Full Tummy Tuck Scheduled for March 10th - I Am Excited and Nervous!! - Cleveland, OH

I am soon to be 50 and this is my present to myself after having 4 children, putting two of them (so far) through college and paying for one wedding. I have lost 42 pounds over the past 3 or so years and have kept it off for over a year now. I run 4 miles and do this 4 times/wk so I feel I am in pretty good shape and at 5'1" and 110 lbs. I don't think losing anymore weight will rid me of my sagging belly skin.

My procedure is on Thursday and as it gets closer I get more nervous because I know there are risks with major surgery. I am hoping the recovery goes well and the pain is not too bad. This site has been extremely useful in helping me prepare and know what to expect. You are all wonderful women and I especially loved Kimmers' chronicals!! Wish me luck! I will try to post before and after pics!

One more day before surgery...I am going out to dinner with my best girlfriends tomorrow night before my big day. I call tomorrow afternoon to find out the scheduled time for my surgery - and my hospital bed was delivered today. I had it set up in the family room so I can be in the middle of the action - not sure if that will be a good decision or a bad one :) I will have my youngest daughter take my before pics tomorrow night and get them posted.

Hi everyone! I am 6 days post-op and am feeling pretty great. I stayed overnight in the hospital so they could monitor my pain and was glad I did so. I had the pain pump which definitely numbed up my entire stomach area and therefore didn't feel too much pain. I had a pain around my lower left lung area which was what bothered me the most the afternoon following the surgery. The took out the tube on that side for the pain pump just in case it was a contributing factor. I don't think it was, but rather I was just really sore in that area (almost bruised internally). I have been taking Percocet every 4-6 hours for pain and it has been pretty effective in helping me manage. I have been getting up and around since the day after the surgery and when I get up I try to mill around for an hour or so. I think this activity has helped. I am sooooo glad I rented a hospital bed - it is great being able to shift your positions and has made sleeping pretty good - sleeping on my back is the only option with the drainage tubes in. Those are a pain and am looking forward to getting those out - the fluid level has definitely decreased and I hope Friday they can come out. Today is the first time I have attempted a bowel movement and there was some discomfort with that! I have been taking the stool softener per the doc, and took my first dose of Milk of Magnesium this morning to help relieve this issue! My stomach muscles definitely feel 'tight' inside but there really isn't too much pain from the incisions...I walk slightly slumped over, but overall I don't think the pain and recovery has been as bad as it could have been. I actually cooked dinner on Monday night but was careful not to lift or stoop or generally overdo it. Everyday gets a little better - I took 2 weeks off work and will work from home for a few days so am hoping on the 28th I will be okay to go back to the office. There is definitely still a lot of swelling but from what I can tell so far, my tummy is definitely flatter!! Can't wait to see how the results progress...I will keep everyone posted!