Caroline
In January 2011, tired of being overweight and depressed at the prospect of living my life that way, a friend of mine handed me an article in a newspaper about Gastric bypasses. Somewhat sceptical, I had tried every other means of weight loss, from Weight Watchers, Weight Motivation to a very expensive clinic in Dublin which provided "Shakes", nothing had worked for me. I had put on a lot of weight in my thirties, mostly through stress, working for a multinational in a job that was incredibly demanding, and I fed my stress with food to a point where I couldn't lose the excess weight.
I'd heard everything, you've no will power, you haven't tried, but my eating had an emotional root and as long as I could eat I would, and I constantly walked down the nightmare road of viscous circle dieting, diet, binge, diet binge. With Type II diabetes it was no longer a case of I'll start tomorrow, but Dr's constantly warning me of the truly horrible consequences I was facing if I didn't face up to and conquer my eating issues.
After talking to my GP who was wholeheartedly behind the operation, I heard of the Gastric Bypass surgery at the Bons Secours. I met with Mr. O'Boyle, his matter of fact, no-nonsense professional approach was very encouraging. But I'd been encouraged before, only to fall at the last fence. I signed up to a battery of pre-medical tests in the Bons Secours in Cork under Mr. O'Boyle's care. If I had any doubts they were immediately dispelled. A day of intensive medical testing was carried out in what can only be described as military precision. The medical attention and care was second to none. By this stage I was one hundred per cent committed to the operation.
Mr. O'Boyle's team at the Bons Secours follow an all encompassing approach to this surgery which includes meetings with your Surgeon – Mr. O'Boyle, Dietician's, Physio's and a Counsellor. This pre- and post operative approach coupled with a support group gives you constant access to all the information you need before and support after surgery. In addition, the stringent pre-med means you are 100% fit for surgery and certainly erased any doubts and answered many questions I had.
The surgery is a big operation, the word "keyhole" is a bit of a red-herring. Time and time again I've been told by GP's that this is something that is only done by very skilled surgeons and is an extremely big operation. Even though I am living near Dublin, the quality of care under Mr O'Boyle and his team was second to none, and a short 2 and a half hour trip for this major surgery is a small journey for the medical expertise I benefitted from. The special care during and after the operation was exceptional and follow up appointments were made for very shortly after my surgery which was extremely beneficial.
My type II diabetes has all but gone. I am not long after the operation, but I have already lost a considerable amount of weight, something I could not dream of before. I look and feel one thousand per cent better. Not only has the operation taken multiple kgs off my, it as dialled back the clock in terms of how old I feel and look.
So why does this work when nothing else did? Because my eating is controlled for me. I didn't have the will power, plus with the type II diabetes allowed myself to cave to sugar cravings constantly. Now I follow a stringent, but tasty diet, and I actually feel full for the first time in years. I would strongly recommend Mr O'Boyle and his team and this operation as the only real solution to permanent weight loss for those who are obese. This operation is literally life saving and life changing!
