Question:
Do any of you feel that WLS has aged you?

I've read that comment and was wondering if many people feel the same way.    — marcia5000 (posted on May 17, 2009)

May 17, 2009

   — marcia5000

May 17, 2009
During rapid weight loss, I looked gaunt, drained, and tired and OLD...I had dark circles under my eyes. Lose skin on my face...I lost weight for about 15 months.(158 lbs lost) After my body shifted and filled back in with muscle (which I worked at) and I also gained back 8 lbs at year 2... I was told by nearly everyone I know how much younger I looked...I was 39 when I started my RNY journey and I am now 45...so regardless of surgery there is a huge difference from our 30's to our 40's but...NO, even when I had anemia and was Snow White...I think I looked and felt much younger! I still do...but it's that gravity thing... it's gaining on me! I suggest keeping up with your vitamins and take additional B vitamins...Use sunblock on face, neck and hands, keep hydrated, eat good oils such as omega 3's, avocado and olive oils DAILY, Avoid sugar (it's bad for aging skin), Use a moisturizer (I use a skin firming lotion immediately after showering), Exfoliate with a luffa or scrubby sponge (entire body and face and don't forget tops of hands)...I use a bronzer for face color in the summer and even use some instant tanning lotions for a little color on my face...(it gets scrubbed off though with exfoliation!) LOL and....umm....Oh! Non soap! I do not use soap on my body or face and haven't in decades, literally! Use a non-soap in the shower. I love both Dove and Cetaphil. And I aim for at the least 5 or more different fruits and veggies daily...The more color I add...the more vitamin variety I get...and food has your BEST source of quality vitamins. So no...I feel I lost 10 years which is now gaining on me naturally...and not because of WLS...
   — .Anita R.

May 17, 2009
Actually, quite the opposite. I have been told over and over that I look much younger now. The cuter clothes can't hurt. :)
   — corky1057

May 17, 2009
The first year my face seemed to sag. But at 18 months now it seems to have tightened back up some. But I am 50 so...People say I look younger. Check out my pix and see what you think.
   — lesleigh07

May 17, 2009
I'm 49, but I feel 17, so my answer is an emphatic NO. I feel great. I have some saggy skin, but as my 20 year old tells me, "It looks way better than your triple chins ever did". I am a little wiser, but I do not feel older.
   — gouldsfiya

May 18, 2009
I'm 59 yrs old, I have Lost 150# in 11 months. I do have saggy skin, and a Turkey neck, and I look really tired, however I feel 110% better than last year, I can now walk across the room without getting short of breath, I'm not using a wheel chair any more either, so bring on the saggy skin! I won't go back there for anything!
   — KathieV

May 19, 2009
Marcia -- Nine + years out from a Vertical Banded Gastroplasty -- and 52 years old and proud of it, thank you, I think I actually look BETTER than I did in my early 40s before surgery. As someone else pointed out, cute clothes help -- I had four "colours" in my pre-op wardrobe: black, brown, navy, and dark gray; and once you're in a 5-6X it doesn't matter if it's a Christian Lacroix ballgown, it's going to look like hell if only because it's about the size of a parachute. But it's more than just the clothes (I've discovered colour in the last decade, and LOVE IT), it's feeling better about myself. Yes, I could do with the full-body lipo (if I do jumping jacks I pose a serious threat to the safety of myself and others), but I've been blessed with reasonably good skin on my face (not too many wrinkles, but those I do have are badges of honour) and the right clothes can hide a multitude of sins in the roll department. It's the twinkle in the eye and the spring in the step, because you're not risking life and limb just bending over to tie your shoes. I don't look 25, but I don't look my age, either -- I just look like me, and I like it.
   — Cheryl Denomy