‘I looked like a melting candle’: Woman who was left with HUGE folds of excess skin after dropping 224lbs shows off the dramatic results of her tummy tuck
- Celia Shroder, 32, from Grand Junction, Colorado, lost 224lbs (16 stone)
- But the mother-of-four was left with over a foot and a half of loose skin
- Looked 'like a melted candle, as if the skin was dripping down my body'
- After getting a tummy tuck she is finally happy with her appearance
A mother-of-four who was left looking like a 'melting candle' after dropping 224lbs (16 stone) finally has her dream body after undergoing a tummy tuck.
Celia Shroder, 32, from Grand Junction, Colorado, was left with over a foot and a half of loose skin after having weight loss surgery when she weighed over 386lbs 27 stone).
The full-time mother had been constantly bullied since childhood because of her weight, with tormentors calling her 'fat a***' and ridiculing her for wearing adult sized clothing at the age of 11.
Celia at her heaviest when she weighed over 224lbs, left, and after her bypass, right, when she was left with folds of excess skin which she said made her look like a 'melting candle'
After countless failed diet attempts, Celia underwent gastric bypass surgery five years ago, fearing her daughter Carmyn, now eight, would be bullied for having an overweight parent.
But after losing a staggering 224lbs (16 stone), Celia was left with folds of sagging skin that she thought made her look like a 'melting candle'.
Three months ago, she had surgery to remove the flab. She now weighs 160lbs (11 stone 4lbs) and says she is happy with her body for the first time in her life.
Celia said: 'My excess skin looked like a melted candle, it was as if the skin was dripping down my body.
'I wanted to feel good about how much weight I'd lost, but because of the skin I hated how I looked.'
Celia before she underwent major surgery last September. She said of her appearance: 'My excess skin looked like a melted candle, it was as if the skin was dripping down my body'
Recalling how she was forced to buy clothing that was 'two sizes bigger', she said: 'The extra skin caused problem for me when exercising, I had constant infections and rashes, it all made me feel miserable.
'Before, I used to have to skin folds hanging from my stomach, but now that it has been reduced I feel a lot happier.
'My self-perception is much better. It's helped my confidence and now I finally feel comfortable in my own body. Now when I look at myself in the mirror I like what I see for the first time in my life.
'Before I would avoid mirrors at all costs, I'd never like to look at myself, now I'm the opposite and feel great.'
Celia in her early teens. By the age of 11 she was already wearing clothing meant for an adult woman and swelled even further because of her horrific bullying during childhood
Celia at her heaviest when she weighed over 378lbs (27 stone). The mother-of-four piled on the pounds from emotional eating after being bullied relentlessly as a child in school
Celia attributes her weight gain to emotional eating during her younger years, coupled with constant bullying.
She added: 'I've been overweight my entire life, I started wearing clothing meant for women before I was in my teens and it only got worse when I hit adulthood.
'I was bullied for my weight all throughout my school days, there was a lot of name calling.
'One of my saddest moments was when I was cycling on my bike in eighth grade, some kids sailed past in a car and yelled "fat a**" at me from the window.
'Because of that I didn't feel I could ride my bike anymore and deliberately left it unlocked outside so that it would be stolen. Then in adulthood, people would look at me in disgust when I was out in public.
Celia on the day of her gastric bypass five years ago. She is now a staggering 224 lbs (16 stone) slimmer and says she is finally happy with her body for the first time in her entire life
Celia with her family, husband Russell and children (left to right) Iziah four, Amaliyah four, Russell one, and Carmyn eight, after having her excess skin removal surgery
'Once at a fast food restaurant, the server asked me if I had "finished ordering the whole menu," which was horrible.'
Celia tried numerous diets in the past including low carb, Atkins, and SlimFast as well as exercise DVDs and diet supplements but nothing worked.
In 2011, still haunted by the memories of being bullied at school, she decided to have a weight loss surgery so that her daughter wouldn't be victimised for having an obese mother.
Celia said: 'The fear that one day my little girl could come home from school crying because some bully told her that she had a 'fat mom' killed me inside and prompted me to take action.
Celia proudly shows off her post-surgery body after an operation to remove her excess skin. She went under the knife for a second time in September and now is finally proud of her body
'Since having the surgery, my perception of food has been completely different. Cheesecake was my favourite dessert but now I can't eat it, even fast food like McDonalds and Burger King taste bad to me.'
However after losing more than half her body weight, Celia initially struggled with confidence issues because of her excess skin.
She went under the knife for a second time in September and now is finally proud of her staggering weight loss.
Celia added: 'I look so different now that people don't recognise me anymore, they're shocked at how much I've transformed.
'It feels surreal, it's something I've thought about my entire life and now it's a reality.'
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