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Can I Have a Tummy Tuck if I Plan on Having a Second Baby in 5 Years?

asked 1 year ago by Niece in Atlanta, GA
Latest answer by James Tang, MD
Question viewed 698 times
Tags: age 25-34, female, baby

25 year old female considering a tummy tuck. I had my first baby six months ago and my stomach has been left stretched out. I've always had a flat stomach but since pregnancy I haven't been able to get it back. I'm not planning to have another baby until the next 5 years, Will it be okay if I decided to have tummy tuck and be pregnant five years later. I do understand I might have to repeat the procedure after baby #2.

19 answers to Can I Have a Tummy Tuck if I Plan on Having a Second Baby in 5 Years?

Recommend waiting until after children

I recommend that you wait another five years until after you have had all the children that you plan to have before getting a tummy tuck. Although if you have a tummy tuck first, it will not be harmful for you or the baby to get pregnant again. However, your skin and muscles may stretch out again after your next pregnancy and you may need another tummy tuck afterwards. Why not wait another five years? see video

James Tang, MD
Houston Plastic Surgeon

Tummy tuck procedure prior to second pregnancy

If you are planning to get pregnant, it may be in your best interest to postpone a tummy tuck procedure till you are done having kids. However, this decision is all up to you. As long as you understand that plastic surgery does not guarantee permanent results and pregnancy may affect the results of your tummy tuck surgery, you may proceed with tummy tuck surgery. In your case, since its a significant amount of time before you are planning to have a baby, you may be able to enjoy the... more

Tom J. Pousti, MD
San Diego Plastic Surgeon

www.poustiplasticsurgery.com

Tummy tuck if planning to get pregnant?

What if you get pregnant after an abdominoplasty? While it doesn't make much sense to tighten things only to have pregnancy loosen them again, you can, post-tuck, become pregnant and bring a healthy baby to term. But if you are fairly certain that you want to have more kids, you should discuss this issue with your surgeon.

Michelle Copeland, MD, DMD
New York Plastic Surgeon

Tummy tuck

My recommendation is not undergo a tummy tuck operation until you no longer are planning pregnancies.

Shahin Javaheri, MD
San Francisco Plastic Surgeon

Tummy tuck should be done after you have finished having babies.

Tummy tuck is a big operation. It should be done only after you have finished having babies. Although there are reports in the plastic surgery literature of women who have been pregnant after tummy tuck, it is not a recommended sequence of events. Bear with your shape until childbirth is done, then go for the fix.

Elizabeth Lee, MD
Bay Area Plastic Surgeon

artfulsurgery.com

Repeat Tummy Tuck

The answer is a simple “yes.” You can have a tummy tuck now and repeat it after another child later. It is like any other elective surgery; you simply have to weigh the risks and costs against the benefits to see if the benefits outweigh the expense and risks. One reason many people may say “no,” is that a tummy tuck has a high risk compared to many other cosmetic surgeries. To reduce these risks, you should not be on birth control pills or smoking for several... more

Robert T. Buchanan, MD
Highlands Plastic Surgeon

Having a Baby AFTER a Tummy Tuck

Regarding: "Can I Have a Tummy Tuck if I Plan on Having a Second Baby in 5 Years? 25 year old female considering a tummy tuck. I had my first baby six months ago and my stomach has been left stretched out. I've always had a flat stomach but since pregnancy I haven't been able to get it back. I'm not planning to have another baby until the next 5 years, Will it be okay if I decided to have tummy tuck and be pregnant five years later. I do understand I might have to... more

Peter A. Aldea, MD
Memphis Plastic Surgeon

Pregnancy after tummy tuck

if you plan to have another baby soon then I would recommend waiting until you have finished having children. However if you are not sure if you are going to have another child in the future and you cannot get your pre-pregnacy tummy back with diet and exercise then it may be reasonable to have it now as long as you are aware of the risks of the surgery and the possibility that you might need to have another procedure in the future. Best of luck.

