early 20's post-op's...sagging skin....?

Hey everyone, Now, really, I am not worried about this at all, I am TRYING (lol) to focus on becoming more healthy and not think about the getting "sexier" part! LOL! That would probably cause me not to want the surgery! But I was just curious. I am 20 and I am going to get surgery in the next few weeks or so. I had a question for those that had surgery around the same time [age] as me: How much sagging skin did you have?? I need to lose around 150 pounds and I have been overweight my entire life. Isn't my skin used to being larger??? People tell me that because I am really young that I won't have much of a problem with sagging skin. But really, to be truthful: What do they know!! Unless they lost 150 lbs in their early 20's!! LOL! Anyway, if you could give me your feedback and what you have experienced tha'd be so awesome!! Thanks everyone!! ~Ash

I had the same question before surgery,, I am 2mths out,, and everyone told me since I was young my skin would go back most of the way,, but I would definitnly need to work out,, well I have just started working out due to having to have 2 more surgeries and I have some good sagging skin right now!! I have lost 65pds and I have it under my arms and inner legs,, it sucks yea and I feel oh soo NOT sexy,, especially when I am getting physcial!! But I think it helps ALOT to work out ,so I am starting to jump on that,, Also it does depend how long your skin has been stretched out to the size it is,, I am 23 by the way!

Hello- I am 22 yrs old and my doc said my skin should just bounce on back! I could fall on the grown and laugh. I will be a year out on may 13th. I am down 97 lbs by my scale and 101 lbs by my docs scale. Which I have to go by mine bc I don't weigh at the docs enough. I have a total of 111 lbs to lose. I'm 5'1 started out at 231 lbs. Currently 134 lbs. Goal is 120. My arms have horrible bat wings. Sagging big time. I have a double tummy and well its still here just a lil smaller. My thighs sag too. And well my boobs look like tube socks w/tennis balls in them. Being 22 yrs old I feel so much older. I am going to my first plastic surgeon consult June 5th. I have a feeling I'm gonna need alot done. Sigh! I have been overweight since I was 8 yrs old. I guess it depends on how long you have been overweight w/the skin bouncing back. My doc told me that it would take my skin 18 months to shrink all it would and that long for me to stop losing. So I am set on next summer plastics. I wish you the best of luck and hope that you are one of the lucky ones that doesn't need to have plastics bc of skin. ~April~ Lap Rny May 13, 2005 22 yrs old, 5'1, married no kids yet 231 / 134 / 120

Well, so far, it's sounds like everyone is really feeding into your fear of having loose skin....well I'm not going to do that! I know everyone is just tryin' to keep it real with you, but sorry folks, for pre-ops, and us newly post-op, we need a lil' bit more encouragement than that....hell, at least try to lie a little! Anyway, I think I am really in denial about having loose skin after losing my weight. But, I have truly psyched myself into thinking that I have the magic exercise plan to avoid the agony that others have had to deal with. Personallly, I too have been overweight all of my life, but I want to so bad believe that my youth, the melanin in my skin , and my super-boombastic exercise plan will work....By the way, I'm 28yrs. old (almost over the freakin' hill), but I still feel like I fall into that "young" group. So, I don't really know about all the "snapping" back of loose skin, but I do know that exercise plays a big part.....at least to the point of having an okay amount of skin that you're willing to live with. I think you'll be just fine! I am 12 days out, and I have already returned to the gym (I'm a little extreme, and vain of course!) Someone also told me that it has some to do with if you've yo-yoed a lot over the years....this adds to the loss of elasticity in your skin. ...Anyway, I read your profile, and I think you're a total BLAST! I too am with the Fremont Bariatric group, so if you have any questions, give me a holla.....and, I'm just right here in Sac. Lady D

Ash, I am like you, I've had alot of weight for a long time. I was over 200 lbs at the age of 12 and about 260 at the age of 16. When I had surgery at 23 I was at the weight of 350. I'm now at 198, and experiancing enough extra skin that I am looking into plastic surgery. My doctor won't let me even think seriously abot plastic surgery until I am at 170. I'm worried about how much extra skin I'll have then. I think for people like us we experiance a good deal of extra skin, but not as much as some people. Faith 350/197/170

