How can I avoid flabby skin post op?

Oh hey - I didn't think you were being vain at all!  We all have had the same concern at one point or another.  I just found a lot of stress relief personally when I let it go and decided to have fun with the whole thing.  I think most of us will take our saggy skin over the 100 or more pounds that used to fill it any day.

That isn't to say that plastic surgery isn't in my future - but if it doesn't turn out to be, I'll be great anyway.  I can ride in my beloved roller-coasters, hike with my family, wear a bathing suit in public and a host of other awesome active things now, so some loose skin isn't a terrible trade off. 

However, I might just have to be sure not to put my arms up in the air when on those roller-coasters so my wings don't slap the people behind me!!!

Best of luck with your journey

Cathy C.

It CAN"T be avoided, and there is really nothing you can do to help it. It all depends on your age, your genetics, how overweight you were and how long you have been very obese. Either live with it or start saving now for plastic surgery!
-Wanda

Hi....I noticed you have Dr. Boe as your surgeon.  He was mine.  Isn't he great???  He's the most compassionate, caring man.  You should come on over to the Pennsylvania board...a lot of Barix patients post there.

As far as skin issues, make sure to keep yourself hydrated and get in the 64 oz or more of fluid a day you're supposed to get.  If you exercise regularly, that will help also.  But no matter what, whether it's because of genetics or whatever, you're probably going to have some skin issues.

I've lost a ton of weight in a very short amount of time and I have major skin issues.  My arms were the size of most people's thighs.  So you know what happened there...I have another arm below my normal arm.  And my thighs look like a shar pei dog.  But I know that has a lot to do with genetics, because I've seen pics of my great-grandmother and her legs were horrible, very flabby and a lot of cellulite.  So I got the short end of the stick on that one.  Oh, and my ass...well, let's just say if I was 80 it would look okay :)

But all in all I rather have skin issues than be almost 400 pounds and not being able to take a walk down my street without almost croaking.  So hang in there and try not to worry about it too much.  You will be fine either way. 

And like I said, pop over to the PA board....we're a great bunch of people and always welcome newbies, especially ones that are from our Barix family.

Take care.

Congratulations on your success.  I sware I'm not that vain of a person.  I'm just trying to do this the right way.  I'm so excited about things that I just keep thinking I'm going to put my all in to it and then I can't possibly have any regrets.  Like you said 175 lbs with some flabby skin beats 280 lbs anyday of the week.  I'll access the PA board.  I'd love to chat with people that are local.  I'm really starting to feel the pressure from people in my life circle about all this.  Not family but some of my co-workers.  See, I'm a nurse.  So I feel like I'm constantly being told from some of my co-workers how they could never do what I'm about to do because of health risks A-Z.  It's really getting annoying.  For me the benefits totally outweigh the risks.  That's why I'm trying to be pro-active now.  Thanks and I really look forward to talking to you more.
Kristin

The only way to avoid it is to stay fat.

There is no magical cream or exercise.  Save your money for plastics now.

It's a crapshoot. Some people have good genes and possibly youth on their side and get excellent bounceback. Others don't. That's what reconstructive surgery is for.

You'll have to decide if the risk of having floppy skin is worth it to you to be a more normal weight. That's the bottom line.

To answer your question bluntly, the only way to avoir flabby skin is to stay fat.

You can't.

I am always so baffled at posts like these though.  When I had surgery, this was one of the last thoughts on my mind.  I knew it would happen and I excepted it, but didn't really care.

Excess skin is by no means my only concern or even one of my front runners.  I'm just the type of person who takes something on and looks at it from all aspects.  I'm just trying to be as prepared as possible for my post op life and this was one of the questions I had.  I mean we know to limit sugar or we'll dump and to avoid certain types of food or we'll get sick.  I just didn't know if anyone had some ideas on how to help my skin adjust.  I'm going to do everything in my power to be healthy and happy post op.  That's all I was trying to accomplish by asking this question.  If it came out shallow, it was not my intention.