REAL LIFE: LIPO LADY: SIX LIPOSUCTION OPS - IN ONE DAY

0 Comments | Sunday Mirror, Nov 7, 2004 | by Wendy Sloane

'When I was young I was really skinny. I got a bit bigger when I had my children, Monique, now 16, and Jasmine, nine, but when I stopped smoking four years ago, I started eating and got really heavy. I'm only 5ft 2in and my weight went up to over 12 stone - but the worst thing was the fat on my belly. In the past I'd had an operation to unblock my fallopian tubes. Monique was a normal birth, but when Jasmine was born I had a Caesarean, so they cut me open again.

After the two operations, my belly looked horrible, it was like I had a pouch hanging underneath my stomach. I tried to get rid of it by exercising, but I still had the pouch. It looked like I had two bellies.

I thought about a tummy tuck, but I was too scared to have myself cut open again. Then last March I saw a magazine article about liposuction, which sounded like a better option.

My first appointment was scary, but the surgeon, Mr Mohammed Jawad, showed me pictures of the things he could do and put my mind at rest. I was so impressed I decided to get a lot more done than I'd planned.

I ended up having liposuction on my upper abdomen, lower abdomen, back, inside and outside of my thighs and my knees, all in one go. Most people do it in batches of two or three, but I had six. The doctor warned me it would be painful, but I wanted to get it over and done with.

In total, 6.5lbs of fat were sucked out of me. I expected it to be a lot more, but I'm happy with the results so far, though the swelling is still going down. Altogether it cost about pounds 5,000. I had insurance policies that had matured, so I had enough to cover it.

My husband Tony has always been skinny. I decided I didn't want to tell him about the surgery until after, as I knew he'd try to dissuade me.

So instead of my husband coming with me, Monique and my big sister Jennifer came instead. Mr Jawad drew marks on my body where the fat would be taken from, then I was given an injection and went to sleep.

When I woke up I was in agony. My belly, legs and back hurt and I was covered in bandages. I couldn't walk, so Monique and Jennifer helped me get home, put me to bed and cooked for me. They were brilliant, but when

Tony got home, he was furious.

It didn't take long for me to start walking around again. For the first two weeks I felt a bit queasy, and when I got up I felt faint. I could go to the bathroom, as long as I didn't stand up for too long and had a chair ready so I could sit down.

I'm a night project worker for the homeless and was only off work for three weeks. When I went back I had to wear a special body contour all- in-one. It went down to my knees, but had a space in the middle so I could go to the toilet.

Despite the discomfort, I think I look brilliant now, and everybody says I'm like a different person. I feel better in myself. Tony hasn't said much, but he's happier because I am, and my daughters tell me I look fantastic.

I'm down to about 11 stone now and I look and feel toned. My stomach looks brilliant, especially when I turn sideways. You can't see a belly any more. I can wear cropped trousers and little tight tops now, before I used to wear baggy old jumpers.

As only my immediate family know what I did, everyone else keeps saying, "You look brilliant, what have you done to yourself?" They know I've been exercising but that's about it - until they read this, of course!

I'm now planning to sort out my top bits. It would be great if they could do something on my boobs. I wouldn't like a silicone implant, but I'd like to have my boobs lifted. That's next. I'm also thinking about having lipo on my calves to take out the meaty bits at the back. I don't need a bum lift, because when they did my legs, it sorted out my bum as well. The saddlebags I had at the side are gone, so my bum looks nice. I don't have any regrets, and despite the pain, I'd do it all again.'

Mr Mohammed Jawad, consultant plastic reconstructive and aesthetic surgeon at London's Linia Clinic, says:

'Loretta's not a very big woman, but she has lipodystrophy, which is deposition of fat in abnormal areas in the body, which is a genetically predetermined condition. No matter how much exercise or dieting you do, this fat does not budge. It needs help. People who are very active, motivated, serious gym-goers respond well to this kind of procedure and Loretta didn't have to be kept in overnight as it wasn't a large liposuction.'