Goodbye Batwings! - Athens, GA

December 9th I meet with my PS about my second surgery. The Arm lift. I went back and forth about wether or not to go through with it, but since healing from my tummy tuck, my huge bat wings really stand out! I realized that I won't be happy with my body until I do this.

I will post my before pics after my consult. Until then......

January 30th! Finally getting my arms done. They have been a source of emotional pain for many years. After my TT, I bought a new suit several sizes smaller than my last and I could have gone down another size in the jacket but for my arms. They barely fit in the 10. So with my goal being an 8 or 6 I new I needed to take action.

I have posted the before pics. I really hate looking at them myself, but I realize there are others who need to see this review when making a decision like this. So here ya go....

Pre op today. All my questions answered. I say now that I will trade scars for these arm flaps. Anything would be better than this! I hope I still feel the same in a month. No backing out now!

Getting very excited about my surgery. My Birthday is only 3 days before my surgery, this is my birthday present to myself.

Glad there is not as much prep as when I was nesting for my tummy tuck. I will clean the house thouroghly over the weekend and go grocery shopping to get stuff for easy meals to prep for my husband for the first few days. Then I just need to get my meds.

I am going to order my garment tonight, just in case the one I leave the PS office with won't work for under my work clothes.

Almost time.....

My surgery went great! No real pain, although I am on meds . Nothing to report right now. Bandages from elbow to armpit. But I will update again in a day or two after I stop the pain killers.

Ta Ta for now!

The surgery uneventful. No complications. Since this was my second procedure with Dr. Lober and his staff, they went about and beyond to make sure I was not nauseated upon waking. The woke me very slowly, used a patch behind my ear, like what is used for seasickness. The really cool part is I can wear it for several days. This is the first time I have been able to take pain meds with out getting violently ill. He also gave me something to take with it to stop the nausea if i still need pain meds after the patch wears off.

Like I have said before, Dr. Lober and his nurses are wonderful. I felt great when I woke up!

About the bandages. I go back on monday for my first post op appt. I believe we decide on the CG then. Right now I have ace bandages on top of lots of gauze and foam tape. I have only had a little seepage at the top of my right are. Just once and my husband added gauze and tape as instructed. Noting else has bleed through since. But cannot tell if my arms are any smaller. I get the Michelin Man reference now, LOL.

Here is a great tip for comfy clothes for lounging, my nurse told me to take on old sweatshirt and cut in half from the front neck line and down. I sewed a button and button hole for mine, but a safety pin will work too. Very comfy while I have the huge Michelin Man arms. Old T-shirts work great too.

Compared to my TT this is a breeze so far. I really don't need help. I can do just about everything, albeit slower than normal, except for reaching above my head.

I have taken my pain pills every 4 to 6 hours, I will taper off tomorrow or Sunday.

I will post again and post pictures as soon as I can. Happy Healing!

I am not having any pain, but my arms look and feel bigger that when I started. There is bandaging under the ace bandages and I am sure it is normal to feel this way at this stage. I suppose it is swelling. My hands and wrists are swollen, but not uncomfortable.

So for those that are considering this procedure, I have been able to take care of my self for the most part. My kids and my husband have been with me the whole time, but it has mostly been normal day-to-day.

My follow up is tomorrow. He will look at the incision. I will try to take a few pics before he wraps me back up. I am anxious to see what kind of garment I will wear or will I get wrapped again. Hopefully I am healing well.

Ok, today all of my dressing was removed. After an inspection, I was wrapped with just a little gauze and new ace bandages. I can see they are smaller! Yay! But very swollen.

I stopped the pain meds so I am sore today. But it's tolerable. I plan on taking a shower after a nap and I will try to remember to snap a few pics. For now I took a couple with the ace bandages.

Happy healing!

Although they look gross, I don't have pain. My husband did call the dr b/c of a low grade off and on fever of 99 to 100. I wouldn't worry since I just saw the doc today but I am nauseous too and am on no meds.

I have not been feeling well. Seem to have contracted severe cold and flu like symptoms. Doubtful that it has anything to do with arms other than being more vulnerable to illness after surgery.

On a good note, swelling has diminished a little. I will check back soon.

Much healing friends.

Hello RS friends

I'm doing much better. Been back to work since Thursday. So busy. Didn't have time to post. I go back to the doc Monday to have my few stitches removed. The tape is falling off in places. I still have a lot of swelling but it has been difficult to elevate my arms and rest. Not having pain, just some mild discomfort. I have taken Tylenol a few times but no pain killers since Sunday ( 3rd day post op).

I still use the ace bandages most of the day. Hoping after the next visit I can switch to my CG.

Other than my short illness this has been an uneventful recovery so far.

I am posting a few pics for comparison.

Happy healing!

Take a look at these two pictures of each of my arm pits. The openings are not weeping or smelling (at least no worse than they were, lol).

There is no pain, but do they look normal? Will they close on there own?

I will let you know what the doc says tomorrow.

Saw the doc today. Everything looks good. Starting scar therapy. Small openings are closing in my arm pits. Check back in in two weeks.

I will post pics tomorrow after my shower. Long day, headed to bed.

Healing nicely. At almost 3 weeks now. Still swollen but doc says I have a way to go with the swelling. The incision is looking good. Sometimes my arms get sore because I forget to take it easy. Moved to CG. Still use ace wraps for longing. The last two nights I have gone without.
Started on scar therapy. Massaging lotion along the incision line only avoiding the still inflamed areas.
I attached the pictures for posterity, lol.

Take care

My previous post was incorrect. That is very cool. Healing faster than I thought!

Weird. I didn't have much if any pain until the past couple days. My left forearm on the inside feels like it is severely bruised. There is no visible bruise, but it is painful to the touch. There is slight swelling, but nothing noticeable. It is actually affecting the inside of my arm all the way past my elbow. It kind of feels like strained muscle, but I can't recall doing anything that would have caused injury. The incision is healing well and only irritation where it rubs clothing. That I can control. I am calling the PC tomorrow to make sure he doesn't need to see me about this.

Take care!

It really feels like fluid collection and it is sore to the touch. I am waiting on a call from the nurse. This is worrying me.

I meant to update before. The swelling in my elbows is slowly decreasing. The doc says there is quite a way to go yet for swelling and to see final results. He wants to wait 8 weeks to determine if i need touch up due to re stretching.