'I had £7,000 weight loss surgery in Turkey and I'm worried I'll rip apart'
Mum-of-two Chantelle Woolston was excited when she booked her £6.9k "mummy makeover" in Turkey, counting down the days until she could board the plane and move towards a future where she felt happier in her own body, reports Surrey Live.
Now, however, 46-year-old Chantelle calls it her "biggest regret".
Following a successful gastric sleeve operation in Istanbul in 2020, the Southampton-based administrator shifted an impressive 6st 7lbs -seeing her drop from a size 18 to a size eight- but the surgery left her with unwanted excess skin.
She shared: "I was looking in the mirror and seeing droopy boobs and rolls of fat. I didn't feel attractive. I wanted to look nice."
Deciding to undergo a tummy tuck and breast revision, Chantelle meticulously researched the various options, choosing not to return to the previous clinic as the medical team she knew had moved on. She selected a clinic in Izmir, Turkey, which even threw in a back lift for the all-inclusive price.
She shared: "I trawled the internet for places to go. I didn't see any negative on this Facebook group. It was just so positive and they sent me pictures of stunning women. I thought 'bloody hell, can I have that body?'"
However, it was only after she'd paid her deposit that Chantelle began to notice some negative comments. Despite this, she flew out in February this year with her husband, Marc, 50, a maintenance worker.
But Chantelle felt uneasy and said she felt "rushed" to sign the paperwork to get her into surgery. She expressed: "It was a case of you need to hurry up. It's like a conveyer belt."
And things went from bad to worse.
"When I came round I was in a mess. I was freezing cold. I thought 'I've made a big mistake'."
After spending a week in Turkey, Chantelle returned home. Initially, she was excited to see the results but two months later, she feels unhappy with her healing journey. She is plagued by discomfort, unable to stretch without fearing she'll "rip in half", and is horrified by her "hard as a block" stomach and bunched-up skin.
She expressed her deep regret: "I'd built it up so much and I was so excited to go.
"I couldn't wait to see the results. I 100 per cent wish I hadn't done it with this clinic. I'm regretful of going with this clinic. I wish I'd researched more. Now I have to tell people I'm devastated with how my body is. I looked better with the fat."
"I should have known by the deal that it was too good to be true."
Chantelle revealed: "I'm now able to lie on my side in bed and if I have move in bed I feel like I'm going to rip in half. I can't open my garage to park my car - I can't stretch. I have skin that looks like dog ears above my pubic bone. It's like a zip. I have flaps of skin and three rolls of skin sewn up - it's just been sewn up and gathered."
She continued: "My stomach is hard as a block. My body has completely healed but my breasts are all crusty. I feel hollow in places."
She said: "My scarring is there - it's like a roadmap. I asked for a flat stomach not for three rolls."
Despite being told that healing can take between three to six months, Chantelle doesn't believe her results will improve. She has been in contact with the clinic, who advised her to "trust the process" and to "exercise".
Chantelle now wants to caution other women before they make the same mistake she did, saying: "Trust your gut."
The clinic responded: "While we aim to give patients ample time to read and sign these documents, the pre-operative schedule-including tests and consultations-may create a sense of urgency for some individuals on the day of surgery. Post-operative recovery varies per patient, and swelling, tightness, and temporary asymmetry are common in the initial stages.
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"We advise patients that full healing can take months, and we provide detailed aftercare instructions. Terms like "dog ears" or "gathered skin" often describe normal transient swelling or suturing techniques that improve over time.
"However, we always encourage patients to voice concerns during follow-ups so we can assess and reassure or intervene if medically indicated. Our team remains available post-operatively to guide patients through their recovery."
They continue: "While phrases like 'trust the process' may stem from managing early-stage expectations, we prioritise addressing concerns with clinical evaluations when needed. We regret that this patient feels dissatisfied and invite her to contact us directly so we can review her case in detail and provide personalised support."
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