Hi Bandsters,

For those of you who have reached or are approaching goal weight, I'm wondering...how many of you have loose skin, and how loose/how much?

Please answer with how much weight you lost and whether you wanted/needed/considered plastic surgery.

Thank you for your input.

Mslynn

i've lost nearly 100 lbs and have about 100 lbs more to go - gah, trying not to think about how long that will take but no matter - i'm going to be a fit woman in the skin of a super morbidly obese one.

currently, my upper arms are disgusting. huge bat wings and my arms are still fat. there's a bit of fat/skin right near my underarms that is really dimpled and ugh...it's not nice to see. i really, really hate it.

i have a fat-filled roll above my waist and lower stomach is still big (obviously not as much as before) but the skin is saggy there, too. i also have fat on my back, fistfulls i can pinch near each side of my back (low, near my waist). that will be a saggy problem later.

skin on my thighs is awful...when i'm standing. ick ick ick.

i was never one to really carry my weight in my face too much - sure, my cheeks were full but i didn't have a double chin (or triple or whatever). now my face looks like that of a normal weight person (most days) and i've got a bit of a turkey neck now. it's not a lot but there is some more to lose there and that's disheartening. i've always looked younger and the turkey neck definitely ages a woman!

but really, aside from my upper arms, the WORST is my calves. i got so fat the fat had to go to my calves, too. i had (and still have) a bit of big fat pockets at the front-side of my calves. they got HUGE. i had beautiful legs when i was younger but no more. i have no hope for my calves to ever, ever look nice. which makes me sad because i'd love to be able to wear dresses and not feel so self conscious. i know they'll get thinner as the rest of me does but i'm pretty sure i'll have a lot of saggyness there as the skin feels thin like my super-saggy thigh skin...

*sigh*

i don't know if i'll ever be able to afford plastic surgery - ever. i figure i'll want/need upper-arm lift, breast lift (maybe implants), tummy tuck, whatever to take care of back skin, and a lower body lift. maybe a neck lift, too. that's a lot of PS and a huge amount of money!

but i just want to look okay naked, you know?

I feel your pain, even though I only lost half your wt. I have had the arms, boobs, and tummy done and am going to a consult for thighs in a few weeks. I wish I had gone about things differently as far as planning, though. Please try to find a bariatric Plastic Surgeon to consult with now so you can have a plan and know the costs. I had no idea (and my LB practice was no help) that my town had a specialist in body contouring after massive wt loss. I wouldn't have done things piece meal as I have done. Make no mistake...you will trade that loose jiggly wobbly skin pockets for a trim figure....but you will have scars for a couple of years. The journey is long and hard and thin ppl don't understand that the reconstruction is for US, not the world!!!

I wish you the best and hope you keep posting your wonderful progress.

Mimi