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Hey, So lately i start to geht more and more anxious, I got my RNY-Bypass sept. 2023, i'm currently 36 years old from Germany. my Starting weight was around 230kg, i'm now at 125kg, it is a lot right?, But me being Anxious about my excess skin is kinda..Hart on my self esteem, i kinda think that even after my Fight is won, that nobody wants someone who is kinda...mhm.. Weird? , for comparions, a photo from 1 day to OP and one from today.

Hi guys, So lately I've been seeing posts on tik tok and comments on there about people losing their teeth sometime after gastric bypass. That scares me a bit, but not stopping me from getting the tool. They all say they take their vitamins everyday. What could be causing them to lose their teeth? Is there something I can do to help prevent that? The other question is that I know this isn't the easy way out, it's just that everyone else who isn't in our situation always says it is the easy way out and they will argue and argue with you about it saying that it is. It's so annoying, they don't understand that its just like losing weight normally except you just have a tool to help keep you on track and if you mess up, you pay for it. That's like basically the only difference. Why do you think people are so against it? Besides the fact that it's super scary. If people wanted the surgery, it's because they need the help. Plus going in for weigh ins, nutritionist and all that, helps keep you motivated. People are weird.

if you lose a ton of weight, you're likely to have some loose skin. I had a ton of it (I had mine surgically removed three years after my bypass). No one but me (and my husband and doctor) knew it was there, though - it was pretty easy to hide in clothes. Even if it didn't have it removed, though, I still would have taken loose skin any day of the week over weighing 373 lbs (and yep - we had the same starting weight).

So I am just over a year out and lost 115 pounds in total. Got approved for skin removal surgery for my stomach, Had that done last Friday I had no idea how much this would hur. My bypass surgery was cake compared to this I can still hardly move anyone who has been through this have any recovery recommendations?

Thanks for the replies everyone. I am hoping it'll be a smooth recovery but I understand it's a huge procedure and costly, it's still something I believe will help me along my journey. I just feel so uncomfortable with my arms, way more than the loose skin on my belly and legs. I understand it might not be as drastic as some other cases on here and in no way did I mean to compare myself to anyone else's struggles. It's just something personally I have had trouble with and wanted to know how the recovery process is and how you view yourself after. My surgeon said there's two people that usually come into his office. The first one is someone who doesn't have enough loose skin and doesn't really qualify for a brachio (they are more looking at lipo and skin tightening procedures). The other patient is someone who has huge amounts of excess skin (people who've lost between 150/200 lbs with poorer skin elasticity) and have no other options except a brachio (less invasive procedures would not make a difference). He said I sit right on the cusp of absolutely needed a brachio to see the results I want. He said my skin elasticity is good but it won't ever bounce back to a normal size without skin removal. He said I could do skin tightening I believe they call is morpheous body but it won't get rid of the flap of skin under my arm. He suggests it to his patients who qualify who are more concerned about scarring. I personally don't care about scars. He also noticed I have a lot of loose skin folded over on my bra line so he is recommends the brachio with the bra line skin removal procedure for me. Of course I want brachio, but I am going with what my surgeon thinks is best and that is the removal of the skin. I included some other pics, sorry I don't take the best pictures but hopefully, you can see my arms a bit more if you were curious what my situation is. Again, I am in no way comparing my physical shape to anyone else. We all have different circumstances, bodies, elasticity, goals, etc. I don't have the photos from my surgeon yet (the before, clearest photos) but you can see more of my arm hangage here in these photos. No, it doesn't look super obvious when I wear long sleeves pic for reference (I am always wearing long sleeves) however I personally would like to have a brachio to feel confident in t-shirts without that arm flap wacking against my side.

To be honest, I wasn't up until now. I don't have loose skin or any sagging but my butt has deflated. No amount of weight lifting seems to help as I'm still losing weight. My concern is time off work, I can't be away for two months 😭. Did you need to take two months off?

