Do I NEED Plastic Surgery? Or just WANT Plastic Surgery?

Jan 25, 2009

I’m glad that I had the wt loss surgery – It probably added years to my life – I KNOW it added LIFE to my YEARS.

BUT, unfortunately it has left me with a lot of extra skin. This skin causes me several problems with water retention. The water retention seems to be my biggest problem, the rashes are manageable.

Regarding the water retention – depending on my diet and my hormones etc – the large amount of extra skin in my hips and thighs fluctuates quite a bit from day to day – one day I will wt 147 pounds and wear a size 8 and two days later I can wt 160# and wear a size 12.

So we are looking at a 4 to 14 pound increase in a day – it is nothing but an emotional roller coaster every morning! GETTING READY FOR WORK IN THE MORNING IS A REAL CHALLENGE AND IS GRATING ON ME! (AND Bobby)

Emotionally -  being a size 8 one day and a size 12 the next is difficult at best – is is very emotional, and frustrating, and it makes me cry.

But, the HEALTH problem I am having is keeping my electrolytes balanced because of these drastic fluctuations.

My doctor has tried to treat me with diuretics to keep this stabilized, but it isn’t working very well.

Even though I am diligently following a diet which includes a lot of potassium rich foods, and avoid salt – the meds are not really helping. 

Right now I am taking 18 prescription strength potassium pills a day and it is having minimal success on keeping it in the low normal range.  

My doctors (my wt loss Dr. and my internist) are recommending that I see a plastic surgeon to have this extra skin removed.  The extra skin in the tummy area, although unattractive, doesn’t seem to be the culprit, it is the skin on my butt and thighs, that extra skin wants to collect the “fluid” or water.

The cost of having the skin taken from the thighs and additionally from the hips/butt and tummy area is about $16.000.

MY INSURANCE: DOESN’T WANT TO PAY A STINKIN DIME – they say that any of this reconstructive work is elective and there is no medical benefit – they are stupid! we have appealed and appealed and those insurance people SUCK!

EVEN WITH THE ELECTROLYTE BALANCES, EMOTIONAL ISSUES REALATED TO THE EXTRA SKIN AND DAILY CLOTHING PROBLEMS.

THESE ARE PROBABLY NOT LIFE THREATENING SITUATIONS – ESPECIALLY IF WATCHED CAREFULLY

BUT, MY EGO WANTS ME TO LOOK GOOD!

KF

1 Comment