This is the story of Mariana, 32, born in Ukraine, near Kiev, a land ravaged by war. At the end of last July, she underwent surgery to reduce her obesity. She chose Brotzu Hospital in Cagliari, the bariatric surgery center directed by Giovanni Fantola. Mariana is now doing well. "I've had to deal with obesity since I was a child. After the birth of my son, my condition worsened. Various diets proved insufficient. Even daily exercises at the gym didn't yield the desired results. I was disappointed and depressed. Then I met a friend who had undergone stomach reduction surgery in Germany. I saw the results. And at that point, I decided to talk to my mother, who has lived in Sardinia for 16 years."
The first step – Mariana took the first step, contacting the Arnas “Brotzu” facility, a center of excellence with over 200 bariatric surgeries each year, a third of which are robotic. “Doctors and nurses,” she explains, “welcomed me with so much affection, patience, and kindness. I remember Dr. Fantola’s calm voice. He asked me my age. I told him thirty-two, but to be sure, I showed him the number with my fingers. The thing that scared me the most was going into the operating room without my mother because I don’t speak Italian very well. I also had to overcome the language barrier, but the healthcare workers helped me.”
The horror of war – Giovanni Fantola recalls another moment from his first meeting with Mariana in the hospital: "She burst into tears when she heard the 118 helicopter landing on the hospital's helipad with an injured person on board. She associated the noise with the drones that cause death and devastation in her country. For her, it was a real nightmare." The wounds of the conflict never heal: "The war has affected my life; it took my partner away from me," the young Ukrainian woman tells us, her voice tinged with sadness. "It was an immense pain, indescribable. A suffering that creates a great void. War has no mercy for adults or children. So many of my friends died. A lost age. We grew up together, we shared games, dreams, and hopes, and now they are no longer here." Mariana cannot forget the horror she experienced, but she wants to think about the present and the future. "On the day of the surgery, there were angels in white coats by my side, speaking English. And that's how we understood each other. Now I'm following a strict diet, following the necessary rules. I'm watching my weight. I can't wait to go to the beach with my 11-year-old son. I'll be returning to Ukraine soon. I hope to find a job that will allow me to raise my child in the best possible way."
