Gastric band/sleeve/bypass

1
camotea said:
Can anyone who has had a gastric sleeve in Turkey share anything about booking and also recovery time?

How quickly could I arrange a date for surgery? E.g. could I book to go in a fortnight or something?
I’m going on my honeymoon in April(!). If I had it done in, say, early January would I potentially be recovered enough to eat more than purée by mid-April? I understand it’s different for everyone but would that be reasonable?

thanks
Click to expand...
I had my sleeve done in Turkey. After a month you can eat ‘normal’ food just nowhere near as much. Which company are you looking at biking with?
 
I had a sleeve in Turkey. I had to wait for it to be done in school holidays but they could fit me in when I asked. I know people who made the enquiry and could book it more or less straight away, within a couple of weeks.

The hardest bit is the first few weeks as you can only have puréed / mushy food, but at the time, it was fine, it just seemed difficult looking back. If you want to have surgery soon, you will have to accept that you will not be able to eat over a Christmas, or you many have to Manage your expectations for eating for your engagement / wedding.

I would say it was good few months before I could go out and eat a meal. It is fairly easy to eat slider foods (all the unhealthy stuff)l. I preferred to eat fish for quite some time after. I had mine a year and a half ago but I’ve only just started eating red meat again, although I couldn’t manage a steak!
 
camotea said:
Thanks for your response. what’s a Food funeral?? 😬
Click to expand...
Eat whatever you want between booking and surgery and not eat with guilt. The 4 weeks I waited for my surgery I ate whatever I wanted when I used to lie in bed every night and cry about what I ate that day, I didn’t for them 4 weeks, and now looking back I’m so glad I did that because you can never eat a proper portion of let’s say a curry again (slider foods different story - avoid for as long as you can). Good luck!! It’s the best thing I ever did and would recommend to anyone with a high BMI and has struggled and tried everything ❤️
 
kelly123 said:
I had my sleeve done in Turkey. After a month you can eat ‘normal’ food just nowhere near as much. Which company are you looking at biking with?
Click to expand...
A friend used Get Slim Turkey but I don’t have the doctor details. I’m not sure how it works really. Only saw my friend last night and she told me about it. I joined their fb and they’ve already messaged me. Friend has gone from size 22 to size 16 in a year! I did the same amount myself (calorie counting) a few years ago but pandemic, losing my mother & menopause have stuffed it again 🫡
 
i did my research on two hospitals based on recommendations. I looked at Dr Tamar in Egypt (can’t remember the hospital, sorry) and Gozde international hospitals, Dr Deniz. If you send a message via Facebook or Instagram, their own reps will contact you via WhatsApp.

I went with Turkey because it was easier for me to get to flight wise and it fitted my dates better. I personally know someone who also got great results in Egypt. I have flown alone several times and had to fly to Amsterdam Schipol airport to change to Izmir so was nervous about delays, and there was a delay, but it was OK. You are picked up from the airport and taken to the hospital. You can pay for the economy or premium hospital. I paid for premium and it was like a hotel room. I also should have had a premium hotel, but I found it a bit basic. It was only one night though!

The test I had seemed to be more thorough than any test Inhad had in the UK. I also took out separate insurance. Many people don’t bother with this, but I like to be sure.

The hospital asks you to bring cash, but ai actually paid in advance. Some people are told they need to have their gall bladder removed at the same time, so need to pay extra (you are given the choice) but I did not need that anyway.

I say I was size 18, but I was squeezing into those. Probably a size 20. I am now a size 8-12 depending on shops (More like a 10).
---
Sickofinstacrap said:
Eat whatever you want between booking and surgery and not eat with guilt. The 4 weeks I waited for my surgery I ate whatever I wanted when I used to lie in bed every night and cry about what I ate that day, I didn’t for them 4 weeks, and now looking back I’m so glad I did that because you can never eat a proper portion of let’s say a curry again (slider foods different story - avoid for as long as you can). Good luck!! It’s the best thing I ever did and would recommend to anyone with a high BMI and has struggled and tried everything ❤
Click to expand...
I agree. Some places say to do a liver reduction diet. I didn’t at all! The only thing I would say is to try to wean yourself off caffeine, or cut down, because you cannot have it at first and ai went cold turkey from the surgery and that made me feel more ill than the surgery!
 
