Write a review

Lower Body Lift, Breast Lift Without Implants, and Side of Chest Lift -Houston, TX

I am scheduled for the first of two surgeries on...

  • 22 Dec 2013
  • 15 days pre
I am scheduled for the first of two surgeries on January 7th, only two more weeks to go! I'm nervous as hell but excited also. This has been a very long journey for me. I have been obese most of my adult life. I had lap band surgery several years ago, lost a minimal amount of weight, and had a ton of problems with it. I had it removed January 3rd 2013 and lost a little over a hundred pounds in eight months!! I found THE surgeon who specializes in resolving the issues that happen with your body and skin when you go from being severely overweight to being at a healthy weight. I know I will be in the best hands possible and cannot wait!! The first surgery will be a breast lift, side of chest/upper back lift, tummy tuck, and buttocks lift with fat injected to fluff the cheeks back out. Then, hopefully about six months later I will have an arm lift, thigh lift, and neck lift (different surgeon for the neck lift), and POSSIBLY implants. The implants depend on how the girls end up size and shape wise after the lift.

I forgot to add

  • 23 Dec 2013
  • 14 days pre
I had gastric sleeve surgery when I had my lapband removed.

Before photos-Yikes!!

  • 28 Dec 2013
  • 9 days pre
Ok, we are getting down to go time!! Only a week and a half to go!! I had the hubs take some before pics. Partially so I could post them here and partially so I have something to look at while I'm healing. I never thought I would post naked pics of myself online but if this helps someone else make the decision to go forward with getting the body they want, especially after being obese like I was, then it's worth the embarrassment, lol. I have my pre-op appointment in two days with Dr. Lomonaco, I can't wait!

Had my pre-op today :)

  • 30 Dec 2013
  • 7 days pre
I had my pre-op today. We did a medical history and went over what would happen the day of surgery. I was very relieved and impressed to find out how proactive Dr. Lomonaco and his team are in managing pain and post op nausea also. I have severe nausea issues after surgery and the last thing you want after getting your stomach cut and sewn back together is to dry heave. Dr Lomonaco impressed me yet again with how informative and reassuring he was while going over the surgery day. He also made it clear that my post op nutrition needed to be paid close attention to since I'm a bariatric patient. I think I will be adding three high protein and carb loaded snacks a day to my eating routine.

I made it!

  • 8 Jan 2014
  • 1 day post
I can already see the new me Dr Lomonaco created. We got to the hospital at six and I very impressed when they took me to preoperative and it was a private room. The anesthesiologist was very nice and made me feel very comfy. I again explained my nausea issues and she said not to worry. The last thing I remember is being wheeled into the operating room. It felt instantaneous. I had no nausea what so ever did not wake up in screaming pain as I feared. Dr Lomonaco and his staff kept all their promises to keep me comfy and nausea free

Day one post op pics

  • 8 Jan 2014
  • 1 day post

Day 3 post op

  • 9 Jan 2014
  • 2 days post
Well, I'm not in nearly as much pain as I thought I would be! It really only hurts getting up and down and even that isn't horrible. I know understand what everyone else was saying about the drains though, boy it smarts if you pull on them by accident. I cannot believe how perky my beautiful new boobies are and how flat my tummy is. He ended up not doing the side of chest lift, once he lifted the breasts a lot of that skin came forward. We still have our second surgery to do so I'm not worried about it. I will try to get some pics taken today and post them :)

More post op pics!

  • 10 Jan 2014
  • 3 days post
I managed to snap a few this morning. I'm in love with my new boobies and flat tummy with a cute little bellybutton. I'm super swollen right now so I can't wait to see how it all looks once the swelling is gone. I also no longer have accordion skin on my butt! Dr Lomonaco is awesome. He came to see me several times at the hospital and has even called me today at home.

Pics!

  • 10 Jan 2014
  • 3 days post

Butt pics :)

  • 15 Jan 2014
  • 8 days post
I was finally able to snap a few pics of the new booty. He smoothed it out considerably. I wish we could fill it out a bit more but like Dr Lomonaco says, there is only so much fat for him to harvest. He was able to get 200cc in each cheek.

