Obsessed before and after

OMG those pix made me snorfle.

I went through a pretty severe period of... not quite dysmorphia. Probably around the time I had lost 125 pounds? I worked through it with my therapist and then by getting distracted by dealing with my dad's cancer progression and time. It was scary and very challenging - I felt completely disconnected from my body.

I'm experiencing this to a lesser degree with reconstructive surgery. Well, maybe not to a lesser degree, but to a different degree that comes and goes in waves. It's weird and challenging, but I think I might be coping with it a little better due to having learned to cope with my disconnection from the weight loss earlier.

It is very strange to look in the mirror and see the body I have. Sometimes, at fitness classes, I catch myself jus****ching myself in the mirrors as I move through poses to confirm that, yes, if I move my [body part] that person I see in the mirror's [body part] also moves, so it really must be ME that I'm seeing.

I can imagine. I look at before and after pics and wonder how much I'll change. There was a time I lost 90 lbs and I felt awesome, but I felt my body was just smaller version of its old self. All the rolls were still in place. My mother, who had the RNY, felt the same. She said, while she felt awesome, the skin was a sad reminder of her obesity. She was lucky enough to get the lower body lift. Not to be too nosey, but did your insurance cover any of your procedures? My mom had hers a decade ago and insurance wouldn't cover anything, but I've heard that insurances are making a little progress in this area, and some insurances (I've heard Kaiser) has started paying for brachioplasty and thighs.

My insurance covered none of my reconstructive surgeries and, from what I've read from the last many years of posts in the plastic surgery forum here, it's less and less common for insurance companies to schedule reconstruction after massive weight loss.

Which sucks. Insurance companies cover reconstruction after other diseases, but not the disease of obesity because #fatphobia.

That is a total bummer! I was looking at Kaiser's page and it eludes to the fact that it will pay for "body contouring" after weightloss surgery if the doctor deems it "medically necessary". I think in part due to a class action lawsuit where a phrasing in their coverage guidelines stated that Kaiser would covers plastic surgery for abnormalities , growths, etc to resore a patient to normalcy. I won't hold my breath, but one can hope.

yes kaiser had a big lawsuit...Doesn't mean they will do it, just can't arbitrarily exclude it.

I figured it will be hard. Especially if I'm not prone to rashes and other skin irritations.

I couldn't imagine where I am now. If it wasn't for OH and the success I see her I don't know if I would have been as successful as I've been. I also needed a place to come daily....

There were things I didn't even know were on my WLS bucketlist because I couldn't imagine doing them- wearing a Bikini, Hiking, running, traveling internationally to name a few...

It happens quickly yes, but I think it is harder for those around you than you... there are times you look a lot in the mirror because WTF? For me the Plastic Surgery change was a harder mind trip... another thing I couldn't imagine doing in my life- PS. It wasn't even a thought at the start of my journey.

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Holy crap you look awesome! See this is what I'm talking about. So drastic! It will be like looking in the mirror and someone else looking back. Congrats on your weightloss! You look gorgeous.

Thank You Shannon. You will have your befores, during and afters as well. OH helped me go the distance and stay focused. So important. Good Luck!