Last night I watched the show Extreme Weight Loss, and was happy to see that they again included the removal of excess skin as part of the process of this mans journey to the new him. I mentioned it on a WLS site, which started a vocal dialog of people wanting to complete their journey but feeling they couldn't due to restrictions placed on them because of the government or their insurance company. I was surprised, how many people feel stuck in their old skin due to not having insurance. Maybe I didn't feel stuck due to insurance woes since I haven't had any support from insurance along the way, as I was a self pay for my RNY years ago... This got me thinking how much are we worth? I ask this because it took me several years to feel worth spending the money. If insurance would have covered it, I am sure I would have done it sooner, but since I had to pay (my family) it was a whole different story. We don't have extra cash sitting around the house so this was money that could have gone to fixing up the house or buying a new car...All sorts of important uses, then it hit me, if I were to buy a car, it would most likely last 7 years and then we would be in need of replacing it, well if that money went towards me I am planning on lasting more than 7 years! Do I value a car more than myself? No... There are ways to have the surgery without breaking the bank. I know one lady that had all of her surgeries at a Teaching Hospital in NYC for a fraction of the normal cost. I went to Mexico, just 5 miles south of the border in San Diego, which was so simple, I felt safe and close to home and paid about 1/3 of the costs back home. Also there is a company called Credit Care, which finances plastic surgery.... So I urge you, if you want and need plastic surgery to complete your journey please don't give up but do some investigating I am sure you will find a way...You are worth it, you have come so far.....

I so agree with you and have used the same analogy with the car. How many people drive around in new cars and cant afford the surgery? I am not saying anyone could afford it and this country stinks regarding insurance. They seem to only pay for things after your sick, nothing before.

My family watched the show too, who cant enjoy a transformation in 2 hours! As it shows weight loss is only part of the battle. Mental health, life style change and surgery are another part. All we can do is work on it as much as possible. Even if I have to stuff skin in my pants, at least I will be healthier and look normal in clothes. For me, one battle at a time.

Thanks for sharing your post. I loved it.

Colleen

I agree with you @@AZDee WE ARE WORTH IT!!! It doesn't matter what it is, WLS or new hair cut or new clothes after we lose our weight we have to do the right thing by ourselves to be happy and healthy. It's not always easy but it is always worth it.

My husband and I just signed up for year of personal training and you know...it's EXPENSIVE and yes there may be some plastic surgery needed down the road and you know what we are worth it! We have taken care of our family's our children our parents our jobs and we don't do much in the way of things that take care of "us".

So this time we put our health and vitality first and spend the money and booked the trainers, now I just need to rocket fuel to get through the work outs !

I agree! I set aside money for this and after being SHOCKED by the 40-50K price tag of 3 surgeries I found a reputable and more affordable option myself. I am thrilled with my care and results so just making the point it is possible.

I also want to say that plastics aren't for everyone. Be proud of your changes, excess skin isn't NEARLY as harmful as excess fat. At some point, there is value to simply accepting ourselves as well. I had ALOT of excess skin pre plastics. My boyfriend kept telling me I didn't need plastics. Once I did it, he was wowed by the change but my point is that we tend to judge ourselves so terribly harshly. My excess skin did bother me, but I did reach a point of realizing I could live happily even with it. Now that it is gone, i am estatic but I was "ok" with it too.

I agree, I have heard many people say they wear their excess skin as a badge of honor for losing the weight and are fine with it...But then there are others who wish they could have surgery and feel trapped due to their insurance company, these are the ones I was addressing, we should never allow ourselves to feel trapped but get out there and find a way...I am sure there are even more ways than the ones I described. In fact if anyone has watched the TLC program that Dr. Katzen did a couple years ago that showed two people having full Lower body lifts, which he calls 360 body lifts, you will find that both of those people had their surgeries paid for from some sort of obesity support group that funds surgeries. You can find that video on his website. He is a very talented surgeon specializing in patients who have lost 100's of pounds. I met with him and absolutely loved him but for my two needed surgeries the total was just shy of $40,000....

