If you’ve recently lost significant weight for your health and wellness, congratulations! (It’s never as easy as it looks).
Of course, whether you’ve lost a lot of weight through diet and exercise, bariatric surgery, or weight loss medications, you’re likely also experiencing loose and sagging skin. After surgery to lose weight or other means of losing weight, extra skin won’t always go away on its own. This is especially true if the skin has been stretched out for long periods.
Fortunately, skin surgery after weight loss is very common and very effective. Several body contouring procedures target areas where body contouring may be needed to address loose skin and excess fat and bring about a more toned and youthful appearance.
If you’re considering body contouring surgery post-weight loss in New York City, Dr. Mathew Schulman is a board-certified plastic surgeon who specializes in a multitude of body contouring procedures with an excellent success rate.
Body contouring plastic surgery is the umbrella term for every surgery to remove excess skin after weight loss. Body contouring aims to remove the excess skin left over from massive weight loss and tighten the surrounding tissue.
Body contouring procedures are available for skin removal after weight loss surgery and major weight loss from diet and exercise.
Multiple procedures for body contouring and facial rejuvenation are available to address excess skin and excess tissue after bariatric surgery, pregnancy, and post-weight loss through diet and exercise.
Beast augmentation is a breast surgery procedures that will address sagging and drooping due to volume loss. The cosmetic surgery will help restore the breasts’ supple and firmer appearance for a more contoured silhouette.
This body contouring surgery also addresses sagging after weight loss. The cosmetic surgery reshapes the breasts for a more rounded and youthful appearance and repositions the nipples if needed.
It’s common to undergo a breast lift and augmentation to restore lost volume and shape.
Breast reduction is most common after massive weight loss to address a sagging chest. The goal is to tighten loose skin and excess tissue for a firmer and more sculpted chest.
The procedure can remove excess male chest tissue and also can remove the loose skin of the chest that comes after weight loss.
The tummy tuck after weight loss surgery is a very popular body contouring procedure. The body contouring surgery can be performed in various ways to address excess skin and excess fat in the midsection.
A panniculectomy after weight loss surgery is a body contouring surgery that addresses significant excess skin or severely sagging skin—down to the thighs and genital area—after massive weight loss.
“Congratulations on your weight loss. Losing weight is an accomplishment that you should be proud of. But as you have found out, skin usually appears looser after losing weight and this is probably keeping you from fully enjoying and celebrating your weight loss.
I have extensive experience in body contouring after weight loss. During your consultation, we will figure out which specific areas of your body bother you. You may be unhappy with the appearance of your stomach, butt, thighs, chest, neck, or face. Mostly likely, you have several areas you are unhappy with. We will figure out what is the best way to start, and what procedures can safely be combined together.
You have made a tremendous investment in your health and I want to help you complete your transformation.”
Body contouring surgery after weight loss generally refers to two types of body contouring procedures:
An upper body lift focuses on a combination of body contouring procedures to lift the upper body. This typically includes arm lifts, a neck lift, breast contouring surgeries, and liposuction in the upper abdomen.
A lower body lift focuses on plastic surgery procedures designed to remove excess skin from the upper thighs and buttocks.
Butt lifts are a type of plastic surgery used to improve the appearance of the buttocks. Butt lifts are often done as part of a total body contouring surgery combined with fat transfer to restore volume loss or are performed alone to address excess skin in the area post-weight loss.
Which can be just lifting the butt OR can be combined with fat transfer to restore the volume loss.
Being prescribed Ozempic after weight loss surgery, or any other type of weight loss drugs, is common — especially after bariatric surgery. Of course, taking weight loss medications often lead to “Ozempic butt.”
Ozempic butt is essentially excess skin that develops as a result of massive weight loss due to taking weight loss drugs such as Ozempic, semaglutide, Wegovy, and Zepbound. Eventually, Tirzepatide, Retatrutide, Orforglipron, Contrave, and Saxenda will join this list.
If you’re wondering what’s the difference between semaglutide vs Ozempic or the rest of the above-listed medications, it’s simple: Semaglutide is the generic name for the antidiabetic medication that contributes to losing weight. Ozempic, Wegovy, Zepbound, etc., are the brand names.
If you plan to take any of these medications to contribute to weight loss, especially massive weight loss, it’s essential to understand what you can expect regarding body composition. You will lose weight quickly, and the excess skin will likely result, requiring plastic surgery to restore the tone of your post-weight loss body.
Life Changing is an understatement…Dr. Schulman literally transformed me. I secretly call him my magician. I’m still a work in progress and will definitely be back for more.
The extent of your post-weight loss surgery recovery will depend entirely on the type of body contouring procedures you have. Most patients must wait a certain amount of time between body lift procedures and other body contouring procedures, which means there could be multiple recovery periods, such as the time between and after a tummy tuck and breast augmentation.
Generally speaking, the recovery period for most body contouring procedures is six to eight weeks. The first week is always crucial, as it requires most patients to take work off and make care arrangements.
Experienced plastic surgeons like Dr. Schulman will know how to appropriately schedule each body contouring surgery to allow maximum healing time and recuperated health.
The cost of skin-tightening surgical procedures will vary based on the type of body lift you opt for and other factors, such as the number of body lift procedures, surgeon fees, general anesthesia fees, facility fees, and more.
During the initial consultation, Dr. Schulman will discuss the specific costs of the procedures required to remove excess skin and contour your body.
Plastic surgery isn’t usually covered under health insurance as it’s considered optional rather than a medical necessity.
After gastric bypass surgery, the best way to avoid loose skin is to maintain a stable weight, eat healthy and exercise regularly. However, following significant weight loss that happens quickly, diet and exercise may not be enough to mitigate excess skin.
Skin removal surgery is considered cosmetic surgery, which means it’s elective and not a medical necessity. Therefore, health insurance companies do not cover skin removal procedures.
The cost of skin removal surgery depends on several factors, including the type and number of procedures.
Maintaining a balanced diet and exercise regimen is the best way to tighten skin after losing weight without surgery.
Plastic surgeons recommend that bariatric patients wait 18-24 months after surgery to try and conceive.
Most plastic surgeons recommend that you avoid alcohol completely post-bariatric plastic surgery.
Plastic surgery is meant to help with body contouring in bariatric patients. While some body contouring surgical techniques can eliminate stubborn fat deposits, they are not meant to help weight loss patients lose significant weight.
Yes, multiple skin removal procedures can be combined into one operation. However, this will depend on your medical history and the treatment plan your surgeon creates for you.
Hypertrophic scars are the most common type of scar left behind after skin removal surgery. However, most scars fade within a year or two, and other cosmetic surgeries can address scarring on the remaining skin.
The most common ways to treat scars after skin removal surgery include topical silicone gel, skin-lightening products, and laser treatments. Protecting the skin from sun exposure will also minimize scarring.
When you’ve undergone bariatric surgery to achieve a healthy weight or have lost it naturally, you’ll likely want to find a surgeon who removes excess skin and specializes in body contouring to bring you a more toned appearance.
Dr. Schulman is a board-certified New York plastic surgeon who specializes in body contouring.
Schedule your consultation today. (He is also available for virtual consultations for bariatric patients living outside of New York.)