Do you look older since you lost weight?

I am almost 47 and I've dropped a couple hundred pounds in the last 18 months or so. Lots of things sagging on me now. I went from size 28 to size 6, and have had no complications or health problems. Over the last week, especially today, people have been telling me I've lost too much weight and it is aging me. I have the "hollow eyes." Does anybody ever tell you that? I mean hell, I'm a long way from underweight. I told my daughter & my friend at lunch about it today, and they said "it's just your hair. You need to let your layers grow out and get it highlighted and don't let it be so curly, it needs to be straightened with a flat iron and flipped out." And my hair just won't flip because I've tried it before, but they're planning to make an appointment with a very high-priced salon in a few months after my layers have had a chance to grow so I can get younger hair. I am attaching a picture of me from this weekend with my grandson and you can see my eyes do look like it's Halloween already. But somehow my butt is still big. Do you think I'll get some of my youth back as time goes on??? People used to tell me I looked so much younger than my age, but I don't hear that anymore.

You know, darned near EVEYRONE looks like a punctured balloon AT FIRST. I mean, we ARE, aren't we?

It's if you retain that gaunt, lined look over time that you'd need to think about. Keeping all your vites/water/protein at optimum levels (not just "fine") can make a difference in how your skin settles on you later, after the initial loss.

Yes I feel that I look older than my 41 years!  However, the fat did serve to fill out our faces and now that we don't have this, we probably look like anyone else that age.  I have had a couple of people tell me I am too thin and I look gaunt...HA...I don't at all.  In fact I am still 160 lbs so definately not too thin!   Don't listen to anybody, do what you need to do to feel good and look good.  New clothes, new hairstyles help a lot!  Maybe plastics if you choose that route.   To me looking a bit older is an acceptable trade off for all the positives the surgery has given me! I think you look great in the picture....like his mom not his grandma! Hugs- Cindy

Hey Wanda! I had a period from about a year out to about 15-16 months out where people told me I was looking gaunt.  When I hit maintain mode and started eating more, I started looking better.  My face filled back out a little and my body went into what I call "major overhaul" mode.  What little fat I had left was redistributed.  I now look much younger then my almost 45 years.  Just hang in there!

i think i looked older at the beginning but once the weight loss slowed down people (including strangers) now often tell me i don't look my age (i'm 32). i think it's possible we look tired at first after putting our bodies through so much stress but look less tired once we are "rested" btw., you look wonderful on your avtar picture

I get told that I look younger than I am and that I have beautiful skin.  I will be 45 years old next week, some days I feel older than that, some younger.   I went through a phase where my eyes look gaunt and my cheeks hollow, it has evened out now.  Keep your vitamins up and drink lots and lots of water!   I did go out and get an updated hair cut a while back, I had fun with the flips and craziness but now I'm growing it out again to see what it will look like long again.  We'll see...   Take care!

I just celebrated my one year surgiversary and  have never been on this forum, but must have come here for a reason to find this post, just last week I had a number of people tell me I looked "too thin" and that I looked better when I weighed more. Now I look hollow and saggy and much older. I have had people tell me to give it time, my body will catch up, but I am worried. I can't afford plastic surgery and I have seen pics of myself and I look horrible. I cried a little when they told me I should gain some weight to look better, its frustrating to go through all of this and then have people tell you that. I could use some encouragement with this as well. I will post my one year pics soon so you can see. I went from 303 pounds at my highest and have been at 175 give or take for the last 3 months, so I am hardly tiny. Is it normal to stay the same weight for so long, does this mean I am done losing now?  Glad to see I am not alone anyway.

First off, I love the pic with your grandson and I think you look beautiful!!!!!!!!!! I have to agree with everyone else~at first I did look like a "punctured balloon" (that was a great way to put it Michelle!) and everyone said I looked too thin, needed to gain a few pounds, what had a done to myself, when was I going to stop..........blah, blah, blah!!!!!! This went on for about the first 2yrs and now that I'm almost 3yrs out the comments have stopped. When I look at pics I can see for myself that my face doesn't look so gaunt anymore~I have been maintaining for 1.5yrs and things have now started to fall into place nicely. I say just give it a little time, eat right, take your vits, push tha****er and you'll be good to go!

My hubby calls me " his vain little creature". lol. I'm 2 yrs post-op. I did feel like an inflated balloon. My face looked like it was melted.All saggy , with the chicken neck & bags under my eyes.  So I had a Lifestyle face lift. It's not as magor as a reg facelift, cheaper($2,000.00), & the recovery time was shorter. I'm glad I had it. I'll be paying for it for a yr. But I was at a family function last week. I saw a cousin I hadn't seen in 15 yrs. And he didn't know who I was. He thought I was my brothers child. lol. Fill my head with more hot air. I loved it & it showed ME that I looked good. I don't plan on any other cosmetic surgery, but felt I needed the facelift. They do this procedure in the docs office & your not put under. Your awake with a local anestetic like a dentist uses. Yes it did hurt after the novacane wore off. But doesn't it all hurt at 1st. Brenda

Yep I get this subject more than you know!  I'm 49 and my face looks much more gaunt and thin than yours!  LOL!  On the bright side, I had THREE chins before surgery and fortunately my skin is now tight on my neck and I don't have the 'turkey gobble' thing going on!  I KNOW I look much older now that six years have gone by and it's pretty depressing when I dwell on it.  The saddest thing that is my face looks like I'm much thinner than my body really is!  I need to lose another 30 pounds and I'm scared to death to even try it because my face will be even MORE thin!  I guess it's the price we pay for losing weight.....but at least we are much more healthy and feel normal, right?????