1. Introduction

Obesity is one of the most concerning health issues in the global population in the present age. Obesity is one of the leading causes of several critical and even fatal diseases such as heart related diseases. Bariatric surgery is the most common surgical procedure that is used to reduce critical levels of fat deposition in at risk patients across the world. This surgery has a significant impact on the psychological aspects of the patients going through the medical intervention. The study is focused on the analysis of the psychological experiences that patients face before, during and after the Bariatric Surgery for Obesity.

2. Aim

            The study has been executed to achieve its central aim. The primary and central aim of the study is the identification and analysis of psychological experiences that are faced and lived by the patients going through Bariatric Surgery to mitigate their obesity issues due to health risks or personal preferences.

3. Literature review

3.1 Issues with Obesity

Obesity is one of the critical issues in modern healthcare. Obesity has significant ramifications on the health of individuals as it leads to different types of life threatening diseases. According to Schiavo et al. (2018), apart from the health risks, obesity also creates significant psychological issues among the individuals. Most societies consider obesity to be a negative aspect in individuals and it has a significant impact on the mental health of individuals with obesity. It has been noted that cornering and socially isolating individuals is a common phenomenon in most societies and it creates major psychological stress and anguish among the individuals.

The individuals with obesity are also subject to discriminatory attitudes and actions such as bullying and harassments. As opined by Ahn (2020), this social stigma and negative approach towards obesity further stresses the health of individuals with obesity and lead to rise in health risks. Another major issue in this respect is that the individuals facing discrimination and isolation due to obesity tend to participate in different activities to reduce their obesity. These activities such as excessive dieting and starvation lead to the deterioration of their health conditions. This indicates that Obesity and its social perception create both physical and mental issues among individuals.

3.2 Bariatric Surgery for Obesity

The doctors have been finding it increasingly difficult to manage the health impact of obesity on individuals through psychological therapy. As opined by Ciobârc? et al. (2020), this failure of psychological therapy in addressing the health impact of obesity has resulted in a significant rise of Bariatric Surgeries across the world. Bariatric surgery is an umbrella term for a range of surgical procedures that reduce obesity among individuals by providing interventions at different points. The most common type of Bariatric surgery is “Gastric Bypass Surgery”. These surgical procedures are aimed at inducing changes in the digestive system of the individuals so that they can lose their obesity.

Bariatric surgeries are commonly prescribed to patients after they have exhausted all other types of interventions such as diet regulations and exercises. On the other hand, these surgeries are also recommended for patients who face critical health conditions due to obesity. As stated by Li et al. (2018), Bariatric Surgeries also cause major side effects along with their benefits and requires change of lifestyle to be successful in the long term. Contrarily, Bariatric surgeries are highly effective in improving the body image issues of individuals with obesity and have a positive impact on their mental health conditions.

3.3 Psychological Experience of Bariatric Surgery

Bariatric surgeries have critical psychological experiences among patients that have significant effects on the utility and success of the medical interventions. As opined by Spirou, Raman & Smith (2020), the patients feel psychological motivation for the surgery from their health concerns and other triggers including symptoms, relationship with food, impact of the medical interventions on eating behaviour and weight loss. Positive psychological experiences are also derived from the effects of these surgeries on relationships and self esteem.

On the other hand, it has also been analysed that the Bariatric surgeries also help the patients by providing them with a renewed sense of control over their bodies. As opined by Chan, King & Vartanian (2020), women face higher motivation to undergo these surgeries as women are imposed with higher body standards in the society and their value is often linked with their bodies, attracting moral failures and stigma. It has been further noted that the patients are psychologically vulnerable after the surgeries and can easily relapse into previous habits.

3.4 SQC Model

SQC Model is one of the most frequently used models to analyse primary qualitative data in a study. The acronym stands for the three stages of the model, namely, “Set Up”, “Quotation” and “Commentary”. As opined by Ahn (2020), the first stage of the model is utilised to provide the premise of the data and its analysis by providing the context, the purpose and the characteristic details. This is followed by the next stage that involves the quotation from the data that highlights the central point of the data and eliminates other cursory information. The final stage focuses on the elucidation of the central point of the analysis through the usage of the quotation, using the key phrases and words that support the point. This stage is also used to provide connections between the quotations of different participants.

