Personal story till surgery
I have been overweight for the last 15-20 years and have tried every diet going. I joined Slimming World in an effort to lose weight. I was quite successful at losing weight but a complete failure at maintaining the weight loss.

Your diet experiences
I have tried all the trendy diets such as Atkins etc. I have failed to maintain the weight loss. Over the past 4 years I have developed all the complaints associated with obesity. I have sleep apnea, high blood pressure and my blood sugar level is fast approaching diabetes. I am currently waiting to have both hip joints replaced, another symptom of being obese. I decided that at 60 it was time to do something positive. I had read about weight loss surgery and decided to investigate. The results seemed too good to be true. Having considered all options for a couple of months, I decided that gastric banding was for me. I liked the idea of gastric banding because it was far less invasive surgery than the other options and that you were physically prevented from eating more food than is necessary to maintain a good weight loss. I was also impressed in that the band could be finely adjusted to suit my individual needs and maintain my weight at the ideal level.

Personal experiences in Belgium
I contacted EOC after searching the web. Arrangements were made for the surgery to be performed by Dr Dillemans in Bruges on 11 th January 2006. I live in Bristol and the timetable was as follows:I took a friend and we left Bristol on Monday 9 th January. We stayed in a hotel at Dover that night and caught an early ferry to Dunkerque the next day. We drove to Bruges, only 50 miles, and on the way I phoned Marc, Dr Dillemans assistant and Mr Fix-It. He met us at the main entrance to the hospital and guided me through all the necessary tests etc. I had an ECG, blood tests, meetings with dieticians and finally a consultation with Dr Dillemans. All went well and it was decided that the procedure would be carried out the next day. I had made a reservation at the Campanile Hotel in Bruges for the Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday night. After all the tests we went back to the hotel for the Last Supper. The owner of that hotel has himself had obesity surgery and was a good source of knowledge for what I was to undergo the following day. We went back to the hospital at 7.30am the following morning and I was booked in. The hospital is run as a commercial enterprise, is very big, very efficient and very clean. It is the Belgian equivalent of a British NHS hospital but appeared to be far more organised. I was not operated on until about 2pm that day and returned to my 2 bedded room at about 8pm. There was some pain but nothing too severe. The following morning Dr Dillemans came to see me at about 6.30am. He told me that the surgery had gone as expected with no complications. He told me that he had done all he could for me and that it was now down to me to follow the rules and lose weight. I was discharged from the hospital at lunchtime and we went back to the hotel. The hotel owner had prepared some soup for me, which I drank slowly. On Friday 13 th January a nurse arrived at the hotel and changed some of the dressings. She also gave me the once over and said I was OK to travel back to the UK. We travelled back to the UK and got home at about 6pm that evening.

Results after 1 month - 3 months
I will keep you posted with my weight loss as it occurs, but I have lost 5 kilos since the operation. I suspect this is because of the limited liquid diet at this stage and not the banding which will only become truly effective after the first fill.

What did you find difficult comparing with before surgery?
I am looking forward to moving on to liquidised food some time next week, and then on to small portions of normal food about a month after that.

What is your reason for surgery?
I am convinced that the surgery will work and that I will lose my excess weight. I need to get down from 173 kilos to 98 kilos to have a BMI of 25. I have already started on the journey.

Would you do it over again?
Although I am not very far down the 'weight loss' road I am convinced that I have made the right decision. The hardest part of the process is making the initial decision to have weight loss surgery. EOC were very helpful from the outset. Marc was a great asset in the hospital in that he knew everyone and was able to guide me through the assessment process. I would always recommend taking a friend for support etc.