u/Key_Split_8706

I’m Canadian and so is my dog. I plan to make a detour through Maine for 48 hours on my way home from the east coast. I’ve filled out the CDC form for her but do not have her rabies paperwork from last year and cannot obtain them.

I hear a lot of people saying the border guards don’t care, and as I may enjoy the privilege of being white and moderately well-to-do on a nice family vacation with the dog, I’m wondering what my odds are here or if I should abandon this plan.

And what’s the absolute worst case scenario here for me and the dog?

I’ve been steadily losing weight long term, and recently made sustainable changes to my diet and increased my weightlifting and it’s really helping me. But now I’m in a weird place because my fat is shrinking and I can see/feel my toned muscles and my skin is getting loose. Too loose.

I’ve obviously been in denial about just how much fat I was carrying. I’m a big woman to start with but now that the fat is coming off, I’m realizing that no, my thighs being 30” around is not normal and my bones and muscle are much smaller than I previously thought. So my loose skin (I haven’t lost enough to call it saggy yet but we’re getting there) is wiggling and jiggling and on one hand I’m so happy to finally be on a functional path to a comfortable, healthy weight and I love the way I look now compared to many pounds ago, but I am so sad looking at my legs and the excess skin (I really didn’t think it would be this much) and the way it wobbles when I walk or how my arm flaps when I wave or my belly sags when I sit.

Absolutely I would take being slim and healthy over being obese and unwell, but the shock of just how big I actually was is hitting me, and I’m depressed about how this skin is more than I thought.

((For the record, I do weightlifting 3-4x a week and have terrific muscle tone, so it’s not a matter of “build more muscle”))

I suppose I could save up tens of thousand of dollars for eventual skin removal, but right now I’m looking to hear from others who’ve gone through or are going through this. I am happy about the loss of fat but the jiggly skin is putting a damper on my celebrations.

I have a single day of about 8 hours in late summer with two single-digit children and a dog in tow. We plan drive from the Halifax area to see Lunenberg, Peggy’s Cove, and back up north towards NB from there. PC is included simply for photos and “I’ve been there”, because I detest tourist traps, crowds, and overpriced tchotchkes. Looking for dog-friendly places to eat simple, unfussy meals, fun activities children would enjoy/not hate, and any good stops in between.