4. Methods 

Scrutinizing the Impact of Bariatric Surgery on Obesity, a “Descriptive research design” has been implemented for this research process. According to the consideration of Gero et al. (2020), this particular research design consolidates the descriptive analysis of a particular study in terms of identifying the effectiveness of the measures taken. Accepting the proclamation of the author’s visualization of the psychological experience experienced by the victims can be justified for a prospective resonance. Accepting this particular research process the disgraceful impact on the patients affected by psychological issues has been identified and justified in an elaborate manner by scrutinizing the phenomenological study. As per the commitment of IPA, the individual appreciation has been communalising for a purpose of segmenting the surgery for obesity in terms of recovering the patients in normal life.

Sustaining this fact McGarrity et al. (2019) have stated that this particular research design helps to maintain the specific analysis process while planning a research plan in terms of following the objective of the identical finding based on the impact of the surgery on obesity for an interpretative phenomenological study. Considering the relevance of the author’s consideration, descriptive research has been identified as the most accurate process for initializing the effective measure for the overall enhancement of the psychological patients recovering from Obesity. According to the context of the research, the immense impact of this disease has majorly impacted the nervous system of the patient, which caused the immense diversification in the economic condition of the country by decreasing efficiency in the human resources. Thus, the acceptance of this particular research design has been implemented for the overall declamation of a fruitful result.

In this research, the “Primary qualitative research analysis” has been implemented for identical and authentic research on psychological experiences that patients during obesity surgery go through. According to Çaynak et al. (2021),  this particular research approach helps to maintain the authentic data analysis process by rejecting the tendency of diversification due to flawed data. Accepting the resonating impact of the author’s visualization of obesity was the major issue in the post pandemic scenario in the UK.

            Implementation of the “Deductive approach” has been done for this research in terms of maintaining the specific analysis process while planning a research plan in terms of following the objective of the identical finding based on the impact of the surgery on obesity for an interpretative phenomenological study. Considering the relevance of the author’s consideration, deductive research has been identified as the most accurate process for initializing the effective measure for the overall enhancement of the psychological patients recovering from Obesity.

Continuing this fact, the acceptance of qualitative analysis has been done in this discussion in terms of resulting authentic research outcome by collecting valid responses from the respondents, which can be accepted in the further analysis process. According to the consideration by Braun et al. (2021), qualitative analysis deals with the statistical data in terms of measuring the actual impact of a certain decision taken while performing the desired proposal. Analyzing the relevance of the author’s consideration, the ascending impact of this particular research approach has been identified as the most effective process for recognising the expansion of this disease.

In this research total of 22 participants have been considered for taking the responses in terms of performing non biased research. The data collection process has been done through performing interviews in terms of acquiring authentic data for the further progression of the thematic analysis.

The information of the respondents has been secured in a google drive with a strong password for rejecting the tendency of vulnerable activities and data sniffing. In that case consideration of “Data protection Act 2018” has been contrasted for utilizing the information of the respondents for a research purpose only. According to this act, the vulnerable activity with the personal information of the respondents is a punishable offense (UK Government, 2018). Accepting this fact, the security of the personal information of the respondents has been secured.

5. Data analysis

Table 1: Summary of findings and codes

Theme 1: Psychological experience has a positive effect on Bariatric Surgery on Obesity

Determining the consideration of this research, the positive impact of  Bariatric Surgery on Obesity has been interrogated in terms of collecting responses from the respondents. The most accurate process for initializing the effective measure for the overall enhancement of the psychological patients recovering from Obesity. According to the context of the research, the immense impact of this disease has majorly impacted the nervous system of the patient, which caused the immense diversification in the economic condition of the country by decreasing efficiency in the human resources.

“I am sure that the psychological scanning process can enhance the experience of the patients affected by obesity and performing Bariatric Surgery.”

Considering the results of the interview I have seen that most of the respondents (18 respondents) have supported the Bariatric Surgery for Obesity as a remedy for this disease. According to their conception, the surgical process was the most effective process to get rid of this disease. On top of it, another respondent has stated that meditation and the continuous monitoring process of the patient can also recover from this kind of disease. Thus, I have supported this fact as a remedy for this disease in terms of its positive impact on the psychological treatment process.

According to figure 1, the increasing rate of obesity can be seen in children in terms of hampering the psychological imbalance for social knowledge expansion. The major impact has been seen in the year 2016 due to the lack of a monitoring process on the children’s growth process, which has dynamically hampered the overall growth.

Theme 2: Lack of medical facilities in the rural area is a challenge for Psychological experience to gain a positive effect on Bariatric Surgery

Identification of the challenges has also been done in this discussion contrasting the negative impact on the economy of the UK in terms of affecting obesity. The deficiency in the medical facilities has been identified in this research, especially in the rural areas of the UK as the major challenge for performing Bariatric Surgery as a treatment for the patients facing obesity. According to the consideration of Çaynak et al. (2021), identification of the challenges helps to mitigate the occurring risk factors in terms of neutralizing the damage caused by the unfavorable moves related to the context. Considering the statement of the author, the lack of medical facilities has been identified in this research, especially in the rural areas of the UK as the major challenge for performing Bariatric Surgery as a treatment for the patients facing obesity.

