, it doesnt help with your mood, and the sweetness of the stuff is no good.

That's a really good point moodwise - thank you. Think I will try and stick with just paracetamol tomorrow if need be.

On 6/18/2021 at 9:37 PM, CLC1981 said:

Hope your feeling better soon, try and wean off the oramorph, it doesnt help with your mood, and the sweetness of the stuff is no good.

Thanks again for this advice. After your message I haven't touched the stuff again and so far have been feeling ok! 2 weeks out tomorrow, down 7.5lbs from morning of surgery, 18.5lbs since beginning of June. Why is it I still feel frustrated when this is a HUGE amount of weight to lose in 4 weeks, got to keep reminding myself that.

Tried taking the dog for a walk by myself tonight and I think it was a bit soon. Just so excited to move my body.

Remember slow and steady wins the race. Dont rush anything you are doing amazing, Sometimes it takes time for your body to realise what is happening and takes a while to catch up, you will have stalls where you dont lose anything for weeks and get so disheartened but just remember it will all come off in time.

And well done getting off the oramorph.

Hi everyone!

Nice to see a bunch of us brits on here! I have my sleeve surgery in 13 days! And 3 days until I start my pre op diet.
I’m dreading the pre op diet more than anything! I don’t want to feel hungry! Any tips?

Has anyone here had the surgery with Ramsay Healthcare? They seem to be pretty good so far. Picked them after vetting some of the others (Tonic etc)

it’s exciting but nerve racking!

good luck to everyone, reading some stories it’s helped me understand a little more

em x

12 hours ago, eholmes89 said:

Hi everyone!

Nice to see a bunch of us brits on here! I have my sleeve surgery in 13 days! And 3 days until I start my pre op diet.
I’m dreading the pre op diet more than anything! I don’t want to feel hungry! Any tips?

Has anyone here had the surgery with Ramsay Healthcare? They seem to be pretty good so far. Picked them after vetting some of the others (Tonic etc)

it’s exciting but nerve racking!

good luck to everyone, reading some stories it’s helped me understand a little more

em x

Hi em, such an exciting time! What guidelines have Ramsay Health given you? I had my bypass on 15th June, did a 10 day pre-op diet. Spire Healthcare gave me 2 options, one was loads of milk, yogurt, fruit and a serving of home made vegetable soup and the other was more food based. I mostly stuck to the milk one, but had a bit of fish with veg instead of the soup some days.. I think the constant chugging of milk stopped me feeling hungry, protein is pretty fab for that. Have you met with your dietitian to discuss it? I kept myself busy and distracted during that time doing a deep clean of the house and getting everything ready for when I would be feeling delicate after surgery, and I am so glad I did!

9 hours ago, Shrink&Grow said:

Hi em, such an exciting time! What guidelines have Ramsay Health given you? I had my bypass on 15th June, did a 10 day pre-op diet. Spire Healthcare gave me 2 options, one was loads of milk, yogurt, fruit and a serving of home made vegetable Soup and the other was more food based. I mostly stuck to the milk one, but had a bit of fish with veg instead of the soup some days.. I think the constant chugging of milk stopped me feeling hungry, Protein is pretty fab for that. Have you met with your dietitian to discuss it? I kept myself busy and distracted during that time doing a deep clean of the house and getting everything ready for when I would be feeling delicate after surgery, and I am so glad I did!

Hi Shrink and Grow!

yes had a phone call with her a few weeks back and have a huge diet guide. She’s advised a mixture of protein shake, along with a guide of food, making sure I only pick food off a list they gave me. She also advised not to rely on protein shakes now as they might get boring for post op. I think I’m going to have protein shake breakfast, then pick some lunch and dinner within the list. I’m a serial snacker in the evenings. So I need to find something to keep me occupied! Cleaning sounds like a good idea!!

I’m so nervous but excited at the same time! I’ve never had surgery at all! So I have no idea what to expect. I’ve been told the gas and bloat after is the worst part ? did you do anything to help with this?

Em x

1 hour ago, eholmes89 said:

Hi Shrink and Grow!

yes had a phone call with her a few weeks back and have a huge diet guide. She’s advised a mixture of Protein Shake, along with a guide of food, making sure I only pick food off a list they gave me. She also advised not to rely on Protein Shakes now as they might get boring for post op. I think I’m going to have Protein shake Breakfast, then pick some lunch and dinner within the list. I’m a serial snacker in the evenings. So I need to find something to keep me occupied! Cleaning sounds like a good idea!!

