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MANDY KIRTLEY AND MUM ANGIE DESPAIRED AT THEIR ROLLS OF FAT AND EXCESS SKIN – SO THEY TOOK THE PLUNGE AND HAD TUMMY TUCKS TOGETHER

By Caroline Reid

‘Five litres of fat was sucked from my body’

Mandy Kirtley, 36, hada tummy tuck, lipo and a breast uplift in April after losing 6st. A slimming counsellor, she lives with her partner Chris and her two daughters in Bradford.

I expected to feel on top of the world after losing 6st in six months.

But when I looked in the mirror, I despaired.

The enormous weight loss had taken its toll on my body, and my stomach now hung in a giant flap of skin.

I used to be a dancer, which kept me toned, but after I had my children – Hollie and Brooke – I’d ballooned to 20st and a size 26.

Yo-yo dieting hadn’t worked.

Then I started the Cambridge Diet in October 2006, which combines meal replacement and counselling.

I went from 18st 10lb to 12st in six months.

But at 5ft 10in, I still had to wear a size 16 because of all my loose skin.

I felt like crying.

My arms and legs were slim, but my breasts sagged and my stomach was resting on my thighs.

Surgery was my only option.

In April this year I went online and found a website for cosmetic surgery abroad.

For £3,600 – just over half the price of a tummy tuck in the UK – I could have my tummy done, lipo plus a breast uplift, and stay in a luxury hotel in Tunisia.

I asked Mum along for moral support.

A week before we went she confessed she was considering a tummy tuck too and we ended up having them on the same day.

During my six-hour op, the excess flesh was removed along with five litres of fat from my back and sides, and my belly button was repositioned.

I burst into tears of joy when the bandages came off.

Now I have the body I always dreamed of.

 

‘I traded my car for a flat stomach’

Angie Kirtley, 57, a medical buyer, lives around the corner from daughter Mandy. She has been married to Ian for 38 years and they have one other daughter, Shelly, 33.

I was worried before having my op in case something went wrong.

Now my only regret is that I didn’t do it sooner.

Having two kids in three years had left me with a baby belly, then two operations had a devastating effect on my body.

The first – a gall bladder op in my 30s – resulted in a thick, red scar.

The second, to remove a benign tumour three years ago, caused my tummy muscles to collapse.

I’m only 5ft 4in but I put on 2st through stress, going from a size 12 to a 16.

I managed to lose it on the same diet plan as Mandy, but my flabby tummy looked even more horrific.

I was so self-conscious I’d undress with the lights off and wore clothes two sizes too big to hide the flap of skin.

So when Mandy mentioned she’d been researching tummy tucks online, I was so excited.

I’d consulted a plastic surgeon a few years earlier, but it would have cost too much.

I’d agreed to go to Tunisia with Mandy to keep her company, but all the while I was thinking: ‘This could change my life, too’.

A week before the trip, I persuaded my husband Ian to take some photos of my tummy and emailed them to Mandy’s surgeon with a note saying: ‘Can you do anything with this?’

He replied that it wouldn’t be a problem, but I was still nervous.

Even so, I sold my car, a lamp and a coffee table on eBay to raise the £1,800 fee.

I had my op first and was delighted with the results.

The excess flab had gone and in its place was a flat tummy.

I’ve dropped two dress sizes since my operation and have a whole new lease of life.

Sometimes I catch sight of my reflection and that initial rush of excitement comes flooding back.

It’s the best feeling in the world.

For information on cosmetic surgery abroad, visit Lindabriggs.co.uk or call 01354 610368.

 

Photography: Peter Byrne. Hair & make-up: Emma Fairfield at Nemesis