Great Body Image Article

sweetpeach - I was one of them...I was called flat as a board so I get it but I still think its cosmetic just like some other surgeries like gastric where the community people pay for it but as I stated if in the UK they allow then go for it.  I found it appauling because I know what my DH pays and to think it goes towards boob jobs and gastric seems crazy when I think of my sister in the states that cant get insurance for shots for her MS.
So as it goes back to the system here when in rome...I don't begrudge anyone for it but I dont agree with it sorry...

But it's not like the people who need other medications are deprived of it though... patients can still get shots for their MS for just a normal NHS prescription charge, even if gastric surgery and boob jobs are sometimes carried out on the NHS too.

From what I understand, surgeries like gastric bands and boobs jobs are not undertaken lightly by the NHS and are not done for cosmetic reasons... there has to be a medical reason for doing it (i.e. gastric for people whose life is at risk if they don't have the surgery, or breast reductions for people who have back problems/difficulty functioning on a day-to-day basis due to their breast size).

If you want elective cosmetic surgery, you have to go private and pay for it yourself... in fact, quite a few Brits travel abroad to get elective surgeries done because they are much cheaper in other European countries. As I mentioned in my post earlier, there are a few girls at my work who have had/are getting boob jobs, but none of them are done on the NHS - they are paying out of pocket for their surgery.

sweetpeach - I was one of them...I was called flat as a board so I get it but I still think its cosmetic just like some other surgeries like gastric where the community people pay for it but as I stated if in the UK they allow then go for it.  I found it appauling because I know what my DH pays and to think it goes towards boob jobs and gastric seems crazy when I think of my sister in the states that cant get insurance for shots for her MS.
So as it goes back to the system here when in rome...I don't begrudge anyone for it but I dont agree with it sorry...

I would think doing a gastric bypass on someone with a lot of health problems might save the NHS money in the long run. I mean, if they are having to treat obese patients for things like diabetes, sleep apnea, or other weight-related issues, that can cost a lot more money to deal with than paying for a bypass.

From the NHS website, on breast reduction:

Because breast reduction is usually done to improve appearance rather than health, it is not normally available on the NHS.

The NHS will not pay for surgery for cosmetic reasons alone. To receive cosmetic surgery from the NHS, you will normally need a referral from your GP. You will have to have a consultation with a plastic surgeon and possibly an assessment by a psychiatrist or psychologist. They will consider whether there is enough social, psychological or physical benefit to justify surgery, for example if your breasts are causing you significant pain or mental health problems.

http://www.nhs.uk/conditions/breast-reduction/Pages/Introduction.aspx

NHS on weight loss surgery:

Weight loss surgery, also called bariatric surgery, has been found to be an effective treatment in some obese people. However, it is only available on the NHS if your obesity is affecting your health, and other treatment options have been tried and have not worked.

You will probably only be able to receive weight loss surgery on the NHS if:

   * you have a BMI of 40 or more, or a BMI of between 35-40 and also have a serious health condition that could be improved if you lose weight, such as type 2 diabetes or high blood pressure,
    * you have tried all the appropriate non-surgical methods, such as diet and exercise, but have failed to achieve or maintain a beneficial level of weight loss for at least six months,
    * you agree to commit to the need for long-term follow-up treatment after surgery at a specialised obesity service, and
    * you are fit and healthy enough to withstand the anaesthetic (painkilling medication) and surgery.

There may be slightly different criteria at your local primary care trust (PCT) that could affect your access to surgery. In most cases, you need to have been referred for surgery by a specialist obesity management service (not just your GP).  

http://www.nhs.uk/Conditions/Obesity/Pages/Surgery.aspx

I developed early and it was awful.  I hated my body for quite some time because it really did get a lot of unwanted attention, boys grabbed me when I would be walking down the hall to class, random men would call out to me when I was walking home from school, and I was what, 11?  Awful.  I don't suffer from depression in general, but that time of my life?  I was very unhappy. 

I'm glad the NHS covers some of these things.  The depression that can result from not being able to do something about it is no joke.  And most of the time, the people that have these procedures done aren't taken it lightly either.  Any sort of WLS requires a total lifestyle change after the surgery anyway, so it's not something people typically do on a whim.

My sister reached puberty when she was 9. (Her parents took her to a doctor, who said she was physically healthy.)

There are photos of her where she looks like a well-developed 17 year old.

You look at the date on the back of the photos and they show her to be about 10.

She was 9 1/2 when I was born, so I was too young to understand what was going on in her life, but I imagine that it would have been very difficult for her.

Regarding WLS, even though this thread started being about people with unrealistic expectations about what they should look like, obesity is a serious health issue for some people.

There's a happy medium between being obsessed with your looks and not giving a damn about your body and your health.

One is just as bad as the other.

