Tina Malone: 'The gastric band changed my life'
Thursday 02 September 2010
Following two gastric ops, Shameless actress Tina Malone has lost almost 7st! Here, she exclusively tells Closer the story behind the surgery that turned her life around.
On March 11th this year Tina went into The Hospital Group’s Dolan Park Hospital in Birmingham for the gastric band procedure, which took just 25 minutes.
“I was absolutely petrified” she admits. “But the surgeon, Mr Sigurdsson was brilliant – he told me I’d be walking around the ground of the hospital later that day and he was right! I felt fine. Sore, but fine."
The procedure, which costs £5,950, is done under a general anesthetic and Tina had to go on a calorie controlled diet for two weeks before it took place, mainly to reduce the amount of fat around the liver.
Once the band was in place, Tina had a liquid diet for the next fortnight.
“I had soups, shakes, that sort of thing. After two weeks of that, I was allowed soft food like scrambled egg, mash potato and minced food and it was fine, I soon got used to it”.
Four weeks after the procedure and Tina’s first ‘fill’ took place, with an injection of saline solution into the gastric band.
“It’s like a donut” explains Tina. “Think of the ‘fill’ making the hole in the donut smaller, so less food gets through”.
This reduction appetite accelerates the weight loss dramatically. Once the ‘fills’ have started, the patient can eat normally, just in small quantities and since having the surgery, Tina has had four of these ‘fills’ one of which she admits, went too far.
“I had too much of the saline put in, I was so impatient to lose the weight but I couldn’t keep anything down”.
A side effect of too big a fill is that the patient can vomit and the fill needs to be reduced.
“My husband Paul was so angry with me, he dragged me back to the hospital and they reduced it straight away” she says. “I lost 12lbs in one week and it was just too much. Not healthy”.
At the time of our shoot, Tina weighs 11st 11lbs and is wearing a size 14 dress from a size 22. “It’s a bit tight, but it is a size 14!” she laughs.
“Before I started the weight loss I felt huge and everything I wore was a big sweatshirt and leggings and I had no definition to my body. I didn’t know where my neck started and my body began. In fact, I had no neck!”
Tina goes on: "I watched an episode of Shameless the other day from two years ago and I look horrific. I look like an Easter egg. Now everything from sex to walking the dog feels different because not only do I have more energy, I feel so much better about myself and my health."
Tina’s foray into surgery was just the beginning. She’s planning on a neck, boob and tummy op later this year which, according to her surgeon, should help her to lose almost another half a stone!
She says: “The gastric band is the best thing I’ve done in my entire life, it’s changed my life. I just want to feel the best I can and look the best I can. You’ll never look elegant if you’re fat or obese – you’re always going to look like a pig in a frock – and that’s not how I wanted to look at my wedding.”
For information on gastric band, gastric balloon and other cosmetic surgery, visit www.thehospitalgroup.org
Posted by colleywobble
RE: Tina Malone: 'The gastric band changed my life'
hi i am a mum of 3 young children and having battled with my weight for many years i decided to have the gastric band fitted 3 weeks ago at dolan park i feel fantastic and from my pre op diet have lost 1 and a half stones so i totally agree with tina malones decision to have it done and shee looks great. My only wish would be that the criteria would of been easier to get it done on the nhs as its so much money.
Posted 12/09/2010 08:44:41
Posted by med191
RE: Tina Malone: 'The gastric band changed my life'
Everybody is entitled to their own opinion but I don't like the idea of surgery to loose weight. Tina already said she went on a calorie controlled diet before she had the Gastric Band fitted. Then she was on a liquid diet, then soups, shakes etc. She had already found the motivation to diet before having the op. Why go through pain, soreness and discomfort. If you feel you want help to loose weight, and you don't want surgery, Visit Mediterranean Weight Loss www.mediterraneanweightloss.co.uk We can offer you an alternative.
Posted 23/09/2010 22:54:21
Posted by Anniescott
RE: Tina Malone: 'The gastric band changed my life'
I was very interested to hear Tina's story. My own experience is very similar, I too have lost in excess of 7 stone after I underwent gastric band surgery with the Hospital Group. My experience of their aftercare seems to be entirely different from Tina's. If I had had even the slightest clue that they would be so uncaring I would have saved myself a fortune and travelled to the continent. Everyone warned that followup and aftercare is critical and that I would not receive the right standard of aftercare if I travelled for surgery abroad. So I paid a high price and had the surgery thro the Hospital Group. The surgery and in patient treatment was undertaken under contract to Hospital Group by another organisation whose treatment and care was perfect. The Hospital Group then undertook my after care and the problems began. Anyone undertaking this surgery with this organisation should think twice, three times and then think again. My surgery has been a great success and I don't regret it. I do however bitterly regret contracting with the Hospital Group. I expect this comment to be deleted and will not be visible on this site, since the Hospital Group obviously paid a lot of money for the publicity but I do feel better for having written it .
Posted 14/10/2010 14:31:35