Someone in the success thread was asking about this, just bumping it up for them to see.

I am with Mrs.Jim on this one...while I usually shy away from cosmetic surgery, if I were tempted to do it for my belly...the sheer fact of the scarring is a main concern. My skin does not heal well anyway, and I have thought to myself..."What looks worse, the sagginess in my tummy, or a big scar going across it?"
The money thing is also a big issue-(as I am pretty frugal, and don't buy anything without checking Ebay to see if I can get a better deal,) and I am pretty much a no hock type person also, save for home mortgages and necessities.
Liek Mr.Jim-if I had $5000 right now, I would probably use it towards siding my house!
Aphil

Just wanted this at the top of the forum again!!!

More Plastic Surgery Info
 

Also check out the following thread in the Success forum that has been active lately -- both MrsJim and I have posted about recent plastic surgery procedures: http://www.3fatchicks.com/forum/show...threadid=24374

Meg

Good move Meg! :)

And I must say that even I can change my mind - the gals at the BFL/BB forum know (along with the ones who read the thread linked above) that I had liposuction of the inner/outer thighs, hips and flanks on 10 Feb...and the bruising is already rapidly fading away - along with the scars (tip: Mederma helps a great deal!). Not to mention that for the first time EVER (including last year when I was doing a competition diet) my thighs are NOT RUBBING TOGETHER!! YEE HAW! :)

Now as far as scarring - I asked my PS about that since I have a small keloid scar on my wrist from an accident in 1995. My surgeon told me that a scar from an accidental cut is MUCH different than a surgical scar. (It also didn't help that I went mountain biking with Jim a week after the accident - likely pulling at the stitches and causing the keloid in the first place).

My sister went to the same PS a little over five years ago for her breast lift - after 'milking' two kids :lol: Five years later, she has NO VISIBLE SCARS (and I saw 'em two days after she had the procedure done) except for a tiny one underneath her breast (she had to point it out to me). Her boobs still look great - and while I wasn't planning on having mine done (although who knows now - not like I'm addicted to PS or anything, but this has been VERY EASY pain-wise and I am the world's biggest chicken - my dentist has to give me a Valium before she gives me Novocaine so I don't freak out!) I wouldn't say it isn't a possibility at this point ;) Going from a 44D to a 34B/C does have a certain affect on your body, ya know...

Pain - I've felt surprisingly little. More like "discomfort". The worst was the first week or so - trying to sit on the toilet was a bit ouchy! Tip: if you're gonna have lipo, invest in a soft toilet seat. Second best would be to roll up hand towels and sit as far back as possible on the seat.

As far as the surgery - I've never had surgery before - the only pain I felt was when the IV went into my arm - the next thing I knew I was in the recovery room with my two sisters (so glad they were there to nurse me - Jim helped too but guys just aren't as good at that sort of thing now are they?). They actually nursed Jim too - brought him dinners and peanut butter sandwiches (which he just loves but doesn't get at home!).

Okay, I've written a book here...questions, class?? :lol:

Hello MrsJim!
I want to tell you how great I think it is that you have talked to us all here about your procedure. I know that it is a personal issue, and it is great when you can open up and talk about it to people that you are stilla bit "anonymous" to, rather than have everyone in your town know about it. Procedures like this are not as obvious as boob implants...so you can still keep it a secret if you want! ;)
I have been on the roller coaster from the time I was a child until my very early twenties...fad diets and exercise spurts...and just when I got into exercise and found the eating plan that worked for me...I got pregnant and the REAL damage began...I tried eating right and exercising...but my stomach skin will never look great on its own...I bathed in cocoa butter but with 9 and 10 pounds babies...you're GONNA get stretch marks. I swear my tummy would look just like a road map if I colored them in. :lol:
I also "milked 2 kids" like your sister...and that also takes a toll...so even after I get back to my goal weight/size and continue to exercise-I just don't know if my tummy and boobs will ever be up to par...and my flabby tricep skin may shrink down a bit, and it may not.
I can see why you had this procedure done-I can understand the years of working out and eating right, and still having that one area that won't improve. I don't know if I will ever have anything done surgically...although I have thought about getting a tattoo to camoflauge my stretch marks...but I am glad to know that there are women here I can talk to if in a year from now I am at goal, and I am unsucessful in shaping up these boobs or arms...and considering having something done. I appreciate your sharing.
Aphil

Hi Lisa,
I'm 4' 10" also not too many of us out there. My loose skin on my abdomen is from 4 pregnancies. Before my last child was born I was 172. I stayed at about 152 for 3 years then one day reality set in. I couldn't close my size 14 pants. So I joined a gym. It is now 3 years laTer and I weigh 122 and am a 6 finally. But I have a wrinkled stomach. I have come to the conclusion a tummy tuck is in my future. My sister in law had one done. One year later the scar are almost invisible. No more hanging skin from her stomach.