Deedeemegadoodoo said:
i did my research on two hospitals based on recommendations. I looked at Dr Tamar in Egypt (can’t remember the hospital, sorry) and Gozde international hospitals, Dr Deniz. If you send a message via Facebook or Instagram, their own reps will contact you via WhatsApp.

I went with Turkey because it was easier for me to get to flight wise and it fitted my dates better. I personally know someone who also got great results in Egypt. I have flown alone several times and had to fly to Amsterdam Schipol airport to change to Izmir so was nervous about delays, and there was a delay, but it was OK. You are picked up from the airport and taken to the hospital. You can pay for the economy or premium hospital. I paid for premium and it was like a hotel room. I also should have had a premium hotel, but I found it a bit basic. It was only one night though!

The test I had seemed to be more thorough than any test Inhad had in the UK. I also took out separate insurance. Many people don’t bother with this, but I like to be sure.

The hospital asks you to bring cash, but ai actually paid in advance. Some people are told they need to have their gall bladder removed at the same time, so need to pay extra (you are given the choice) but I did not need that anyway.

I say I was size 18, but I was squeezing into those. Probably a size 20. I am now a size 8-12 depending on shops (More like a 10).
---

I agree. Some places say to do a liver reduction diet. I didn’t at all! The only thing I would say is to try to wean yourself off caffeine, or cut down, because you cannot have it at first and ai went cold turkey from the surgery and that made me feel more ill than the surgery!
Click to expand...
One of the stipulations for me to have a sleeve on the NHS is the liver reducing diet beforehand. My friend who had it privately in Birmingham said the same. I guess it varies from place to place.
 
camotea said:
A friend used Get Slim Turkey but I don’t have the doctor details. I’m not sure how it works really. Only saw my friend last night and she told me about it. I joined their fb and they’ve already messaged me. Friend has gone from size 22 to size 16 in a year! I did the same amount myself (calorie counting) a few years ago but pandemic, losing my mother & menopause have stuffed it again 🫡
Click to expand...
I went with Get Slim. You have a choice of two surgeons. One uses a drain and the other doesn’t. Direct flights to Turkey. Picked up by the hospital transport and then in to the hospital for lots of thorough tests. Op the next day then three nights recovering and a night in the hotel before the transport takes you back to the airport
 
I went with Dr HE in Turkey, look them up on insta and join their Facebook page for research. I was all set for booking with another well known clinic but I had doubts in the back of my head and so glad I carried on my research and went with HE Clinic, they respond to any communication very quickly. I had a fantastic experience and was looked after well ( I went on my own for a full week) and has been the best thing I have ever done. I have never once been sick ( experienced dumping probably a handful of times) and I am nearly 2 years post op. I didn’t need to a liver reducing diet as they have equipment to move the liver out of the way. It’s not a magic fix by any means, I would say that it’s more of a boost to get that initial chunk of weight off. I am now at the stage where I need to be careful of addictive slider foods and need to work hard to get the last couple of stone off. Yes the op changes how much you can eat in one go but it certainly does not completely change how your brain works, if you’ve struggled with emotional or binge eating before then there’s a high chance you will still struggle with it later down the line (as I only know too well). Like any controlled eating, you have to change your mindset to be successful. Good luck!
 
I had mine done in Istanbul about 6 weeks ago with Dr Firat Tutal at the Florence Nightingale hospital. Not the cheapest hospital or surgeon but worth paying the extra.

I walked 10k steps 3 days after and have felt brilliant ever since. I know a lot of people struggle with pain and/or emotional lows, but it’s not hit me yet.

I went on my own as I had to fit it around childcare (single mum problems) but zero regrets. Tbh, it maybe made it easier as I was able to get proper rest in at the hospital rather than having someone “fuss”.
 