Free at last!!!

  • 16 Jan 2014
  • 9 days post
Lol, those god awful drains came out today! Wasn't really painful except on the outer area of skin that kept being hurt and irritated by them but didn't feel it inside at all. I felt so good I went to walmart, I lasted about 20 minutes and then had to go. I'm now officially in a 36C sports bra. I also found out he removed twelve pounds of skin!!!!!

Swelling going down!

  • 17 Jan 2014
  • 10 days post
Just wanted to post an update pic. The swelling in my midsection is getting better and the girls swelling is better too.

Went back to work!!

  • 21 Jan 2014
  • 14 days post
Still nursing a very nasty head cold that unfortunately my toddler and husband now have. I'm doing half days though so it's not bad. I really did not expect anyone to notice anything, at least those who did not know why I have been out the last couple of weeks :) I had several ask me if I'd suddenly dropped a lot of weight, lol. I had one guy ask me where my new hourglass figure came from hahaha. One of my close coworkers who knows what I had done told me she couldn't believe how well I was getting around and how amazing I looked. It was nice to hear it from someone other than my husband lol.

Feeling good!

  • 24 Jan 2014
  • 17 days post
Well, I'm still swollen but those work pants I couldn't button a week and a half ago are now loose! I was in a twelve prior to surgery and I'm now in a ten. I cannot believe it!

Really?????

  • 27 Jan 2014
  • 20 days post
Ok, really bad day at work today, and not because I'm in pain or anything. I had two different women that I work with tell me I'm too skinny today. The first one is not someone I'm chummy with but we work in the same group. She looked me up and down with a disgusted look on her face and told me I was getting too skinny. She is very overweight like I used to be and has always almost made it a point to NOT say anything when others would tell me how great I was doing after my sleeve surgery. The coworker she said this in front of chewed her ass for being rude later when I was gone. The second lady is a friend of mine and said it in a nice way but was like you really need to gain about ten pounds. I don't understand why people think it's ok to tell someone they are too skinny. Also, I'm NOT!!!! I'm six foot one and I weigh 165. Good lord! It really upset me, it's like I can't win.

One month pics

  • 8 Feb 2014
  • 1 month post
Well the swelling has gone down but there is still some there, especially in the lower tummy mons area, I'm sure in time it will go away. My boobs are still a bit sore but still healing well and I'm still in love with them lol. My butt thankfully has seemed to have fluffed out a tad too.

Had my one year follow up with my bariatric surgeon yesterday

  • 8 Feb 2014
  • 1 month post
It was more like a year and a month lol. I felt very emotional driving up to the hospital, my dr moved his practice inside the hospital and it was the first time I had been back since the day of my sleeve surgery. I cried walking in and had to duck into the bathroom. All those emotions I felt the morning of my surgery came flooding back. I was so scared I would die on the table or have a major complication later and leave my toddler without a mother. She was the reason I was doing it though. I wanted to be around as long as possible for her, I wanted to be able to play with her, I wanted to enjoy life with her. It's silly, but I also didn't want to be the fat mom she would be embarrassed of as she got older. I felt so much of all those feelings it was so overwhelming. I checked in and got weighed. Dr Marvin came in and said I looked great, asked if I was having any trouble eating lol! I looked at him like he was crazy and he told me I was on the low end of the Range for my height but still a good weight. It's unusual for us bariatric patients to get there apparently. He also asked if I would be interested in being interviewed by a TV crew about my experience going from a lap band to a sleeve, I was like hell yeah. I think it's for the videos he shows in his office. I wonder if they will actually call me!

Surgery number two scheduled!

  • 27 Feb 2014
  • 1 month post
Well my dear friends, June 10th I will be letting Dr Lomonaco finish the job! I will be having an arm lift, thigh lift, and side of chest lift. I am so excited!

Two month pics!

  • 1 Mar 2014
  • 2 months post
Very pleased with swelling, mostly in mons area now.

Here we go again !!!

