I just made my first goal of 300, and I imagined I would feel happier, but I don't. I don't know what my body will look like once I reach my goal weight. I don't want to have nor can I afford plastic surgery. I'm just worried.

Your going to have excess skin. I don't know your heaviest weight but at this weight your garunteed to have loose skin.

I must say I feel the same.But Im 45 and have been up and down 100 pounds a few times.

Nothing we can do about it.The slower we lose the better.(might not make the lindest bit of difference though)

Exercise,exercise,exercise and maybe we'll be able to live with ourselves skin and all.

Anyway,I will have to overcome my fear and go for plastics eventually.

I was told that some insurance companies will help pay for plastics if it is medically necessary. I know only a couple of people that had some of the tucks covered bc they developed rashes from the excess skin. I don't think 100% percent is covered though. I started taking just 5 dollars a week and put it aside. I figure I do that for a couple of years I can afford it w no probs.

Every single itch, rash or pain that your excess skin causes should cause a doctors visit. If it is documented to likely cost them more in treatment over time, then to just do the surgery, almost every company will approve it. Foremost, you should be proud of yourself. No, the excess skin my not be the prettiest thing in the world, but what you are doing for your life and the rest of your body is beautiful and strong! Don't let that negative tape recorder in your head find something new to say. Keep up the great work! Congrats on breaking 300, you should celebrate!

Extra skin doesn't shorten your life span, extra fat does.Hang in there!

I totally understand! Of course you are doing this for your health but it's a hard pill to swallow that you still may not like how you look. I know I think about it.

There's a YouTube vlog, I'm going to look for it, where a young lady talked about this and it finally just clicked. She talked about altering your perception. While we were bigger, most of us still had days where we could look in the mirror and smile and feel like we were "working what we had". You will have to do the same with your now transforming body. Will it be "perfect"? Maybe not (for me, it's a probably not LOL). But it should be a hell of a lot easier to work what you have, flaws and all.

Hang in there! :-)

I fear dating more than I did before. I am thin now...like really thin...the skin is pretty gross. At least when I was fat it wasn't like a man had high expectations for a super model body, but a man would look at me now and think I was normal. I am all skin and bones. I will have to have plastics. I am going to make a firm decision in December. I am paying all my debts off so if I do go for it I can afford it. Now the time away from work is going to be the bigger dilemma.

Yes, having the skin issue is better than having a stroke for sure. I didn't have this surgery for vanity, I was going to have a stroke or die. I've had so many stages of weight loss. However now I'm noticing my body in ways I never have, and it's scary. My breasts are smaller, I can feel the bones in my feet and hands, and worst of all, no hips or butt, lol. I don't have alot of excess skin yet because there's still fat attached to it, lol! My arms are a problem for sure, but I guess you just work towards acceptance.

My experience has been that once I tell people I've had the surgery they immediately comment on how great it will be to be skinny, and it frustrates me. 1st they don't know what weight you want to be, my goal is 200, far from skinny, and 2nd with this surgery you don't know what kind of body you might end up with. At my very heaviest 8 years ago I was 400, and VERY slowly got to my pre Options class weight of 376. It's been a long ass road with still road to travel.

Anyway, thanks for the input everyone!

I am white, but grew up mostly around black people. I have lost my ass... I used to have a great one...A lot of my fear of being too thin is culturally rooted in me. My thick thighs are now saggy skin bags, my boobs are small...I have no butt. No hips. I looked at women in bikinis yesterday and realized that the bigger women looked more beautiful to me than the thin ones. I never wanted to be a super model. I was so accepting of who I was and now it will just take some time and therapy to accept this new version of me.

Have you thought about picking a weight loss goal that is more modest? that is exactly what I did. I am currently at goal, no longer obese, no lose skin, just think and curvy. I am not thin either-- that is not important to me. I do however like the way I look now (i wear a size 10-12 and medium or large tops, and a 36C. AND I am healthy..... I would not feel good about myself at a lower weight if it meant I had body issues realted to lose skin. Also a more modest weight goal is much easier to maintain in the long run.

You ladies, make me thankful that I have no loose skin, down to 187 from 250 and I see no sign of the loosey goosey. I do however, workout at least 60-90 min 6 days a week, lift weights and do lots of lower body exercises as well as cycling classes 3 days per week. So I am thankful, good luck to you guys.

I have the same worries... and then think what Sleeve of Steel posted, maybe up my goal to a higher weight. But then I think back to when I was that weight and how fat I still felt and how I would like to get down to my initial goal...

And then I think of the Dr. Phil episode of the woman that had WLS and was miserable bc of her skin and said she would trade the being miserable w skin to being miserable fat bc she hated the way she looked w her loose skin that much....

IDK, lots of thoughts going through my head - but all in all I have to not worry about it and cross that bridge when I come to it I guess.... my weight's fluctuated so much in the last 10+ years and I never had saggy skin, but I also haven't lost 130 lbs or so (my goal) in a year EVER.

Thoughts all around - I drive myself crazy most often!!! LOL

The key here is exercise. Skin will shrink (all be it slower than the weight loss) but exercise does miracles for your body, and yes, even stimulates you're skin to tighten. Success is dependent on a lifestyle change, not just a diet change.

Keep positive, and keep focused. ????????

I totally understand! Of course you are doing this for your health but it's a hard pill to swallow that you still may not like how you look. I know I think about it.

There's a YouTube vlog, I'm going to look for it, where a young lady talked about this and it finally just clicked. She talked about altering your perception. While we were bigger, most of us still had days where we could look in the mirror and smile and feel like we were "working what we had". You will have to do the same with your now transforming body. Will it be "perfect"? Maybe not (for me, it's a probably not LOL). But it should be a hell of a lot easier to work what you have, flaws and all.

Hang in there! :-)

Well Said!

When you are young skin will shrink.

Losing 100 pounds when I was 35 was a lot different than now at 45.i had almost no extra skin then.

Fair skin stretches more than dark skin.Darker skin is just stronger than very light skin.

Other factors that dictates what your skin will do is genetics.Look at your mom,grandma aunt and it is sometimes like looking in a mirror when you get older.

How many times have you lost a lot of weight in your life?that also makes a difference.Have you smoked and many more factors.

I have 2 friends that have had the surgery and are at goal.One is olive complexion,not much dieting success in her past and her skin is where it belongs..lol.Normal.The other girls is very fair like me and even though she exercised like a complete lunatic she had to have her arms,legs,tummy and boobs done.In fact,her face needs doing to fit that super new body of her.She never smoked in her life but she has deep skin folds on her face.

You are lucky in that respect or not.

xxo