loose skin?

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meepandbaby
meepandbaby Posts: 21 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
I had a baby 2 months ago and since have lost 37 lbs just from breastfeeding but I have a LOT of loose skin on my stomach and thighs. Will it tighten as I finally get to work out? Any ways to tighten it up faster or am I stuck with it

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  • jemhh
    jemhh Posts: 14,261 Member
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    It will tighten over the next year or two. It takes time after weight loss for skin to shrink up. Also, the amount it shrinks is dependent on how lean you get (i.e., is there still fat stretching it out), age, how heavy you were and for how long, plus your genetics.

    And no, there is no way to speed it up.
  • GottaBurnEmAll
    GottaBurnEmAll Posts: 7,722 Member
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    jemhh wrote: »
    It will tighten over the next year or two. It takes time after weight loss for skin to shrink up. Also, the amount it shrinks is dependent on how lean you get (i.e., is there still fat stretching it out), age, how heavy you were and for how long, plus your genetics.

    And no, there is no way to speed it up.

    All of this^ and congratulations on your new baby.

    Is this your first? My belly bounced back completely with my first, even after being floppy for a little while. If that offers you any hope. And I wasn't exactly thin at the time.
  • meepandbaby
    meepandbaby Posts: 21 Member
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    yes this is my first baby but I'm also a 30 years old and I was 220 pounds to begin with I'm worried that since I was so overweight and lost the weight so quickly that it won't go away
  • GottaBurnEmAll
    GottaBurnEmAll Posts: 7,722 Member
    edited November 2016
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    meepandbaby wrote: »
    yes this is my first baby but I'm also a 30 years old and I was 220 pounds to begin with I'm worried that since I was so overweight and lost the weight so quickly that it won't go away

    I was 33 when I had my first, if that helps. I wasn't exactly thin. I can't remember how much I weighed when I got pregnant. I think I was around 160 - 175. She's 21 now so it was a while ago and my memory is bad!

  • jemhh
    jemhh Posts: 14,261 Member
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    meepandbaby wrote: »
    yes this is my first baby but I'm also a 30 years old and I was 220 pounds to begin with I'm worried that since I was so overweight and lost the weight so quickly that it won't go away

    Fast weight loss has absolutely nothing to do with your end result as far as loose skin goes. That is a very common misconception. When you lose weight fast, it just means that your weight loss outpaces your skin's shrinkage rate more than it does with slower weight loss. And I firmly believe that nearly all big weight loss (definitely 50+ pounds, possibly below that) outpaces skin shrinkage anyway.

    If anything, the faster loss would have worked in your favor because how long your skin was stretched affects the final outcome. The only thing to do at this point is lose the fat, wait for your skin to shrink back, and see what you end up with.
  • Francl27
    Francl27 Posts: 26,371 Member
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    I've been maintaining for 2.5 years and I'm still waiting for my skin to bounce back :(
  • DaniCanadian
    DaniCanadian Posts: 261 Member
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    Both my babies stretched the ever living f%$# out of my stomach (I'm short and carried all out front). Losing weight and doing strength is helping with the skin a bit but I'm pretty sure I'll still have most of it even at goal weight.
  • Katydyd1979
    Katydyd1979 Posts: 3 Member
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    Just wondering and gathering opinions... If insurance paid (or money wasn't a factor), would you have the excess skin removed or do you love your new body the way it is? I waffle on this, and have a ways to go before the fat is gone and only the excess skin remains. I value the opinions of others.
  • GottaBurnEmAll
    GottaBurnEmAll Posts: 7,722 Member
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    Katydyd1979 wrote: »
    Just wondering and gathering opinions... If insurance paid (or money wasn't a factor), would you have the excess skin removed or do you love your new body the way it is? I waffle on this, and have a ways to go before the fat is gone and only the excess skin remains. I value the opinions of others.

    In some spots, it doesn't bother me. In others, I'd have it snipped in a hot minute.
  • jemhh
    jemhh Posts: 14,261 Member
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    Katydyd1979 wrote: »
    Just wondering and gathering opinions... If insurance paid (or money wasn't a factor), would you have the excess skin removed or do you love your new body the way it is? I waffle on this, and have a ways to go before the fat is gone and only the excess skin remains. I value the opinions of others.

