Sharon Osbourne Gastric Band
Sharon Osbourne had a gastric band fitted in 1999 and lost over 100 pounds. Her weight loss was not without problems however, and in 2006 she opted to have her gastric band removed to focus on her psychological problems with food.
Early Days
In the eighties Sharon Osbourne was by her own admission "a 16 stone puffball". When she was young her music producing father, Don Arden constantly demeaned her and she ended up finding consolation in food. As she became depressed she ate more and more, and even went through a period of bulimia which she still battles with to this day.
When Sharon took control of the management of Ozzy Osbourne's career she used to stuff herself on junk food whilst on the road. Everything started to revolve around food with her eating to celebrate and eating to console herself when she was sad. A period of yo yo dieting followed with Sharon losing weight only to put it straight back on when her diet ended.
The operation and afterwards
In 1999 Sharon underwent laparoscopic adjustable gastric band surgery, in which a gastric band was placed around the top part of her stomach to limit the amount of food that she could eat. Sharon went on to become an eight stone, size 10, from her original weight of 16 stone and a size 22.
Five years after surgery however, Sharon confessed that she was struggling with her gastric band. "I keep trying to eat more and more" she confessed. Although eating too much with a gastric band in place is painful and can make you very sick; Sharon would be sick and then begin bingeing again. With the gastric band still in place in 2005, Sharon managed to gain 15 pounds. With the ten year life expectancy of the band coming up and the problems she was facing with it, Sharon decided to have the band removed.
Gastric Band Removal
In December 2006 Sharon Osbourne had her gastric band removed after deciding to use therapy to control her weight and her issues with bulimia. At the time Sharon said "I have to figure out why I do what I do to myself. I think I have some sort of self destruct button". Sharon's family completely backed her decision to have the gastric band removed, and agreed that she needed to sort out her psychological eating problems which went way back into her childhood, to be able to completely sort out her long term weight problems. Sharon said "My kids, their whole life have seen me struggle with my weight. They say it is now time for me to focus on my head". Now in 2010 after putting on some weight after having the band removed, Sharon does still not seem to be completely satisfied with her body, although she is still having therapy and has hope that one day her demons will be released.
