I have a favor. I am trying to find pics of well-healed scars after VGS surgery. I see fresh ones, but not a lot of healed ones. Would anyone be willing to share a pic of your tum? Various stages of healing (fresh to well healed) would probably be appreciated by all. Thanks in advance.

I am 4 weeks post op. The first photo is the front of my belly. Please disregard the stretch marks I have had 2 huge babies. The second photo is of my drain site that was left to close on its own with no stitches and no glue.

Man, I feel like Franken-belly! I'm the only one who has a huge one above my navel lol

Aka, my second belly button

Tfarr, yeah, I'm really surprised to see how different the incision placement is for everyone. I had one tiny incision right at my bra line that I can't see at all anymore. The rest of mine are 2-3 inches below my belly button. Pretty much the same exact placement as my work partner's hysterectomy incisions. And they are completely covered by any pants other than low rise "hip huggers". Just one more thing surgeons all do differently.....

I really didn't expect so many different incision sites! I was told I would have a couple more with having my gallbladder out also, but everybody's is so different! Crazy how surgeon's each have their own methodical madness!

I am three months post op and my scars are not visible. I did not use anything for them either! I am happy about it.

These were my surgery scars at 2 weeks post-op.

These are my scars now at 12 months post-op. Barely visible.

Mine will end up looking like the Bermuda Triangle lol

I would post mine, but truthfully, they've all faded to the point where they don't show up on my phone camera. The scars could easily be mistaken for big freckles at this point.

This one is around 10 days after surgery

This one is today 5 months and 1 week post-op.

These help so much! Yes I see bruising with fresh 2-5 day ones (expected) but those of you 2+ weeks out can hardly tell. You all look great and thanks so much you eased my mind a great deal!

Just for the other end of the spectrum, I am a year out and my scars are NOT gone. I used mederma and the insure nutrition scar cream. Part of it is genetics, I tend to scar and am very fair so when I get cold the color really stands out. But my gallbladder scars are gone so part of it is surgeon technique (mine used staples and I can still see the staple holes surrounding one of the scars.). It wasn't easy to get pictures but here are the best I could do. I have three in a triangle above and to the sides of my belly button. I had two more but they are almost invisible now. Perhaps the other three will follow suit, but at this point I dunno...

Jess9395 where were your gallbladder incisions? There is a good chance I will need mine out. My bariatric surgeon did such an awesome job keeping his incisions below my belly button, I'd be bummed to end up with scars in the middle of my abdomen if I didn't have to.

Mine were all less than 1/4 inch except the main one, where they pulled my stomach out through. I got an infection in it, and it had to be opened 3 times before it healed. It's about an inch in length, and it puckered a little, and was about an inch above and to the right of my navel. All of them faded and shrunk over time, and only the big one was visible. I've had an abdominoplasty since then, and now that big scar is just above my pubic area, so well hidden by underwear. most of the others are gone, but I had to search for the ones that were left.

Jess9395 where were your gallbladder incisions? There is a good chance I will need mine out. My bariatric surgeon did such an awesome job keeping his incisions below my belly button, I'd be bummed to end up with scars in the middle of my abdomen if I didn't have to.

One was inside the top part of my belly button so that's no biggie...then two that are to the right of my belly button but higher, by about two inches. They are about two inches apart right, one an inch higher than the other, but so faint they won't show in a pix. Right now they are more on my side than my front but I think they migrated with the weight loss and used to be more toward the front.

Mine was emergency surgery like it was gonna burst, so I don't know if you plan in advance maybe it can all be done through the belly button or lower than the bikini line, but mine aren't.

My top two scars look like freckles, not scars. My main incision looks like a little dash, like my belly button has a mustache or something, lol. They aren't bad at all.