Weight Loss Surgery - Regarding loose skin after weight loss...

Has anyone found that the rapid weight loss associated with the Bypass procedure as being a huge reason for the extra skin afterwards? Or should it be expected even with the Lap-Band procedure which is generally alot slower weight loss....

That was a big reason why I chose to go with the Lap-Band. Is there more to it than just the speed of weight loss that makes the loose skin? I know age is a factor too...

Anyone out there that has had either procedure I would totally dig some input!

:carrot:

I had the gastric bypass procedure done in September and due to some other health problems during the time when I should have had my fastest weight loss I was only losing 1-2 lbs a week. I still have alot of loose skin but I just don't worry about it. I keep it well powdered to prevent rubbing and soreness. Is it my goal to eventually have the skin removed...definitely...but is it my priority...not really. The fact that I was very unhealthy and inactive and now I can keep up with my two kids no problem is more of a guideline to me than the size of my pants or what I look like in the mirror. I do still have days where my skin bothers me more than anything. It sometimes makes me feel like I look worse now at this weight than I did at almost 300 lbs. I can honestly say that what I look like in the mirror is not as important as how I feel when I wake up and also when I complete my day. I no longer dread the things I must do because they make me so exhausted I want to sleep from the moment I get home from work until the next morning when it is time to get going again. Sorry for the rambling it is just that the skin factor is something I am starting to face now.

Melissa - I haven't had either surgery but I have had some experience with fast weight loss. I've been at this weight loss "thing" for almost 3 years. During the first year, I lost 75 lbs in 3 months. I was majorly discouraged from all the loose skin. My weight loss then stalled (as my mentality wasn't in the weight loss mode at the time) and as time went by, the skin firmed up quite a bit.

Now I'm in weight loss mode again and I'm actually surprised that even though I lose fairly rapidly when I'm in the mood, I still haven't developed as much noticeable loose skin as I first did.

My theory based on my experience and other things I've read is that the reason those that lose weight fast notice a lot of excess skin is because your skin doesn't have time to catch up with your weight loss. That isn't to say that any loose skin you do have will firm up all the way but it will firm up somewhat given time. Of course there are some people who are blessed with the ability for their skin to bounce back while others, like myself, will probably require surgery to get to a quasi normal state.

It completely depends on how much you weigh at the start of your weight loss adventure (the bigger you are, the more stretched out your skin has become) and how fast you lose. My brother lost over 150 pounds in about a year, probably a little bit more, and he was left with tons of loose skin in his stomach, chest and arms. It really was kinda sad. He looked great in clothes, though. He's been saving towards plastic surgery and has quite a bit, I believe. He's maintained his weight for a while and his skin really hasn't gotten any firmer, so it's plastic surgery we go.

I forgot to add that from what I've read, most plastic surgeons recommend at least waiting a year just to see how much your skin will firm up. It actually took me 2 years to notice any firmer skin but I was also over or near 300 lbs for 15 years.

P.S. Good luck on your surgery Melissa :)

The speed of your weight loss does not have an impact on the amount of skin laxity.
(At first it might but after several months of a sustained loss it is the same as if it had taken you, say, three times as long to loss the weight).
How much you have lost, how old you are, genetics and other factors are all involved in the amount of skin laxity.

Check out the Body Image and Issues After Weight Loss forum for all sorts of threads about these issues! :)

Melissa, skin resiliency has nothing to do with how rapid you lose the weight or what method is used to aid weight loss. How much weight you gained in the first place is the biggest factor. Second is genetics. If stretch marks are a family trait, then you are much more likely to have skin that doesn't snap back as much. Third, age. The older we get, the more everything just kinda sags, unfortunately. Collagen for regeneration just isn't as available as when we were, say, 15 or 20.

I'm in the process of getting WLS approvable. I've been a wound-care nurse in the past plus have to deal with the "tummy" flap on patients and myself. I recommend anti-perspirant deodorant on the folds. Also recommend any cornstarch powders with zinc oxide. If it gets to be a real problem and open weeping areas, get a prescription of mystatin powder to dust on things and keep something between the layer to keep them from building heat and moisture. Mostly just soap and water, rinse and dry well and right kind of powder couple times of day.