Here's a little background first....I will be post-op 2 years on May 14th. My original weight was 320 and I am now about 145-150ish at 5'6, so thats nearly 180lb gone I am 22 now, 20 when I had the surgery. Originally, my doctors told me that since I was young, my skin would bounce back. NOPE. I'm still waiting on it. I really tried to maintain a positive outlook with it. Even at 320, I played sports. My calves were okay and my legs in general weren't too bad. I have the least amount of saggy skin on my inner thighs. It's there, but it's the least of my problems. *warning, tmi ahead* My main problem are my breasts. I went from a 46 D, now I am a 34B(boarding are A) I have no breast tissue left in my chest. They hang and sag like that of an 80 year old after having 5 kids. It really is upsetting. I've never had "perky 20-something" boobs and for once in my life, I want to be vain and have them. Currently, my nipples aim toward the ground. It takes the grace of a god and a good supportive underwire/pushup/padded bra to get things to looking normal. I mean, I hide it well but if anyone had to see me naked, that's a different story but let's not even bring up the sex/extra skin topic. lol. I recently showed them to a friend and she was like "Do those hurt?" So my breasts are my biggest issue. Next, would be my stomach. I don't have *THAT* much extra skin, but it's enough that I have to tuck it in and can move it all around. It does really bother me. I often wonder what side I would be if it was gone. It always creates a roll around my jeans too. If I go up in sizes to accommodate it, the jeans don't fit anywhere else on me and are too saggy/big. So I usually end up wearing a shirt that is a size or two bigger to hide the "chunk". The last thing is my arms. Now, for the first year or so, they really didn't bother me. It's only been in the last 6 months as everything started to come together and I started working out more(and going out to more places where I would be wearing tank tops) That it has gotten to me. In the last few weeks, I have gotten several comments(more inquiries really) over my arms. I'm realizing that it's a bigger issue then I originally though, and would like to get them taken care of as well. I refuse to wear tank tops, cap sleeved shirts or anything else that would show my arms in public. In general, I have my ups and downs with it but I do want plastics. I have consulted with someone already. I addressed the "You're young, your skin will bounce back" issue with him. He told me, that since I was heavy for so long and did yo-yo diet(losing various amounts of weight) that the skin was already stretching back and forth. It is not going to snap back at this point. The elasticity in it is gone. We also talked about how he can only take off so much skin around my stomach because the way it is stretched, you would have thought that I have had 10 kids. Now if he takes off the stomach skin, he can only take so much off because if I want to have kids, there won't be any skin left to stretch and I will be one giant stretch mark. While I understand that, it was a bit bothersome it all can't completely go away. Same with the breasts. I'm debating out what I want to do(in terms of implants, lifts, etc.) because I do want to breastfeed my children one day but we'll just have to wait and see. It's a waiting game at this point. And while I know at the end of the day it's about being healthy, the young 22 year old in me wants the chance to feel pretty and to enjoy my body the way I always envisioned enjoying it.

Now that makes me have a question- I am 24, in relative good health for a fat chick, with good muscle tone. I wasn't fat my whole life, and was active before hand. My skin hasn't had a lot of yo-yo dieting with skin stretching, and my few stretch marks are mostly in my heavy chest. Does anyone know anything about skin elasticity to inform me of what to possible expect?

This was also a huge question for me. I was 24 when I had surgery and I am now 26 and 2yrs post-op. Skin is an issue for me! I was overweight all of my life. It doesn't really have anything to do with how old you are, but how long you have been that way. If you have been overweight most of your life then your skin cannot go back, it's just too stretched out. But I don't think the skin issues I have are too important. I wish they weren't there, but I am so much happier and healthier now. And most of it you can hide with just normal clothing ... the only thing really is your arms during the summer and then you just have to go with 3/4 sleeves. I am getting my arms & boobs done May 25th. So skin is a big deal and I think regardless if you excercise your little butt off you will still have some issues there, but excercise does help. However, if you have been overweight for many years it's going to be there. But even seeing myself now .. I am way better off now then before. Skin has never been a big enough issue to make me regret having my surgery! Good luck!

Hey Ash, I had my surgery about 18 months ago and I went from 238 to around 148-153 (depending on the time of the month, time of the day, etc) I wear mostly size 10's and medium tops. When I am in clothes you cant tell I have alot of excess skin but its a whole other story when I'm naked. Luckily Ive been with my boyfriend for a long time and the skin really doesnt bother him but the tummy skin drives me crazy! My surgeon says my skin looks 100x better than people who have the surgery later in life, but I still think its pretty ugly. I asked about a tummy tuck but my surgeon said that I really should have plastics until I have kids so it looks like I'll be waiting for quite a while!! With love, Em

Everybody is so different. I had surg at 25 I am 20 lbs from goal have lost 99 lbs. I have some sagging skin it is not horrible but enough to bother me a little. Do you have stretch marks already? This is an indication that the collagen in the skin has been thinned (stretched) and this is irreversible. Also it depends on how much is needed to lose. I would imagine that with 150 lbs you HAVE to have some sagging skin. It doesn't matter how old you are and how much exercise. Exercise doesn't tighten collagen which is responsible for the taughtness of skin. You can tone muscles but not skin. That being said plastics can correct the skin and sagging skin is better than 150 extra lbs anyday. Good luck to you!!! Hugs, Stef