It’s never too late to lose weight!

Watching breakfast TV one morning I saw an item about a person who had had a gastric band fitted with Dr Ashton. The transformation to this person was incredible and I thought that maybe a gastric band would be the thing for me – I had tried every diet imaginable during my adult life, and had yo-yo’d continuously up to the age of 67.

At over 19 stones and with a 50” waist, I knew my health and quality of life were suffering. I had high blood pressure and I was really struggling to walk. I’m a keen golfer and I was only managing to play once a week and then had to suffer the embarrassment of needing to ride around the course in a buggy rather than walking like my companions. I wanted to buy normal size clothes instead of having to buy whatever I could find in XXL or XXXL.

After a preliminary visit to Dr Ashton, who explained everything carefully and thoroughly, I was accepted for the gastric band procedure at a private hospital, where I was looked after superbly and every need was catered for.

After the weight loss surgery in May 2008, I had to put in some work in restricting my calorie intake and following a walking programme, and there was also a post operative nutritional plan to follow, but I soon got used to that and received all the support and information I needed from Healthier Weight.

So one band and one year later, and I have dropped to 14st, my waist measurement is now 38”.  Best of all I can play golf 3-4 times a week and walk around the course without  getting out of breath! My blood pressure has returned to normal, and I can even buy that “off the rack” clothing that I used to look at with jealousy. 

It really is the beginning of a new life for me thanks to Dr Ashton and the team, and it just proves that it’s never too late to lose weight!

James

June 2009

To learn more about James's story, watch his interview on Youtube.