I second what @AmberFL said. I highly encourage that you hold the plastics until you're done having children. Pregnancy is beautiful but it does take its toll on the body, you will stretch and deflate, breastfeeding too affects some women and causes loose skin, deflation ....etc. Good Luck! 💓

I'm 55 and just had the sleeve done 3 weeks ago. I'm doing ok. Its been rough but I'm turning the corner. Since surgery I lost 10 lbs. Before surgery I lost 32 lbs. Due to loosing so much before surgery it's going to take a little longer to loose the rest the Dr said. I'm hoping to loose another 30 lbs.

I waited about a year after surgery before getting new ink because my skin was still adjusting. Placement mattered more than I expected—anywhere with stretched skin looked way different once I lost weight. A friend of mine got a 3D Areola Tattoo after reconstruction, and it looked super realistic. Always smart to check that your artist has experience with post-weight-loss skin.

One for my UK family ❤️ Recently had a referral made for plastics in the UK via the NHS - now I know the likelihood of this being approved is extremely low - the GP making the referral even said to me it is entirely dependent on what clinician picks it up, as we are at their whim/bias, even telling me a story of how one woman had her loose skin removal referral denied because the clinician stated that because she paid for her RNY privately, then she could afford to pay for plastics...how awful! Either way - has anyone actually had their plastics on the NHS, and if so, what was your experience like? If not - have you paid privately in the UK and if so, where did you go? I have been looking into Ian Whittaker!

Thank you! They've gone from a 38GG to a 34FF, and trust me, without my bra they are a state 🤣🤣 The loose skin is intense!

The whole shebang huh lol. Im a bit leery of it all myself. I have lost enough weight now between gastric sleeve and zepbound that I have the sagging skin issue in several places. My biggest area that I suppose bothers me (in looks) is my arms. I hate how much is sagging and actually quite heavy skin. If I do anything it will be those upper arms for sure first!!! It wasnt really until recently I noticed it wasnt just the upper arms, it has now gone downward into forearm area. Skin there is really starting to get loose. I just dont know whether to do both upper arms at the same time or one at a time. I have not spoken to a plastic surgeon yet as I am only just now seeing other areas of my body with loose sagging skin. Ive lost a considerable amount in the breast area, my thighs are now saggy and loose as well as my butt lol. I just noticed a noticeable fold of loose skin thats irritating ha!! I just dont know if I want to go through so many surgeries to get rid of all this, it seems a bit much but I guess time will tell which areas will irritate me enough to do something about it.

I am feeling okay! Trying to budge this last bit of weight and then I would have hit my 2nd goal, but everything has definitely slowed down so I am having to push more! I am struggling to eat as much as I should, but I find that I am loving crisps at the moment (albeit only a few every day or so 🤣) Trying to think now about what surgery I may want to tackle this loose skin!

Finasteride is usually for male pattern baldness...its not usually prescribed for women (I'm assuming OP is female). I concur lighter hair color works for pale skin hair loss and darker for darker skin tones.

I thought it was an after pxt too @catwoman7 & @GreenTealael & I went back and reread the post too. Yes, to have plastics or not is a very personal decision. I’m one who decided not to because I didn’t have a lot just a little all over (though I think it has got more noticeable as the years have passed & I’ve got older) and I tend to scar. I’m not one for a bikini, short shorts or waving my arms around so none really sees mine. My clothes cover it well even in body con dresses and skinny legging like pants. The only thing I’d suggest is to avoid lipo. You’re only removing more fat so you’ll have more loose skin. Oh and all those skin tightening treatments your local beauty clinic says will help, they won’t so save your money on those and maybe put it towards plastics if that’s what you decide to do.

Oh god I don't know about that! I am so not confident for a bikini yet...my tits are non-existent skin bags and my tummy is deflated 😂

@AmberFL exactly! Stretched my poor skin out eating everything! And yesss I love a good nip and tuck.

Hell yes!! I honestly don't care if people see my extra skin I have worked hard for what I have now lol Lots of sweat and tears literally. go us!!

