Tummy Tuck: Stories

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6 weeks 1 day PO - Had to get re-stiched

  • posted 6 months ago
  • updated 5 months ago
  • night before TT and scar revision
  • night before TT and scar revision
  • night before TT and scar revision - double butt
  • night before TT and scar revision
  • right before surgery.
  • Day after surgery.
  • PO DAY 7 - My belly button looks so weird and not like a belly button. :(
  • PO day 4 - Drains still in.
  • PO 11
  • PO 10
  • PO 17
  • PO day 19 - white cream cheese looking stuff in incision. :(
  • PO day 26 - REALLY OPEN NOW - :(
  • PO DAY 26
  • PO 6 weeks 1 day - It was stitched one week ago and the doctor wants them to stay in for 1 month.
  • PO 6 weeks 1 day

I am a 29 year old with two kids who are 3.5 year...

  • 3 Dec 2012
  • 1 day pre

I am a 29 year old with two kids who are 3.5 year old and 18 month old. I am 5'10 and 149 pounds. I was in a car accident in 1996 and I have a 7 inch vertical scar down my stomach and the thickest width part is 2 inches. I have NEVER liked my scar and after I had my kids my scar had stretched out and I hate it even more... That is why I want the surgery. My PS is going to try to remove the thicker area of my scar by doing a tummy tuck. My surgery is tomorrow and I am SO NERVOUS!! Wish me luck.

Today is day 2 after surgery and I'm not sure that...

  • 6 Dec 2012
  • 2 days post
Today is day 2 after surgery and I'm not sure that it was worth it so far. I knew that it was going to hurt but not as bad as it did. I have had one natural birth and one with an epidural but this was FAR more pain. I did have a more then a TT but yikes.
Right out of surgery I was expecting my stomach to be numb but since they sewed up my muscle you can feel it from the moment that you wake up. I was kept in the hospital overnight and I AM SO THANKFUL for that. I haven't slept more then 2 hours at a time and it is so hard to find a comfortable position. I have found that if your straight up and down sitting in bed is the best for me. I stopped all of my pain medicine because it was making me feel worse. I am just taking 1000mg of Tylenol every 4 hours. I still haven't had a BM and I still don't have an appetite.
I have two drainage tubes and they are annoying but they are doing there job. LOL. Make sure you have plenty of pillows when you get home. I will post a few pictures.

Today is day 4 PO. I slept pretty good last night...

  • 8 Dec 2012
  • 4 days post
Today is day 4 PO. I slept pretty good last night and I slept flat on my back with just pillows under my knees. I on;y take 1/2 a Norco every time I have pain and it is working. I had a BM day 2 of PO thank goodness. I did use stool softeners. The only thing that is really bothering me is the drainage tubes in my groin and the hot sharp pains along my incisions on my left side when I move weird. Things are looking up for me. Definitely swollen.

I went to my first appointment to the PS on the 1...

  • 12 Dec 2012
  • 8 days post
I went to my first appointment to the PS on the 1 weeks mark and my belly button looks weird. It doesn't even look like a belly button. What do you all think. My scar looks so much better so far then it did before surgery. So much smaller. I am feeling pretty good. I can sit and lay any way I want now. I don't always stand straight up and shoulders back but I'm getting there. I had two drains removed yesterday and it didn't hurt to get them removed but I could definitely feel the tubes being pulled out from the inside. WEIRD. Now I have two 1/4 inch open holes in my groin and its a little weird. I have them covered with ointment and a band-aid.

PO day 11 My drain holes are really bruised and...

  • 15 Dec 2012
  • 11 days post
PO day 11
My drain holes are really bruised and sore. They never stitched the holes closed and just put a band aid over it for 2 days. Is this normal? I have kept them really clean and they are started to scab and heal but are really sensitive. When I turn certain ways with my body a get a zing on my hips and the incision that are hot and stingy. It happened at PO 3 and 4 but are back now. I stand pretty good and walk a little hunched over.

I am starting to feel like it's PO day 3 and 4...

  • 16 Dec 2012
  • 12 days post
I am starting to feel like it's PO day 3 and 4 when its really PO day 12. I have a muffin top over my incision now and it seems to be getting bigger each day since my drains have been removed. I feel so bloated and my incision is starting to bleed a little. I have an appointment with my PS tomorrow so I will see what she has to say. Has anyone else felt REALLY bloated after the drains come out? I am also having a hard time sleeping at night and getting comfortable. I need to take a few days and take it easy. My Mom was here until 2 days ago helping with my 3.5 year old and 18 month old so I could rest and ever since she left I'm running crazy. lol. I'm still really happy with my surgery outcome and I cant wait for the next few months.

PO #17 I went to the PS 4 days ago and I was...

  • 21 Dec 2012
  • 17 days post
PO #17
I went to the PS 4 days ago and I was wearing jeans and the first thing she told me was to take off my jeans and not wear them for another few weeks. She also told me that since my tummy is still numb that I cant feel if they are rubbing too much on my incision and that it would cause my incision to open and guess what she was RIGHT!! Today my incision has a little spot that is a little open right where my button would touch my skin/binder and has white pus. :( I called and they put me back on Keflex so I don't get an infection. I have been cleaning the incision daily but since I can't feel if I'm being too rough by trying to get the pus out I am going to just clean it and leave it alone. I also think that it is opening because I sleep flat on my back without any pillows and it pulls on the incision. I will now start sleeping in the recliner. I have noticed that the swelling has gone down and I am very happy with my new vertical scar compared to my old one. (I'm still not sure about my belly button though)

It started at PO day 17 with a little white...