I’m so nervous but excited at the same time! I’ve never had surgery at all! So I have no idea what to expect. I’ve been told the gas and bloat after is the worst part ? did you do anything to help with this?

Em x

It was my first time having surgery too, I was so scared about going under general anesthesia I didn't sleep the night before.. but as soon as I met my surgeon in the morning I was totally at ease (and too knackered to run haha). Totally agree the gas pain was the worst, getting up and walking about helped loads, as did doing very light tapping on my upper chest with clenched fists. My first walk was to the door of my room, with a healthcare assistant, about 5 or 6 hours after I got back to my room, but they said I was pretty woozy still. They were great with providing pain relief, don't be afraid to ask. Staying mobile definitely helps the gas pain. I was really grateful for this site as I could report in or read others' stories when I didn't want to have to explain to friends and family what I was experiencing.

Hi All

I'm based in Chester,nice to find some UK people .I am hopefully due to have a gastric sleeve beginning of September, just wondering if any of you have had this done with Phoenix health ,and if so any feedback they seem excellent up to know

On 7/3/2021 at 12:12 PM, Mel44 said:

Hi All

I'm based in Chester,nice to find some UK people .I am hopefully due to have a gastric sleeve beginning of September, just wondering if any of you have had this done with Phoenix health ,and if so any feedback they seem excellent up to know

Hi Mel, have you heard any more about a September date? I've not heard of Phoenix before, don't think we have them in the North East! Good luck

Hey Em, am also with Ramsay Health - just waiting for formal approval and a date. Had my first consultation with the doc and the dietician - really excited but also bricking it. I got given a milk/yoghurt diet and then a low cal one, might give the milk one a go as it seems straight forward and doesn’t require too much thinking about. How long was your wait from approval to date?

Are you telling people? I don’t think I will. There are a lot of fattists in my family/circle of friends who will just throw some negative comments about cheating or laziness so keeping stum I think.

18 minutes ago, Squidgy101 said:

Hey Em, am also with Ramsay Health - just waiting for formal approval and a date. Had my first consultation with the doc and the dietician - really excited but also bricking it. I got given a milk/yoghurt diet and then a low cal one, might give the milk one a go as it seems straight forward and doesn’t require too much thinking about. How long was your wait from approval to date?

Are you telling people? I don’t think I will. There are a lot of fattists in my family/circle of friends who will just throw some negative comments about cheating or laziness so keeping stum I think.

Hey Squidgy!

I feel like the time between first phone call to it being all booked in was quite quick for me. I had my consultation and the consultant agreed at the time he was happy to proceed. I then had a call with the dietician and psychiatrist within a few weeks and a letter to confirm a few days later. I was nervous because I'm at the lower end of the ‘high BMI’ scale so was scared they might not think I was big enough. However they understood I was there to prevent health issues and knew if I didn’t do something now it would only get worse.
I chose the low cal low carb diet, so I do a protein shake for breakfast, I have a lunch and dinner off the diet plan given and have 3 50cal snacks a day. I’ve found it fairly easy, I’ve only had 1 day I really struggled with nausea.

the team at Ramsay have been brilliant, Especially at the woodlands where I am attending.

I’ve told my family, most were really supportive, strangely the people who I thought would be understanding did not understand why I was doing it. Which made me sad. But I guess it’s either just worry or jealousy! Who knows. ??‍♀️
my work colleagues and boss were super understanding which was nice given the time I would be having off work and allowing me to continue to work from home when needed.

I would say it’s completely up to you if you tell people and how comfortable you are with that. Remember it’s your life and your body and your doing what you feel is right for you. Others opinions are not relevant.

I wish you all the best, and will keep you posted. I have my final bloods and covid swab today so I’m starting to feel a little nervous and excited about my new life.

Em x

That’s so exciting! Can’t wait to hear how it all goes for you - my BMI is 36 - both the doc and dietician said they’re happy for me to proceed but think there is a group approval that has to take place first. Either way if am approved I’ll find out the date this Tuesday. ?

I am reading so many different blogs - can’t wait to get started. Feels like I’ve put my life on hold a bit and really need to start living it.

How much time off work are you taking? It seems most people take 2 weeks off I think - not really sure though.

Any recommendations on all the vitamins you need to take pre op? Or any batch cooking like soup for when you get back home?

take care - sounds like you’re doing great already! X