  We combine spectra of VY CMa obtained with the short- and long-wavelength
spectrometers, SWS and LWS, on the Infrared Space Observatory to provide a
first detailed continuum spectrum of this highly luminous star. The
circumstellar dust cloud through which the star is observed is partially
self-absorbing, which makes for complex computational modeling. We review
previous work and comment on the range of uncertainties about the physical
traits and mineralogical composition of the modeled disk. We show that these
uncertainties significantly affect the modeling of the outflow and the
estimated mass loss. In particular, we demonstrate that a variety of quite
diverse models can produce good fits to the observed spectrum. If the outflow
is steady, and the radiative repulsion on the dust cloud dominates the star's
gravitational attraction, we show that the total dust mass-loss rate is $\sim
4\times 10^{-6}M_{\odot}$ yr$^{-1}$, assuming that the star is at a distance of
1.5 kpc. Several indications, however, suggest that the outflow from the star
may be spasmodic. We discuss this and other problems facing the construction of
a physically coherent model of the dust cloud and a realistic mass-loss
analysis.
