Jonny's Skin Trim
Donation protected
Welcome and thank you for taking the time to check out my page.
My name is Jonny aka True and I am here to tell you about my healing journey so far and my hopes for the next chapter.
My journey so far...
After developing an eating disorder in my late childhood and early teens due to a fraught and traumatic childhood, I went on to live an adult life with morbid obesity; an ugly term, which scientifically means being life threateningly overweight. After a lifetime’s struggle with my body, I plucked up the courage to admit I needed help and in 2015 finally underwent bariatric surgery. I will be eternally grateful for this life saving surgery through the NHS in the UK. Whilst I almost lost my life ten days after the surgery due to complications, the results have been life changing and I went on to lose a huge amount of weight to a total of 16st/220lbs/100kg. I am now capable of so much more physically, I am in less pain and less tired and have a generally healthier relationship with food. I have now been at a stable weight for over two years for the first time ever in my life.
Further hurdles...
Before having the surgery, the bariatric team warned me that I would be left with significant excess skin with no recourse to NHS funded corrective surgery in the UK. Unfortunately, whilst healthcare providers across Europe tend to provide corrective surgery after the fact, in the UK that isn’t the case.
And they weren’t wrong. Post surgery the excess skin is dramatic and burdensome. Despite being extensively photographed naked at the hospital, consulted with a micro surgeon who recommended I needed corrective surgery and psychiatric recommendations that such intervention was well indicated because of the ongoing mental health impact - since applying for this surgery with the NHS, I have been met with a hard no as it is considered cosmetic and non-essential.
Current difficulties...
I won’t lie, when I see my body in the mirror I am filled with sadness and desperation. The loose, sagging and shapeless skin that hangs all over my body drastically affects my confidence and is an obstacle to me leading a happy and normal life. It is a painful barrier to intimacy with others and to finding a partner in life. Whether I like it or not, we live in a world with certain norms or expectations on the body - expectations that my body cannot meet in its current form. Although I conceptually understand that I am beautiful and worth loving, that conceptual understanding does not hold me at night or ask me out on a date.
My hopes for a solution...
I dream of being able to put this all behind me, to finally feel as though I’ve made it through the whole journey of recovering my body. I want to feel free and whole, to be able to move on with my life and live it completely with total confidence.
I have spent the last three years window shopping and fantasising about the surgery that I now know I would like to undergo. Surgeries that can fix the problems of my skin and give me the body that can support me in building the life that I want.
I have recently been in touch with a reputable London based plastic surgeon in January 2021 and together we agreed on the first surgery that I should undertake. This would be an abdominoplasty and thigh lift combined which would cost in the region of between £17,000 and £18,000. He suggested that we would be looking at April/May at the earliest due to the COVID situation which gives me a nice amount of time to raise these funds with your help.
The recovery time from such a surgery is a minimum of 12 weeks. This will allow me time to consider how I would want to proceed with further contouring in future, in particular my chest area. I feel comfortable to raise for one surgery at a time and see how I go.
Find out more…
Please have a look at my video to learn more about my journey and plans and pledge whatever you can, if you can.
If you would like to hear about my story in greater depth, please check out my dedicated instagram @jonnyskintrim as well as my personal instagram @paradoxfae.
Also I have a public group about this fundraiser on Facebook called Jonny’s Skin Trim Fundraiser.
Heartfelt Gratitude...
All the help I receive here will be perpetuated forward as I pledge my help to others I come across in my life, sharing my love, care, skills and resources as I already do, aspire to and continue on to.
Thankyou for reading and for supporting - your time and generosity mean a great deal to me.
My name is Jonny aka True and I am here to tell you about my healing journey so far and my hopes for the next chapter.
My journey so far...
After developing an eating disorder in my late childhood and early teens due to a fraught and traumatic childhood, I went on to live an adult life with morbid obesity; an ugly term, which scientifically means being life threateningly overweight. After a lifetime’s struggle with my body, I plucked up the courage to admit I needed help and in 2015 finally underwent bariatric surgery. I will be eternally grateful for this life saving surgery through the NHS in the UK. Whilst I almost lost my life ten days after the surgery due to complications, the results have been life changing and I went on to lose a huge amount of weight to a total of 16st/220lbs/100kg. I am now capable of so much more physically, I am in less pain and less tired and have a generally healthier relationship with food. I have now been at a stable weight for over two years for the first time ever in my life.
Further hurdles...
Before having the surgery, the bariatric team warned me that I would be left with significant excess skin with no recourse to NHS funded corrective surgery in the UK. Unfortunately, whilst healthcare providers across Europe tend to provide corrective surgery after the fact, in the UK that isn’t the case.
And they weren’t wrong. Post surgery the excess skin is dramatic and burdensome. Despite being extensively photographed naked at the hospital, consulted with a micro surgeon who recommended I needed corrective surgery and psychiatric recommendations that such intervention was well indicated because of the ongoing mental health impact - since applying for this surgery with the NHS, I have been met with a hard no as it is considered cosmetic and non-essential.
Current difficulties...
I won’t lie, when I see my body in the mirror I am filled with sadness and desperation. The loose, sagging and shapeless skin that hangs all over my body drastically affects my confidence and is an obstacle to me leading a happy and normal life. It is a painful barrier to intimacy with others and to finding a partner in life. Whether I like it or not, we live in a world with certain norms or expectations on the body - expectations that my body cannot meet in its current form. Although I conceptually understand that I am beautiful and worth loving, that conceptual understanding does not hold me at night or ask me out on a date.
My hopes for a solution...
I dream of being able to put this all behind me, to finally feel as though I’ve made it through the whole journey of recovering my body. I want to feel free and whole, to be able to move on with my life and live it completely with total confidence.
I have spent the last three years window shopping and fantasising about the surgery that I now know I would like to undergo. Surgeries that can fix the problems of my skin and give me the body that can support me in building the life that I want.
I have recently been in touch with a reputable London based plastic surgeon in January 2021 and together we agreed on the first surgery that I should undertake. This would be an abdominoplasty and thigh lift combined which would cost in the region of between £17,000 and £18,000. He suggested that we would be looking at April/May at the earliest due to the COVID situation which gives me a nice amount of time to raise these funds with your help.
The recovery time from such a surgery is a minimum of 12 weeks. This will allow me time to consider how I would want to proceed with further contouring in future, in particular my chest area. I feel comfortable to raise for one surgery at a time and see how I go.
Find out more…
Please have a look at my video to learn more about my journey and plans and pledge whatever you can, if you can.
If you would like to hear about my story in greater depth, please check out my dedicated instagram @jonnyskintrim as well as my personal instagram @paradoxfae.
Also I have a public group about this fundraiser on Facebook called Jonny’s Skin Trim Fundraiser.
Heartfelt Gratitude...
All the help I receive here will be perpetuated forward as I pledge my help to others I come across in my life, sharing my love, care, skills and resources as I already do, aspire to and continue on to.
Thankyou for reading and for supporting - your time and generosity mean a great deal to me.
Organizer
Jonathan Bonello
Organizer