Loose Skin and Self Acceptance (X post)

I'm 54 - had RNY 28 months ago.
Sure, I certainly DO have body image issues. I was obese for the better part of my adult life, so yeah, my skin is not going to be as resilant as someone who had this surgery in their 20's or 30's.  But ....
I simply cannot afford plastics, and my insurance does not cover that under ANY cir****tances, so I guess I'm stuck between a rock and a hard place.
I was not extremely obese, and my husband has no complaints, so I guess all is good.  I realize that there are a lot of people out there that are in far worse shape than I am, so I count my blessings.  I'm now doing things that I would have never thought possible just 3 short years ago.  So it's all good, and I'm thankful that I've been given the opportunity that I've been given - so many people have no insurance for this WLS ... period ... I've been given a new lease on life and I'm taking full advantage of it - loose skin and all.

You make a great point about the relative reasons and costs (emotional, physical, and surgical) of all of this.  I am so happy with my life and health these days that surgery to tighten up the skin is very low on the totem pole.  I guess I should be clear that the lady wasn't criticizing as much as she was being curious.  It just made me revisit the issue.

Janice

No it’s not vain. You have worked hard to get where you are today and it’s all about how you see yourself.  Age is not a factor. Forget how others see you, it’s you that matters! If having plastic surgery gives you back the confidence you need to see what a beautiful person you are...Then do it. Best wishes, Crissie

It really doesn't sound like it bothers you that much. My girls started girl scouts after I lost majority of my weight. I mentioned my wls to the leader and she sort of dismissed the idea that I was ever mo until we went to a water park and I was in my bathing suit. After climbing X many stories of stairs behind my saggy legs, she asked me how much I had lost. That sort of rubbed me wrong that it was so obvious bc of my skin but I'll take the skin over 200 lbs of fat anyday.

Take the comments w a grain of salt, especially the 8 year old, she is curious. You are teaching her that we are all different.

That's a great story, Emily!  :-)

I think the lady was just asking for some other reason and, maybe later, she will ask more.  As for my granddaughter, she can ask whatever she wants!  I love her curiosity!

Emily - I too have lost 210# and my stomach hangs so I now know how they got the term "apron".  I have people at work who have had the same surgery as me and look terrific (no sagging apron for them and at times, I get to having my own pity party and start obsessing over whether I should or shouldn't have PS.  As of right now, I feel like I have come so far that if people don't like me as I am then THEY have a problem not me!!
I liked also your comment on teaching the 8 year old that we are all different.  So true! Thanks for your post-I say wear your sagging skin like a crown-you've earned it -so have I.
I too will take it over the excess 210# anyday! Way to go!!

I'm no expert, but would weight training help it?  I just went for my nutrition class and she mentioned that as soon as you can use weights you should because it helps with extra skin.

There may be something to that because I used to watch biggest loser and those guys lost hundreds and didn't seem to have extra skin.  If course they worked out way more than people normally would but there may be something to it.

You don't exercise your skin though. You exercise your muscles and your heart.

Now, if you develop "guns", they do fill out the arms somewhat. But they aren't going to lessen the amount of skin by any appreciable amount.

Well that's what I thought.  But the dietician said it helped with skin shrinkage.  Maybe the muscle taking up the space the fat leaves behind allows the skin to shrink easier. Who knows?  I know a lot of the contestants on Biggest Loser shrunk along with their skin.  Maybe it only works as you lose weight and not after. 

Either way, I'm taking the advice of the dietician 'cos it sure can't hurt.

Your dietician isn't trained in exercise physiology. There are lots of great reasons to exercise, but getting rid of loose skin isn't one of them. And we do know. It's been studied. A lot. That's where all those anti-aging creams come from -- trying to restore elasticity to skin that hasn't got a lot any more.

Our skin does shrink as we lose. (Whether you exercise or not.) If you lose fast, like we do, you can get ahead of the shrinkage. But then it will continue to shrink even after you get to goal. But at some point, that's it. It's like a balloon that has sat around blown up to full size. It will go down when the air comes  out but it will never go back to its original size.

I would say my skin stopped shrinking about a year out from goal. At this point, if I lose some weight, I can immediately tell by all the wrinkles down my arm and around my boobage because there really just isn't any more elasticity in my skin. It probably doesn't help that I'm old. I exercise 10 hours a week minimum and lift weights several times a week so if exercise was all it took, I'd  have the skin of a 20-something.

Another factor is that our fat cells shrink but don't ago away. So, some people have big blobs around their tummy area (and sometimes the arms and legs) that aren't going to go away no matter what unless they get PS. I've been pretty lucky that way but I still have a small panus and it's not going anywhere -- I still have it even when I get down to 15% body fat.