My mum had the sleeve in 2012. She developed terrible reflux and was told the best way forward was to have the full bypass.
This made her very ill, she wasn’t able to eat much and when she did she would feel sick, often vomit etc
She became very thin and started getting muscle loss. Within 18 months of having the sleeve and then bypass, she was bed bound and on a peg feed of a bag of 500 calories a day to try and build her up.
One night, she pulled the peg tube out that went into her bowel. She was taken to hospital and was in for a week. On the 7th day my dad was visiting her and she had become unresponsive and when she had her obs her sugar levels were dangerously low. Within hours she was in intensive care and myself and siblings were called to the hospital. We got there about an hour before she sadly passed away. She had developed septicaemia from an infection. Doctors were never sure how long she had the infection for or if she had developed septicaemia from the open wound she had after pulling out her tube.
Mum was part of a Facebook group where hundreds of people were suffering with the after affects of weight loss surgery. Worst case scenarios were like my mum. I don’t think the risks are ever really explained to patients wanting the surgery, and I also think people get so desperate that they don’t even consider how bad it could be. Please always think twice, especially before having the bypass - this seems to be the surgery that causes the most issues.
 
freshhead said:
My mum had the sleeve in 2012. She developed terrible reflux and was told the best way forward was to have the full bypass.
This made her very ill, she wasn’t able to eat much and when she did she would feel sick, often vomit etc
She became very thin and started getting muscle loss. Within 18 months of having the sleeve and then bypass, she was bed bound and on a peg feed of a bag of 500 calories a day to try and build her up.
One night, she pulled the peg tube out that went into her bowel. She was taken to hospital and was in for a week. On the 7th day my dad was visiting her and she had become unresponsive and when she had her obs her sugar levels were dangerously low. Within hours she was in intensive care and myself and siblings were called to the hospital. We got there about an hour before she sadly passed away. She had developed septicaemia from an infection. Doctors were never sure how long she had the infection for or if she had developed septicaemia from the open wound she had after pulling out her tube.
Mum was part of a Facebook group where hundreds of people were suffering with the after affects of weight loss surgery. Worst case scenarios were like my mum. I don’t think the risks are ever really explained to patients wanting the surgery, and I also think people get so desperate that they don’t even consider how bad it could be. Please always think twice, especially before having the bypass - this seems to be the surgery that causes the most issues.
Click to expand...

So sorry for your loss, your poor Mum.

Getting sleeved certainly isn't plain sailing and there have been a good few cases on the media here in Ireland about people who have died as a result of surgery and a lot of people end up needing corretive surgery when they get home. Some people live very poor quality of life afterwards due to how limited they are in what they can eat. Its good that there are the weight loss injections like ozempic and saxenda now and at least they are available to try before taking the huge step of surgery. My niece got sleeved in Turkey and it worked out quite well for her apart from her replacing her food addiction with drink, she won't admit she has a drink problem but she most definitely has, its very sad really. The operation worked for weight loss but nothing was done to help her psychologically. And she wasn't that big to begin with only 14 stone, a size 16, she's under 8 stone now and looks dreadful in my opinion, she has terrible skin and just looks so frail and old, she's only early 40's. But all she wanted was to be slim so I guess she got what she wanted. I often wonder what the future holds for her, her diet is terrible she gets very little nutrition, she drinks like a fish. Very said really.
 
I am sorry for your loss @freshhead <3

I do feel the need to post here as I had a bypass four weeks ago. I chose this surgery over the sleeve because the sleeve exacerbates acid reflux, which I already suffered from, and the bypass is often cited as giving better results. I did 18 months worth of research into having surgery, watched countless Youtube videos and followed many others who have had surgery on social media. Weight loss surgery is not a quick fix, it is also not as scary as it used to be. My surgery was a keyhole procedure, almost all now are, although this is another reason the majority are asked to do a liver reduction diet prior, and I was operated on by two excellent private surgeons in the UK. As it's only been four weeks I cannot say for sure how this will go for me results wise but for my physical and mental health I have nothing but good things to say. Already within these few weeks I am sleeping better, have less joint pain, my asthma isn't playing up anymore, my fitness levels are improving and I no longer snore or have constant heartburn. Mentally the change is quite astounding. I was in a very bad place since gaining a lot of weight a few years ago. I could not shift it, no matter what I tried and trust me I tried everything, fasting up to 21 hours a day at one point. Since the surgery this despair and anxiety has lifted. The fact I don't spend almost every waking hour thinking about how I need to diet, lose weight, what day should I weigh myself, should I start on Friday or Monday, should I eat more calories on some days over others, should I do keto again, is enough to make me do the surgery all over again if I needed to.