<sigh> and here i've had an infection for a month - and am treating it with prescription ketoconazole. one spot clears up, and it erupts in another spot. that one clears up, and it moves AGAIN!!!!

I'm coming up to 26, at my heaviest I was 18 stone, at my lightest 11 1/2 stone.. I remember being very happy with my body at my lightest weight and only hoping to loose 1 more stone and 1 more dress size; my boobs did get smaller, athough I have never really been happy with my boobs, even as I teen I felt there were a little saggy (this must be me genes..?), and my legs toned up too (although I have chunky calves and even weight loss doesn't get me into calf/knee high boots :mad: )... Anyway my fear now, as I do have lots of strech marks across my belly from going up and down so much through my late teens and early twenties, is my belly..!! I have always had a little fold (even before I was overweight as a child, just as I was growing in into my teens). I'm worried about the skin I will be left with... I so want to loose weight, and I think I jeapordise it because I am so worried I will work hard to achieve it (and I will this time, I am committed to changing my life in this way) just to be unhappy because of loose skin. I keep thinking, 'I am only 26, I don't want to have a saggy belly and boobs!!!'

I don't want to end up with surgery, I would only consider breast augmentation to lift and shape (as I suffer with back pain because of the size) if loosing weight doesn't help... I have considered this for many years, but decided against until I reach my goal weight and see how much diet and excercise has helped change the shape of them... But I definately want to tone my belly through excercise.

Help!! Does anyoe know the best excercise to tone the belly?? I look in the mirror and I can't imagine anything that can lift my floppy belly!! Not even 200 sit ups a down can lift floppy skin can it?? I don't wan't to loose weight to be left with something even worse than what I have now...?

Loose skin is a cosmetic problem.

Morbid obesity is a life-threatening condition.

Regular exercise will go a long way to firm up loose skin. I lost more than 190 pounds. I work out for 50 minutes to an hour seven days a week, and I have a bit of loose skin under my arms and a handful on my stomach. I have stretch marks. My breasts -- what's left of them -- have to be picked up and set inside my little "B" cup. In clothes I look like a very fit 57 year old! Out of my clothes I do have some loose skin, but I actually can live with it! Considering where I came from, loose skin is no issue at all.

If I had not lost my excess weight, I would probably be getting around in a scooter right now, unable to work, confined mostly to my house. That is, if I were still around!

I'll take the loose skin, thanks. And I'll keep up with my exercise to keep my body as toned as possible.

I'm sorry jiffypop. Have you taken or can you take anything orally like fluconazole tabs? When the topicals don't work, sometimes orals can whip it for a while. Believe me, I know it is a constant battle. This might sound a little weird, but clean up, lock the door, pull up the "tummy" and lay in front of the fan and watch TV. The skin needs air. By the way, I got a letter from my insurance company and they said "They are please to inform me that coverage for my morbid obesity is available. Blah, Blah, Please note, this letter does not guarantee payment." ????!!! So, I'm scratching my head and guess I need to call my clinic tomorrow and see what they think the letter meant. Won't get my hopes up to high, this just seems to easy when I hear what most people have gone through with their insurance companies.

i've taken orals, and i might have to go that route. but with the frequency of the infections, i'm trying to avoid them as much as possible. the risk of liver damage is THERE, and since the REAL answer is to get this excess skin removed, the orals are STILL just a temporary fix.

and i know about that 'fanning' thing. putting something absorbent in there helps as well. so does ice, but that feels a bit weird sometimes. it's just all too much and too overwhelming sometimes.

jiffypop, sorry. I wish I could help more, but you are right removal is the only permanent answer. It has been a problem for me since my third child. It is pretty darn painful when it gets so raw. I do learn from this thread everytime I get on it. Whatever is discussed here, probably someone else is going through the same thing and maybe something will help them. Thanks for being so open.

