Reshaping a Slimmed-Down Body

How contouring surgery helped one woman after major weight loss

Healthy eating habits— Phyllis Whymark helps maintain her postsurgery weight loss by choosing foods wisely, a habit she’s instilling now in her 1-year-old granddaughter, Faith.

You’re a Candidate for
Body Contouring If…

• It’s 12-18 months since your weight-loss surgery
• You’ve been at your ideal weight for 3-6 months
• You’re in good health
• You’re a nonsmoker
• You’re committed to healthy eating and exercise
• You have realistic expectations

After weight-loss surgery in 2005, Phyllis Whymark lost 134 pounds in 15 months. Her knees no longer hurt when she walked. She could exercise without getting out of breath, and jump in the pool with her grandchildren.

But one thing still bothered the Bethlehem woman—the 6-inch flap of skin around her middle. “It was like having to tuck a thick sweater in my waistband,” she says. In 2007, she decided to have body-contouring surgery to get rid of that extra skin. “I didn’t have any illusions about looking like a supermodel,” she says. “I just wanted to look like a normal 52-year-old woman.”

Many people with massive surgical weight loss end up with skin folds, says plastic surgeon Randolph Wojcik Jr., M.D., of Lehigh Valley Hospital and Health Network. “It depends on age, genetics and the amount of weight lost,” he says. “Skin folds also can happen when people lose weight through diet and exercise, but it’s less common.”

Body contouring can be performed on any part of the body carrying excess skin, most commonly breasts, upper arms, thighs and waist. Some people just need a “tummy tuck” (abdominoplasty). Whymark had a total body lift (removal of excess skin from the abdomen and back) performed by Michael Morrissey Jr., M.D., a plastic surgeon at the hospital.

Not everyone is a candidate for body-contouring surgery. “Patients who have high blood pressure, diabetes, pre-existing anemia or a history of smoking are at increased risk for surgical complications,” Wojcik says. “Nutrient deficiency associated with gastric bypass also raises the risk.”

Cost is another factor. Insurers typically don’t cover cosmetic surgery, and body contouring can range from $5,000 to $10,000 or more. For Whymark, the surgery was a good investment: “I figured I was worth the price of a used car,” she laughs.

Clearly, whether or not to have this surgery is a big decision, says Gerald Rodriguez, a licensed clinical social worker who counsels many weight-loss surgery patients at the hospital’s Weight Management Center. “After recovering from that surgery and making the effort to eat right and exercise for a year or more, ending up with skin folds can be disappointing,” he says. That’s why he works with patients ahead of time to help them accept themselves, set realistic expectations about how they’ll look—and focus on the most important factor, their improved health. If body contouring is an option, Rodriguez helps them do a cost-benefit analysis to determine if the expense is worth it.

Even after body contouring, people can regain weight, and their skin will stretch out again. “This is not a magic wand,” Whymark says. “I eat healthy and exercise every day. I feel I’ve been given a second chance, and I’m not going to blow it.”

Want to Know More about the various types of bodycontouring surgery and the programs and support groups at the Weight Management Center? Call 610-402-CARE.

Published from Healthy You Magazine, May-June 2008

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