Start your fight against obesity

After surgery, many patients return to work in 4-6 weeks. You will have low energy for a while after surgery and may need to have some half days, or work every other day for your first week back. Your surgeon will give you clear instructions. Most jobs want you back in the workplace as soon as possible, even if you can’t perform ALL duties right away. Your safety and the safety of others are extremely important – low energy can be dangerous in some jobs. Many patients are worried about getting hernias at incisions. Incisional hernias are almost never a problem from work or lifting they are more often the result of infection.

Right away! You will take gentle, short walks even while you are in the hospital. The key is to start slow. Listen to your body and your surgeon. If you lift weights or do sports, stay “low impact” until you are given the all-clear (avoid competition, think participation). Build slowly over several weeks. If you swim, your wounds need to be healed over before you get back in the water.

It can. Be sure to follow any instructions from your surgeon about managing your diabetes around the time of surgery. Almost everyone with Type 2 Diabetes sees big improvement or even complete remission after surgery. Some studies have even reported improvement of Type 1 Diabetes after bariatric procedures.

The short answer is yes. One complication of obesity is the increased rate of heart disease; therefore surgery may be the move that allows you to continue a healthy life and manage your heart disease. However, you should choose a hospital that deals with a lot of gastric surgery as they will be experienced and also select a hospital that has heart specialists who can advise the bariatric surgeons on any relevant aspects. Zulekha achieve all these aims so if you have any concerns, please speak to our team, we are happy to discuss all aspects in detail.

Hair follicles are a complex part of humans’ anatomy, they are susceptible to so many aspects of our physiology that it is hard to give a definitive answer to this question. Some patients have noticed hair loss after surgery, while many haven’t. We try to reduce the likelihood of hair loss in our patients with a well-planned post-op diet and the correct amount of vitamins and minerals. We have found that although we cannot prevent hair loss in every single surgery, when it does occur, we can reduce the amount of loss and the duration.

In order to get the best results from your bariatric surgery and to increase the likelihood of a safe operation you will need to go on a 1-2 week liquid diet. The purpose of this is to reduce the amount of fat stored in your liver and allows the surgeon to operate in a clear, safe area with reduced risk. This will also enhance post-operative healing.

Exercise and physical activity in general is recommended after bariatric surgery. Just daily short walks at first will help you recover in a healthy manner, reduce any risks from the surgery and help you return to a normal life as quickly as possible. After 4-12 weeks (depending on the type of surgery) you can start cycling, walking, progressing to swimming once your wound has healed and then on to weights or more vigorous activity as you recover and start losing the weight. We have found that our patients are eager to get going as they start to enjoy more energy than ever before.

You will need to speak to your surgeon. We have successfully operated on none mobile people and allowed them to return to a full and active life as a result of bariatric surgery. Please speak to your consultant about any issues you may have.

Bariatric surgery changes many aspects of one’s life, and medications are no exception. Most patients will be prescribed certain medications and supplements after their surgery, but the surgery can also affect what medications are safe to take for other reasons and how you take them. Your consultant will be able to advise on changes in volume to medication or even reductions in the amount of medicines required.