Phantom Fat and Loose Skin
After teens lose weight, it may take some time for them to see themselves as slimmer people. Christine F. says, “I love looking in mirrors and complimenting myself, though I didn’t believe myself initially.” Based on a study of adult women, body image expert Thomas Cash, Ph.D., author of The Body Image Workbook, concluded that people who lose weight commonly experience “phantom fat.” The experience is similar to that of a person who loses a leg or a hand but has the sensation that the appendage is still attached.
Katie S., who lost more than 90 pounds when she was eighteen, says, “When I started losing weight, I was not prepared for the loose skin and stretch marks. They were hard for me to deal with. But just recently, I had a tummy tuck, and I’m much happier.” (Cosmetic surgery in teens is a very controversial subject. Katie was in her twenties when she decided to have the tummy tuck.)
Katie notes, however, that the surgery hasn’t changed everything. Although it made a big difference, she says, “I still have stretch marks, and I don’t look exactly as I may have expected. But I’ve come a long way and am very proud of my accomplishments.” Find best price for Phentermine online at the pharmacies we recommend.
In fact, Katie purposely regained about 10 pounds after her surgery to take up the remaining loose skin. “Over time, I’ve realized that my imperfections are a part of me and they always will be,” she says philosophically. “I have to work with myself, though, because it’s easy to fall into a perfectionist trap about one’s body. What I can improve, I work on to the best of my capabilities.
What I can’t improve, I have to accept.” She adds, “In the past, I felt I had to measure up to others’ perceptions of beauty - whether it was peers’, family’s, or men’s perceptions. I feel at peace with myself when Jam judging my own beauty - not letting myself be influenced by others. Ultimately, I constantly return to the idea that ‘perfect’ is an illusion and that beauty is in the eye of the beholder.”
