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 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'
“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.
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“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.
'I felt huge and everything I wore was a big sweatshirt and leggings and I had definition to my body'
“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.”**
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