This is my THIRD day !!

 no      I think I'm just going to eat a handful of figs and be done with it lol ...

Ok   I DO  have  another  problem .  I have my plastic surgery appointment on Tuesday or Friday  .... depending wether I manage to switch it . At the rate I'm going there aint gonna be much of anything visibly there  to trim ! 

I don't think I have any choice but to go off this  low carb plan  much as I like ( LOVE ! )  it ....  what I am thinking of   trying today before  I go whole hog is to drop my anti-estrogen and see  if that doesn't  bloat me adequately ... 

I'm really not sure how to handle this  the best .   The truth is  I have firm skin  no matter what I do .... so if I  bloat up  I look like a fat  bloated person not a loose skinned person ( but its mostly  empty fat cells) and if I  am skinny( er )  you can see the loose skin but there  really isnt enough of it not to intimidate  Ur average  PS  intern.   In other words  its not OBVIOUS .  
  
Thats just my body . 

The PROBLEM is  that though my body  looks WAY better  than  the average bariatric bear  it doesnt look anywhere near good enough for what I DO  ... especially on an every day day to day basis which is how it has to look to WORK  Duh ... 

Please don't forget I'm competing with scarless , 6'2 naturally 90 -100 lb PERFECT  featured nubile 15 year old grrrls ( and a few eunuchs who are even MORE beautiful) .    I am DEFINITELY   charismatic and  clever  enough to  snag the jobs still ... the real issue  is  I HAVE TO GET MY MIDDLE  and  underarms 100 %FIRM  .and I CANT WITHOUT PS!!!!  

I have a LOT  of excess skin and  pesky empty fat cells especially around my core  and  back underarm area that  HAVE to come off  before  I can truly  show  body - confidence  in many styles ..
.. if I bend over U can pinch....say three inches worth ... all the way up and down my abdomen and love handle area ..and a little under the buttocks and between the thighs .... ... my biggest problem is my upper arms and  just behind them  so side-boob area ( back area ) .  


BUT  when i strip off in a hospital consultation .. they say .... WOW  !!!  U have NO PROBLEMS !!!  

because I  have good legs , no cellulite ...  its almost like  I was  some suburban  plastic surgery addict  looking  for a fix lol !!  

what it is  is I am lucky enough to have  thick  young  tough SKIN  that  holds  all this jelly TOGETHER  ( somewhat )  ..but  take a picture of me  bending .. or siting from the side  ..or even from the back  ..U can  definitely SEE IT  . ( so can OTHERS  .. we run around literally  in g-strings backstage .. theres no hiding  ANYTHING ) 

 I would  estimate theres 10  lbs of  loose skin and  empty fat cells that need to come off  ... 

So what the heck do I do ? 

In the past  I went off  my  meds  which bloated  me and made me VERY uncomfortable  ( I take them because I have  excess estrogen which predisposes  me to breast cancer - which Ive already HAD BTW  ..I was SO lucky  it wasn't misdiagnosed  as a simply cyst  because of my youth )   ... but all they saw was  hard FAT  ..so that  didn't work either  ...

 
    I  can't tell U  how  exasperated I am  !  If they turn me down again I'm ready  to  stage a one-woman protest with  a sign  outside saying this clinic UNFAIRLY discriminates against MODELS !!!!! 

I really  really really  really  really  want to work  on camera  as a full time job.   There is NO WAY   i can do that without  my body  being in total control  weight wise  and shape wise  .... 

there  ARE body parts  that NEED HELP  heLLO  .... I lost  100 lbs !!  

 just because I don't  look THAT BAD  doesn't mean  I deserve help  less than the person  that does ...  who  probably didnt work as hard either  ... 

one of the MAIN  reasons  my skin and muscles are  like they are  is because  I exercised  my whole darn life ... up to  four hours a day when  I was competitive athlete .

 Exercise is like money in the bank ... the day to day changes to the body  are very small  ..but  they last FOREVER  ... how can I AVOID paying the PRICE  now though for being  an athlete way back when and an "excellent " patient  since my surgery ?  

( i can just see  Gina snorting at that one   Lol  !   i know i know ... but thats what the docs  say... ) 

This  is kind of an exaggerrated LW  issue  isn't it ....  just like  getting bariatric surgery was in the first place !  I'm finally figuring this out .... 

I can't tell U  how many people  told me  I was  way too small  to get bariatric surgery ....  even going  INTO The surgery  ...the nurses ,  respiratory therapist  even the  x ray technitians  etc all  had to contribute their unwanted two cents .

