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48-year-old Gary Buckingham is turning to gastric bypass surgery as a last resort. HeÂ’s tried and failed to lose weight and at 26 stone, his health is starting to suffer. His biggest fear is that he won't live to see his children grow up. But will Gary go ahead with surgery when he's told on the morning of his operation that he has a 1 in 10 chance of not pulling through? And we meet the man whose life was saved by gastric bypass surgery. At 46st, Ricky Carter was so incapacitated by his size, he had to carry his 8th stomach on a trolley.
A woman reflects on the success of her recent gastric bypass surgery and speculates whether her 35-stone brother will follow suit. At a whopping 35 stones, Martin Gibbs is super morbidly obese… and so too is his 32st sister, Daniella. But Daniella has just had gastric bypass surgery –and already the results are staggering. Will Martin keep it in the family by also going under the knife to lose weight? Also, Fiona Solman's life has been transformed by her 13 stone weight loss. She reveals her new slim figure… and how it has helped her confidence in her new vocation as a vicar.
Amanda Beere weighs an astonishing 40 stone. After successfully losing weight 2 years ago, Amanda has since then gained a shocking 26 stone. She has been told that unless she loses weight soon, she could be dead within the next 5 years. At just 41 years old, she can’t walk and she is dependent on her children and carers for bathing and even going to the toilet.
Rachel Barrass is only 23 years old and already weighs over 25 stone. She has endured a lifetime of abuse and bullying because of her size – but despite her desperate efforts, she can’t lose weight. Can an operation help give her the figure she dreams of? 34-year-old Ana Pita visits Shaw Somers’ clinic for her pre-operative assessment. But Shaw is alarmed when he sees how much weight Ana has put on since her last appointment… and has some shocking news for her And we meet the 48 stone father who had only months to live before his weight loss surgery.
Carol Flynn weighs 27 stone and her health is deteriorating rapidly. Her family fear that she is dying before their eyes, but are anxious about her resorting to surgery. However, Carol believes it is the only option for her and is eagerly awaiting her consultation with Shaw Somers. 28 year old Kathleen Brown is desperate for weight loss surgery. At 21 stone she has tried every diet under the sun, but nothing works for her. She is ready to go through with gastric bypass, but she can't get NHS funding for the operation. As a last desperate measure, Kathleen's mum turns the basement into a flat in order to sell it, in a bid to raise the £7,000 needed to pay for the private surgery. But will the band be as successful as Kathleen hopes? We also meet Jeff O’Shea. He is so thrilled with the gastric bypass surgery that helped him shed 15 stone–that he had the date of the operation tattooed on his arm.
Sacha Whitehead is 32-years old and weighs over 30 stone. She is super morbidly obese and addicted to food. Sacha lives with her nine-year old son, Lewis, who is also overweight. Her weight is ruining her life - she is so ashamed of her size, she refuses to get out of the car when she picks up Lewis from school - fearing he will get bullied as a result. Her decision to undergo surgery was prompted by the realization that she would only survive a maximum of five years without any surgery. She is petrified of dying on the operating table and leaving her son alone.
At 27 years old and 30 stone, Joy Vaughan is morbidly obese. Despite numerous repeated attempts Joy just cannot lose weight. She works long irregular hours and often eats the wrong kinds of food. Her bad relationship with food stems from the loss of her grandfather when she was 12 years old. She took his death very badly and began comfort eating. Can surgery offer her the life she so desperately wantsIn this episode we also revisit former lorry driver, Jeff OShea who has lost 17 stone in one year since his gastric bypass operation. He has a wife and a young family who have all benefited massively from Jeffs weight loss. We see the physical, psychological and emotional benefits the whole family has experienced as a result of the surgery.
Craig Curtis is super morbidly obese - he is 40 stone and still gaining weight. On a bad day, Craig can get through 25 packets of crisps and two loaves of bread. Craig, from Gravesend, is married with three children all younger than four years old. His wife has to do everything for both Craig and the children. Craig feels he is incapable of being a good father and husband - he hasn't left the house in over a year and is unable to go to the toilet on his own. We also revisit 23-year-old Rachel Barrass, who weighed 26 stone. Three months after her successful gastric bypass surgery, Rachel fell pregnant. As a result of her surgery, Rachel has actually lost weight during her pregnancy rather than gaining it - she has lost a remarkable 10 stone!
