Shane Mennie

As a long time friend of the Mennie family I am aware of Shane's ongoing health problems both mental and physical. As you can see by his medical history he has been unfortunate to suffer from many serious medical conditions during his life. I would ask you to help Shane in his quest to get his life back on track by supporting this very worthy cause.
Gerard Ryan APM - Retired Detective Superintendent, Victoria Police


Hi my name is Shane Mennie

I am 45 years old and currently reside in a studio apartment in community housing. Over the past decade, I have battled with significant deterioration in my physical & mental health which has subsequently impacted on my ability to remain in employment.

Like many other applicants with a MyCause story, mine is one of persistence and hope.

How can you help?

As you will see from my photo, I am currently overweight and weigh 154 kg and I am seeking funds as outlined below so that I can have a life changing procedure that will allow me to get back in a healthy weight range.

Procedure: Removal of the lap band which was placed in my stomach at the Alfred Hospital in 2017. This has not had a positive outcome due to complications following the surgery.

Procedure: Gastric Sleeve surgery. This procedure will remove approximately 80% of my stomach and assist me greatly in reducing my weight, despite the negative effects of other prescribed medications I am currently taking.

I met with the surgeon on the 18th November and he will attempt to do both procedures at the same time. This will lower the cost and reduce the stress on my body. The cost is estimated at $25,000 allowing for a 2-4 night hospital stay. with additional nights charged at $1000 per night. He has rescheduled the surgery for the 7th January (this is subject to funding availability).

The surgery will be undertaken at The Avenue Windsor by Mr Damien Loh.

Why not a public hospital?

I am currently a public patient of the Alfred Hospital and I have been advised that due to COVID-19, surgery for the removal of my lap band will be at least 12 months away and then I will need to wait a further two plus years to undergo the Gastric Sleeve procedure.

My medical story - how I came to be here asking for your help:

• At age 17, I was diagnosed with Fibromyalgia (a disease that causes widespread pain in muscles and bones) and I experience chronic pain 24/7 throughout my entire body. As someone who loved playing sport and enjoyed walking daily, this had a devastating impact on my mental health, as I no longer have mobility. Currently there is no cure for Fibromyalgia.

• In 2010 I suffered an eye injury which required Phototherapeutic Keratectomy Eye (PTK) surgery at The Vision Eye Institute.

• Up until late 2012, I had worked in various industries including customer service, retail and the sporting industry. It was at this period in my life I was unable to remain employed due to my deteriorating health.

• In December 2013, I underwent right hip arthroscopic and laparoscopic tear repair surgery in Dandenong Hospital. After this my life started to completely spiral out of control. After the hip surgery, I suffered blood clots in both legs and my lungs. The complex care required included a nurse visiting both morning and night to treat me with Clexane injections and test my blood sugar levels to establish the amount of medication I needed to take. This continued for over 4 months. It was a very dark time in my life.

• In 2015, I was diagnosed with severe sleep apnoea and with the compounding pain from my Fibromyalgia and mental fatigue from the sleep apnoea, this further reduced my ability to get back to work. As someone who had always loved working and socialising as a team member in the workplace, this had a devastating impact on my confidence and connection to people outside my family.

• In 2015, I also completed one year of therapy at The Caulfield Hospital - Chronic Pain Centre on the advice of my physician. At this time, I qualified for a full disability support pension.

• In 2016, asthma which I had suffered since childhood became chronic and I experienced multiple severe asthma attacks, requiring stays in both the Alfred and Sandringham Hospital’s for several days.

• In 2017, I was diagnosed with severe Tonsillitis and was rushed by ambulance to the Alfred Hospital after my GP believed I had Quincy, a life threatening condition. During this time I had not slept for over 80 hours. It was another dark chapter of my life.

I began to seek support more formally for my anxiety and depression and I am on regular medications for these diagnoses along with my many pain medications.

• My weight began to increase rapidly partly due to the weight gain side effects of several of the new tablets I was taking and this further complication, added to my existing medical conditions of Fibromyalgia, Sleep Apnoea and Chronic Depression.

• In an effort to address my weight problem, I was encouraged to consider lap band surgery as this was the least invasive of such procedures. I had tried many diets and found little benefit due to my medications slowing my metabolism and my mobility being impacted by the chronic pain.

• I underwent Lap Gastric Band Surgery in 2017 at the Alfred Hospital, and I weighed 180 kg before surgery. Again there were complications prior to and after surgery, increasing my stay in hospital.

• Since my lap band surgery, I have had several admissions into emergency following vomiting and being unable to swallow due to the fluid in the lap band restricting my swallowing and digestion. Doctors had to urgently remove the fluid on each occasion and in February 2020, they recommended that I have the lap band removed.

• I have no superannuation or savings left after using it all to acquire previous medical treatments from private doctors and specialists with my pain diagnosis between the years 2012-2016.

• Due to COVID-19, the public hospital system is unable to provide any certainty to timelines beyond what I have stated. This setback is something I am struggling to face as I want to get on with my life. To live in a healthy weight range, to make every effort to get back into the work force and enjoy some sort of normality in my life.

• My goal is to go back to work by 2022 and continually improve my health and start living again after 8 unforgettable and horrendous years.

• I have the right support team helping me thanks to NDIS and once again believe there is hope for my future.

Thank you for reading my story and thank you in advance for your generous donations. I will never forget your names and the fact that you have so generously donated has already made my life better.

Thank you all so much.

Shane Mennie