GastricBalloonGroup Reviews 

So far having a very poor experience. I had my balloon fitted 8 days ago and have been extremely unwell with not tolerating the balloon. I understand that not everyone can tolerate it but I do feel GBG and the consultant I had are not very forthcoming in risks prior to having the procedure. The true side effects vs those listed by them are worlds apart. Uncontrollable (even with several prescription strength meds) vomitting, nausea, pain, constipation, dehydration resulting in kidney concerns. These are not within the control of GBG as they are to do with the balloon, but as stated they should be more transparent about likelihood. What is very concerning is their response.. given a lot of money has been paid, their response to any complication is to signpost you to A&E to get help (blood tests, IV fluids, doctor advice). Given they seem to state the risk of these side effects is so low, why can’t their consultants give advice when these complications occur? And why can’t they arrange for follow up such as IV fluids if needed, rather than very unwell people having to go and sit in A&E for upto 12 hours to get NHS treatment to mop up side effects from the privately paid for procedure? I am now at a point where I can no longer continue to withstand the horrendous complications (having been bedbound and severely ill for 8 days + loss of earnings during this time) which seem to be getting worse rather than better, so this morning I asked for urgent removal of the balloon and said I would be willing to travel to any of the hospitals they use and have this done by any of their consultants. I have been told in a very blasé way by a receptionist on the aftercare line that my consultant has been emailed and will have to wait and see what he says but “looks like he’s not working for us again until this time next week” so that would be the earliest for consideration of removal. I have been told there’s no access to any other consultant for advice before then and they don’t know if I can actually speak to the consultant who did my procedure. The receptionist also said she doesn’t know what their complaints procedure is and would need to find out and get back to me. As I write this I am in limbo and still very unwell with the only advice given to me by GBG being go to A&E. The bariatric nurses do their best and advise as best they can within what seems like a “send them all to A&E if any issues” protocol. I really hope I am able to edit this review in the next few days to say that GBG were actually helpful in expediting removal given the circumstances and given that I am suffering, but as it stands I feel quite hopeless and abandoned by them now that they already have my money.

The gastric balloon group has helped change my life the team are so supportive they check in with me regularly they all care and that makes such a difference I have access to everything I could possibly need or want the procedure and hospital team were so comforting caring and put me at ease I’m just so much happier now I highly recommend doing this procedure there is loads of options financially to make this happen I’m glad I finally made the best decision I’ve ever made and invested in me !

Desperate to loose my baby belly I read the reviews on their website and signed up for the eclipse - 2 days before the procedure I extended from the 4 month to the 8 month option.
The fitting wasn’t too bad , They warn you the first few days will be tough, they are - I was so I’ll even sitting up in bed was too much for me, but I was commuted to end game so followed their directions to the T.
I proceeded to vomit every day between 1-7 times a day, I could only drink water and eat potatoes and bread, anything with any flavour made me ill - this lasted for the whole 4 months that the ballon was in me , they tried a few options of different meds to ease the sickness and reflux ( these were all charged at an extra cost ) I asked if the balloon could be removed as it obviously wasn’t agreeing with me , they said yes but it would cost an extra £1000 - money I didn’t have. I had a 2 nurses call me a few times who tried to help but at no time did they offer to check the balloon was correctly positioned or do anything to understand what was causing my extreme sickness. I ended up not taking any of their suggested medication which eased the symptoms a bit.
I was sick daily up until the last day that the balloon was still in me.
As soon as it came out I was ok again.
This was a truly horrific experience that I don’t have words to describe, it was a big waste of money, physically debilitating , the sickness and nausea were relentless and for 4 months really negatively impacted my life / work.
While the support staff were polite the company really didn’t care that I was really suffering .
I obviously cancelled the second part of the treatment / balloon 2 for another 4 months.

Without wanting to sound overly dramatic , I would truly say having this band fitted was the biggest mistake of my life , I truly regret the day I clicked on their website and got drawn in to the hope of a ‘fix’.

Please do yourself a favour and do not waste your money. I tried the Elipse Balloon and it is a phenomenal waste of money. I deeply regret it as it's money I can't afford to waste but I was desperate and sad enough to proceed. I consider my experience not as bad as others have had with side effects as I only felt ill for a few days after having the balloon. The nausea even with medication is horrendous...
You lose a lot in the first week or two and then it tails off. You still feel really hungry ALL the time.
Personally this very expensive experience taught me that I need to change what I eat and that fads don't work. I gained back everything I lost not because I immediately went nuts but I didn't lose a great deal to begin with - only 10lbs.
They do support you as much as you want I should add but after a few weeks I was so disappointed and annoyed with it and myself for wasting money I stopped asking for support.
I stand by this today... gutted I wasted that money. I'm not rich and can't afford to lose it and that's what's happened as I have nothing to feel proud of or to show for it.