Loose Skin...

I am posting some pictures on my blog that shows how my sagginess is coming along...

I am so...depressed over this...

To me it doesn't seem fair that I lose the weight and still will look like a freak...

http://www.xanga.com/purplestardreamz

Hey Purplestarz:

I have managed to let myself become VERY overweight.  I am at least 100 lbs overwieght right now and lost last year 20 pounds.  I kept that off and have begun working on it again.  One thing that has worried me is what you're going through.  I'll tell you what I think. 

1) I think you're being way to hard on yourself. 

2) You took those pic's too close up.  (Even models look flawed at that angel) 

3) Some people are just not that lucky and have skin that is quite fragile and fair which may show more strech marks.

4) You can improve your situation in some ways.

   a) Excersice and toning may help.

   b) Specialty creams and vitamins may help.

   c) Dress to impress.  Find ways to lesson the affect through clothing choices.

   d)  Some people consider some help from doctors, including plastic surgery which does not have to be crazy.  It too can be done in moderation or in areas that are your trouble spots if you just cannot live with the way things turned out.

Concentrate on your overall improvements, you showed courage through your weight loss, which benefits you in far more ways than a few extra wrinkes or strechies. 

I checked out your blog and your public food diary, it seems that you are eating way below what you should be eating every day to lose weight at a safe rate.

No wonder you're all flabby and giggly, that is what happens when you lose weight too quickly. Especially when you start out from a higher weight to begin with

 There?s no quick fix or fast way to lose weight.  Diet pills don?t work or are harmful to your body, drinking 15 cups of green tea will only make you go to the bathroom like crazy and doing 100 crunches a day will give you rock-hard abs...underneath that pudge where you can?t see it.

You have to remember that weight loss isn?t about eating LESS, it?s about fooling your body into losing weight.  Many people like you, post here thinking that if you eat practically nothing and then burn the rest off with exercise it is a healthy and fast way to lose weight

I suggest you read this guide created by Hkellick on how to lose weight the proper way.  Yes it?s long but it has a lot of valuable information:

http://www.calorie-count.com/forums/post/1223 0.html

I am eating now what fills me up...

I try not ot be hard on myslef but sometimes it just happens I look around and see something that bothers me...

all anyone eversaid was lose weight and you will be beautiful...now what... I won't be...I will have to hide even more now...

*sighs* I am just in a mood today it seems...

Thanks for the encouragement!

Oh, dont be sad. Starry! ((hugs))

I know it looks bad but it will get better and you can have it fixed too!

Besides, I saw your other picture the one of your gorgeous face!!! WOW!! Like anyone could get past those beautiful eyes.

Hang in there, k? It will get better.

I will tell you what a doctor told me.  I am 120 pounds lighter than I was several years ago, but still have 75 pounds to lose.  I have hanging skin on my arms, thighs, and stomach.  According to my doctor, there was nothing I could have done to avoid that.  Some people have skin which has more elasticity than others.

When you have a ginormous weight loss, unfortunately that is what you get.  Don't dwell on that.  Be proud of your accomplishment and work on finding flattering clothes.  You are a much healthier person now!  Celebrate!

dziewcyna: Thanks you made me smile today!

I was told that I need to get down to 120 and then let my skin have some time to go back...like a year...then to start to put on 30 pounds taking me up to my goal weight...but put it on as muscle....and the year I work on that I will still be losing the skin if it is gonna shrink back any...

So my goal is to be where I want ot be in the next 3 years...by my 30th birthday...

purplestarz, i suggest you listen to ravenlark.

the faster you lose weight, the less time your skin has to return to normal... most skin is elastic and will happily return to normal if you drop pounds slower, you would be doing yourself a favour to lose weight at a healthy rate.

eating below 1200 on a regular basis is NOT healthy, regardless of whether you feel 'full' or not. sometimes listening to your body is not the best way to fix it.

I've got stretch marks on my skin from when I lost a lot of weight back in college.  That's the only time I've gotten any, because I lost a lot of weight too quickly.  Sadly, I didn't really pay attention to them until well after they were silvery white, but I've read that you can lessen if not remove stretch marks that are still pinkish with various scrubs, vitamin e, cocoa butter, etc.  If they're still newly formed, you may want to look into that.  The main thing, however, is to make sure you're not losing weight too quickly.

I have had these strech makrs most of my life...
I doubt they are goign any where soon..I used firming lotion and coco butter regularly...

