Losing weight is a great achievement, especially if the weight loss is significant. It is a step in the right direction to a healthier lifestyle that enables you to be more active. However, weight loss can leave behind an even bigger challenge of loose, sagging skin. In some cases, excess skin can still cause decreased mobility and recurring skin rashes, even making it more difficult to find new clothes that fit. Skin removal and body contouring procedures can help boost your self-confidence, make your body more aesthetically pleasing, and get you enjoying the new skin you are in!
No matter how you lost the weight, whether a change in your lifestyle or with the help of bariatric or gastric bypass surgery, what can be left behind is skin that looks “deflated”. No amount of exercising will change the appearance of this sagging skin. Board-certified plastic surgeon Dr. Jaime Schwartz of Beverly Hills specializes in providing cosmetic options for anyone struggling to get their body completely back, post weight loss, so you can start enjoying your new lifestyle.
Post Weight Loss Challenges
Some people wait years to have their loose skin corrected or removed. You have done the hardest part and lost the weight but now you are carrying around the extra skin that is left behind. Weight loss, especially if significant, can affect more than one area of the body. The extra skin left behind can be in the arms, legs, stomach area or back to name a few. It makes the process of finding new clothes very difficult in order to accommodate the excess skin you have in those areas. Showering and bathing is very troublesome because extra steps have to be taken to keep the skin folds healthy so that severe dermatological issues do not occur. The sagging, loose skin can also still make being mobile or “active” a challenge especially with certain types of exercises. So can cosmetic skin removal body contouring surgery be the answer?
Next Step To A Better You
Normally a cosmetic need, but in some cases a medical necessity, corrective surgery to remove excess skin is typically a personal choice but can be life-changing for those that choose it. The issue of loose skin can affect different parts of the body and patients decide which parts they want to tackle first in this transformation process. Some patients want to remove the excess skin from their stomach area. Others want their arms to look more toned. In some cases, individuals want to tackle more than one area at a time. Dr. Jaime Schwartz of Beverly Hills can build and construct a customizable approach to help shed the excess skin you are in to reveal an even better you.
The Planning Process
The strategy of having corrective or body contouring surgeries is important as usually it involves more than one procedure. Most individuals, that have lost a significant amount of weight, deal with loose or “deflated” skin in the arms, legs, chest or breast area, stomach, back and facial/neck area. If possible one or two procedures is done at a time but an entire body contouring process is handled over a period of time. This is to allow for proper healing after each procedure. An experienced plastic surgeon, like Dr. Schwartz, will plan out what body parts to tackle first and stage the procedures accordingly to allow for the patient to recuperate and heal appropriately.
Life-Changing Options
Before considering corrective or body contouring procedures post weight loss, it is recommended that patients be at their ideal weight for 6 months or longer. This give patients, having excess skin removed, the best end result. A skilled plastic surgeon, like Dr. Jaime Schwartz of Beverly Hills, will know the best options for what types of surgeries or combination of corrective surgeries you will need to get the best results.
Here are surgical options for women and men that can be life-changing to remove that excess skin you have been carrying around.
Breast Lift or Augmentation--Lifting the breasts and tightening the skin around the area is a common procedure for women after weight loss. The breast lift is also typically done prior to breast augmentation or breast implants in order to get the best results.
Chest Lift--Common among men who have lost a significant amount of weight, this treatment involves liposuction and the removal of excess fat in the chest area to create a more masculine, tighter look.
Arm Lift--Also known as brachioplasty, this surgery can be incredibly life-changing for patients where the removal of excess, sagging skin on the underlying part of the arm (known as “bat wings”) is removed and tightened.
Tummy Tuck--Also known as an abdominoplasty, this is one of the most common surgeries after weight loss performed to remove excess skin in the stomach area and also tighten the abdominal muscular structure to create a more contoured mid-section.
Panniculectomy--It is common for most weight loss patients to be left with skin that hangs below the belly button, also called a skin “apron”. Removal of the skin is similar to a tummy tuck, but is a more extensive approach focusing on skin removal and saving important nerve and vascular function. This surgery does not focus on the tightening aspect, but rather, removing this large section of skin folds.
Thigh lift--The removal of excess skin and fat with a thigh lift can help to contour the legs.
Buttock lift--After major weight loss, wrinkles of skin can accumulate and reside under the buttocks. The removal of this excess skin and tightening the buttocks can dramatically improve the appearance of this area.
Body Lift--Also known as a lower body lift, this skin removal surgery addresses loose or sagging skin in the areas of the buttocks, hips, thighs, or abdomen. A lower body lift combines several surgical methods to help reshape and contour the lower half of the body.
Upper body lift--Focusing on the upper body region, an upper body lift addresses loose or sagging skin in the areas of the arms, breasts, and back area to help with excess skin around the bra line.
Additional options, depending on a patient’s needs, are a facelift, neck contouring or liposuction to help with the body contouring process in areas where stubborn fat cells may have settled before excess skin is removed and tightened.
Keeping up with your healthier lifestyle by losing the weight can be enhanced by losing the extra skin your weight loss journey has left behind. Get a firmer, better-proportioned body with the help of a corrective surgery or body contouring procedure. You can feel more comfortable and boost your confidence by deciding to give your body a full makeover after you have done the hard work of losing the weight! It will make shopping in Beverly Hills or hitting the local beaches that more enjoyable! Call the office of Dr. Jaime Schwartz of Beverly Hills today to schedule your consultation appointment.