“I think residents from rural areas are facing medical issues in terms of getting proper support for recovering from obesity.”

            Exploring the results of the interview I have seen that most of the respondents (17 respondents) have identified the negative impact on the rural economy of the UK in terms of affecting obesity. According to their conception, the surgical process was the most effective process to get rid of this disease. On top of it, another respondent has stated that the urban economy has also been affected in the same manner due to the ill treatment for lack of medical facilities during pandemics. Thus, the lack of medical facilities and the constant monitoring process have been defined in this discussion as the major challenges for the expansion of obesity in the economy of the UK by hampering psychological balance for overall social growth. The impact has been observed for both male and female residents of the UK in a suspicious manner and expanded into a mass affection.

Figure 2: Statistics of obesity in the UK

(Source: Statista, 2020)

According to figure2, the tendency of obesity has been seen as higher in women than men. This has reflected the degradation of the working effectiveness of the women of the UK for accomplishing a designated task due to a volatile mentality.

Theme 3: Continuous monitoring process is a strategy for psychological experience to gain a positive effect on Bariatric Surgery

According to the conception of Legatto et al. (2022), the surgical process was the most effective process to get rid of this disease. Accepting the resonating fact of the author’s consideration, the continuous monitoring process has been identified as the most effective remedy for recovering the patients from obesity. According to the context of the research, the immense impact of this disease has majorly impacted the nervous system of the patient, which caused the immense diversification in the economic condition of the country by decreasing efficiency in the human resources.

“I think a responsible monitoring process can enhance the psychological state of the patients facing obesity.”

Assuming the collected responses from an interview I have seen that most of the respondents (15 respondents) have supported this particular remedy factor in terms of maintaining sustainability in the recovery process of the patients affected by obesity. On the other hand, the rest of the respondents have stated meditation and the continuous monitoring process of the patient can also recover from this kind of disease. Thus, I have supported this fact as a remedy for this disease in terms of its positive impact on the psychological treatment process.

6. Discussion and findings

According to my conception, the surgical process was the most effective process to get rid of this disease. Determining the consideration of Van et al. (2020), qualitative analysis deals with the statistical data in terms of measuring the actual impact of a certain decision taken while performing the desired proposal. Scrutinizing the relevance of the author’s consideration, the ascending impact of this particular research approach has been identified as the most effective process for recognising the expansion of this disease. I have personally noted that the qualitative analysis has supported identifying the immense impact this disease has majorly impacted the nervous system of the patient, which caused the immense diversification in the economic condition of the country by decreasing efficiency in the human resources.

Determining the responses of the risk factors due to the negative impact on the rural economy of the UK in terms of affecting obesity. According to my conception, the surgical process was the most effective process to get rid of this disease. The most resonating impact while identifying the risk factors in this research was this particular remedy factor in terms of maintaining sustainability in the recovery process of the patients affected by obesity.

7. Limitation and future scope

Availability of accurate data

The major limitation of this research was the availability of accurate data for performing the analysis based on the themes developed. As per the utterance of Pressanto et al. (2022), the availability of accurate data is the most important factor for performing a research process in an authentic manner. Accepting the relevance of the author’s resonating vision, the lack of available data from reliable resources has been identified as a limitation of this research process for identifying the negative impact on the psychological state caused by obesity.

Identification of the patients affected by obesity

In this research, an interview with 22 respondents has been taken into consideration which can create some limitations on the larger perspective. The primary challenge can be the absence of a large sample size which can be problematic to understand obesity issues and the psychological experiences of patients during the surgery. In case a survey was undertaken, it could have been possible to understand the issue from a larger point of view. As interviews are used, a small number of responses have been taken where the risks of missing out on slime information are much higher.

Collecting accurate response

Scrutinizing the need for accurate data for the accomplishment of this research the trustable responses were another limitation of this research. As per the consideration of Bertoletti et al. (2019), accurate responses help to make a research outcome more authentic. Accepting the utterance of the author the collection process of the response from the respondents in the post pandemic scenario has been identified as a limitation for this research process in terms of performing a progressive and motivated research outcome.