DancingAngel, loose skin is NOT just a cosmetic problem. Mine had broken down so badly after losing 135 lbs that it would tear whenever I would try to go for a walk, to the gym, etc. I was having chronic fungal infections that did not respond to any and all topical and oral treatments, including using a hairdryer after a shower, laying in front of a fan, etc. I then began having secondary cellulitis in those areas. That certainly doesn't sound like a cosmetic problem to me............ BTW, I had a vertical abdominoplasty almost 4 weeks ago, paid for in full by my insurance.

DancingAngel, loose skin is NOT just a cosmetic problem. Mine had broken down so badly after losing 135 lbs that it would tear whenever I would try to go for a walk, to the gym, etc. I was having chronic fungal infections that did not respond to any and all topical and oral treatments, including using a hairdryer after a shower, laying in front of a fan, etc. I then began having secondary cellulitis in those areas. That certainly doesn't sound like a cosmetic problem to me............ BTW, I had a vertical abdominoplasty almost 4 weeks ago, paid for in full by my insurance.

Don't get me wrong! There are times when it becomes a medical problem, and obviously it did in your case. I'm glad insurance covered your repairs. I wish you a swift recovery.

In my case, I lost a good deal -- 193 pounds -- with no problem with loose skin other than cosmetic. My regular exercise routine has helped a lot.

My problem is when I see people saying they are afraid to lose the weight because they don't want to be left with a lot of ugly loose skin. I've read a number of forums on this site and elsewhere where that concern is expressed. Loose skin is an nuissance -- a major one for some. But morbid obesity is a KILLER. I stand by that.

Hope I’m not intruding, but I read about the problem with skin sores. During an illness, my friend developed sores where her skin overlapped. She had large areas that were raw and very painful. Her doctor gave her a topical treatment that didn’t help at all. She mentioned it to her pharmacist, who recommended applying Maalox on the affected areas. It worked great!

original serendipity - can I ask what you skin waslike before loosing the weight? I have approx 105 to 84lbs to loose, and it's worrying that you have so many medical problems. I am sorry to hear that. I must admit vanity was a primary reason for asking for advice, but I was also worried about still carrying extra weight, especially around my belly where it could be folded over and covered for most of the day, and my boobs, which along with my weight already cause me back problems and rashes, and I would imagine that I would be replacing one problem (cosmetic AND medical) for another...

Can I also ask, I can see you lost some weight, but then had an operation, then lost some more. I am using diet and exercise (cardio and weights), did you use exercise before and after you op to help tone, and do you feel you did enough or perhaps you feel lack of exercise could be a factor..?

Hiya littlestar4!

You might want to peruse some threads here: http://www.3fatchicks.com/forum/forumdisplay.php?f=219 :)

I TOTALLY have to agree with you there, DancingAngel. I never thought of it that way. Seems like a shallow way to view a true weight problem. Littlestar, my skin has always been extremely fair, delicate and not very resilient. It's a family trait. I had to do a double take when you asked if I thought maybe I didn't exercise enough, lol. I can promise you, lack of physically activity has never been an issue unless there was some physical problem that made it almost impossible. At least, inhumane. The skin-tearing issues, torn cartilege, arthritis, and ascetabular cysts in both hips from running 8 miles a week at over 265 lbs, and asthma have been the only things that have ever stopped me. Trust me, lack of exercise, not an issue. Most of my subcutaneous and visceral bodyfat was concentrated in my lower abdomen. The visceral stuff was the first to go when I started losing. The subcutaneous decided it was going to hang around indefinitely. When I had the second surgery, the surgeon removed a total of 5.5 lbs of excess skin and some tissue. In the course of recovery, my body freaked out and started eating itself, I guess, lol. I lost an additional 17 lbs of my own bodyweight (not fluid). I still have a significant amount of fluid to lose, so only time will tell.