Big hug to you purplestarz. I know how you feel, i have the saggies and the stretchies as well. My body wasn't perfect before weight-loss and it won't be perfect after, but I'll be healthier and I'm already happier. Don't get yourself down. You've accomplished a great deal and we are all proud of you! It's very easy to find flaws if we look hard enough. Why not focus on the things your happy about. Personally, I'm happy that I now have a waist even it's a bit lumpy at present.

Hey there Purple. I've got the same issues and feelings. I went to a plastic surgeon mostly over my belly, but the arms came up, he told me not to worry, arm skin shrinks back. My arms are much worse then yours and he told me that the scars aren't worth the results firstly and secondly, he thinks most of that will correct itself.. he told me honestly that there would still be some flab, but much less then now.

Take hope, all is not lost, you are only 29 which is still very young even as skin goes. I'm 44 and major sun damage to mine for those 40+ years... you have a better shot then I on skin shrinkage.

Keep smiling and hang in there..

OH Purplestarz...we can cry about this together!!!!  I sooo know how you are feeling...and, people who don't have this issue will NEVER understand.  My last baby was almost 11 pounds!!!  My stomach was ENORMOUS!!  Now...the more weight I loose, the uglier my stomach gets.  It's very sad because you work so hard...and, for an ugly stomach.  But, hey, at least we'll look good in clothes when we get to our goals!  It's just the bikini we probably won't be sportin'!  haha!! 

I went to see a surgeon about this and the ONLY way to get rid of this is by tummy tuck.  Someday I'll convince my husband to let me do it and then BIKINI HERE I COME!!! 

But, seriously, know that there are others out there feeling your pain...seriously.  But, also, be soooo proud of those jiggles 'cause they are a sign of your body getting healthier & more fit every day!!

I am only 26 LOL...don't makeme old before my time..LOL *hugs*

I am gald I am not alone in this..but i heard that if you can get rid of body fat percentage that it will go back...that skill will only connect ot somethign ...it is not like a glove...but connecetd thoughout...

I hopewe all cna keep losing and report back on what is going on withour skin...

hey, i have the same exact problem, i used to weigh 320 and lost all my weight down to 180 in 9 months...my doctor said it was bad but i didnt belive her and now i have this loose hanging skin on my legs , arms, and stomach, and i know how you feel i get very depressed about it. my doctor told me to run, running is great for tightening skin, also for arms try a light weight maybe 2-3 pounds and put one hand on a chair and in the other hand the weight and bend your elbow and go back this will tighten the skin on your arms. also it will tone muscle. also you might want to try cocoa butter it helps the elasticity com back to your skin and it evens out the tone in your skin so you dont look like you have streatch marks. i also eat way below what i am suposed to but i dont know it fills me and i cant eat anymore. please write back if this helped at all..

hey purpski. I can sorta understand what you're goin thru ..all that effor and for what ? In a way, its bad that we take our focus off health and go into looks, its inevitable, but its also imbribed in our mind that a healthy look is such an such . Fact is, you are getting healthier and healthier as we speak. Sometimes I think about this and get a bit down. But to me, now, it feels like just any reason to feel a bit low. Because on any other day, I'd be cool about it. Anyhow, dont think of that too much and stay beautiful. 

*smiles*

Thanks for the encourgement everyone.

vikaszz: I have a freind in life right now that is very close to me...

He was like yesterday I want you beautiful and happy...and I said...don't worry about me...I would rather be healthy and live longer than be beautiful...and he said he worries about my happiness...

*sighs* I get so worried about the pedestal he put me on breaking...it kills me sometimes...

purplestarz: After the birth of my son, I had two feet of extra skin and still all the weight. I ended up having to get a tummy tuck as it caused soooooooo many problems with the skin. (The feeling is like an old fashioned window blind waiting to go up. And you lose feeling in your tummy) Skin can lose it's elasticity if it's been stretched for too long. Sometimes it comes back and sometimes it doesn't. I've lost about 60 now and over a very long period of time. The new  look as it'd not taken the weight off before the first surgery... it was one of those necessary surgeries...  is still stretched and needs to be redone again once i get to my goal weight. Don't despair... it gets less and less giggily the more you tone up!!!!!!

I went from 364 to 171 after gastric bypass surgery so I have all kinds of droopy skin.  While mine is probably to the extent that only surgery will really repair, it isn't as bad as you would think it would be.  Exercising & building muscle tighten the connective tissue in your skin.  Give your body time.  It can't fix everything overnight.

Thanks all for the support. I had found a site about body lifts and such if i need it...

time will tell right?