Plastics... what would you do?

OK, I've got about $10,000 "extra" dollars. Plastics would not be covered by my insurance at this point. Everything on me is sagging pretty badly, my boobs, tummy, and thighs being the worst. Arms aren't so bad if I position them the right way. So, I have been saving that money to redo my bathrooms.... or do you think I should spend it on some surgery? What would you do with the money? Michelle 294/150

All depends on age, critical health issues, etc.....married? single? just how important it is to you.... How important is fixing the bathroom? Can you find a PS surgeon to do all that for $10,000 including hospital fees? Darlene

The vain person in me would agree with looking pretty on the toilet vs the toilet looking better than me! HOWEVER, if you're trying to sell your home soon, the money that you invest now could pay off even more for you in this initial investment.

Well, I personally did the plastics. I got everything done on me excluding the thighs for about 7K. I had a full tummy tuck, pubic lift, breast lift and implants and areolar relocation. Not bad! Still need the thighs though. That is a hard decision. Depends how badly you have been wanting that bathroom. for 10K, it sounds like it will be a spa! Can you have a tummy tuck and do part of the bathroom? half and half? LOL Dana

Well that brings up a good point. If I spend about $5K on the bathroom and have about $5K left, what can I get done on me for $5k? Michelle 294/150

Michelle, There is no doubt what I would do if I had the money - I would have my thighs and butt done. Then if there were any left, I would probably have a mini-face lift. Patty

I did the plastics even tho my deck is about to fall off the house. I even took out a loan to do it. My priorities may be screwed up tho and I might not be a good influence. However full support of my husband behind me, he even offered to refinance the house to pay for pS revisions! because he wanted me to be happy. he loved me at 260 lbs. so PS was not high on his list of priorities. ( I do think he likes the boobies tho ripples and all.)

Michelle, Interesting question. I was right there with Darlene. It would depend on a lot of factors.....but you asked what I would do? At my age, NEITHER. I could care less about the bathroom and I do not want any more body changes for a while....if ever. But I'm old. As much as I hate my panni and my thighs and my arms.......I would not put my poor self through the pain and the emotional changes - not at this time. It's not THAT important......hell, emotionally I barely survived going from a 5X to a size 10.........I cannot imagine how I would wig if I turned into an 8 or 6 overnight after removal of 27 pounds of skin.......and that was the quote. Nope. Not now. Maybe someday if I ever felt emotionally strong enough to deal with the changes.......but no not now. I would take the money and invest most of it!! My priorities are sooo quickly changing since WLS. Had you asked me this same question one year ago however I would have rushed directly to the PS's office and stood in line for the knife. I'm glad I didn't. But darlin' at your age? And single.......hell yeah! You go - screw the toilet............ Jeannie

Hi Michelle This is a really personal decision, but one thing to consider should you decide to opt for PS is that you want to get the most bang for your buck so to say. Prior to any of my 3 rounds of PS, I'd have told you I wanted my thighs, butt, breasts, tummy, arms done in that order (from worst to best). Having gone through all of these surgeries, now I would tell you differently. Here's the order I'd want to have them done now if they still needed work: tummy, arms, breasts, butt, thighs. The reason for the change in order is that abdominoplasty and brachioplasty have brought me back to normal so to say. So too has the breast lift and implants (though I am still healing from these after many many months postop). But my thighs and butt - well, circumferential thighplasty, vertical thigh reduction and buttock lift could only do so much. Even with "round 3", I am still left with A LOT of excess skin and while closer to "normal", my thighs and butt are still a sorry sight. More importantly, I still have functional issues related to the excess skin on my lower body. In a nutshell, the most painful procedures (and most expensive as well) being my thighs/butt had the least payoff in terms of results. Infact, I will be undergoing a completely seperate 2nd thigh/buttock lift in October... Hope this helps! Caroline -225 lbs @ goal http://abutterflyemerges.com http://picturetrail.com/carolineam (password is ps )

Hello Michelle - I would do exactly what I DID do - spend the money on ME! Tummy Tuck w/muscle tightening, Breast lift w/implants and Arm Lift. I also have more surgery scheduled for November to get rid of this flippin WADDLE under my neck (carried a lot of weight in my neck and face). The way I see it? I'm a LIFETIME investment, repairing my bathroom (and or purchasing a new car, etc) does NOT have the 'forever' value that investing in MYSELF did. Thankfully the hubby agreed, cause neither of us will be driving brand new cars for a coupla' years. Instead we'll be paying off what the insurance company would not cover. - Lei