I am losing weight pretty fast now. YAY! I was feeling really good about it until:
I was trying on an old dress and my friend said *Um, you know when you get down to 150 you will have to get that "apron" removed*

WTF!

Apron? He said it was the bottom part of the stomach that hangs down. Ok, he is my gay friend so I have no issues getting changed in front of him but now I am freaked out! I knew I was gonna get a "boob job" as he calls it but now I am grossed out and freaked out.
I have had 4 kids and I am 102 pounds overweight. Will I have to get that "removed" or will it vanish on its own?

Another thing. How much does removal of the notorious apron cost? Hubby makes good money but I don't think I can afford major surgery *no insurance* ..ya know.

You know, everyone is different. Some people are lucky in that they don't have a lot of excess skin and for others, their excess skin disappears. There are of course other people who have some major excess skin issues. You can't tell how you will look then by looking at yourself know.

A great forum to check out is the body image forum
http://www.3fatchicks.com/forum/forumdisplay.php?f=219

I've lost 140 lbs and my loose skin isn't as bad as I thought it would be but it could be better. I may or may not get the skin removed when I get down to my goal weight but I won't know until I get there.

I already know this is going to be a permanent problem for me, because even when I was much thinner and younger, the abdomen protruded and hung down a bit. I have my mind made up to find the $$ when I am at goal to see my friendly neighborhood surgeon. A little lift and contour of the breasts won't hurt either. I don't have the money now, but will find a way to make it happen.

I have the ugly apron, not only is it unsightly but uncomfortable, too.On hot days it collects perspiration under it , and if it is not hot it causes chafing.
I hate the thought of surgery but am thinking about it.

The thing I have to keep asking myself is what is grosser - having a bit of extra skin or being encumbered with having that skin hold a bunch of fat? Better to have the skin problem than the lots of extra fat problem.

I'm not a guru on this or anything, so I'd look it up online, but I think extra skin has a tendency to be more of a problem if you've been overweight for a long time. The longer you're overweight, the less elasticity your skin has, therefore it won't bounce back as well when you slim down.

For me personally, I plan on getting the excess skin removed when I get to goal. Most doctors will do a breast augmentation in the same surgery to save time, costs, etc.

It is not just a bit of extra skin, it is very uncomfortable , think of having a large mixing bowl of skin hanging down over your pubic area, think of a hot day and the perspiration that collects under there. Gross!!

The surgery required to remove the "apron" (what a word...) is a tummy tuck or I *think* it's included in a lower body lift. A lot of doctors will do a breast augmentation and tuck at the same time, but it all depends on how much work it's going to be. If it's going to take over a certain amount of time they won't do it since they don't want you under anesthesia that long. Talk to a plastic surgeon, they'll answer all of your questions.

I asked my personal trainer when I first started on my weightloss journey the same question because my body type is one that I'm 6'1 and will bulk up to be a huge body builder type without much help, but to get slim and trim I really have to hoof it. He suggested I switch to a diet that isn't so low carb, he said that if was easier to cut out essential carbs when trying to lose weight. Good carbs help keep the body hydrated thus allowing the elasticity in our skin to both contract and expand. It's something to really research and look into. Without cutting carbs my first week of training and eating five times a day I lost 15 pounds because of the insane amount of weight I have to lose. Granted thats an hour and a half every day at the gym.... which is NEXT to impossible. But its something to think about
Best wishes!!! I use best wishes because it takes much more than luck to fight fat... sigh... LOL
Rach

I had a Tummy tuck 4 months ago and its the best thing I ever did for myself! I've lost 10 pounds since the surgery but my doctor says visually I look like I've lost 30. I wasnt looking for perfection, just So glad to get rid of that big flabby skin that was left over from the weight loss. Tuckthattummy.com is a fantastic website if you want to research the procedure!

Hi everyone~~

I'll tell you what happened with me. I have been overweight my whole life--meaning since 13 or 14--and I lost a lot of weight. I had the apron thing going on. I found that the fat actually kept it firm and it didn't hang down so much. After losing 130 lbs, it hung down over the top of my thighs. I only went down 2-3 pants sizes--in fitted pants with no stretch. Where I would wear 26/28 and 30/32 depending on the pants, you know? After losing 130 lbs. I was STILL only in a pair of 24 fitted jeans. I could wear an 18/20 of the stretch jeans but not the fitted. It was very difficult to walk a lot and exercise because I could feel the "flap" hitting my thighs. Honestly, it was very disheartening and I can't begin to tell you how much I cried because of it.

Because I'd been overweight so long I knew that I wouldn't be able to lose it without surgery. I went to a doctor figuring that he would tell me to lose 50-60 more lbs. and he actually didn't tell me that. I know it was because I'd already made such a dramatic weight loss. I just had my surgery last Thursday--September 6, 2007 so I'm still recovering, but I can already see a big difference. I can "wipe" easier, (sorry if that's TMI) I can walk easier--meaning I don't have the "flap" hitting the top of my legs and giving me that extra little bit of resistance, and I just feel better. I ended up re-gaining about 20 lbs. altogether and when my doctor did the surgery he removed my 23 lb. belly plus about 2 other lbs. in liposuction. I feel like a new person and I am not even healed yet. This surgery is the BEST thing that I ever did for myself. It was totally for me to feel good about me and I would do it again under the same circumstances.

I have 3 drainage tubes and stitches and bruises right now. It's a pain in the back-- --because I have to hunch over a lot right now because of the stitches--both outside and inside. Part of the surgery is that he tightens your abdominal muscles inside because they aren't tight after years of being overweight. The recovery period is the worst part--I'm itchy because of the tape and the bandages and the binder, my back hurts, I get tired very quickly, and because of the medication I haven't pooped for a week--until today in fact-- (Again, sorry if that's TMI) but this surgery has given me my life back and I do NOT regret it.

Now, if you have to have it, it's expensive. Because I had such a large piece of tissue to be removed, my doctor wanted me to stay overnight in the hospital--where normally it's only a day surgery. The doctor's fee was $5800 and the overnight hospital stay was $3728. So unless you have insurance that will somehow help you pay for it--start saving NOW. LOL. Also make sure you get the right prescriptions. I ended up with a prescription that cost $256 Needless to say--I didn't buy that since it was only an anti-nausea medicine and when my doctor called me at home the next day I asked him about it and he was able to call in a prescription for $11.99. I also cannot go back to work for a while. Your recovery time until you get the okay to go back to work can take up to 6 weeks--depending on the type of job you have. So losing your income there might also have to be a consideration if you don't have a job where you get vacation time and such--which I don't. But again--to me this is worth it.

Don't get yourself upset about it until you see if you would have to have it. You might be lucky and NOT need it. Either way--it's not as bad as you might think it is so don't worry or be scared. I hope this helps and if you have any other questions feel free to ask.

Thanks for posting your experience with this. It is something that I will most likely need in the future. We shall see!!

I figure that if I just keep on wearing my cotton "grannie panties" that the skin won't be disturbing, because I strongly prefer to not have surgery that's not absolutely required.

I guess I will just have to deal with it because there is no way we can pay that $$$, as we struggle with our bills every day already. Sigh.........and sad face.

Oh my gosh yall! I never thought about this! I guess I just assumed with exercise the "apron" would go away. I hope I dont have to have surgery that scares me!