At 27 years old and 30 stone, Joy Vaughan is morbidly obese. Despite numerous repeated attempts, Joy just cannot lose weight. She works long irregular hours and often eats the wrong kinds of food. Her bad relationship with food stems from the loss of her grandfather when she was 12 years old. She took his death very badly and began comfort eating. Can surgery offer her the life she so desperately wants? We also revisit former lorry driver, Jeff O'Shea who has lost 17 stone in one year since his gastric bypass operation. He has a wife and a young family, who have all benefited massively from Jeff's weight loss. We see the physical, psychological, and emotional benefits the whole family has experienced as a result of the surgery.
In episode six, we meet Guy Poingdestre, a 52 year-old bus driver whose weight has reached 32 stone. At the moment he cant stop eating Kentucky fried chicken. He says he has a psychological compulsion to overeat. As a result of Guys weight, he also suffers from sleep apnoea, a condition that stops his breathing when hes asleep. Guy has spent years trying to diet and has sometimes been successful. He achieved a weight watchers plaque when he was 37, for losing 8st and managing to get down to 13st. But success with diets has always been short-lived
A 37-year-old woman tips the scales at 24 stone. When both her parents died she turned to food for comfort. She is desperate to get back out into society and wants to work and socialize. Her operation falls during the month of Ramadan and she sees this as yet another sign that this operation is her chance to turn her life around. In this final episode, we also meet 32-year-old Sarah Jamal. She lost over 8 stone following a gastric by pass operation. Now she wants liposuction, breast enlargement, and an arm lift to help her feel better about her body. We follow her to Germany for cosmetic surgery that could change her life.
Two women both super morbidly obese have spent a lifetime battling with their weight and time is now running out for them. Jean Marie Taylor is 38 years old and tips the scales at 37 and a half stone, she's been told that unless she loses weight soon she'll be dead within the next five years. But Jean Marie just can't control her addiction to food and she's desperate. Ana Pita put on so much weight before her gastric by pass surgery that surgeon Shaw Somers had no choice but to cancel her operation. At the time she weighed over 30 stone and was housebound. Shaw performed Ana's operation last year and she's lost almost 10 stone. The difference both physically and psychologically is huge.
Two women who have spent a lifetime battling with food. Cathy Carthy is 55 and weighs almost 20 stone. She lives on a diet of sausages and bread but is desperate to get down to 7 stone like she used to be. The gastric band will change her life forever making her happier than she has been in years. Teresa Syrett used to weigh a massive 24 stone but a gastric bypass operation cut her weight in half. Her dramatic weight loss has left her with over half a stone of excess skin which now needs to be removed. We follow her journey as she once again goes under the knife to make lasting changes forever.
Two people with two very different problems. At 26 stone Richard Cole is super morbidly obese, his life is in danger because of his size but still, he can't control his relationship with food. Fearful of leaving his three children without either parent, Richard went on a drastic meal replacement diet and managed to lose five stone. He then paid privately for an apronectomy to remove the excess skin from his stomach. However, as soon as he stopped the diet Richard's weight piled back on and he now believes that only surgery can help him. Lucielle Newby has lost a staggering 27 ½ stone since her gastric by pass 2 years ago but her dramatic weight loss had left her with a two stone apron of excess skin that neither diet nor exercise will shift. She now needs a number of plastic surgery procedures to remove the acres of excess skin she's been left with. We follow her through her first procedure, an apronectomy which she hopes will enable her to walk again.
Two teenagers desperately unhappy with their size consider going under the knife to lose weight. Stephen Perrett is just 17 years old and already tips the scales at 28 stone. Despite knowing that his life is at risk he just can't control his addiction to food. His father, David, had a gastric band fitted 2 years before Stephen's surgery but he's struggling to lose weight too. And Rebecca Tedder not yet 16 but already a serial dieter. At 16 stone she wants a gastric band fitted. Her mother, Julie, lost 19 stone with a gastric band and it completely changed her life.
The extraordinary story of three overweight sisters, all weighing about 23 stone who have suffered from their weight since childhood. Food has now become an obsession; the only solution is weight loss surgery. Unusually, surgeon Shaw Somers performs all three of their operations on the same day. In this programme, we also examine the year on year rise in bariatric operations and follow Shaw Somers as he trains up a new surgeon for the unit.
