The skin I'm in

Whenever I tell someone new that I had a roux-en-y gastric bypass, there are generally a few questions.
1. How much have you lost? (A natural question)
2. Did your insurance cover it? (I get this one at work a lot, either because they want to know if it's covered for themselves or because they want to know if their premiums are high because I'm spending the money on me).
3. What happens with, you know, your skin? By the title of this post you should have guessed that I want to talk about this one.

People are fascinated by weight-related skin issues. Like, "where does it go?" Or, "will you get surgery to remove it?" Etc.

Here's my take on it. I'm HOPING that I actually lose enough weight to worry about this. My weight loss has already slowed down to a couple of pounds a week, which sounds like whining unless you remember that I lost the first 60 pounds in 6 weeks. So getting small enough that my skin can't catch up would be awesome and incredible. Especially because I have good skin genes in some ways--thick, heals quickly, few signs of aging. Of course that also comes with the major cystic acne and the tendency towards skin cancer, but hey--I look like I'm still in my 20's.

So, being the proactive and beauty product-obsessed gal that I am, I read up on what I can do to potentially minimize a need for surgery. The best suggestions I got was to use a scar reducer (like Mederma) on my incision sites, and to baste myself with body oil designed for pregnancy. Being the product-whore that I am, I ran out and bought a pregnancy oil created by Weleda, and one from Belli.

Some background info: I had really let myself go when I topped out at 350+ lbs. I had shapeless hair, I stopped getting highlights, I stopped shaving my legs, and I didn't exfoliate and moisturize the way I should. In short, I had given up. Well, and the fact that applying lotion all over a quadruple-X-sized body is a real workout. Literally.

Now, I'm slowly getting back into the habit of taking care of myself physically. First, following the Rules of Pouchie. Second, taking all my required vitamins daily. And now, marinating myself in baby-to-be oil. It's just one more step in subconsciously reminding myself that I am worth a little more time and energy.

Since I just started doing this, I have nothing real to report yet (other than my skin feels and smells great). As time marches on, we'll see how it goes. But even if it doesn't help with the loose skin, I think the simple act of conscious self-care will help me with everything else.

Next step in taking care of myself, exercise. More on that later...