I put on six stone having my last child in July 1967. My doctor reassured me that I shouldn't worry and that he would have me "looking like a sylph" in no time.

Unfortunately, a slyph-like shape eluded me. Thirty two years later I found myself heavier than I had been prior to the birth of my last child. I was sixty-six years old and feeling rather breathless at the slightest exertion.

So I was very interested when my doctor rang to say that he had a patient who had successfully lost weight with Lapband surgery and was prepared to talk to me about it. I talked to the patient, Kay (who was the co-ordinator of the Auckland Lapband Support Group at the time), and immediately did all that was required to have the surgery.

After a delay, I had my operation on 1 November 1999. It was a breeze and, along with another patient, I attended an Auckland Lapband Support Group meeting in Mr Fris's office the next evening.

I recovered quickly and found I could soon eat what I liked and as much as I liked - which I hadn't expected and did not want!!!

I waited the required time and had my first inflation but it did not seem to have any effect on what I could eat and in what amount. I was very upset. I started to wonder why I had bothered with the operation, and the great expense it had involved, if it was not going to restrict my intake!

I went back to see my surgeon again and was distressed to find that I had put on 4kgs over Christmas. He inflated me up to 4.0mls hoping that that level of inflation would have some effect on my eating and help with weight loss. It worked! I finally started to feel more restriction and went on to lose 26kgs at that level of inflation.

I'm glad I had the operation. I have had a problem with reflux, still struggle with some of my old eating habits and don't consider my weight loss to have been spectacular but I look and feel much better than I have for some time. I now feel that I will be able to complete my PhD. which I started at the beginning of 1999. I am now able to walk the hills between the Auckland Hospital and the University nearly every morning and I don't get puffed doing it any more. I have also come to realise that many people never look at a person's weight the way I thought they did. Very few people have even noticed that I have lost 4 stone!!!

My ongoing goal at this point is to just keep off the weight I have lost to date. I may lose some more but keeping off the weight I have already lost is the most important thing to me.

I think I must be the oldest patient Mr Fris has operated on. I was initially worried that he might consider my age a problem but he didn't.