30-stone woman demands taxpayer-funded gastric op

A woman who weighs 30-stone and ironically married to a qualified fitness instructor, has demanded gastric surgery on the NHS after claiming she is too big to work and cannot lose the weight.

Wendy Phillips, a 46-year old mother-of-three from Barnstaple, Devon, is currently a size 36 and says her large frame has induced back problems that have forced her to quit her job at a care home.

Her 5ft 2in height and 30-stone weight means that Wendy’s Body Mass Index (BMI) is an incredible 76.8. A BMI reading of between 30 and 40 is deemed obese and anything over 40 is described as ‘very obese’ – posing life-threatening health risks such as diabetes, heart disease, stroke and many more. A ‘healthy’ BMI range is between 18 and 25, which further highlights the seriousness of the situation.

She complains she cannot shed the weight by herself and says she needs a £15,000 gastric op – which will ultimately come out of taxpayer’s pockets. This is on top of the £30,000 that she has already claimed over the previous five years from sickness benefits.

Wendy reached her current weight after leading a poor diet for 20 years that primarily comprised of junk food. The NHS unfortunately has rejected her pleas for a weight loss operation and understandably wants concrete evidence she will change her lifestyle indefinitely.

Wendy’s husband Sean is now a nurse, but still goes to the gym three times a week and even completed a marathon last year. It seems his guidance has not had any effect.

She says: “Sean’s advised me about nutrition and exercise, but I don’t have as much willpower as him. I’m sensitive about my weight so he doesn’t push me”, adding it is ‘unfair’ she has been denied a gastric op because she hasn’t proved she is willing to alter her lifestyle. She added: “I know I’ve been stupid – now I’m too fat to work. I was greedy and ate too many sausage rolls. But it’s too late for me to help myself now. I try to diet, but exercise is painful. I worked and paid my taxes for 20 years, so I didn’t expect the NHS to shut the door in my face. If they don’t help me, I’ll die. Taxpayers see fat people as a burden, but alcoholics get help. I’m being treated unfairly.”

Before falling pregnant at the age of 21 to a different partner, Wendy was already a size 16 and subsequently gained six stone through her pregnancy – reaching a size 24 and weighing 19-stone.

She comments: “I’d eat a cheese sandwich for brunch with a packet of crisps, and have a steak and kidney pie with mash for dinner. I’d snack on a large wedge of cheese. I thought it was OK because I was eating for two.”

Reminiscing on meeting her current husband Sean, she says: “He was so fit – 6ft 4 and 16-stone – and worked out every day, but he told me he’d weighed 25-stone before losing 9-stone. He didn’t judge me – he just liked me for me.”

Incredibly though, Wendy has only ever attempted to stick to a diet once – for her wedding. Proving that weight loss can be achieved with the correct lifestyle, Wendy lost three stone to be able to fit into her wedding dress.  Old habits were resumed though and Wendy’s battle with her weight continued.

She says: “I lost 3st by cutting down on carbs and going for walks but despite dropping to 22st and my back pain improving, I was 28st again within a year. Sean was disappointed, but accepted I didn’t have the willpower. People would look at me disapprovingly in the street, but Sean told me to ignore them. I’m ashamed I haven’t been able to work and I’ve claimed so much in benefits. I wish I could stick to diets, but some people just don’t have self- control – it’s not our fault.”

Even though Wendy seems certain that weight loss surgery is the only option, GP Dr. Sarah Jarvis says: “If Wendy stuck to a healthy diet she could lose weight – surgery isn’t her only option. Patients who are unable to lose weight prior to gastric surgery will be less successful afterwards anyway.” In addition, there are numerous potential dangers of gastric surgery that Wendy should consider first.

Gastric bypass patient wins £35,000 after surgical negligence

The dangers of undergoing gastric bypass surgery in order to lose weight, is something Medical Specialists Pharmacy covered in June 2012. For those unaware, a gastric bypass is an operation whereby the surgeon will make your stomach smaller and also reduce the length of small intestine that food travels through.

It is usually performed via keyhole (laparoscopic) surgery. With this method of surgery, small cuts are made are in the abdomen instead of one much bigger cut. The surgeon uses small instruments assisted by the aid of a camera to see the surgical field. However, it is estimated that around 25% of patients who have undergone this type of surgery later require additional treatment because of a post-operative complication.

The dangers of keyhole surgery have been further laid bare this week with the news that a 28 year-old mother of two has won a whopping £35,000 pay-out due to a botched operation.

Rachel Benefer from Cleethorpes, Lincolnshire, decided on weight loss surgery after reaching a weight of 23 stone in 2007. She realised that she urgently needed to do something about it before her health became affected as obesity is a well-known high risk factor for numerous problems such as high blood pressure, high cholesterol, diabetes, heart disease, stroke, cancer, osteoarthritis, sleep apnea and many more.

Unfortunately, Mrs Benefer found it difficult due to shed the excess pounds because of an old back injury hampering her efforts as well as having polycystic ovary syndrome – a condition that interferes with hormones and results in unpleasant symptoms such as acne, irregular periods, hair loss and weight gain.

It was then Mrs Benefer decided to read up on gastric bypass surgery and thought this was the route to take. At a staggering £9,500 – £15,000 for an op, she was rejected for funding on the premise she had to visit a dietician and psychologist for twelve months before being approved for the surgery.

In retrospect, following her 2007 surgery at Hull and East Riding Classic Hospital, perhaps Rachel would have chosen against opting for this method of weight loss. Despite seemingly being a successful operation, problems began to arise after just a few days.

Rachel explains: “Everything seemed fine and I was discharged. But a few days later I was being sick and I was in agony. I was rushed to hospital and ended up in intensive care for two weeks and was later placed in an induced coma.”

The surgeon had not correctly closed a small incision which led to Rachel developing a hernia. This restricted her small bowel and the severe pressure had obliterated the stomach bypass. When doctors realised the serious situation they were dealing with, Rachel had to be rushed into intensive care and then placed in the induced coma.

Because of the complications arising from her botched surgery, Rachel needed to undergo two further operations and had to endure 11 days on a ventilator. She continued: “I spent a total of 11 days on a ventilator and also underwent a tracheotomy. People think having a gastric bypass is an easy way out, but I had thought about it and had tried everything to lose weight, including hypnotherapy. When I was at 23 stone I was just a mess, I was depressed and also stopped working as a carer because I couldn’t get about, I became a recluse. Before I hit puberty I was extremely thin but then the weight just piled on, even though I often only ate one meal a day. I didn’t eat a lot of chocolate, sweets or crisps, I ate normal meals. My husband Chris has been by my side the whole time, we have been married for eight years and he loves me, no matter how much I weigh.”

With Gastric surgery costing up to £15,000, this last resort and potentially dangerous weight loss method is clearly not for everybody, especially in times of financial austerity. If you are obese why not try a clinically proven weight loss aid such as Xenical, Alli or XLS-Medical Fat Binder. Adopting a healthy lifestyle and diet in conjunction with one of these treatments can help you lose weight. All three are available today from Medical Specialists Pharmacy at fantastic prices. Head to the ‘Obesity’ area of the website for more information about how to obtain them.