Robert is 53 and weighs 28 stone. He desperately needs a heart operation and without it, he's only been given a year to live. But cardiac surgeons can't operate safely until he gets his weight down to 22 stone. Likewise, because it's too dangerous to put him under anesthetic, Shaw Somers can't perform a gastric-bypass until he's had his heart op. Robert can't lose weight but unless he does, he'll die. In this episode, we follow Robert's efforts to lose the six stone necessary to save his life, including having a gastric balloon fitted. Will Robert succeed in losing the weight before it's too late? Susan is a bubbly 44-year-old mother of 4 sons. She weighs almost 16 stone but is only 4ft10. Susan finds it hard to control her addiction to chocolate but is scared that she'll die from her obesity if she carries on the way she's going.
Neil Bakewell is 32 years old and weighs over 43 stone. He has a BMI of 75. He runs a successful business along with wife, Jennifer, who also wants a gastric bypass. They both have a shared love of food but Neil's weight has now started to seriously impact on his life and he's now been told he's unlikely to see his 40th birthday unless he loses weight, and soon. We revisit Craig Curtis from series 2. He's lost 22 stone! Life has been transformed, now waiting for plastic surgery to remove huge apron from his stomach.
Victoria is a 21-year-old check out girl who weighs 27 stone. She feels she has completely missed out on her childhood because of her weight and now wants her life back. Since surgery, Victoria has lost 6 stone and has fallen pregnant, she is getting married later this year and longs to be a slim bride. Jessica is a 24-year-old graduate who now works as a business analyst. She weighs 19 stone and is hoping that a gastric band will help curb her appetite for huge portions of food.
Alan is a former soldier and athlete who at 28 stone is virtually confined to a wheelchair. He is 59 years old, and his obesity has come on in recent years, particularly after he stopped smoking. He's in a catch 22 situation, he needs new knees but surgeons won't operate because of his weight and he finds it hard to exercise because of his weight and bad joints. His immobility frustrates Alan but he still tries his best to keep fit and swims daily. He used to be a table tennis champion and now teaches the sport but only from his wheelchair. Alan longs for the day he can once again play table tennis standing up. Jane Floyd and her twin Sally used to weigh over 30 stone each. They both had weight loss surgery in an effort to shed the pounds. Jane lost 13 stone, but she's now left with a huge apron of tummy.
At 40 stone Sharon, with a BMI of 106, is extreme super morbidly obese. Sharon needs a constant oxygen supply to help her breath properly as her weight is crushing down on her lungs. She is completely bed-bound and is reliant on her ex-husband for everything. Her life is in danger because of her size but it's not enough to stop her from overeating. Serious addiction to food and even orders online and smuggles it under her duvet. Sharon doesn't have long to live without surgery and has 4 children under 18. At 40 stone, Andrew needs gastric bypass surgery to help him lose at least half his body weight. At the moment he's not fit enough to be put under general anesthetic because his weight is placing too much strain on his heart and lungs. A balloon can be fitted while Andrew is awake and will help reduce his capacity to overeat. It will hopefully help him lose enough weight to make his gastric bypass surgery possible.
Guy Poingdestre has lost an incredible 19 stone since he had a gastric bypass in 2007. He was literally eating himself to death. His life hit rock bottom - when due to a condition called sleep apnoea; suffered by obese people, he lost his job as a bus driver, which made his eating habits even worse as he was home all day. Four years later he is still losing weight and has now found love! He lives in Dorchester with his partner Brian, two cats, and two giant rabbits. He has just started driving buses again two days a week and is trying desperately to get funding for more surgery to remove the giant fat suit the surgery has left behind. Irene Footer has been a weight watcher for the last 30 years and she's tried everything. With a BMI of 47, Irene is desperate to lose weight. Irene shows us her freezer, it's stocked high with small pots of her post-diet liquidized food which she has cooked with recipes from her cousin Carol's bariatric cookery book. As a lifelong food obsessive, how will she cope with her new tiny stomach?
