5 months post op

Hi Absecon8034 and luvcldplay. I'm 5 months post (as of June, 2012) and I am in pain today. I have a lil puffiness, but I had a real bad hematoma, and had to get another drainage tube inserted back in the 3 months post. But this morning I work up and my belly button area is hurting so bad. I have NO IDEA why. I haven't strained myself..... unless while I was sleeping I stretched or something. I'm going to start walking on the treadmill to start toning up. I've gained back 10 of my 25 lbs I lost. What end up being the outcome from what you were discussing??

Hi Absecon8034 and luvcldplay. I just had a TT/Lipo and Fat Transfer to my butt in Jan, 2012 in Tijuana Mx ($5k for everything) and I too am experiencing alot of swelling still. When I say alot of swelling, its alot at night, thru the night. I also had a HUGE hematoma, I had to get ANOTHER drainage tube put in at 3 months post. (by a Plastic Surgeon here in the States), and had to wear that for a month!! I believe my swelling is from that, (the hematoma- my body trying to heal) and from me eating too much. (I have gained back 10lbs out of the 27lbs I lost). I have definition in my body and stomach, but I have alot of swelling. I also have a 'vertical crease' down to my belly button at the top. I think it's from the swelling. Have either of you heard of this? The Plastic Surgeon here told me he had never seen a 'vertical crease' like mines; to give it time for the swelling to go down; ( I went to him 2-3 months post).... and I can say it's getting better. Just wanted to know if your swelling subsided and did either of you have a 'vertical crease'. Please let me know. Thanks!!!!

i did start lifting weights again...maybe that has something to do with it. idk what to think, thanks

you got me. Is it possible that you did some heavy exercie recently?

I always have this little puffy area right above my incision line but gets almost completely flat now that i am 6.5 months post-op.

hello again, i'm gonna contact my doctor any way but i thought i would ask you too since we are post-op :)
well, after surgery my whole abdomen was completely flat. now and then i have some swelling below my belly button but it goes away. about 4 days ago i noticed between my ribs i have like a little pooch. it's strange because it used to be completely flat to my ribs and now it sticks out a bit. i thought i had gained weight but i actually lost 3 lbs. idk, what do you think?

children. i have always been very slim.

so sorry to hear that about your results. i know you hear this all the time but we have to give it more time. i'll look up the surgical tape online.
was your tt do to weight loss or children?

i see what you mean. It is definitely worse at night than the morning. I have an office job so i sit quite a bit in front of my computer, which makes it worse. I notice that i have much less swelling on the weekends since i don't sit that long. My scar has been flat so I highly recommend the surgical tape which you can order online. They are more pricy but it is well worth the penny.

Yes, i would like to get a face lift but since it is another big surgery and it is on your FACE (everyone can see it!!) so i want to be very careful about the surgeon i choose. I think my TT surgeon is too inexperienced and the results are not as satisfactory as what i had expected.

hmmm, when i was there in may it was hot and it should have been cooling and raining by then. i don't think it'll be hot in june. but you're right heat makes it for an uncomfortable recovery. my husband's work slows down during may and june. he will stay with the kids again. plus, i got an offer to book my flight for a discounted price in june so there was my sign to do it in june.
sometimes it seems my pooch is bigger. i've been wondering if i'm over eating. i don't think i am...but it seems to get worse at night.
me too! i'm excited half of the incision line is finally flat. the other side is taking longer but it's looking a lot better.
so is your face lift something you would like to do in the future or are you in the wondering phase?

it is great that your family had prior work done there so you know that you can trust them. You know the language too so that helps. I paid more than double what you paid just for the TT alone.

Why do you decide to have your BR done in June? It is going to be hot-I hate wearing compression garments in the summer.

