Afraid of what you WILL or WON'T Look like?

I was a tight size 24 and now a losey 12. I have tthe batwing and sll. But I  also don't  have Diabetes and a host of other conditions.  I can ride  a bike snd go for a hike. I  dont look the same but neither am I  same on the inside. I  some day hope to have some extra stuff removed.....but either  way I  am very happy eith my journey  so far.

Absolutely not wrong to care about how you look! Most of us get this surgery to regain our health, but we *also* want to look a whole lot better.  I'm a bit on the tall side, and have longer limbs, so I ended up a little loose-jointed and rangey-looking.  I love it!  Yes, the skin is an issue, but as PPs have said, nothing a good wardrobe and some shapewear can't deal with.

And by the way, at 135 lbs, you'll probably fit in a size 4 or 6.  Sizes are crazy these days!

I look much much different then I ever have. My face is very thing and previous round face and cheeks are gone. I think I've aged a lot. I was always curvy with larger pear shape. Now I'm a total box without a waist. My figure is like a boy! But im in an 8 and I had never worn less than a 14 in my life.

I think I look like a baby bird, with a big head on a scrawny neck. We are much harder on ourselves than others will be. Remember, saggy skin just means you've done an awesome job!!!  Like someone mentioned, no longer needing bp meds, reflux meds or diabetes meds makes me so happy!!  

The last time I was the 'size' that I am now for for a brief minute when I was 16 and I was shaped something like Rachel Ray, so I expected my weight would be distributed somewhat like that. I was 49 when I had my surgery and I'm 57 now. I'm not built like Rachel Ray anymore. I wear a size 6/8. I'm bustier than I was as a 16 year old :-), I'm not as full in the hips and thighs as I was at 16. I think if didn't have the extra skin at my waist, I might be a bit more hour glass shaped. Soooo... No, I don't look like I thought that I would. At first, when I lost my weight I was very hard on myself about the 'zoo' I carry with me; bat wings, turkey neck, elephant thighs... That said, when I look at other women that are my age and my size, I honestly look pretty comparable. So I've made a deal with myself. Every morning (after I'm dressed) I look in the mirror and find at least one thing that I like about how I look. It could be my smile, my thick head of hair, the way that the new pair of size 6 Ralph Lauren pants fit, etc... Then, I look in the mirror and find 2 things I like about me that have nothing to do with my appearance. It's helped a lot.

Going to the mall or to the beach and people watching is another way to get perspective. If you look for people that are about your age and size, you'll see that you look relatively normal. Most of us don't have a glam squad to prep us to go on air or air brush us in print. Most of us have some perfectly perfect imperfections. It took me some time to come to peace with that because I know that some of 'issues' I have related to excess skin are because of what I did to myself. That said, I took a picture standing next to my sister who is 4 years younger... she was always the thin, pretty sister. She's an average size, but heaver than I am and has more wrinkles. She's never had all of the excess weight I had. I'm trying to say that I think that sometimes we hold ourselves to an unrealistic standard. When I stand next to my sister that I always thought was so much prettier than me, I now know that I'm just as pretty as she is.

Also, I wanted to mention that being as far post op as I am, many people that I know now never knew me as a large person and have trouble believe that I was ever anything but petite. I have to show them pictures on my phone for them to 'believe' it. What I'm saying is that while sometimes I think it is obvious that I lost a lot of weight, it may be obvious to me, but apparently it isn't obvious to many others.

I don't know if my ramblings helped or not.

Wishing you every success!

thank you for that.  You're right being comfortable in your own skin no matter the size is important.

I have not had my surgery yet but I am scared of the extra skin and what it will be like... Will it be like tucking a shirt in? will it be flappy? Will I be more self conscious then I was before? Or will it all be normal and go back to where it was supposed to LOL. I guess I will never know until after my surgery.

How did your surgery go? Did you go to the surgical center in Tijuana? Long term vsg? I'm trying to find more Infi on them

You were 36/24/24? You had 24" hips? 

I was very happy with how I looked when I lost 100 pounds. I was youngish, so I really didn't have much sagging, other than my boobs, which had been large. I did have a few lines around my mouth, especially when I smiled.