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!
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.
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 )... 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 lose 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 lose weight to be left with something even worse than what I have now...?
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.
Regarding loose skin after weight loss...
)... 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 lose 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!!!'