Sorry I was putting me pesonal opinion in here with having NHS cover such costmetic things here in the UK but still feeling for my sister in the United States who cant get treatment for MS. This is why I have conflicting ideas for it.

Once again I stand by what I did say is if its available and its offered and you can do it - then do it. When in Rome...

I am not trying to be nasty and I understand some of things are done for health and I won't argue that so please don't expect me too but too me costmetic is different.  Everyone will know someone who knew someone or it could be them but honestly the point of the article was body image not NHS covering things.

I wish we lived in a world where it wasn't so dominated by airbrushing and we learned to love ourself.

ETA: Gastric bypass surgery and breast reductions are done because not doing them causes the patient to suffer physically.

Thank you...

I had all those things listed by the criteria for WLS...but was not allowed it...I did go away to Europe and pay for it myself..I have a friend that weighed 36st and still had to pay for it by himself..all pct's have different criteria..

I am going away tomorrow for my pre-op visit..I am having a breast lift done on the NHS on the 21st.

It's not cause I lost 7.5 st it's to repair the damage done that a seat belt did to me when we had a car crash in 98..my breast tissue was split down to my rib cage...they have been waiting for me to lose weight in order to do the repair. But the surgeon is also lifting as well.

I also had a major tummy tuck last year on the NHS as well. They removed 5kls of skin..I had a massive apron of skin that hung down. I was getting infections and depressed over continuous medication and how I looked. I had to jump thru major hoops to get this...and it took me over a year to get to have the surgery and I am one of the lucky ones..I have fellow WLS people in our support group that the referral plastic surgeon won't even have a consultation with...


I agree with some of the comments..as I was recovering in the hospital..the people that were coming into the hospital no where near had the problems with skin that I had or the problems that my friends have... and these woman had only been on the list for several weeks...where I had been on for over a year..

It's all down to the PCT apparently..

Thank you...

I had all those things listed by the criteria for WLS...but was not allowed it...I did go away to Europe and pay for it myself..I have a friend that weighed 36st and still had to pay for it by himself..all pct's have different criteria..

I am going away tomorrow for my pre-op visit..I am having a breast lift done on the NHS on the 21st.

It's not cause I lost 7.5 st it's to repair the damage done that a seat belt did to me when we had a car crash in 98..my breast tissue was split down to my rib cage...they have been waiting for me to lose weight in order to do the repair. But the surgeon is also lifting as well.

I also had a major tummy tuck last year on the NHS as well. They removed 5kls of skin..I had a massive apron of skin that hung down. I was getting infections and depressed over continuous medication and how I looked. I had to jump thru major hoops to get this...and it took me over a year to get to have the surgery and I am one of the lucky ones..I have fellow WLS people in our support group that the referral plastic surgeon won't even have a consultation with...


I agree with some of the comments..as I was recovering in the hospital..the people that were coming into the hospital no where near had the problems with skin that I had or the problems that my friends have... and these woman had only been on the list for several weeks...where I had been on for over a year..

It's all down to the PCT apparently..

I'm glad they are covering your surgery, MeShell. I have some problems with my complexion and have been referred to a dermatologist, and if they offer my IPL or other treatment on the NHS, I'll be a happy lady. Yes, its cosmetic, but it does make me feel bad about myself and I think about it every single day. It may not be a big deal to some other people, but I'm only 33 and having my face covered with patches of brown skin and huge masses of broken capillaries really sucks, as well as the comments a few people have made thinking I have something on my face. All of this greatly effects my health and well-being and quality of life, even if it isn't physically painful or causing any serious health problems in of itself. So I understand why they will do some things in special circumstances.

Sorry I was putting me pesonal opinion in here with having NHS cover such costmetic things here in the UK but still feeling for my sister in the United States who cant get treatment for MS. This is why I have conflicting ideas for it.

Once again I stand by what I did say is if its available and its offered and you can do it - then do it. When in Rome...

I am not trying to be nasty and I understand some of things are done for health and I won't argue that so please don't expect me too but too me costmetic is different.  Everyone will know someone who knew someone or it could be them but honestly the point of the article was body image not NHS covering things.

I wish we lived in a world where it wasn't so dominated by airbrushing and we learned to love ourself.

And of course you are entitled to your personal opinion, and this discussion definitely has gotten off track! But on the airbrushing note, I saw an article yesterday in some magazine where Britney Spears wanted her original, untouched photos printed alongside the airbrushed photos that were being used in an advertisement so that people could see her real body. Yeah, I'm not a Britney fan, but if she really did and said that, then I think that's freakin' awesome. According to the article, she is 5'4" and weighs 103 pounds and works out 5 days each week with a personal trainer and eats a healthy diet. They still slimmed her thighs, bum, and waist, even though she looked fine as she was, plus touched up a bit of cellulite on the back of her thighs and covered a bruise on her leg. It just goes to show that even if you DID do all you could to look as good as a magazine cover, you'd still have to take a photo and digitally enhance it in order to look that way. So, at least with the widespread use of Photoshop, people can now be sure that nearly every single image they see on a day to day basis, and particularly those images in ads and magazines, etc., are all digitally enhanced or manipulated and don't necessarily reflect the truth. I think back in the 80s, people used to just speculate on whether an image was "airbrushed" or not, but now anyone can retouch a photo, so we all know better.

