You 'd never know it with his clothes on , but 22-year-old blogger Matt Diaz is carrying around sizable rolls of excess skin underneath his shirt , and he 's finally ready to reveal it to his fans . Mr Diaz , from Brooklyn , New York , has lost an impressive 270lbs from his nearly-500lb frame since the age of 16 - a journey he 's documented on his Tumblr blog , My Annoyances - but he has 'never ' shown his excess skin before , and says he can no longer 'preach ' about body positivity while continuing to hide his own flaws . So , in an emotional video he shared on Tuesday , Mr Diaz removed his shirt and stated : ' I 'm really scared to put this up . But I think it 's important for me to share this with you guys , because this is who I am . ' Laid bare : Blogger Matt Diaz , 22 , revealed his excess skin in an emotional video he made for his fans this week , saying he could no longer 'preach ' about body positivity and continue to hide his own flaws . Before and after : Mr Diaz , from Brooklyn , New York , has lost an impressive 270lbs from his nearly-500lb frame since the age of 16 ( left ) - pictured ( right ) after his weight loss . Mr Diaz , who is on the verge of tears throughout the five-minute video , says he suffered 'an anxiety attack ' before going ahead with the big reveal . ' I have stretch marks , I have birth marks , I have all this excess skin , ' he says as he shifts from side to side and showcases his folds of skin . ' I 'm scared people wo n't find me attractive anymore . I 'm scared that all the nice messages will stop . ' On the contrary , Mr Diaz was amazed to receive nothing but support from his fans and followers . 'You are gorgeous Matt , I would date you , ' wrote one user . 'This is hands down the bravest thing I ’ ve ever seen , ' commented another . Not easy : Mr Diaz , who is on the verge of tears throughout the five-minute video , says he suffered 'an anxiety attack ' before going ahead with the big reveal . This is me : ' I have stretch marks , I have birth marks , I have all this excess skin , ' he says . No trolls : Mr Diaz was amazed to receive nothing but support from his fans and followers in response to the video . Mr Diaz , who describes himself as a 'writer , comedian [ and ] all-around f*** up ' , states in the video : ' I want to be proud of who I am , and I want all of you to be proud of who you are , and part of that is not hiding it . ' Despite working out 'hard ' and following a healthy diet plan , Mr Diaz knew that the only way he would be able to get rid of his excess skin would be with surgery . With that in mind , he set up a GoFundMe campaign on Wednesday to raise the $ 20,000 he needs for the procedure , and already , donations have reached $ 32,000 . Transformation : Mr Diaz , pictured before ( left ) and ( after ) his weight loss , is barely recognizable now as the boy he used to be . Swamped : A big white T-shirt once fit Mr Diaz snugly ( left ) , but these days , it hangs off his slimmer frame ( right ) Documented : ' I want to be proud of who I am , and I want all of you to be proud of who you are , and part of that is not hiding it ' , says Mr Diaz , pictured at different stages of his weight loss . Asked by Upworthy to offer advice to anyone struggling to come to terms with their own body-related insecurities , he said : ' I want you to remember that you are not the problem , certain aspects of society are the problem . ' He continued : 'Luckily , we 're slowly starting to see these ideas get phased out by modernity . 'Plus-sized , un-retouched models are getting more attention in major brands ... it 's becoming clear that these negative ideas are not going to last , though it 's going to take a while . ' Yesterday , Mr Diaz uploaded another ( clothed ) video to thank people for their donations . 'You have shown me so much kindness and now I have so much more faith in people , ' he said , promising to document the skin-removal surgery with his fans when he undergoes it .
Blogger Matt Diaz , 22 , weighed nearly 500lbs at the age of 16 . Over six years , he has lost 270lbs . Despite working out 'hard ' , he is unable to shift the excess skin resulting from weight loss . Since Mr Diaz revealed himself shirtless in a video to his fans , donations of over $ 30,000 have flooded in for him to get skin surgery .