PlanetHopper

My surgery is on December 9th. It seems surreal that it's only 4 days away. I will be getting the VSG. I wish you the best on your journey.

Thank you for your encouragement. It's definitely hard for me to be accepting of the hair loss as a side effect because a lot of my identity is within my tightly curly hair. I have always thought of it was my best feature.

When did your hair start growing back?

I don't think you are being a downer. I appreciate your honesty. I truly believe that it is near impossible to completely prevent loose skin after having weight loss surgery because the body does not have time to adjust.

Has this been working for you? How much weight have you lost and do you feel like you do not have loose skin?

No problem! I am glad I was able to help. As a side note, I also recommend watching Dr. Duc C. Vuong's video's. He is a bariatric surgeon that has a lot of videos that I found really helpful. Here is a link to his youtube channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/DoctorVuong

I am still pre-op but I have also looked into loose skin. Loose skin after weight loss surgery is common because your skin does not have the time to adjust to the rapid weight loss. Although everyone is different, you will MOST LIKELY have loose skin and the only true way to completely resolve that issue is through plastic surgery. Based on some Youtubers that are bariatric patients, compression clothing can really help with minimizing the visibility of loose skin. I do recall a Youtuber suggesting that you buy quality compression clothing because it can make all the difference. I am sorry this isn't coming from personal experience but this is the best I know of it so far. You can look on Youtube for first hand experiences from real patients.

I am also using Tricare for my surgery. I did have to have three months of the supervised diet from my surgeon, a psychology evaluation (2 appointments), blood work, barium swallow test (because I am getting the Sleeve), and a nutritionist appointment. My BMI is 36 pre-op and and I do have depression and chronic pain as commodities. I honestly don't think you will have any issue with getting approved I can update this post to let you know what happens with my approval.