Thanks for your post. I was scheduled for an abdominoplasty, but have decided on the more conservative approach of a panniculectomy. I have extensive scar tissue in my upper abdomen from an old gallbladder surgery. There is an increased risk operating in that area with a full abdominoplasty regarding tissue necrosis, wound vacs etc...just not a chance I am willing to take.

My point is, insurance is paying for the procedure. So, I have decided to have a brachioplasty done at the same time. I will be a self-pay for that portion. I feel a lot of guilt over spending that money. Thank you for reminding me that we are worth it after all this hard work. These results will last a lifetime and are life changing:)

I agree about the car thing - Our body is the car we drive for life - So to look after our own 'vehicle' is a good thing. I guess everyone is different and we will all see if different ways but personally after losing half of my body weight - I thought it would give me 'normality' and then after I felt more of a freak than before - Now after the reconstruction - I feel so blessed to have such a wonderful outcome and to actually not hate myself.

I have embraced my scars as they are a small price to pay for being able to wear what I like.

It's funny how after you have had plastics even people who knew WHY you did it - They can turn on you and call it vanity when all you wanted was normality....

But - If some people assume I am vain then that is fine with me. I don't flaunt my new body at all...... I just live in jeans and a T shirt - I really missed jeans when they didn't fit right.

I guess I could have bought a new car, had a few holidays, gone out to eat..... Do up the house. - But I LIVE within this body and every day is a holiday within this new vessel I now reside within! Every day is so much better than I felt before.

My PS said to me that I had changed - The person who first went in to see him very tearful and felt a freak. The person who said goodbye to him after all the surgery was much more happy and not so self-conscious and hating myself. He noticed that I changed emotionally - As well as the physically. The surgery has helped me so much MORE than just making of a new body - Mentally I am a whole new woman! And I really believe that PS is so much more than just the vanity aspect people see - The emotional and the mental scars we all carry from our pasts - They are not 100% gone - They will always be a part of me - But I feel so much more 'ME' now..... Hard to put in to words really what this amazing journey has given to me in so very many ways.

I know I am worth it! I paid for my lapband, all my plastics (tummy tuck, breast lift with implants, thigh lift and lipo), revision from band to bypass.. And I can say I would do it all again except for the band. It was worth every single penny. I had it all done here in Connecticut so paid quite a bit (I was not comfortable going out of U.S.) but I am sooo happy with the choices I made. There is no greater satisfaction for me than when I am naked in front of my husband. We have been married for 23 years and he has seen me at 305 pounds and he has seen me thin. The confidence to strut around naked after plastics was worth every penny we spent. So yes I am worth it! So are all of you!

I had plastics a week ago. I had a LBL, tummy tuck, butt lift and lipo. I went through a time feeling very selfish spending the money to do this when the money could be spent on so many other things.

I don't think many people understand how emotional it is for many of us to carry around the extra skin. I needed to do this for me. Personally it didn't have anything to do with me being vain and I find myself explaining this to people who know I had plastic surgery.

I'm glad I did it. I know as I continue to heal I will feel better and better!

Your not selfish, you did it because it was important to you as it is many people. There is not one right answer.

So motivated

We are always worth it!

I love, love, love, this analogy! We are worth more and last longer than any material thing out there. If we don't take care of ourselves...who will? Its amazing how much money someone will put into a vehicle to make it look pristine..they will add modifications on the inside and out...yet the same person will turn and scoff at someone..an actual human being, who wants to improve themselves and their health by doing the same thing...as if they are not worth as much as some material thing on wheels. I see a WLS/plastics commercial in this scenario. It would make people think, anyway...lol!

Edited July 10, 201412 yr by Junebug36

This was a great post. I currently have a breast lift and augmentation, fully tummy tuck, and lipo on my thighs, back, and flanks scheduled, however everyday my thought is...are you really worth 20k? I feel really selfish in a sense because "wasting" that much money on myself seems kind of ridiculous, especially since I'm now a healthy weight and I don't really have a ton of extra skin- it's mostly for the sake of vanity. I also feel like there are so many people who have to have surgery for health purposes and they can't afford it, while here I am blowing the cost of a decent new car on surgery that I don't even remotely need. Am I worth it is very much a question running through my head. I'm glad other people have found that it was worth the cost.