Question:
THE YOUNGER YOU ARE THE BETTER CHANCES ARE NOT NEEDING TT? TRUE OR FALSE

I AMO 30 YEARS OLD WITH 3 CHILDREN. I HAVE AN 8 YEAR OLD AND 4 YEAR OLD TWINS. I AM 5 FEET 5 AND WEIGH 315 LBS. DO OU THINK I WILL NEED A TT?    — PATRICE T. (posted on October 24, 2003)

October 24, 2003
Hi, You will probably need a TT. Most of us who have children and who are over weight do need a little help in that area. Also our weight does come off rather quickly and doesn't give the skin much of a chance to play catch up so there will be a little extra skin. It will also depend on how much extra skin you will have and how you feel about it. Some people are just fine with their body after losing weight and do not want to have a TT. Good luck on your journey.
   — myra J.

October 24, 2003
I am 22 and I am going to have a TT on Jan 7 I can pull the skin up to my chin. In my support group there are 50 year olds who have better skin then me. So what I am trying to say is that YES while age helps it is not the only factor. Nicole
   — nicole79

October 24, 2003
Like the others said there is no guarantee on how things will shrink. A lot may have to do with how you carried your children and how bad everything got stretched out and how it bounced back afterwards. <p>As far as from losing weight you stand a reasonable chance of getting by without a TT, but it all depends on what you are expecting. If you are expecting a taut 30 yr old body that never had children or was overweight then yes, you will need a TT. If you are willing to live with a "normal" 30-yr old body which has some imprefections then you might be fine. It also will matter how much you plan to lose. If you are shooting to lose 150 lbs you might get by, more than that it will become more of a crap shoot. <p>I lost about 200 lbs in 94/95 and got to 240 lbs and I do not remember thinking I needed a TT. Yes I'm sure I had some hanging skin but it was nothing that was a big concern for me. Now 8-9 years later I can tell you that restretching out my skin by 200 lbs and getting 9 years older the skin and fat did not come off the same. I tried on a suit yesterday that I bought in early 1995 at a weight higher than I am now (257). Well I need a good 2" off the gut before it will fit, which would mean weighing less than I ever got to back then. So age and multiple stretching does factor in. I started my WLS process thinking I could get by without any PS but I now know that just ain't possible. The more active I get the more the hanging/pulling skin is causing increasing pain in my low back. I'm already in the process of trying to get insurance approval for an abdominioplasty at 8-1/2 months PO. I may even have it the last week of December if insurance will cover it and if the policy for next year won't. I figure I can be within 20-30 lbs of goal weight by then and the PS feels about 15 lbs of skin would be removed, so that's close enough to goal weight (200 lbs) for me if I can get it for free. <p>Right now I'd just worry about getting your surgry and focusing on doing the best you possibly can and then deal with the skin if it is an issue. Have fun, it's an incredibly wonderful, life changing, journey.
   — zoedogcbr

October 24, 2003
I'm 26, started at 5'6" and 325lbs (and I have 1 child). and I can say, having lost 84 pounds (I'm less than 5 months out), if I want to have any semblance of a "normal" body, I'll have to have some sort of PS. However, clothes cover up a lot, so I don't know if I'll even bother. :)
   — ladyphy

October 25, 2003
The key factors to whether you will <i>need</i> a tt are: your skins age, how well distributed the bulk of your weight is, how much elasticity is still in your skin and whether the strands of elastic have torn or stretched, how good your diet is (reasonable combination of high protein and good complex carbs), and how fast you lose massive amounts of weight. If you have well distributed bulk and it is spread throughout your body so that the tummy hasn't bored the brunt of the weight, there's a chance that you've not broken a lot of elastic strands in your skin. You can determine this based on how deep your stretch marks are. If you have many deep stretch marks odds are it has stretched beyond the point of repairing itself - regardless of diet, exercise or age. If you have gentle spider-web marks there's a good change it will self-repair as the weight comes off. Having known two people who've born twins, I've seen the damage that that alone can do to the adbomen even without excess personal weight added to the mix. I am not saying you can't get by without having it done, but odds are not really in your favor. Over 30, 2 births (one being twins) and being more than 100 pounds over weight...even if you avoid rashes and such, you may very well find that the drag of the skin on your back muscles is a real bother. Well anyway, good luck!
   — [Deactivated Member]

October 25, 2003
False. I'm 21 years old and have never had children at all. I lost 175 pounds and do need a TT. Perhaps you have great skin, but after three kids I would have to say that your chances of needing one is pretty high. Some people are exceptions and their skins bounces back, but I would expect the worst and hope for the best. Good luck.
   — Sarah K.

October 25, 2003
I was 5'6", 300, 34, and had 3 kids and I needed a tt after the wls. I know of some you have had less kids and still needed the tt. It all depends on the skin and our shape I guess.
   — christine M.

October 25, 2003
I am 5'5 was 267 and now am 136, I have 3 kids(4,5,6) and am 28 years old and I need a TT. I am getting one in January and I can't wait! In clothes my tummy does look flat, but you cant even see my belly button, the PS said it is all skin and no fat, so he said I should have a stomach like a 16yr old :o) Good luck!
   — Sandy M.