Hey everyone! I am just starting out on my WL journey and one of my BIG concerns is having excess skin after losing the weight (cause I AM gonna lose it). I know I will never be able to afford to have it removed later. Is there any suggestions out there? Is there anything that I can do along the way that will help with this? Just curious if anyone else has these concerns or if anyone has had any success in avoiding large amounts of excess skin. Thanks!!!

I've always heard that losing slowly can help, but now I'm not so sure. It's taken me a very long time to lose my 80plus pounds. My average weight loss is about 1/2 a pound a week or less, which at my size is tortoise-slow, and I'm already noticing spots of oddly loose skin.

Some people get very loose skin when they get older, even when they've never been overweight. So just getting older might be half of my problem.

I don't think there's a lot you can do about it. Exercise can improve the muscle tone under the skin, but I don't think there's much you can do to get the skin to actually shrink. There are tons of products on the market that claim to restore the elasticity to your skin, but most are just moisturizers (they don't really shrink the skin, and may make it look only a tiny bit better. The expensive products aren't any more effective than the cheapest).

I've heard rumors that there are expensive prescription products that can help (expensive, but cheaper than surgery), but nothing miraculous or even dramatic.

A lot of people find it not as bad as they expected, and a lot of people find it a lot worse. I think it's mostly a crapshoot, so hope for the best, but prepare for the worst.

I'm not as concerned as I was before the invention of "Spanx" type body shapers. I grew up in an era when "foundation garments" were torture devices. I still remember the thigh blisters (I was 14) that I got from my first "bodyshaper" (which was advertised as a dramatic improvement in comfort over previous eras' corsets and girdles).

Thanks kaplods! That's kinda where my mind set is right now. Hope for the best, expect the worse and exercise to help as much as possible. Looks you are doing great on your WL, keep it up!

This thread here is (I think) one of the best resources on the net about skin issues after weight loss.

Edited because I only almost got the link to work right in one try.

Thank you for all the information! I must say that I am almost regretting asking this question. In the back of my mind, I knew this was the answer, that I would have to face huge amounts of saggy skin if/when I lost the weight. I just started this journey and now I feel like I have already lost my motivation after reading the stories from people who have gone through this. There is no chance, EVER, that I will have the money to have PS. I almost feel like there is no point. Sure, I'll be healthier, but I don't think I'll be happier. I can't believe I let myself get here. I feel so defeated and I barely just began. *sigh*

Life situations and events don't make you happy, you choose to be happy. You can choose to be fat and happy (I did for a long time, before I got sick), or you can choose to be thin (and maybe saggy) and happy - you also can choose fat and unhappy or thin (and maybe saggy) and unhappy - you're choice, regardless. (It's hard to believe happiness is a choice, until you start choosing it).

You're borrowing trouble, anticipating events that may never happen. No one said you'd have to face huge amounts of saggy skin - it's very possible that you won't. There is no gauranteed bad outcome here. Even if you have some - there's no guarantee it will look worse to you than the body you have now.... but no one gets that guarantee.

If you're going to play "what ifs," you could win the lottery, or you could get a great job with medical insurance that covers the procedure...

I married a guy I find very sexy, who finds me very sexy - and my body changing shape and function hasn't changed that. Neither of us would have hoped that I'd need to have a huge chunk of my breast taken out a month after our wedding, but I did - and now when I lie on my back my right breast looks like a volcano (with my nipple resting in the divet). Hubby says it's his "favorite boobie" because it reminds him he didn't lose me (the tumor was benign - scar tissue from an old car accident).

I've got so many healthy issues that I really don't care if I end up looking like a stretch Armstrong doll that sprung a leak. I'm not losing weight to be happy - I found the key to happiness (choosing it) long before I started on this weight loss journey. I'm losing weight to have more choices in life, because my weight was taking so many away.

You have a choice, and one of those choices is to stay fat in order to prevent baggy skin. Is that really a choice that you will feel good about?

It may sound like I'm trying to steer you back into weight loss, but I'm not. I'm cheering you towards making choices based on what's important to you, not on what you think will make you happy - because choices don't make us happy. We choose to be happy, because we're satisfied with our choices.

Which choices make you, the you that you want to be.

I agree with the above poster. No one really knows what will happen to their skin until they get there. I watch biggest loser and have seen women in their 50's loose the weight with hardly any sagging skin. BUT I have also seen women on the internet that do have it.

I was afraid of looking older after loosing weight. I have seen many co-workers that have lost weight and everyone says they look older. Not that i am afraid to look old..but I was like what if I loose it and look way older...lol

All I know now is..I go this one life..I don't know how long it will last..heck I may not even live as long to see if my skin sags..but I sure as heck am going to try

Come on, now...you can't give up before you even begin!!! I have a friend that was my same size (we used to wear each other's clothes in high school) and she had gastric bypass a few years ago. She DOES have loose skin around her belly but you cannot see it at all underneath her clothes and it actually was an advantage for her during her pregnancies b/c the baby bumps grew into that skin instead of stretching out the other skin. You can save up, even $20 a payday, and one day you'll be able to buy that surgery. Heck, there are surgeons that will do boob jobs on payment plans...surely someone will do skin removal on a payment plan. You could even take out a loan if you needed to. There's all kinds of things to think about...but in the long run YOU are the one that has to make the decision. Is it worth being overweight and unhealthy the rest of your life to avoid excess skin??? Or would you rather be thinner, healthier, w/ a little excess skin??? If you're looking for the weight loss to make you happy, it won't...that only comes from inside, hon.

Don't give up...YOU CAN DO THIS!!!

Shoot...I would take saggy skin, but thin and healthy over plumped out skin, unhealthy and obese. That is a no brainer to me. When I was deciding to get healthy and lose weight, the thought of saggy skin didn't even enter my mind. That said, I will get surgery done if needed at the end of my journey when I can afford to do so.

THIS is exactly why I joined this site. Because when I am down and starting to make excuses, you guys will give me a swift, but gentle, kick in the butt. I feel better today and still motivated. You are all right and I would rather be healthy and saggy and here for my children. Also, I am happy and Kaplods, thank you for reminding me that it is my choice, I needed that. Thanks everyone! I am still on the wagon and doing well. I appreciate the support!

Not to mention, if you really feel worse after losing the weight, you can regain and fill all that skin right back out. But I'd bet every penny in my bank account that you'd choose NOT to do so, because even with loose skin (and yes, I have quite a bit) my smaller body looks better (you can't see my loose skin in clothing) and more importantly, FEELS better so much that I never want to go back.

Thanks Mandalinn! You are an inspiration and I know in my heart you are right. Your pictures are AMAZING, you look GREAT!!!

Yeah! I'm so, so happy for you, and glad my post didn't seem mean-spirited. I meant it in "cheerleader" voice (the good kind, not the condescending, creepy kind). I was a bit concerned that it could come across as "angry teacher" or "crazy busybody" voice.

Please don't let the thought of loose skin discourage you! There's really no way you can predict how things will turn out. I ended up with quite a bit of loose skin, but am so happy with my body. I know that must sound strange, but in clothes it doesn't show.

I have never regretted losing weight even though the end result certainly isn't perfect and I don't think you will either!

Kaplods- I certainly did NOT take it as mean spirited! I know how you meant it and it is exactly what I needed. We are all here to support one another and I really, really appreciate it!

Tai-Thanks for the encouragement! 140 pounds! That is amazing and it is good to hear from people who have met their goals. It is truly inspiring!

I really feel in my soul that joining 3FC is going to play such a vital role in my weight loss. Having others, such as yourselves, to turn to and be inspired by is so wonderful. I no longer feel alone on this journey! Thanks again.