I think that's pretty cool about Britney Spears, too!  But my gosh, 5' 4" and 103 lbs is quite slim to begin with, amazing they can even find anything to slim and airbrush down on her!  I'm 5' 2" and got down to 102 lbs in high school (early 80's) and a gym teacher thought I was anorexic.  Pics of me then don't look good, I'd rather be a bit curvy than stick thin.

I think that's pretty cool about Britney Spears, too!  But my gosh, 5' 4" and 103 lbs is quite slim to begin with, amazing they can even find anything to slim and airbrush down on her!  I'm 5' 2" and got down to 102 lbs in high school (early 80's) and a gym teacher thought I was anorexic.  Pics of me then don't look good, I'd rather be a bit curvy than stick thin.

Well, the camera does really add 10 pounds sometimes, though it can be slimming, too, depending on the angle. But yeah, she was certainly not fat in the images, but she did look fit and healthy and not too skinny, so I guess her muscle tone kept her from looking too bony. You could tell the difference. Here we go, I found a link, though I didn't read this article in the Daily Mail! 

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-1265676/Britney-Spears-releases-airbrushed-images-digitally-altered-versions.html

But on the airbrushing note, I saw an article yesterday in some magazine where Britney Spears wanted her original, untouched photos printed alongside the airbrushed photos that were being used in an advertisement so that people could see her real body. Yeah, I'm not a Britney fan, but if she really did and said that, then I think that's freakin' awesome. According to the article, she is 5'4" and weighs 103 pounds and works out 5 days each week with a personal trainer and eats a healthy diet. They still slimmed her thighs, bum, and waist, even though she looked fine as she was, plus touched up a bit of cellulite on the back of her thighs and covered a bruise on her leg.

Those pictures of Britney (airbrushed and untouched next to each other) were featured in a few different magazines last month... I think it's pretty gutsy of her to decide to do it .

I think that's pretty cool about Britney Spears, too!  But my gosh, 5' 4" and 103 lbs is quite slim to begin with, amazing they can even find anything to slim and airbrush down on her!  I'm 5' 2" and got down to 102 lbs in high school (early 80's) and a gym teacher thought I was anorexic.  Pics of me then don't look good, I'd rather be a bit curvy than stick thin.

Yea, 103 lbs actually puts her BMI at slightly underweight (17.7... should be 18.5 or higher to be healthy). I'm 5'2" and fluctuate between about 110 and 114 lbs, which gives me a BMI of between 20 and 21 (I'm about 114lbs right now because I've put on a bit of weight since I got back from travelling... been eating too much crap and not doing enough exercise  ).

Yeah, I don't believe Britney Spears weighs 103 pounds.  She works out a lot so she must have heavy muscle.  Maybe they meant 130lbs?

I think that's pretty cool about Britney Spears, too!  But my gosh, 5' 4" and 103 lbs is quite slim to begin with, amazing they can even find anything to slim and airbrush down on her! 

    Wow. That's actually underweight - even for 5' 2" is borderline - yikes. Totally agree.

x-posted with ksand

Those pictures of Britney (airbrushed and untouched next to each other) were featured in a few different magazines last month... I think it's pretty gutsy of her to decide to do it .

Yea, 103 lbs actually puts her BMI at slightly underweight (17.7... should be 18.5 or higher to be healthy). I'm 5'2" and fluctuate between about 110 and 114 lbs, which gives me a BMI of between 20 and 21 (I'm about 114lbs right now because I've put on a bit of weight since I got back from travelling... been eating too much crap and not doing enough exercise  ).

Well, they said 7st 5lb in the article I read, which I figured at 103 pounds in my head last night, but my math is terrible, so I could be wrong since I didn't use the calculator. Still sounds tiny to me, but I agree she doesn't look that small in the original photos.

Well, the camera does really add 10 pounds sometimes, though it can be slimming, too, depending on the angle. But yeah, she was certainly not fat in the images, but she did look fit and healthy and not too skinny, so I guess her muscle tone kept her from looking too bony. You could tell the difference. Here we go, I found a link, though I didn't read this article in the Daily Mail! 

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-1265676/Britney-Spears-releases-airbrushed-images-digitally-altered-versions.html

Wow and they removed the bruises too! She is gutsy for sure but I think it is GREAT...She is quit thin and Andee I can agree I was maybe 5foot and weighed if you were lucky 90lbs and I look back and go WOW I looked way to skinny....