Tummy Tuck - Arizona (6-5-12)

6 weeks PO – AMAZING, I feel better and better each and every day! I have FINALLY loosened up enough that I am 99.9% standing up straight. What a RELIEF! I have completely gotten rid of my CG and that feels wonderful. I’ve noticed that my stomach is starting to get a little feeling back and it doesn’t drive me batty wearing clothing that is snug. I started silicone therapy on my scar 6 days ago and I already see improvement! I still have the lumpy bumpy on my left hip and it swells by the end of the day from the lipo. I keep massaging it (along with my entire stomach) nightly. It is going down BUT sooooo slowly! I’m getting excited to meet with my PS again at the end of this month. He has been on vacation and I haven’t seen him since 17 days post op. I have so many questions to ask. I want all the information about my surgery. He tried to tell me the day after my surgery but I was so loopy from the meds I didn’t care what he was saying. LOL I know he said he lipo’ed about 4lbs of fat and that he cut out about 5lbs of skin and fat. I’m curious about how much muscle repair he did. I think that’s what has hurt the most. I still get the occasional pain in my upper stomach around my ribs if I over exert myself. I’m just happy to report that I am starting to feel almost normal again – YES!

Day 35 (week 5) PO – I continue to do better each day. My posture is getting better. I’m SO close. I look as if I’m perfectly straight but I can feel that I’m not. I’m about 97% there though! I am still walking in the morning and at night. Usually after my walk I feel so good and ‘loosened’ up. Its funny how the more you move the better you feel. But it’s SO hard to get going. I still have aches and pains. The most annoying pain is the one I have in my rib cage. It feels like when you are pregnant and the baby shoves his foot into your ribs. But unlike that pain when the baby moves his foot the pain goes away. This pain won’t go away. Grrr It really hurts if I do too much (like spending the day at the mall). I’m just trying to find that happy medium of taking it easy but pushing myself to get back up to par. I have to go back to work on the 25th of July. I’m very nervous about making it through the day! I work in a school setting with middle school kids (most are as big as I am) where I often have to restrain students. I don’t think I would be so nervous to go back to a desk job. I would also like to buy a few new outfits to start the year. However, I am in this really weird stage where I don’t know what kind of clothes look good on my body. I don’t like most of my old clothes because they are big and frumpy from trying to hide my pooch. My stomach is still numb so it drives me batty having anything snug on my stomach. My scar is doing well! I will start my silicone strips tomorrow. I am CG free during the day and hoping to be CG free during the night within the week. I’ve noticed that it is hurting me more than providing comfort so I think it’s time to get rid of it. I still have bruising on my left side. SO crazy! I know it’s from the lipo. I’m very bumpy on that side as well. When I do swell it is always on that side. I haven’t experienced much of swell hell. I try to keep my diet pretty clean and guzzle water all day long. I also have taken Arnica Montana and Bromelain the entire time. I continue to massage myself morning and night. I think that has helped out tremendously. This has been a long road of recovery but I would certainly do it again!

I'm not sure why my entire update did not go through yesterday? Here is the rest of it.
Day 27 PO
I began massaging my stomach, hips and lipo areas about 4 days ago (2xs day). I noticed my swelling has dramatically reduced in these areas. YAY! I still have bruising on my left side but it is continually fading. I am hoping to be bruise free within the week. :fingers crossed: I am still working on my posture and I think I’m getting close to 95% standing up straight now. My stomach still feels very tight and numb. I am also still having these darn muscle spasms (less frequently) that wake me up at night. I’m patiently waiting for all the scabs to be gone from my scar so I can begin silicone treatment. Did I mention I am NOT a patient person? :wink: All in all the past week I have improved greatly and I am very happy with how I am feeling!