    I would have it removed. It has turned out to be a huge stumbling block for me self-esteem - wise. I fall into the unfortunate genetics category when it comes to loose skin. It's all mental, as I don't have rashes or anything and it doesn't bother my husband so it's not like other people make me feel bad about it either. But it is a daily struggle for me.
  • Francl27
    Francl27 Posts: 26,371 Member
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    Katydyd1979 wrote: »
    Just wondering and gathering opinions... If insurance paid (or money wasn't a factor), would you have the excess skin removed or do you love your new body the way it is? I waffle on this, and have a ways to go before the fat is gone and only the excess skin remains. I value the opinions of others.

    Yep I'd have it removed too, although I'm not a huge fan of scars either... but having that pouch hanging when I bend over and having to tuck it in my jeans is pretty embarrassing. I still have some fat in it but it just looks worse and worse the more I lose at this point, so I don't really care.

    The inner thighs too... it definitely looks odd.
  • firef1y72
    firef1y72 Posts: 1,579 Member
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    Katydyd1979 wrote: »
    Just wondering and gathering opinions... If insurance paid (or money wasn't a factor), would you have the excess skin removed or do you love your new body the way it is? I waffle on this, and have a ways to go before the fat is gone and only the excess skin remains. I value the opinions of others.

    If I could cut it off right now I would, I hate my apron. Unfortunately I'm going to have to learn to love it as I can't even get a referral to a plastic surgeon on the NHS let alone the op. It's considered purely cosmetic despite the regular infections.
  • amusedmonkey
    amusedmonkey Posts: 10,330 Member
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    Katydyd1979 wrote: »
    Just wondering and gathering opinions... If insurance paid (or money wasn't a factor), would you have the excess skin removed or do you love your new body the way it is? I waffle on this, and have a ways to go before the fat is gone and only the excess skin remains. I value the opinions of others.

    Nop. I'm fine with it the way it is. Now if you told me you had a fairy that could wave a wand and make it go away, sure, why not! It's just that it doesn't bother me enough to undergo a major operation.
  • richardgavel
    richardgavel Posts: 1,001 Member
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    Katydyd1979 wrote: »
    Just wondering and gathering opinions... If insurance paid (or money wasn't a factor), would you have the excess skin removed or do you love your new body the way it is? I waffle on this, and have a ways to go before the fat is gone and only the excess skin remains. I value the opinions of others.

    Am I willing to wait another 18 months and see what happens with natural skin tightening at the 2 year point, yes. But if at that point it still looks bad, then I would so it in a heartbeat if money wasn't an issue.
  • LAWoman72
    LAWoman72 Posts: 2,846 Member
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    If I could get surgery, I would, but I can't see ever having enough money for it. I have had a loose bag of skin so wrinkled that you can't see my bellybutton (literally) since I had my first child at only 19 years old. That was devastating at the time but even today it makes me sad. I don't sit there and think about it night and day or anything but it really does make me feel deformed.

    I don't believe it's fat, as I had this at 98 lbs.

    I would love, love, love, love, love to just feel like a normal human being again for the first time in 30 years, and not have something literally flapping from me, and to have a bellybutton again. Like a normal woman.

    I can't even imagine it, it has been so long but YES, YES, if suddenly, somehow I had the money and it didn't have to go toward a million other things first - house, my kids' education and future, etc. - I would do it. Wouldn't need to think about it. Set 'er up, put me on that table.
  • SCoil123
    SCoil123 Posts: 2,108 Member
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    Katydyd1979 wrote: »
    Just wondering and gathering opinions... If insurance paid (or money wasn't a factor), would you have the excess skin removed or do you love your new body the way it is? I waffle on this, and have a ways to go before the fat is gone and only the excess skin remains. I value the opinions of others.

    I've been looking at non invasive treatments and pricing them lately. I want to get back to my goal weight before deciding but it has years since I lost the pregnancy weight and even when I maintained goal for 3 years the skin didnt go away. At some point I would love to remove it if the opportunity presents.
  • meepandbaby
    meepandbaby Posts: 21 Member
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    Everything is out of my price range atm I might see where I am once I'm done having babies seems silly to fix it then have another

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