Gina

Update - January 2004
 

Thought I'd post a quick update regarding myself on this thread.

This thread was a pretty big happening for me in retrospect - the first time I 'met' the Megster - who is now the moderator of our new Maintainers forum :cool: and she started me really thinking about going the plastic surgery route and ridding myself of the saddlebags and tummy hang that was just NOT going to go away by itself, no matter how much weight I lost or gallons of water I would drink, etc.

Ya know, the Internet is a great resource for info, but there are also a lot of erroneous myths being perpetrated online as well. So many people are apt to think that because it's 'in writing' on the World Wide Web, it 'must be true'. As you can see by the interactions in this thread I was one of the believers that as long as I worked out hard, ate superclean, drank a lot of water and took supplements such as flaxseed and Udo's, that my pouch and extra skin on my thighs would just magically tighen up like a Shrinky Dink, even after stretching it out with 100+ pounds of excess weight. Think of skin like a balloon; before a balloon is stretched out, it it small and tight. Then after it is filled up with air for awhile, and the air leaks out - even though the balloon loses its air, it does not go back to the tight smaller balloon it was prior to being filled up. (I know I'm not wording that very well but hopefully you get the picture).

Now, no one's going to say that you SHOULDN'T lose the weight for fear of loose skin. Most folks can cover it up with clothes, and there's always the possibility of having plastic surgery - it's not just for the rich folks anymore.

Most of the ladies who hang out at LWL and Maintainers forums know that on 8 December 2003, I had a tummy tuck with muscle repair (BTW - that's something else that causes your tummy to look big - if you've been pregnant and/or heavy, the ab muscles (six pack) will separate in the middle - during a full tummy tuck, the surgeon will stitch those muscles together, kind of like lacing a corset, so the tightened skin will have a nice flat surface underneath...). Saying I am happy with the results so far would be a DRASTIC understatement. Incidentally in February of 2003, I had liposuction of the inner/outer thighs and flanks and that got rid of the saddlebags forever (remember that you can lose the fat, but the fat CELLS, even though empty, are there to stay unless you have them surgically removed!).

Expensive? Yup. Well worth it? Double YUP! :lol:

One of my favorite websites for info on these procedures is www.tuckthattummy.com (along with www.liposuction4you.com). I'm not trying to make y'all get surgery - just keep it in mind as an OPTION. And again, don't stop trying to lose weight just for fear of loose skin!

My two cents...

Argh, this thread is depressing. I think I actually felt more comfortable with my appearance at a higher weight than I do with sags and wrinkles.

Snack, I felt like that too, until I put some of that weight back on. I ddidn't feel better, that's for sure. The weight is back off, and I'm comtemplating plastic surgery. Losing the weight is far better than having your skin filled up with fat. :D

Mel

Snack - all I can do here is affirm what Mel says - I'm DELIGHTED I had my tummy tuck done (incidentally - just got back awhile ago from a followup appointment with my plastic surgeon - she says I'm looking great! :) ) but when all is said and done, if it was a choice between being fat without loose skin and being not-fat with loose skin...I would take the latter and just wear clothes that cover up the skin.

So how much does it all cost? I'm sure there must be a range, of course, but how is the cost determined? Did you pay for it cash or finance it? What's the interest rate? Was everything included with the plastic surgeon's fee, or were there separate fees from the hospital?

Hi Seek! Check out the sticky at the top of this forum that some of us put together about skin and weight loss -- some of your questions might be answered there.

The way it worked for me is that my doctor gave me one price for everything that included his fee, the hospital fees, the anesthesiologist etc. I prepaid with cash and didn't see any other bills. The only thing that wasn't included were the prescriptions that he wrote for antibiotics and pain killers and my medical insurance paid for those.

It's not unusual for people to finance the surgery. There's more info about financing in the sticky.

Meg, what is a sticky?? And where can I find it? THANKS SO MUCH!

Meg - I found the sticky!

although, I have a few questions....

First, I am 28 and have not had kids. Is it useless to have the excess skin removed around my abdomen before I have kids? But I feel like I'm young NOW and I want to look young while I'm young. And while I'm young I want to wear cute skirts, shorts and bathing suits... and they still don't look good.

I lost 88 pounds, and sometimes I feel like I look worse now. I'm not comfortable in my body. My boyfriend is supportive and says he thinks I'm beautiful... but I'm not comforable around him...

But I'm torn because I do want kids and I'm afraid to do this if it will be useless after I have children.