Erica Boran tells PEOPLE about her weight-loss journey and getting plastic surgery
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NEED TO KNOW
- Erica Boran, 48, lost over 100 lbs. in the span of several years
- After her weight loss, she got a number of plastic surgeries to address excess skin
- She also got a breast augmentation using Motiva’s Preservé technique and implants
Erica Boran's transformation journey spans years.
The former special education teacher from Massachusetts, 48, tells PEOPLE that she's struggled with her weight since childhood, getting up to 280 lbs. while pregnant but mostly weighing around 240 lbs. during her adult life.
"As the years went on, my weight would continue to yo-yo up and down," she says. "In 2011, I got back to creeping up to 280, and I was like, 'Okay, I have two young kids. I have my husband. I really want to be able to be a good role model for them.'"
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She lost about 65 lbs. with diet and exercise but says she "couldn't get below 200." It was in 2014 that her husband, who also struggled with his weight, got bariatric surgery that she called "life-changing."
Fast-forward to 2016, after Erica had gained about 30 lbs. back, and she decided to take the same route her husband did. She got the gastric sleeve and is down to 135 lbs. She says her weight has yo-yo'd at times but holds fairly steady at her current weight, thanks to the help of GLP-1s.
After such a major weight loss, Erica next looked into various plastic surgeries. Her first procedure was a panniculectomy in 2017 to remove the excess skin around her stomach. The surgery and recovery were tough, she says, calling it a "long summer" to bounce back. Then in 2019, she went to a different doctor for a brachioplasty and a bra line back lift to remove the excess skin on her arms and back.
Still unhappy with the results of her panniculectomy, Erica traveled to Houston in 2024 to see Dr. Rukmini Rednam.
"At that time, she did a fleur de lis [tummy tuck] to get rid of that excess skin that I had on my abdomen," Erica describes. "She did a breast lift at the time, and we did fat graft transfer to the breast along with a lower body lift. I was just so excited and just blown away by her precision and her artistry in reconstructing this body that I had."
Erica notes that the fat transfer to her breasts didn't last (typically, people experience some volume loss after fat transfer), so in early 2026, she went back to Dr. Rednam for a new, minimally invasive breast augmentation. (During the same visit, she also got a thigh lift and revision brachioplasty.)
With the Preservé by Motiva procedure, a surgeon makes a small incision under the breast and creates a channel in the breast tissue using a special tool. A balloon is then placed inside the tissue to create a pocket for the implant. Lastly, the balloon is removed and the implant is inserted through the small incision. The whole procedure can be done in under 30 minutes and the healing process is relatively easy.
"It was amazing to open my eyes and to just … I knew that they were there because I felt it, but to just see the size of the incision and how small it was, it was just absolutely amazing," Erica says of her new breasts.
She was looking for a "natural" appearance after surgery but having virtually "no downtime" with recovery also sold her on this procedure. Plus, Erica says that Dr. Rednam told her that a minor surgery like this (in comparison to a traditional breast augmentation) could be easier on her skin following her weight loss.
"I didn't want somebody to be able to look at me and know that I had implants," Erica says.
Erica says she's thrilled with all the changes she's made to her appearance, and having her husband of 23 years by her side for it all has been an incredible support. Being able to experience weight loss together gave them each a shoulder to lean on when it got hard.
"He loved me no matter what size that I was," she says. "He always thought that I was beautiful and desirable and attractive. And now, I feel that too. He's really helped me to grow as a person, too."
As far as her two sons and how they have felt about Erica's journey, she says she has consistently taught them that she was doing it for her health and to improve her quality of life. Much like her husband, her sons have also been incredibly supportive on her journey.
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As for how Erica is feeling these days? She couldn't be better.
"I can actually smile. I actually can smile when I look at myself in the mirror, and I'm absolutely impressed," she says, adding that she encourages others considering plastic surgery and weight-loss surgery to "embrace the tools available" to better your life.
"Every small change that you make to yourself, you reap the benefits, not only for yourself, but also for who you are in this world and for what you can do and the impact that you can have, whether it's small and just as a mom, as a wife, or whether it's on the bigger stage in your life, in your community."
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