Is your pouch going down? My little puffy area right above the incision line is improving-with one side almost flat, the other side though is still puffy.

yes, why do they say you can return to work in a couple weeks post op it takes that long to stand up straight. i couldn't even wear jeans for a month! in order to save money i had to pay in another form like comfort! my sister had her nose done 14 years ago in guadalajara for the same reasons. about 10 years ago my mom had a tt there too. although i didn't meet with their doctors i did meet w their anesthesiologist who was fantastic. and he gave me 3 doctors who he had worked with before. i had the consultations with each and made my decision like that. the whole thing was great which is why i'm going back.

that is indeed a lot. I was feeling like hell the first week after TT. I took 3 weeks off from work but was hunch-backed for quite a while. It must be even harder for you staying in a foreign land right after the surgery. How did you find the doctor? The flight must be tough only 12 days post of the operation. My admiration for your bravery!! I didn't drive for 3 weeks after the surgery.

yes i know what you mean. i've had 3 c-sec and tt in the last 5 years. i'm so done with surgeries! i hope the breast lift is the last one for a very long time. i went to guadalajara mx. with hotel and 2 round trip tickets for me and my mom was 1,400 dls. food was very cheap we packed our little fridge. i was there a total of 17 days. i came back on the 12th day post op. it was fine. i was scared of the violence and safety problems but it was fine. the whole thing was a little over 5k still half what i would have spent here.

that is very cheap as it would cost you almost triple the price here. Where in Mexico? How long did it take you to be able to travel by air after the surgery? You must have place there to stay and people to take care of you. I think the full TT experience is so grueling. I think that i will need a mini-face lift but the thought of surgery again is so terrifying. :-(

lol you will hate lipo then. i had to have massages daily. it hurts! putting any pressure on a bruise hurts let alone lipod areas. i put the mederma in the hall way so every time i walk pass it i see it and put it on. otherwise i'll forget. well... i went to mexico. i did all my research, i am very familiar and had an excellent experience. the tt and lipo plus hospital cost $3,800 dls. i went thinking to have a BA w/ lift as well. since i could never afford all that work done here i looked abroad. however, because i have problems with my thyroid he didn't think it was safe to have me in surgery for all those hours. so i'll be going in june to get the lift and BA.

the lipo was in the "muffin top" areas. he said that the lipo w/ tummy tuck gives the best results. the lipo takes a long time it's a slow healing process which i didn't know. i think my scar is healing pretty good. it's thin little purple line then half way it gets thicker and thicker to my right side. on that side it's between red and purple. my belly button is not as flat anymore the incision around my belly button looks a lot better. i put on maderma 3 times a day. hope it works

what lipo did you do? I should have it done as well. I don't like wearing garments either so after 6 weeks I stopped wearing the one from my PS and switched to the one from Marena group. I wear garments pretty much all the way for 4 months. How is your scar healing?

ouch one on each side...i don't wear the garments anymore. i stopped a little sooner than advised. only 2 months daily. the third month 3 or 4 days of the week. i bought the wrong kind and with the lipo it cut the circulation around my hips so it just wasn't worth it. i am getting so itchy on my sides, but i try to scratch lightly but i'm still numb. makes no sense, sound familiar?

I have drains on both sides so that probably is not the reason. :-) I am 6 months post today and it does look better than a month ago maybe we should just give more time. Do you still wear garments?

did you have your drain on the left side? i assumed my right side was puffier because thats where the drain was. plus, the incision is ticker on that side too. but it sounds like we are going thru normal 5 month post op stuff

mine is mostly flat except for the little area right above my incision line. If I wear a tight dress, a little bump shows right above the incision line. My left side is also a bit more puffy than the right side.

how big of a pooch is it? i am also 5 mths post op and i notice im swollen some days more than others? have you noticed it comes and goes? when my swelling is really bad i can't see the incision line from a sitting position. my doc told me to wait about 9 motnhs

I also have a little bulge right above my incision line in lower tummy now that i am almost 6 mos post-op. I weigh 113 lbs, 5'5.

Hm, I think it should be mostly flat, but still with some swelling toward the end of the day...Contact your doctor if these aren't the results you wanted, for sure. Let us know how it goes!