So tomorrow is two years from when I had my sleeve surgery, though it is only just over one year since my last procedure due to all my post of complications, and a few weeks ago I turned 50.

Here is a picture of me at 40 and a picture at 50. My weight back in May 2015 was about 130kg (20st / 286lb), it went up and down in the years between to where I was 120kg before surgery and now I am between 63 & 65kg (10st/141lb) so I am now half the person I used to be.

40yrs vs 50yrs

The last two weeks I have had really bad abdominal pain on and off and when it showed no signs of improvement I went to the emergency department where my bariatric surgeon had some of his team waiting for me. After CT scan and blood tests it showed my abdominal area was very inflamed but no infection thankfully so they hooked me up to painkillers and sent me home with a prescription for more pain killers (tramadol) and muscle relaxers. Yesterday I had my follow up and the surgeon has said that following a review of my results it looks like the clip that they had to place when I had my leak is now causing a reaction so I have to continue on the pain meds plus add in antibiotics for a couple of weeks.

The surgeon has said the clip has to come out as it is a matter of quality of life for me going forward as he says the pain can come back any time in the future if left it. The choices he gave are that it can be done by open surgery to remove (which he says is his second choice) and his preference is to do a revision surgery to bypass. Given all the sleeve post op complications I told him that I didn’t want to go down a surgical route, especially back in the same hospital but he feels this is the best option though he did say I could of course get a second opinion. So I have done just that, I contacted one of the surgeons (a mentor of my bariatric surgeon) who I had to be transferred to when my leak would not heal (the one who had to ft the pigtail/tube in my stomach) and he has said from looking at my files he believes it can be removed without the need for surgery and can see me in two weeks time to review my case and check scans so fingers crossed he can do something endoscopic wise.

I am due to get my arm lift surgery end of October so if I had to have stomach surgery in the next few months I wouldn’t then be able to get my lift. Obviously that is not a reason to decline the surgery if it is the best and only option but it would be great to get everything resolved without stomach surgery and still be able to get my arm lift.

Edited July 3, 20251 yr by FifiLux

yikes! i'm curious...how exactly would they take out the clip without surgery??

hopefully you can find a solution that you are good with in any case and that you can get your arm lift as planned (its a game changer...i totally LOVE mine

p.s. i love your jeans in your 50-yr-old pic!!

You look amazing, such a difference. You have had the roughest ride and to hear that you are still having issues is so sad. I hope your second opinion works out for you. You deserve the luck.

Let us know how you get on.

Wishing you the best with this, hopeful, last complication! One thing to remember is that your health and wellness is of most importance. You do look great in your 50 year body! Congratulations!

Congratulations on your progress!

On 7/3/2025 at 6:18 PM, ms.sss said:

yikes! i'm curious...how exactly would they take out the clip without surgery??

hopefully you can find a solution that you are good with in any case and that you can get your arm lift as planned (its a game changer...i totally LOVE mine

p.s. i love your jeans in your 50-yr-old pic!!

Thanks, they are my Victoria Beckham jeans which I treated myself to with birthday money I received. Wish I could afford them in various colours but not until I win the lottery.

So my update.....

On Friday afternoon I sent my CT scan imaging and report from the week before to the professor who is giving me my second opinion on whether I needed further surgery. Within two hours he rang me to say that it is not a case that the clip should come out because it could impact my quality of life or a reaction but that it MUST come out asap as the area around it is infected and I have what is called a superinfection. It appears that one of the leaks from two years ago has not healed, it was just being held together by the clip and if the clip is removed the leak is there!!

He wants to remove the clip and then put in a pigtail (coil tube thingy) into the hole so the stomach will heal around it and then the pigtail will either pass through in a few months or can be removed easily at a later date - this is what he did before to stop the other leak and it worked successfully. And just for clarification, his hospital are not the ones who fitted the clip, that was done by my original local hospital who did the sleeve surgery.

Anyway it is a special machine that has to be brought on site to do the procedure so I will travel there (Belgium) at the weekend and have the procedure this day next week.

I still don't feel great but the antibiotics are helping though I am struggling to eat (no interest) so have lost almost 3kg in the last two weeks.

I wish you well in all the ways possible.

Wishing you the best!!

You were so right in the second opinion and going with someone you trust. I wish you a quick and easy recovery. Please keep us informed as you progress x

Hope everything goes well!

Firstly congrats on your weight loss you look amazing! I can only wish for such a great loss! ? ?

Happy 50th!!

So sorry to hear of your complications, hopefully this operation will fix it once and for all for you!

Best wishes to you FiFiLux ?

On 7/7/2025 at 11:56 PM, FifiLux said:

So my update.....

On Friday afternoon I sent my CT scan imaging and report from the week before to the professor who is giving me my second opinion on whether I needed further surgery. Within two hours he rang me to say that it is not a case that the clip should come out because it could impact my quality of life or a reaction but that it MUST come out asap as the area around it is infected and I have what is called a superinfection. It appears that one of the leaks from two years ago has not healed, it was just being held together by the clip and if the clip is removed the leak is there!!

He wants to remove the clip and then put in a pigtail (coil tube thingy) into the hole so the stomach will heal around it and then the pigtail will either pass through in a few months or can be removed easily at a later date - this is what he did before to stop the other leak and it worked successfully. And just for clarification, his hospital are not the ones who fitted the clip, that was done by my original local hospital who did the sleeve surgery.

Anyway it is a special machine that has to be brought on site to do the procedure so I will travel there (Belgium) at the weekend and have the procedure this day next week.

I still don't feel great but the antibiotics are helping though I am struggling to eat (no interest) so have lost almost 3kg in the last two weeks.

That’s a lot to deal with, thanks for keeping us updated. Have you had the procedure yet, or is it still coming up? Really hope everything goes smoothly and that you're starting to feel better soon.

Last week I had the endoscopic procedure to remove two clips, which when gone showed that the hole/leak was still there on my stomach. I now have a pigtail drain put in to give time to heal and then if it does not move itself, it will be removed in six months. No open or revision surgery required

I was allowed home the following day and have just been resting since as I have been totally and utterly exhausted, to the point I was beginning to wonder if I was still unwell. I am due a follow up consultation on Wednesday where I am sure I will be told that all is now good as I had a blood test today that shows my white blood cell count is in the positive again and my CRP level is back down to under 2 (from 91). I also had a CT scan this evening so will get that result at the consult.

I still don't have much of an appetite, and I had to have soft foods the last week, so have mostly been living on yogurts or protein mousses and down almost 5kg since this all started a month ago but I am sure I will put that back on once I get back into a routine again of work, gym, social life

@FifiLux I wish you a speedy recovery and a very normal life after. You have had a hard journey so far and deserve the best.