  • 17 May 2014
  • 4 months post
I am three weeks away from my thigh, arm, and side of chest lift! I will creat another review when I get some time. For all my peeps, did you use any kind of compression sleeve after your arm lift?
John LoMonaco, MD, FACS
Houston Plastic Surgeon

Dr. Lomonaco is amazing. He listens to you when you meet with him and he's great at empathizing with the issues, physical and emotional, that you go thru from having been obese. His staff has been great about handling everything that needed to get set up prior to my surgery. I cannot wait to see the results he gives me! Updated five days postoperative: Dr Lomonaco has been wonderful. He came to check on me several times in the hospital, as well as his staff. The level of attention and care you get from him never wanes. The results of the lower body lift and breast lift already look amazing and I still have a lot of healing to do so it's just going to keep getting better. If you are considering surgery, he is definitely the surgeon you want changing your body!

5 out of 5 stars Overall rating
5 out of 5 stars Doctor's bedside manner
5 out of 5 stars Answered my questions
5 out of 5 stars After care follow-up
5 out of 5 stars Time spent with me
5 out of 5 stars Phone or email responsiveness
5 out of 5 stars Staff professionalism & courtesy
5 out of 5 stars Payment process
5 out of 5 stars Wait times
Was this review helpful? 6 others found this helpful

Comments (103)