  I was TERRIFIED the whole time that  I wouldn't be able to get the lifesaving surgery I NEEDED  to stop my  diabetes  and asthma  that were KILLING me because  of these opinionated  " medical  professional "  uncaring idiots - that they would scew up the insurance company's approval somehow .

  I put a stop to it by telling them i was having only hiatal hernia surgery finally  !  that worked  !  The  REAL problem was that most  of them looked heavier than ME  ...LOL 

 How did  U guys handle Ur PS  consultations  as "successful" LW s ? any advice ? Thanks ! 

Oh Ava, I can only begin to relate to your problem.  Most of us have never had our body be the source of income or esteme like models do.  I have so much lose skin right now they would fight over what to do first and I'm no where near done.

I can relate to your anguish however and can only offer hugs and support. 

However, don't let your surgery end up being a bowel obstruction.  Get that poop out with figs or MOM or whatever.

Ava - going off low-carb and bloating and filling with water is NOT the answer.  These PS surgeons are very skilled and know exactly what they're looking at. 

Now - you really don't have to convince HIM that you want/need PS.  When I went in for my 2nd consult, the surgeon said "you look great" and he almost said 'you don't need ps" (this was legs/thighs - and yes, in clothes I do, but out of clothes - ugh.  He caught himself because I'm a paying potential customer. 

Show the Dr what your problem areas are.  Lean over so he can see the hanging jiggle.  Show him the side-boobage, back fat and your arms.  He won't tell you you don't need it.  Heck -its New York (right?)  He probably has seen a ton of people who come in *****ALLY don't need it....

Don't sabatoge your weight loss because of it, because at the next appointment your body may change and his plans/ideas and he may say "finish losing weight before I do this"...

 Price have U tried  salicylic acid   containing bodyscrub from Neutrogena ?   I use it  ever single day  ...  the active ingredient is willow bark extract  ( aspirin is made out  of it  )  and it increases cell turnover , essentially making Ur skin act like it was significantly younger .  

U can buy it  in any drugstore (  the grapefruit scented one is NICE )  in the  acne section for about 7 bux .  I think U  will  find  regular use  makes  Ur skin thicker , more resilient  and more  likely to " snap back "  as opposed to  stretch mark and sag .  

Showing Ur " worst  "parts  to  the sun also  really stimulates the skin and  tightens it ...  

try those two  ...  U deserve to have  a hot little bod  U can be maximally proud of , you sweet hottie you ... 

Hey Ava I'm one of those uncaring idiot x-ray TECHNOLOGISTS you are refering to......LOL  You have to remember that others perceptions of you are NOT going to match your own.....LOL

I haven't had PS but I'm sure Jody is right when she says sabotaging your surgery to put on some extra bloat isn't going to benefit you.  Look at it this way........You don't want to "fill out" the lose skin...you want to have the body of a figure competitor under all that excess skin so it hangs as much as possible off your muscular toned body.  Make sure you bend over so they can see how your skin sags and then ask them if they would put a photo of you on thier website as a "successful PS patient" in a bikini as an AFTER photo!! I bet not!! 

I remember you posting about your last consult.  I wasn't quite sure if you were trying to have probono surgery.  Correct me if I'm wrong but IF you are trying to get surgery for FREE then I can understand why you might be passed over since there are ALOTof other WLS patients who have excess skin that actually affects thier physical quality of life.  My BFF is a prime example of one of those patients.  She has HARD fat deposits in her panni and actually looks 7 months pregnant on a 5'3" frame!!  She is a server and has back and neck problems because of it.  She has spent the last 5 years post op with this and had a PS consult a month ago and the surgeon said it's is patients like her that REALLY need the surgery.  I'm not trying to say you don't NEED it to be successful in your career path........I know you do......I used to be a dresser for fashion shows in a life long long ago.......LOL  and I'm aware of what models bodies look like.  You've said you have the "personality" to get the jobs.....that means they see something in you that you maybe don't!! 

Question for you or even just a thought to ponder.....as a model  will you be more likely to get work the way you are or with the scarring that comes with a TT and BP??  Are you trying to do runway or print?

I hope you don't take offense to what I've said above......remember it's just my opinion....and you can take it or leave it......LOL  Either way good luck with your consult!!

"So what the heck do I do ? "

How about tell them the truth? I am a model and I'm not getting jobs because of my loose skin...