IcanMakeit

I need a reality check from others in their 60's. At age 61, I have lost 123 pounds and am now at a healthy weight. Now I really want a panniculectomy & abdominoplasty. I have so much loose skin that it interferes with mobility and looks so horrible to me that it's almost spoiling my enjoyment of my new, healthier body. I have two problems with going forward with the plastic surgery. Firstly, my insurance will almost certainly refuse to pay for the panniculectomy since I no longer have the infections under my loose skin that would have qualified as a medical necessity. I am having a hard time justifying spending so much money on myself when I am so close to retirement age. My second serious reservation is that I have already had a breast reduction. It was a five-hour operation and the recovery was more uncomfortable than I expected. I am still having issues and sensations more than two months out. I'm afraid that the tummy tuck will be just as bad. I can't take off more than a few weeks from work, and when I'm fatigued and sore, my work suffers. So what do you all think? Am I crazy to do something so expensive and uncomfortable at my age?

I'm not freaking out yet, but I am aware that I need to raise my caloric intake a bit more. My goal is to gain muscle, not fat. I seem to have plenty of fat under my excess skin. I hope some of you who have successfully negotiated this part of the journey will chime in.

@@dena1258 If you want to respond to someone, you can click on the "@Mention" which is located below their member summary on the left side of the screen (on a computer or tablet). I don't use the app, so I don't know where the "@Mention" is located in the app. When you click on "@Mention," the username is inserted in your reply with the @ symbol added. Good luck on your weight loss journey. It sounds like you're in the right frame of mind to be successful.

Ok. This is getting crazy. I'm down to 108 this morning.

Lots of people on this site have reported that they have broken this rule with no apparent consequence. I haven't tested it because I don't really miss straws. I'll save my rebellion for something that matters to me.

@@Amy93 My insurance covered the breast reduction because of my backaches. And it's a good thing they did, because since the breast reduction, my back has been just fine, and I had really suffered before. @@Sleevie.Nicks I don't know how old you are, but age makes a big difference in outcomes after weight loss. I was 60 when I lost most of my weight and my loose skin is prodigious. My breasts really did resemble tube socks with rocks. Younger women probably fare much better.

My hunger returned fairly quickly after healing from surgery, but now (one year out) it's less irksome than it was presurgery. If I distract myself, I can wait for the next planned meal rather than feel compelled to snack. I don't know how long this will last, though.

After losing 100 lbs, my boobs went from 48H (watermelons) to 40DD (tube socks). This was before my breast reduction surgery. I'm not sure what my cup size was after surgery, but I've lost 35 more pounds since the breast reduction and now find my 34D bras are too big. I think my current size is 34C, which I haven't worn since junior high school. I'm getting a big kick out of being small-breasted.

I think this is a good question for your doctor. Maybe the change in hormone levels that comes with weight loss is responsible for your decreased libido, or it could be that your decrease in calories has depressed your energy. In any case, my guess is that this change is probably temporary and will work itself out.

I don't know if this qualifies as an NSV, but I ate popcorn last weekend and did not try to overeat it, nor did it lead me to start craving other slider foods. (Popcorn is one of the foods that I abused most often when I was obese.) I think if I keep dangerous treats to a minimum, I can learn to eat them occasionally and responsibly.

@blahslee I agree that not all Thai food is sweet. I think so many Thai restaurants over-sweeten food because most Americans like it that way. (For me, they could leave out all the sugar and double the spices.) I was whining because my favorite Thai restaurant is gone and I miss it. But you all have reminded me that I have two hands. I should make my own, just the way I like it. Next weekend, the wok comes out.

I have added more fruit into my diet and eat about 150 calories more per day, but my weight is still dropping slowly. I am now at the very low end of normal and have been told by my doctor to stop losing. You'd think that would be easy. I have dieted and regained so much in the past and I have vowed that this time I would maintain my weight loss, so I am trying to remain careful about adding foods. I don't want to get back into the habit of eating without thinking, but I don't want to end up with a BMI of less than 19! I hope I can get this figured out.

@@highdesertblue Your doctor may be a great surgeon, but he is definitely not a great coach. In his eagerness to encourage you to exercise, he only succeeded in depressing you and belittling your quite stellar accomplishment. Forget him. Try to add a little more activity every day and before you know it, you'll be walking and moving with less pain (and less effort). Losing weight does wonders for your mobility. Keep the faith. With daily practice, you will soon get to the point where you can move without drama.

I can't help it. I love clothes. So on the way down in sizes (from size 28 to size 4), I kept buying things because they looked good. Of course, I only got to wear them for a month or so before they became sloppy looking. I should have bought just a few nice things from thrift stores to hold me until I reached my goal weight, but the truth is that I enjoyed having fashionable clothes that looked good on me. What a change from my previous practice of purchasing clothes because they were reasonably appropriate and they sort of fit. I don't know if it's my new figure, or my age, but I'm finding myself enjoying bold colors and Bo-ho styles. I guess you can take the hippie out of the 60's, but you can't take the 60's styles out of the hippie.

@@maggie409 Lobster bisque without lobster? I don't understand. Do you mean you just had a bowl of flavorful (and buttery) broth? Why couldn't you eat the lobster?

I am also getting complaints and warnings about my weight loss from my friends and family, and I can understand that they are concerned because I look so different. But to have a co-worker make such an inappropriate comment would really get me steamed. I'm glad you're so secure and weren't affected. Re the photo -- Brava!

Unfortunately chronic constipation is a very common condition post-op. I never really cured it during my losing phase, but I was able to manage it with Smooth Move, Mira-Lax, and Milk of Magnesia on rotation and Colace every day. I also took daily probiotics and ate yogurt every day, but I'm not sure if they had any effect. Now that I'm in maintenance and my intake of fruits has increased, my constipation is becoming less of a problem.

@@alilove2631 Actually, we eat at our local Black Bear quite often. My husband loves their country potatoes. I don't think that the food is low quality, just that they pile on too much food. My rant was not directed at people who might want to splurge on this over the top burger. I'm just saying that a 3,000 calorie burger is no one's idea of a healthy meal, and I wonder why Black Bear thought it was a good idea.

Welcome back and congratulations on your "interesting condition." A surprise pregnancy is even more stressful than a planned one. Please take good care of yourself.

I don't understand her advice to eat only 2 or 3 meals per day. During weight loss, I ate so little at each meal that I absolutely had to snack to get in the protein and calories that were recommended. Even now, in maintenance, I still eat 5 times per day. This is not grazing. I just have to spread out my food so that I can get it all in.

This morning's weight: 110

I think the best advice is to stay on plan as close to 100% as you can during the weight loss phase. However, I did eat a couple of off plan things during celebrations after I passed the 5 month post-op mark, and I was able to get right back on track the next day. For some people, one indulgence turns into a diet disaster that can last for days or weeks. You have to know yourself and your history to decide what the likely outcome of eating off plan will be.