Getting Ready for my BA and TT!! - Dallas, TX

I am in the process of scheduling my surgery, the PS has the date open that I want, and I'm excited to move forward. However, my husby will be taking a work trip with extended travel (like a couple months) either two or three weeks after the surgery date. I need advice from those who have done this already, were you able to take care of the kids and household responsibilities at that point post op and feel I will be fine to move forward? I really am afraid that if I don't do it now, I will not be able to do it for at least another year or that life will continually get in the way and it will never happen. But I also don't want to risk my recovery. Will I be able to get the kids up and off to school, and drive them all over to after school circulars and do meals and bedtime? Will it harm my recovery, or maybe just make it a little harder? Or have you been fine to handle all that at that point? Please, ANY advice you gals can give me will help a lot. Thanks!

I am trying to see if I can move my date up to Sept, but I'm not sure with my husby's job if that will work. I've just been mulling over this for so long now, and I'm ready to move forward and be done already!! I have decided on my PS and now I just have to see if it will work to move my date up, and then schedule it!!! Can't wait. I will trust him with the 465 cc HP Sientra implants, and do the slightly less aggressive TT (we are talking one inch higher of skin the other PS wanted to do but with a much bigger scar) and the smaller scar with the small vertical (which will be from where my BB was). My reason for this is that I am not that concerned with the vertical which I initially thought I would be, and if I have to chose between a scar that I know will be concealed versus one that might not be on the sides, I will take the first option! The PS I chose said he could place the scar just about my pubic line, so a 1/2 inch vertical from that low isn't going to show.
I just need to schedule it already, I'm going nuts! I've been wearing the rice testers (thanks a ton my3sons2005!!) and my kids never mentioned anything to me about it for over a week, so I don't think they will even notice the difference in size!! I'm freaking out about it more than I need to, it's just hard to visualize how it will look after the fact, even when wearing the testers. My husby said wearing them I look just like I did before having kids, so I just need to relax. Trying really hard, I promise! I hope everyone is having a great summer and getting the most of it before the school year starts in a month or so! XOXO

I met with two PS's this week, one more next week then I will decide if I want to see more Dr's, or pick one from the three I have seen. My first two were at the same group practice (which I didn't know when I scheduled the consultations) and it was a little awkward seeing the other receptionist the following day. Night and day experiences with the two, but both are very good options. My biggest shock was that going into this, I was thinking to get about 350 cc's for my implant size, and thinking anything bigger will make me too top heavy and obvious I had implants. Both PS's said I need at least 400, and preferably 450 cc's to avoid having a lift!! I was shell shocked when I heard the first one say that big of a size, but I guess I shouldn't be because when I was nursing I was a 32GG, and my skin stretched a lot so now I have skin that needs to be filled back up. As far as for the BA, the first PS was concerned that with my family history of breast cancer, if I were to develop breast cancer in the future, I would not have the option of reconstructing the breast with abdominal skin because of the TT and wanted me to be aware that even though he didn't think it would be recommend to take skin from my tummy since I am so skinny, that it wouldn't even be a possibility. The 2nd told me he wouldn't recommend I get a lift ever with my family history and that I still have a greater likelihood of developing cancer after 50 than most, and having that vertical scar would be very challenging to work with at that point of breast reconstruction. I'm grateful both were very concerned and compassionate about my particular situation, and factored that into their decision for my recommendations.

PS #1 said he recommends the Sientra high profile 465 cc silicone gel implants for me. He said that particular gel is best for women after nursing to get that upper pole filled back in. He also said that since I want my implant under the muscle, you always add 50 cc's because the muscle constricts the implant a little and flattens it. I was comfortable with the 397 I tried on, so 450 would make sense I guess. I was just in total shock with the size I would require to avoid a lift and any sagging.

PS #2 recommended I go with the Allergan ultra high profile silicone gel 400 cc's implant. He said I needed anywhere from 400-450 and that I would still have a little droopiness with the 400, but I would look more natural. It was really about whatever I wanted to do, and he was happy to put that one in.

Both PS's were open with me that I will be top heavy and not look natural or proportionate because once I have the TT, I will be really skinny (they used that work a LOT to describe me in my consultations and it actually made me uncomfortable because I don't see myself as that skinny) I asked if I could get back to 24 inches like I was before children and both felt confident I will be there, and PS #2 said possibly even smaller. They both informed me that all the bunching and bulging on my tummy is skin, not fat. I was shocked to hear that too, I really thought it was fat. They both said they would only take about 100 cc's out of each hip, but that I didn't need it anywhere else really. PS #1 would do Vasser, PS #2 traditional lipo. PS #1 would take a little less skin (from just below my BB down) and I would have a scar from inner hip to inner hip with a small vertical scar in the middle about an inch or so up. PS #2 would take a little more skin (from an inch above my BB down) and have a longer scar running from outer hip to outer hip with no vertical scar. That's why he thinks I will be around 23 inches afterwards, cause he wants to pull me tighter which I'm honestly a little scared about. PS #1 said for the BA, TT, and lipo would be 5.5-6 hrs. PS #2 said BA, TT, and lipo would be 3 hrs!! Either he is faster with stitching, or the other one takes a bit more time to be precise.

So please give me your input. Based on my photos, do you think 465 cc's is too much, or am I just being silly? Do you think I should go with the more aggressive TT, or slightly less aggressive with a vertical scar? Then I need to see one more and insert his most likely very different opinion into this too!!