It is definitely a weird one! I can still see where I have more to lose - but I am like, how much of this is loose skin and what is fat? It is strange for sure! I still can't seem to bring myself to call myself skinny 🤣

Thank you for the idea. I am sorry it took so long getting back to you... tying up loose ends before surgery first thing Monday morning. I appreciate your reply! 😊

I love lipo when done with skin removal. But the surgeon has to be skilled in body/lipo sculpting because there is some art to it. I would not recommend solo lipo unless someone is very young (20’s) or like the ideal candidate (no lose skin, lipodema, asymmetry correction, etc)

Hey guys, brand new here. Halfway through my bariatrics process, and just a general question, hopefully from people who are around my same size? Started this process at 373 pounds. Goal weight to achieve was 345.6 pounds. Im currently at 337 pounds and still dropping, as I cut everything out of my diet first day after consult. Started fasting, portion control, intake control with what I was choosing to eat, and hitting the gym 5 days a week for resistance training. I am 6ft tall. Mainly posting to see what process yall went through in how much expected weight loss. I know all bodies are different, but trying to get a better idea to compensate for loose skin. Still have 3 months to go until im scheduled for surgery due to insurance requirements, and im not stopping now. Im ready for the better side of me I can find. Any information is greatly appreciated! Currently looking at getting the gastric sleeve done.

I have aetna, getting plastics is not in my policy. I'm also not ready for skin removal but, wow, if they pay you must have an expensive plan. I don't with Aetna, and getting the surgery was hard enough.

Long post alert, just venting and catching up after so much time away... TLDR, I'm getting an arm lift. I want to hear from other people who got it and how it changed their body/body image, recovery, success stories, and whatever else you want to share! Wow, I haven't posted in a while. This forum got me through some dark times when I had my gastric bypass both before and after. I am posting today because I am FINALLY getting some plastics done. I have been waiting a while because I wanted to maintain my weight. I just turned 30, I'm not getting any younger and I've been doing excellent maintaining my weight loss so I finally scheduled a brachioplasty to start. I am getting an arm lift in other words. I included a pic of my arm and the skin hang-age. This is my before. Disclaimer, this pic is from a couple months ago it's the one I had handy on my desktop but I've been doing a lot of weight training and have built up my bicep a bit more. I would like to do a tummy tuck too (I have A LOT of loose skin in an apron belly shape and my boobs sag down to my ribs 😕 ) but I am okay with not getting it for now. I can't afford both and don't really have the time to recover from all that surgery. I am starting with just the brachio for now. I have spent my whole life hiding my body and after losing all this weight, I found I am concealing it even MORE because of how droopy and flappy everything has gotten. I am fed up of feeling uncomfortable in my own skin after all the hard work I put in. I'm sure a lot of people who get plastic surgery post-major weight loss can relate to this. At this point it feels like a necessity. My bat wing arms also smack against my body like crazy, I can't wear short sleeves without this happening and tops do not fit me right because of my wonky proportions. My bicep has very little fat on it and all the bulk on my arm is hanging under it so it's very uncomfortable. I've been holding off because of how expensive it is as well. I am paying out of pocket 15k and it's a chunk of my savings but I'd rather have this than a payment plan and I can start ASAP to recoup my savings. I have a lot of body image issues as one does from being morbidly obese their whole life... so honestly I am almost 100% sure this surgery is NOT going to fix the way I see myself. I am more looking at it as a way to feel more comfortable on a day-to-day basis whether I am exercising or just trying to wear a short sleeve outfit in this very hot state I live in. So that's basically my update. I have been doing well, maintaining my weight loss and a healthy lifestyle. Gastric bypass has completely changed my life and made it so much easier to make better choices for my body and my longevity. I am ready for the arm lift and I am so scared but also excited to see how this all goes. I want to hear from other people who got an arm lift or any loose skin removal and how the recovery went for you and how it helped you and your confidence. Thanks and you're all wonderful people!