  • 23 Dec 2012
  • 19 days post
It started at PO day 17 with a little white stringy pus coming out and now two days later it is a white cream cheese looking substance in the incision under the scab. I called my doctor before they closed for their Christmas holiday and my doctors 3 week vacation and the nurse called in Keflex for me and told me to call after the Holidays if it doesn't get better. Should I worry about the white stuff and that it is just opening more?
Should I be worried about the opening and the white stuff?

My incision started opening at PO day 17 and now...

  • 30 Dec 2012
  • 26 days post
My incision started opening at PO day 17 and now at PO day 26 it is really open and deep. I am going to go back into the doctors and see what they will do. I will post a picture. I also got the Influenza A Virus on Christmas and I have been coughing A LOT so I'm not sure if that has been making the incision larger.

I haven't done a review for 2.5 weeks so here it...

  • 16 Jan 2013
  • 1 month post
I haven't done a review for 2.5 weeks so here it goes. I went to the doctors on New Years Eve and the doctor didn't want to do stitches because there was a high chance that it could get infected so he cleaned it out and sent me home. 1 week later (PO 5 weeks) I went back into the doctors due to my incision opened even more and was bleeding. He then stitched me up and put me back on Keflex for the 3rd time. I'm so glad he stitched me up because the open wound was a daily chore and it was getting old and it hurt. (this is the doctor on call since my surgeon took 3 weeks off) I'm still happy with my results and glad that it is finally healing.
One problem that I have that I'm not sure is normal is that the muscle above my scar is still SO SORE. It feels like a knot of muscles under there. Has anyone else experienced this?

Great review?

My Doctor: Emilia Ploplys

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Comments (33)

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I'm really doing for the tough time u've had but I'm really happy to see you are still in good spirits. I hope this is ur last episode.
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oh my goodness i felt sure when we herd from you again every thing would be A ok well boy was i wrong hope things get better for you im sending you some LUCK LUCK LUCK LUCK LUCK LUCK LUCK!!!!!!!!!!!!! keep us updated
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oh my gosh i am so sorry looks like they might have to restitch a little but other than that it looks great have they said anything about it opening up like that are you running a fever or anything like that oh my gosh so many questions sorry hope you had a good day
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Sport to her about your incision reopening. On another note, your stomach looks flat compared to before(;
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"Sport" should be Sorry..... AND "her" should be hear.... I hate autocorrect!
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Thanks. I love the result so far but the opening is making me a little worried. I can see through layers in there. Eeek! LOL. I'm not a fan of auto correct either. lol
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dont worry enjoy your holiday you have come so far to get discouraged at this time merry christmas
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I think you are fixing to spit stitches. I did this. Seems more common with verticals. Your scar looks like mine did. When I was going through this I was told to put neosporin on the sites & keep them covered with gauze. Eventually, I could see the stitches push through. I had them clipped & then the wounds heal super fast!! Then I noticed I had more & I just clipped them myself.
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get some manuka honey to put in there. if you live near a whole foods or a better grocery store with an organic section, you can probably lay your hands on some.
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Use hibiclens to clean to avoid infection.
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thank you... I will go get some at cvs tomorrow. I have been using hydrogen peroxide.
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I have two openings that have pus like stuff in them. My doc wasn't worried. Said it's just parts of the incision not drying out. There's pics of the first day I had them ion my review. Take a look and see if they are like yours.
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yes, It does look like yours. That makes me feel better. I posted a picture of mine. thank you
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Okay, Since I had my drains removed I am also getting a slight muffin top. I am assuming since many of us have the complaint, it is normal. My drain sights are leaking a bit, are yours? I am home for the first time with the kids since surgery and it's hard to sit and relax!
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I'm so sorry that I haven't got back to you. This is my first time back on since I posted last. I do not have the swelling any longer like I did at PO day 11. My drain holes never leaked but the nurse did tell me that they might. I also am home alone with the kids and it is hard. Stay strong and relax. :)
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Hey honey! With your mom just leaving and symptoms of bloating and swelling and the incision bleeding, it makes me wonder if you have developed a seroma. I have five kiddos and I felt good at 10 to 12 days post op so I did a ton of laundry and housework with my binder too loose, and my PS said the bending and twisting and exertion caused the seroma . Update me after your checkup please! I understand how tough it is to take it easy with little ones.
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I'm so sorry that I haven't gotten back with you until now. This is my first time on since I posted my last comment. I went to my PS and she put me back on bed rest for a week. My incision now has pus coming out of it but only very little. I called the PS today and they called in a prescription for Keflex again. I added a new update on my post also. I really hope it goes away on its own.
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you go girl looks great and will look even better in a few weeks you just wait have a good weekend
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thank you
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Give it time- seriously. It has ony been a week and you are so swollen that everything is distorted. Keep resting and healing and everything will calm down and look beautiful.
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thank you
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Your belly button looks like a lot of others on this site. My doctor does a different style, so mine just looks like a little slot, about the size of a dime in length.
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I'm hoping it isn't even with my stomach and goes in a little. :)
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well you are looking good i really could not tell a whole lot about the belly button but over all i think you look great from what i could see just keep your head above the water and dont get down about the way you think it looks it will be great cant wait for more pictures
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When you are finished healing your belly button will look great!! Don't worry about it... look around the site and look at some pictures; Things always look "different" in the first weeks.... give it time!! You look great!!
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