If you'd told me five years ago I'd be having a gastric bypass I'd have said hell no I won't be, but circumstances change and if you truly cannot lose weight alone then it really is the only option to get to a healthy weight. If you are thinking about weight loss surgery and you've tried everything else then do some research and see if it's right for you. There are horror stories, but when you actually look you'll see these are rare compared to the success stories. It's obviously important to be aware of potential complications, but any good surgeon will inform you of these way beforehand. At the end of the day only you can decide what is right for you. I did that and I'm now very proud of myself for taking that step.
 
muffintop13 said:
I am sorry for your loss @freshhead <3

I do feel the need to post here as I had a bypass four weeks ago. I chose this surgery over the sleeve because the sleeve exacerbates acid reflux, which I already suffered from, and the bypass is often cited as giving better results. I did 18 months worth of research into having surgery, watched countless Youtube videos and followed many others who have had surgery on social media. Weight loss surgery is not a quick fix, it is also not as scary as it used to be. My surgery was a keyhole procedure, almost all now are, although this is another reason the majority are asked to do a liver reduction diet prior, and I was operated on by two excellent private surgeons in the UK. As it's only been four weeks I cannot say for sure how this will go for me results wise but for my physical and mental health I have nothing but good things to say. Already within these few weeks I am sleeping better, have less joint pain, my asthma isn't playing up anymore, my fitness levels are improving and I no longer snore or have constant heartburn. Mentally the change is quite astounding. I was in a very bad place since gaining a lot of weight a few years ago. I could not shift it, no matter what I tried and trust me I tried everything, fasting up to 21 hours a day at one point. Since the surgery this despair and anxiety has lifted. The fact I don't spend almost every waking hour thinking about how I need to diet, lose weight, what day should I weigh myself, should I start on Friday or Monday, should I eat more calories on some days over others, should I do keto again, is enough to make me do the surgery all over again if I needed to.

If you'd told me five years ago I'd be having a gastric bypass I'd have said hell no I won't be, but circumstances change and if you truly cannot lose weight alone then it really is the only option to get to a healthy weight. If you are thinking about weight loss surgery and you've tried everything else then do some research and see if it's right for you. There are horror stories, but when you actually look you'll see these are rare compared to the success stories. It's obviously important to be aware of potential complications, but any good surgeon will inform you of these way beforehand. At the end of the day only you can decide what is right for you. I did that and I'm now very proud of myself for taking that step.
Click to expand...
This all sounds very positive, I’m so pleased for you 🩷
 
Anyone know the goss and what’s gone down with sophiegotsleeved aka Sophie Noa?
I really like her but it seems someone else in the community is being mean to her?
 
Haha I thought the same but after a little bit of snooping it looks like pig_to_twig_77 ( she has over 10k followers so think it’s ok to mention her name) has made a story calling someone out for something that’s gone on in the community meet ups but that’s lead her to saying that the particular said person (she never names Sophie on her posts) takes advantage of people in the ‘community’ as she started charging people for her options/experience with weight loss surgery and that she’s changed since she’s started getting paid ads and that she feels like she’s got a bit of a cheek when she’s has regained quite a bit of the weight she lost from surgery.. to be honest I had no idea who she was going on about till some of the girls with larger followings started posting support for Sophie and tagging her in.. they do say bad publicity is any publicity or something like that x
 
Do you think it’s more cliquey and competitive in the sleeve group? Most of the wls accounts I follow are sleeve purely because I remember searching for RNY accounts and finding much fewer.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top