8. Conclusion

The study has been critical in analysing the psychological experiences that the patients with obesity go through after Bariatric surgeries. The study has critically implemented the SQC Model to analyse the primary data collected from the patients. The study has found that this surgery has a significantly positive impact on the mental health of the patients. The study has discovered that the limited infrastructure and facilities in the rural healthcare centres reduce the feasibility of most of the Bariatric procedures. Finally, the study has analysed that the patients require intense psychological support and care after the Bariatric surgeries to ensure the effectiveness of the medical procedure. The primary limitations that have been identified in the study are the lack of accurate data, discrepancies in identification of patients with need for Bariatric surgery interventions and the lack of psychological support facilities after the surgical procedures.

Reference List

Website

Statista (2020) The tendency of obesity is higher in women Available at https://www.statista.com/statistics/1017560/prevalence of childhood obesity in the uk/  [Accessed on 25 June 2022]

Statista (2022) Prevalence of childhood obesity* in the United Kingdom (UK) from 1975 to 2016, by gender Available at https://www.statista.com/statistics/1017560/prevalence of childhood obesity in the uk/  [Accessed on 25 June 2022]

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Bertoletti, J., Galvis Aparicio, M. J., Bordignon, S., & Trentini, C. M. (2019). Body image and bariatric surgery: a systematic review of literature. Bariatric surgical practice and patient care, 14(2), 81 92. DOI: 10.1089/bari.2018.0036

Braun, T. D., Gorin, A. A., Puhl, R. M., Stone, A., Quinn, D. M., Ferrand, J., ... & Papasavas, P. (2021). Shame and self compassion as risk and protective mechanisms of the internalized weight bias and emotional eating link in individuals seeking bariatric surgery. Obesity Surgery, 31(7), 3177 3187. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11695 021 05392 z /

Çaynak, S., Boyac?o?lu, N. E., & Temel, M. (2021). Body perception and sexuality of bariatric surgery patients. Perspectives in Psychiatric Care, 57(3), 1266 1272. DOI: 10.1111/ppc.12683

Chan, J. K., King, M., & Vartanian, L. R. (2020). Patient perspectives on psychological care after bariatric surgery: A qualitative study. Clinical Obesity, 10(6), e12399. DOI: 10.1111/cob.12399

Ciobârc?, D., C?toi, A. F., Cop?escu, C., Miere, D., & Cri?an, G. (2020). Bariatric surgery in obesity: effects on gut microbiota and micronutrient status. Nutrients, 12(1), 235. doi:10.3390/nu12010235

Gero, D., File, B., Hinrichs, N., Mueller, M., Ulbert, I., Somogyvári, Z., & Bueter, M. (2020). Mental and emotional representations of “weight loss”: free word association networks in members of bariatric surgery related social media communities. Surgery for Obesity and Related Diseases, 16(9), 1312 1320. : https://doi.org/10.5167/uzh 192077

Legatto, T., Taylor, V. H., Kidane, B., Anvari, M., & Hensel, J. M. (2022). The impact of psychiatric history and peri operative psychological distress on weight loss outcomes 1 year after bariatric surgery. Obesity Surgery, 32(2), 325 333. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11695 021 05781 4

Li, G., Ji, G., Hu, Y., Xu, M., Jin, Q., Liu, L., ... & Wang, G. J. (2018). Bariatric surgery in obese patients reduced resting connectivity of brain regions involved with self?referential processing. Human Brain Mapping, 39(12), 4755 4765. doi: 10.1002/hbm.24320

McGarrity, L. A., Perry, N. S., Derbidge, C. M., Trapp, S. K., Terrill, A. L., Smith, T. W., ... & MacKenzie, J. J. (2019). Associations between approach and avoidance coping, psychological distress, and disordered eating among candidates for bariatric surgery. Obesity Surgery, 29(11), 3596 3604. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11695 019 04038 5

Pressanto, C., Scholtz, S., & Ali, N. (2022). Obesity and bariatric surgery in adults living with severe mental illness: perceptions and clinical challenges. BJPsych Bulletin, 1 6. https://doi.org/10.1192/bjb.2022.31

Schiavo, L., Busetto, L., Cesaretti, M., Zelber Sagi, S., Deutsch, L., & Iannelli, A. (2018). Nutritional issues in patients with obesity and cirrhosis. World journal of gastroenterology, 24(30), 3330. doi: 10.3748/wjg.v24.i30.3330

Spirou, D., Raman, J., & Smith, E. (2020). Psychological outcomes following surgical and endoscopic bariatric procedures: a systematic review. Obesity Reviews, 21(6), e12998. https://doi.org/10.1111/obr.12998

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