original serendipity. i hope i didn't offend when i asked about the exercise. i suppose i just wanted to see if people are left with these problems despite rigorous exercise... i have walked through my lunch hour, followed a personalised strengthening routine three times (through body by glamour online) and i did a workout dvd and a hula hoop class in my first week, plus a warm up and down on the bike. just had my 1st weigh in and i have lost 3 lbs... i feel proud!! i suppose i should stop worrying about the skin, and just keep working hard to keep loosing the weight at this rate.. i have taken a picture of myself now, so i compare the skin/folds as i loose the weight, or at my goal weight..!! maybe i will be less hard on myself then if i can look back and see just how much my body has changed - whatever skin i am left with may not seem such a big deal then!!? and i am sure in comparison, it will be nothing to the shape of my body now. you sound like you have come along way - good for you!!! :o)

Dang it!!!! Sorry, I keep giving people the wrong impression lately. I wasn't offended (but it sure reads like it, don't it?) but I was concerned that you were seeing yourself the same way I was. I felt like I looked worse at 175 than I did at 295 because of all the loose skin and sagging fascia, in spite of alllllllll the things I was supposed to be doing., and it was never going to get better It's completely exasperating. And then to have this sudden change. Presto! It was all gone. That REALLY screwed with my head, lol. Again, I apologize for having been so defensive lately. Nobody has offended me, I was cranky....... I hope I haven't offended ya'll.

greenbriar, are you sure your friend wasn't using zinc oxide cream mixed half and half with maalox? We have some patients who use some of the strangest sounding things on themselves, but the zinc and maalox is something I've used on patients per the doctors order. I had a patient who applied shaving cream on all areas of skin reddness or irritation and swore it worked (it's soap)

It was Maalox straight from the bottle. She started off dabbing it on with a cotton ball, then just pouring it on because the area was so large. It started working right away. When the bottle ran out, she used a generic version and that worked just as well.

Oh, where did it go? LOL I wrote a reply yesterday and it didn't post, lol. Here's the nuts and bolts of it: the last time I checked, shaving cream is not soap, as long as it's the kind from a pressurized bottle/can. If someone was putting soap on a pre-existing rash, they would quickly figure out it was a really BAD idea (without rinsing it immediately after) because soap is basic in nature, causes irritation, itching, burning, rashes, & possible chemicle burns if the skin is broken down enough. Btw, bar soaps can harbor bacterium for longer than 7 days on their surface. I really hope no one is putting that on their skin, wow....

Shaving cream actually is a form of soap, though modern chemistry/technology has improved the product to be more skin conditioning and thicker foamed than a regular bar soap. You can do a search for more specific info, maybe a 'how is shaving cream made' type thing.

I suppose the home remedy as they used it had to do with the skin conditioning effects. I can only imagine as I haven't tested it, that it would indeed eventually cause some skin irritation as it is meant to be rinsed off in a short time, and it does contain fragrance ingredients. The family claimed that they had been using it for some length of time and had only seen improvement, but I only had the patient for a couple of days, so I can't speak beyond what I saw, and in 2 days didn't see a difference.

I do believe though that Maalox works. I can speak on that as I've placed our prescribed bedside mix of it with basic zinc oxide on the ulcerations of patients over some great lengths of time. I've seen pretty big bed sores have great improvement. Though I would still see a doctor before trying any remedy on a skin irritation that is red, painful, warm to the touch, seeping, worsening, or accompanied by any type of fever.