Dana Khuthaila, MD
New York Plastic Surgeon

Pregnancy AFTER tummy tuck

As long as you are comfortable with repeatng the procedure, it may be reasonable to undergo the procedure at this time. I can recall approximately 3 patients who underwent unintentional and uncomplicated pregnancies after a tummy tuck.

Otto Joseph Placik, MD
Chicago Plastic Surgeon

Have your babies first, then your tummy tuck

You don't want to go through this surgery twice. Have all your babies and then get your tummy tuck. The surgery for a tummy tuck is a major undertaking with significant risks. Wait to get it done after all your pregnancies.

G. Gregory Gallico III, MD
Boston Plastic Surgeon

Should I have a tummy tuck before I am finished making babies?

Short answer is NO! Why on earth would you go through the expense and risk involved in the surgery to correct the changes to the abdomen resulting from pregnancy just to start all over again? It just does not make sense to go through all the reconstructive part and then to go back to square one by having another baby. Finish having your family first, then get everything fixed up. It just doesn't make sense to do it any other way. Claudio DeLorenzi MD FRCS... more

Claudio DeLorenzi, MD
Toronto Plastic Surgeon

Tummy tuck with pregnancy

I happen to agree and disagree with some of my colleagues. While muscle repair may be disrupted during pregnancy, five years is a long time to be unhappy with your body shape over something that may or may not happen five years from now. Although abdominoplasties have a risk that is higher than in other procedures, with proper training and support staff, the risk is still acceptable.

Timothy Fee, MD
Jacksonville Plastic Surgeon

www.coastalcosmetic.com

Tummy tuck before finished having children

As you have read the previous expert posters 100% agree NOT to do this before you are finished having kids. I agree. From MIAMI Dr. Darryl J. Blinski

Darryl J. Blinski, MD
Miami Plastic Surgeon

Wait until after you have kids for tummy tuck

You have hit on the main reason why we do tummy tucks: After pregnancy, no amount of exercise or diet will restore loose skin especially if there are stretch marks, or re-align the muscles if they have been separated. If you do have a tummy tuck and then become pregnant, it should not have any adverse effect on the pregnancy but you will lose the benefit of having the tummy tuck, and a second one later can be a lot more difficult. It isn't as simple as just having to have another tummy... more

Richard Baxter, MD
Seattle Plastic Surgeon

Can I have a tummy tuck if I still want to have children?

Most plastic surgeons would recommend that you wait until you are done having children before having a tummy tuck. Probably the most effective part of the procedure involves tightening of the abdominal midline muscles and this repair would be disrupted with an additional pregnancy. If you are simply interested in addressing loose skin, a skin-only tuck could be performed but this would not give you as dramatic a result and as flat an abdomen as a traditional tummy tuck. I... more

Gregory A. Buford, MD
Denver Plastic Surgeon

Tummy tuck and pregnancy

The typical answer is to wait until after pregnancy. The muscles that are tightened would be stretched out again by pregnancy.

David A. Lickstein, MD
Miami Plastic Surgeon

Wait for tummy tuck until you are done with kids

A tummy tuck is a very common cosmetic surgery but actually carries risks that are higher than most other cosmetic surgeries. You should wait until you are done having kids if at all possible.

Richard P. Rand, MD, FACS
Seattle Plastic Surgeon

Pregnancy will offer hurt tummy tuck results.

The abdominoplasty should not hurt the ability to have a future child however the results of the abdominoplasty will certainly be lessened by another child. While a revision can always be performed, you have to decide if this is worth it to you. Is it worth having a cosmetic procedure now, enjoying how you look for 5 years, then having another baby and perhaps having to go through the expense, recovery, etc of another procedure. Certainly there are ladies that do this so... more

Evan Sorokin, MD
Cherry Hill Plastic Surgeon

Tummy tuck and pregnancy

While it is certainly possible to have a baby after a tummy tuck, it is not recommended to have a tummy tuck if you are planning to have more children.