NHS docs saved me after I nearly died from £6k mummy makeover in Poland… but here's why I'll never regret it

LYING in an NHS hospital bed, hooked up to a drip, Lois Crossley was fighting for her life after contracting sepsis from a surgery complication.
But the mum-of-four's initial operation had not been carried out in the UK - she had flown to one of Europe 's cut-price hotspots for a cosmetic mummy makeover.
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Lois insists that despite taxpayers effectively having to save her after her decision to spend £6,000 on a tummy tuck, liposuction and a breast lift - the NHS is now better off.
Lois, 29, from Salford, Greater Manchester had lost 7st before these procedures which she paid for using a surprising windfall - and says that the NHS doctors told her she could have died if they had not stepped in.
She says: 'The doctors said I could have died if I hadn't got help when I did. It was frightening but I always knew that surgery could be a risk. I don't regret it, despite getting sick.
'I'm so much happier with my body now. I feel like a model and have more energy to keep up with my kids.
'I did feel bad turning up for help after having an elective operation abroad, but the nurses were kind and said that they had a duty of care. Scans showed the operation had been done properly and the infection was just one of those things.
'People might criticise me for using NHS resources to sort out a complication. But I'd argue that I paid privately for my initial gastric sleeve to lose the weight, as well as the tummy tuck, and now I'm healthier overall.
'That's better for the NHS in the long run.'
Lois had always been a skinny size 8 until she fell pregnant for the first time in July 2016, going on to have four babies in six years – Theo, eight, Koen, seven, Rion, four, and Indi-Blu, two.
'I needed an emergency c-section with my first and second births, so the doctors recommended I have planned ones with the next two,' she says.
'I was glad my babies arrived safely but it left me with messy scarring on my tummy and an overhang.
'Looking after small children was so tiring and busy. I'd barely eat all day, just graze on snacks and their leftovers. It meant I was starving by the time they were in bed and ended up eating ready meals or takeaways.
'The weight crept up and up with each pregnancy. I tried Slimming World but it was difficult to stick to it.'
I lost 100lbs doing the Keto diet and did a mummy makeover to get rid of the loose skin but it was worth it - people are stunned by my transformation
By the time she had her youngest child in October 2022, Lois weighed 16st 5lbs and was a size 22, despite being 5ft 4ins tall.
'The idea of going shopping horrified me and I lived in leggings because jeans cut into my tummy,' she says.
'I lost all my confidence and never wanted to leave the house. All my friends were still slim - I felt like the odd one out. My fiancé Kieron loved me as I was but I knew I needed to take action for my own wellbeing, mentally and physically.'
I lost all my confidence and never wanted to leave the house. All my friends were still slim - I felt like the odd one out
In September 2023, full time mum Lois travelled to Turkey after saving up £2,150 for a gastric sleeve operation, with her dad Darren accompanying her while Kieron, 30, cared for their children at home.
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'I'd been to see my GP for help but all they could offer was a long waiting list for a weight management programme,' she says.
'I needed something more drastic. I knew a couple of people who'd had a gastric sleeve and been very successful. I worried it was the 'easy' way out but I couldn't see how I'd manage to lose all this weight otherwise.
'Melting away'
'I'll admit that, at first, I found the recovery mentally challenging and wondered if I'd done the right thing.
'I hate soup but that was all I could eat to start, slowly moving onto purees and mashed up meals. The protein shakes were disgusting too. I'd watch Kieron and the kids eating a nice dinner and feel like I was missing out.'
But while she hated being unable to eat proper food, Lois was thrilled with the impact on her size.
'I lost a stone in the month and it just kept melting away. It was quite dramatic,' she says.
'Within a year, I'd lost nearly 7st and was a size 8, just as I'd hoped.'
But the extreme weight loss came with side effects – a 'saggy' tummy pouch and boobs.
'I wanted to wear nice fitted clothes but it was impossible to hide the loose skin around my middle,' Lois says.
'My breasts had gone from a 47F to a 34DD but had lost their shape. I knew from doing my research that this was likely to happen but I still felt really conscious of it.
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'I was also frustrated that I'd lost all that weight but was still hiding my body away in leggings and baggy tops. Shapewear could only do so much.'
After doing her research, Lois started saving again for a tummy tuck, abroad, this time in Poland. After squirrelling away pennies, Lois had a surprising windfall.
'I'd had to quit my job in a nursery after the kids so I knew it was going to take a while to get the money,' she says.
I worried it was the 'easy' way out but I couldn't see how I'd manage to lose all this weight otherwise
'I was putting every spare penny away, once the bills were paid and the kids catered for. I'd treat myself to a go on the online slots a couple of times a week. I couldn't believe it when I hit the jackpot and won £5,000.
'I was screaming and knew immediately that it was my chance to do something for myself and have the surgery.'
Losing her dad to a sudden brain bleed in September 2024, at the age of only 56, made her more determined to take action.
'He'd promised he would come with me once I had saved enough for the tummy tuck,' she says.
'My dad was really proud of how I'd lost the weight and was taking control of my life.'
In November 2024, Lois travelled to Wroclaw, Poland, with her mum, booking into an apartment near the hospital for a week.
'So scary'
The trip and surgery cost £6,100 in total, with Lois topping up her winnings with savings.
'I didn't hesitate to use the money for my surgery – it was my dream,' she says.
'When I left my kids to go for the gastric sleeve, I couldn't stop crying. This time around I was so excited.'
Lois had booked a tummy tuck, liposuction on her hips and upper abdomen, and breast implants.
I just couldn't stop looking at my new body – I was delighted
But after meeting her surgeon, he advised her to have a breast uplift instead.
'I was disappointed but it made me trust him more because he could have just taken my money and done what I'd asked for,' she says.
During the five-hour operation, Lois had 1.2kg of loose tummy skin removed and her three c-section scars were aligned into one neat line.
'The recovery was fine, I was up walking after a couple of hours,' she says. Pain wise, I would say my c-sections were worse. I just couldn't stop looking at my new body – I was delighted.'
With everything in order, she returned home and was healing well until she came down with flu-like symptoms two weeks after the operation.
'I was dripping with sweat but felt freezing, I felt dizzy and my heart was racing,' she recalls.
'I tried to push through it but when I met some mum friends at the playground, they told me I looked shocking and I should contact the doctor immediately.'
After calling 111 and explaining about her recent op, Lois was sent to Salford Royal Hospital, where she needed emergency surgery to treat an infection in a wound.
'It was so scary,' she says. 'They had to put me back to sleep and unstitch my belly button to drain fluid off. The doctors said I was lucky I caught it when I did or I might have died.'
The mum spent the next ten days recovering in hospital on IV antibiotics.
'The doctors were really understanding and it wasn't the surgeon's fault – it was one of those things,' she says. 'My immune system was very weak for a few months afterwards and I have a scar on my hip, but I feel fine now.'
The doctors said I was lucky I caught it when I did or I might have died
Today, Lois is 9st 2lbs and feels like she has her old self back.
'All surgery comes with risks and I knew there might be complications, so I'll never regret it,' she says.
'It gives you a better life for your kids, to be able to run about with them and stuff. I'm also more confident, I've always got my legs out and can wear belly tops. I'm finally able to think about planning my wedding too.
'Everyone says how good I look – I even got stopped by one of the shop assistants in my local Lidl the other day. Being able to look at normal sized clothing instead of plus size and 4XL makes everything worth it. I'm a trendy mum now.'
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