I can totally see the maalox helping. It's been known for centuries that some metals have antimicrobial characteristics, starting with mercury in 1502 for syphilis. Also, it contains dimethicone which is a known skin protectant. For some odd reason, it is not listed on the ingerdients unless it's the one specifically marketed for gas. I'm sorry I seem to keep trying to shoot you down about the soap thing, lol. By true definition and strictest manufacturing definition, a soap is a cleansing agent made from the salts of vegetable or animal fats. By ingeredient listing, almost ALL shaving "preparations" contain sodium laureth sulfate, (or any of it's molecular variants) which is a synthetic surfactant. So do toothpastes, shampoos, conditioners, lotions, and darn near all hair products from leave-in conditioners to final finishing products. So, not all items with the stuff are cleansing agents. SLS was originally derived from beef fat. Ewwwwww. These days, it's synthesized or it's from plant sources. The ones from plant sources are notorious for sucking-the-water-out-of-concrete abilites and being harsh enough to illicit eczema in predisposed people. If I had thought about it, I probably would have put it on my weeping areas too, lol. I really gotta leave the tech info alone, lol. I worked for an extended amount of time in areas where I had direct access to ALOT of crazy info, lol. I grew up in the deep south, so I've seen some crazy things that actually worked better, faster, and/or with less negetive side effects than some modern treatments.

So loose skin is guaranteed no matter how fast or slow the weight is lost...

Well, not guaranteed..... but for those who have been at substantially higher weights (and we're not taking those who only need to lose 20,30,40,ect. lbs ;)) it is going to be more likely than not. It depends on your age, high weight, time spent obese and genetic skin elasticity.

But, don't you worry about that now------ just focus on losing the weight and taking care of yourself because that is what is most important at this point. :hug: :)

Melissa,
From what I know, it doesn't matter how fast you lose the weight on how much loose skin you will have but if you lose weight fast, then it may appear you have more loose skin because it takes time for your skin to catch up to your shrinking body. My skin has tightened up somewhat over the years but I definitely have some loose skin. I was also over 300 lbs for many many years.

I agree, just focus on the weight loss :)

Does anyone know of a natural herbal supplement that you can take to give your skin more elasticity?

Does anyone know of a natural herbal supplement that you can take to give your skin more elasticity?

There is no such thing.

Please check this out: http://www.3fatchicks.com/forum/showthread.php?t=36040

It should answer ALL your questions and then some. :)

Wow! That is every question I ever could have thought of- answered!

Thanks for posting that link chica! ;)

:carrot: :cb: :broc:

What about flaxseed oil? Two people have told me to take that for my skin...

Flaxseed oil is really healthful oil but it won't do anything to firm up your skin.

One thing I would really advise is don't get discouraged during the first year from any loose skin that develops. I know it is easy to say but when I first started losing weight, I got really discouraged by the loose skin and it was part of the reason I stopped losing weight for a while. After a year though it started to firm up a bit and its a lot better. I won't say that my loose skin is great but I don't feel ashamed being naked.

Lift weights to help give your body some definition, lotion it up to help make it feel smooth and supple and pray that the loose skin firms up is about all you can do.

By ingeredient listing, almost ALL shaving "preparations" contain sodium laureth sulfate, (or any of it's molecular variants) which is a synthetic surfactant. So do toothpastes, shampoos, conditioners, lotions, and darn near all hair products from leave-in conditioners to final finishing products. So, not all items with the stuff are cleansing agents. SLS was originally derived from beef fat. Ewwwwww. These days, it's synthesized or it's from plant sources. The ones from plant sources are notorious for sucking-the-water-out-of-concrete abilites and being harsh enough to illicit eczema in predisposed people.

I have read some scary stuff about SLS and parabens that prompted me to change all my products and use only those that don't contain them.

Years out and one baby later, my excess skin has nearly disappeared. I'm REALLY glad I didn't have a tummy tuck. I think the weight loss from Roux y Y gastric bypass is so, so rapid that it takes the skin a while to catch up. I also think exercising helped tremendously, although I didn't start exercising until the rapid weight loss slowed down. I had lost most of my excess weight within 9 months, especially once I started running!

I was in my late twenties. My mom (also post op) was in her 50s and she actually has no loose skin at all. We both started out close to 300 and I was at a little under 150 when I became pregnant. After pregnancy, I settled around 150 again until this year. My mom is about 135 lbs.

I am happy that I had gastric bypass and not the band, but am glad that the band is working for you. :)

Just thought I would chime in as a post-post op. Good luck to all of you!