After I watched The Shrinking Woman on Discovery Health the other day I became extremely curious about how much her plastic surgeries cost. How much did she spend on plastic surgery? How did she afford the weight loss plastic surgery? What’s the average cost of plastic surgery for someone who has lost a lot of weight? 

Curiosity led me to the internet, where I did a little research and found the average costs of the surgeries people have after large weight losses to restructure their bodies.  I think the woman’s probably cost more since she had one of the best surgeons, unless he did it for free for publicity.

Below are the average costs for plastic surgeries following weight loss.

Average Cost of Post Weight Loss Plastic Surgeries

• Arm Lift (Brachioplasty) $3,663
• Breast Augmentation (Saline implants) $3,544
• Breast Augmentation (Silicone gel implants) $3,813
• Breast Lift (Mastopexy) $4,258
• Buttock Lift $4,664
• Face Lift (Rhytidectomy) $6,532
• Male Breast Reduction (Gynecomastia) $3,409
• Liposuction (Lipoplasty:Suction-assisted) $2,868
• Liposuction (Lipoplasty:Ultrasound-assisted) $2,936
• Lower Body Lift (Belt Lipectomy) $7,708
• Thigh Lift (Thighplasty) $4,589
• Tummy Tuck (Abdominoplasty) $5,263

Average fees for the body lift (abdominoplasty, thigh, and buttock lift) range from $12,000 to $50,000 (including hospital, surgeon, and anesthesia fees). These costs vary based on the extent of the procedure and length of recovery.

If you are considering plastic surgery after weight loss you should know that the amount of the surgery will depend on a lot of different factors. It varies by region, by hospital, by doctor. Some of these will be covered by insurance if it affects your life and health, some of them will be purely cosmetic and not be covered. Be sure to do your research on all these plastic surgery procedures!

Do Your Research On Weight Loss Plastic Surgeries

As with any type of surgery you should do a lot of research before going under the knife.

Talk to your doctors. Ultimately the people who can best guide you on having plastic surgery following a massive weight loss are your doctors. They will be able to guide you in the plastic surgery decision making process and give you realistic expectations about the surgery. Definitely plan to talk to your regular doctor and multiple plastic surgeons before you decide to have plastic surgery done.

Talk to others who have had the surgery. You can find people you know who have had these types of surgeries or find bloggers online who had had plastic surgery following weight loss. Most people who have had this kind of plastic surgery after weight loss are willing to talk about it because it has done so much for their body and self-esteem. Reach out to some people who have had post weight loss plastic surgery and ask to sit down and chat with them about the procedures they had done.

Read about the surgeries. Read blogs. Read medical journals. Read books. Read plastic surgery websites. Read as much as you can on the surgeries to determine if you really want to do them. There is a ton of material out there now about plastic surgery since it is so much more common than it used to be. The following books written by doctors are a good place to start:

Body Contouring Surgery After Weight Loss

Total Body Lift: Reshaping the breasts, chest, arms, thighs, hips, back, waist, abdomen, and knees after weight loss

Bariatric Plastic Surgery: A Guide to Cosmetic Surgery After Weight Loss

My Opinion On Weight Loss Plastic Surgeries

I’ve thought a lot about these kinds of surgeries and I am all for them. I think a lot of times large weight loss leads to a poor body image because of all the extra skin and flab that is left over even after a ton of hard work from people trying to get healthy.

It’s hard to imagine that even after months and years of hard work that you still aren’t happy with your body. This lack of perfect body results following extreme weight loss is why people turn to plastic surgery. I totally understand that and support people that make the decision to turn to surgery. If you have worked your butt off for the body you want but it’s not possible without surgical help… then you should consider post weight loss plastic surgery.

If I get to a healthy weight and stay there for a while I will definitely consider plastic surgery for myself. Even after losing just 40 lbs I’ve noticed my skin isn’t bouncing back super fast and after losing more weight my body still might not look like I want it to. I would definitely consider various plastic surgery procedures if this was the case after my own weight loss. I don’t necessarily want a fake body with big fake boobs, but having things stay in place without tons of extra skin will probably be important. Extra skin can be a nuisance and it can also be unhealthy and cause other health problems.

The only thing that would hold me back when considering a weight loss plastic surgery is the cost. If I needed a full body life the price tag would definitely make me reconsider and find ways to live with a post weight loss body. You could buy a car or even a house for that amount of money it takes to have a full body lift post weight loss! However, if it is something that would drastically improve my quality of life then it is something I would consider. I’m all for saving up for such a type of surgery and then using the money for a specific surgery. I will just have to see what is needed in the future!

What are your thoughts on post weight loss plastic surgery? Is it something you have done? Will do? Even consider?