Martin Gibbs has lost 18.5 stone. His food addiction has now been replaced with an addiction to fitness and exercise. He has just completed the London to Brighton bike ride. We join him as he gets measured for a new suit the tailor pulls out his previous pre-surgery measurements for the suit he had made for his sister's wedding. The difference is incredible. Ian Whyte is fed up of being unable to do things because of his weight. Ian and his wife Sharon even had their 4 your old daughter Annabel through IVF because his weight had caused fertility issues. Now his biggest fear is that he won't see his daughter go to school. Ian gets NHS funding for a gastric bypass operation with Dr. Shaw Somers, he's been waiting for this for years. Will the gastric bypass change his life for the better?
At 28 stone Chris Webber is a life long dieter and his weight has been keeping him from meeting a woman. We catch up with Chris at his home in sunny Spain. His ambition is to take his children to a theme park, previously he'd always been too big to fit on the rides. At 23 years old Rachel Barrass was weighing over 25 stone and had endured a life time of abuse and bullying. We revisit Rachel who is now a proud mother of 3. She ensures her children eat well, she doesn't want them to go through what she had endured. But how is her egg sized stomach holding up? We catch up with Rachel as she reflects on how the surgery has saved her life and how her four year old can eat more than her!
Andy Richardson and brother Paul have a combined weight of half a tonne! Andy, weighing an enormous 42.5 stone, undergoes weight-loss surgery. He is now less than half the man he was. Julie Festusy, with a BMI of 70, is super morbidly obese. Carrying the excess weight has taken its toll on Julie's body. She urgently needs a knee replacement but for this operation, she's been told she'll need to lose 70% of her weight. A gastric bypass performed by Dr Shaw Somers is her only hope. She's also desperate to get back to Tanzania to see her husband, but at her current weight, she's unable to fit in an airplane seat. If she doesn't have the procedure she'll end up in a wheelchair for the rest of her life.
Two patients have struggled with their weight since childhood. Helen is determined to lose half her weight, to make the simple things in life possible again. Sean had weight loss surgery just 9 months ago and has lost a staggering 14 stone.
At 19 stone Caroline Horlick is not only battling with her weight, she also has a large hernia. Caroline believes she cannot find a job because of her peculiar shape, the hernia sticks out so much she gets mistaken for being pregnant. She has been turned down for surgery many times. She is desperate. No one will operate on the hernia until she loses weight, and to lose weight she needs surgery. Surgeon Chris Pring offers her a gastric sleeve procedure but warns her it's going to be tricky and if the hernia ruptures in the meantime it will become an emergency life-threatening operation. Caroline is hoping it will hold out until her op day. Gary Salmon is in urgent need of kidney transplant. His sister has offered him a kidney but at his current weight the procedure would be far too risky, so a gastric bypass to lose weight is his only hope. Will his Renal consultant be happy with his weight-loss so they can accept the kidney donated by Gary's sister and finally perform Gary's kidney transplant?
Dave is super morbidly obese. With a 6 foot 3 inch waist he's as wide as he is tall. He's hoping a gastric bypass will help him lose half his body weight. Carol is a life long food obsessive, she's written over 80 cookery books, food was her life but since having a gastric bypass 18 months ago she's now lost over 6 stone and with rails and rails of clothes that no longer fit its time for a clear out.
60-year-old Margret Foster is about to become one of the oldest people in the country to have an obesity operation. "I think unless you've bee a dieter and had weight problems, you'll never understand a fat person." And Luke Shepard, the school cook, who, since the operation to reduce the size of his stomach has lost a staggering 11 stone. " I'd be lying to you if I told everybody that it was easy. I hate the fact that people would think to themselves, oh he's had this surgery, that's fixed his problem. Because it doesn't. They can fix your stomach but they can't fix your head."
Obesity increases the risk of diabetes, heart disease, and for some, it can reduce fertility, and stand in the way of ever having children. This week, meet two patients who want children but must conquer their weight problem first. Jo wants to create a unique record of her journey towards a different body and greater fertility. And David, a 42 stone man finds the simplest tasks difficult has now become a dad.
On this episode: two couples whose lives have been blighted by chronic immobility. Tina is overweight, and suffers from severe arthritis, she even struggles to walk to the operating theatre. "This time next year, I could be in a wheelchair. For good." And Caroline, whose obesity has been compounded by a giant hernia. She's desperate to move again, like a normal person.