Sort by

Great journey and a big 'low-brow' to your unkind co-workers commenting on you being "too skinny". I wonder what their reference point is...?! Anyway...as disheartening as it is to hear narky comments...we all know to focus on those of all this WONDERFUL SELF LOVE! You've cared and loved yourself enough to take fantastic care right through to the end. I'd love to hear an update on your recent surgeries. I'll be posting soon....I had a brachiaplasty on Friday and am due for an outer thigh lift in 3 months time! Congratulations on your success xxx
  • Reply
Congratulations, you look so good! Can you please post some close up pics of your scar lines on the tummy, bb and all around? Thanks and best of luck for the next phase.
  • Reply
Oh man did anyone deal with allergies a week before surgery? I'm sneezing and runny nose and itchy watery eyes. I'm taking Claritin per Dr. Lomonaco it's ok. I'm just worried I'm going to be a runny nosed/eyed mess the morning of surgery and they will cancel me!!
  • Reply
One more week! Doing my pre surgery cooking and freezing of meals and cleaning the house like a maniac lol. Last time I was petrified, that whole fear of the unknown thing. This time I'm nervous and not looking forward to the recovery but not deathly afraid like last time. I can't wait to not have to hide my arms anymore!
  • Reply
Hello there, I am a male 23 years old, young and healthy, lost over 90 Pounds in 2 years then stayed with my flappy extra hanging skin from my breast (man boobs) & tummy for another 2 years. I just had my operation for a lower body lift and a great lipo + lift (to have them all flat) I am in day 4 in recovery but unfortunately i cannot see the results of the operation yet, because I am wearing a corset (whatever that is called, it's what you wear to tighten your skin) I am supposed to wear it for 2 months. ​Anyway, the only way to see the results is to take it off, and I cannot until I meet him next week. Now as I said i am day 4 of recovery, so my question is that I am kind of worried about the results, I am looking at my chest and it's flat from outside the corset of course. However, my tummy area still seems to have like a layer of fat in a circular round, and the thing is i never even had a layer like that. so My question is, did the operation not succeed too much from down there (specially that the doctor confirmed that I didn't have any fat down there) or is that my tummy swollen? and if it's swollen or something else, how do I know? ​ ​Please answer me, thank you!
  • Reply
I was able to remove my garment to clean up after a couple days. I would call your surgeon if you have concerns
  • Reply
Can you tell me what they ave you to control the nausea after surgery? I was so nauseous from the pain meds after my last surgery that I refused the meds and instead endured the pain. I cried for two nights! So this time around, I would like to be able to take something that does not cause me to become nauseated. With regard to your question about compression sleeves, I did not use them. I had a very hard time with my right arm healing (see my review) and I still have issues 7-mos post op. My surgeon says he does not think the compression sleeve would have made a difference but if I had it to do over, I would err on the side of caution and use them. Good luck with your next surgery. Is this your last?
  • Reply
Girl I hear ya on the meds. They gave me one of those scolpamine patches behind my ear that you wear for three days. They pumped me full of zofran and phenergen at the hospital. Morphine and stuff like that make me sick as a dog so I had oral zofran and the pain meds I took were Ultracet. It took the edge off the pain and didn't make me sick.
  • Reply
The zofran alone did not work for me. I will ask about the patch and phenegren. I switched over to tramadol when the narcotics made me so ill, but I don't think it will be strong enough for the pain of muscle plication. I will check on the Ultracet (tramadol plus acetaminophen). Thanks very much!!!
  • Reply
@ MBL - there is a non-narcotic one called Norco - i have heard Dr. F mention it but no idea how well it works! Sound like the opioids make you sick.
  • Reply
I will ask about that one, too. Ewwwww the narcotics made me very sick last time.
  • Reply
I had the Mirena compression sleeves too...but i ended up liking the Solidea ones the best. Post updated pics when you can :-P
  • Reply
Once the bandages came off, I switched to Marena compression sleeves. They were super soft and thin, easy to get on, and invisible under clothing. While the recovery was slightly more uncomfortable than I had anticipated, I had an uneventful recovery with absolutely no healing issues or scarring issues ( brachioplasty scars are notorious for stretching and becoming wider). I attribute this in part to the compression sleeves, as they provide great support to the incision. Best of luck, I am sure you will breeze through this and have awesome results!
  • Reply
Agreed on your answer - it is **important** to support the incisions with good compression.
  • Reply
I wore a compression vest with sleeves below the elbow for about 8 weeks and had no healing issues and very little swelling. The one from Design Veronique was the most comfortable. I can't imagine doing both arms and thighs at the same time though, my arms were fully healed before my thigh lift, but maybe you are only having a groin incision?
  • Reply
Hey mommahelen, the incision will be down the inner thigh and kinda shaped like a seven where there's a bit of a groin incision to lift the inner thigh a bit. I'm hoping this surgery is no worse than the first one, that tummy tuck was a killer, lol.
  • Reply
My incision is down the thigh with very little in the groin and it is healing well. The discomfort (it was never what I would call pain) cleared once the drains came out at day 6. The swelling hasn't been too bad except for the inner knees and that is finally clearing. I would say that the first two weeks are when you need to rest and elevate and by week 4 you should feel normal. Since the surgery doesn't involve muscle tightening, their is much less pain. I remember my TT about 8 years ago leaving me saying never again, but after sailing through the arms and thighs, I'm planning to have the TT revised in about 6 weeks. You will do fine, you handled your body lift well and have a great doc.
  • Reply
Did you wear a compression garment that went to your calves?
  • Reply
Yes I am wearing a marena garment with zippers during the day but at night I'm just wearing thigh length compression hose because the garment is too warm at night. I've gone without a few times and not had too much swelling as a result.
  • Reply
Does it have an open crotch? Those open crotch garments give me a weird thing where my butt cheeks squeeze out thru the opening in back. Not attractive lol
  • Reply
I had a tummy tuck as my first surgery and it was VERY painful. For my second surgery I had the TT converted to an LBL (no muscle plication), a long incision thigh lift, extended arm lift w/flankplasty, and breast lift. It was no where near the pain of the TT! In fact, After I was released from the care center I stayed at a hotel by myself for the reminder of the 2 weeks and then flew home.
  • Reply
Heeeeeey.....your beating me or R2! I seriously wanted to schedule June 9th but my PS is on vacay (sheesh, these guys think they get time off or something...) Then hubby wants to go away for July 4th....darn!
  • Reply
Lol I was toying with waiting till next year but I have literally had a cold since my last surgery, for two freaking months. I decided no more surgery during cold and flu season. June 9th is my daughters third birthday and I wanted to get past that before, so the 10th it is :)
  • Reply
yeah truth be told I am toying with waiting until the new year as well - not sure how it "looks" to take another six weeks off from work for another vague "surgery" - LOL - plus compression in San Antonio and Atlanta in July as well?? NOT FUN.....how is your swelling?
  • Reply
Swelling is mostly in mons area now so it isn't too bad, I'm going to post some pics today :)
  • Reply

More Body Lift Reviews

View all Body Lift reviews