Tummy Tuck: Stories

Hi Ladies! I am 27 years old, married, mother of two beautiful girls (ages 7 and almost 2). I had a c-section with both pregnancies (in 2005 and 2010), and my belly has never returned back to "normal." My story is fairly common and similar to many of you, which is why I love reading all of your posts and seeing your progress!

I have wanted a tummy tuck since 2005, but I knew that I should wait until we were done having children before I really considered it. Well, we are very happy with our two girls, and I am happy with my weight loss.

Since my younger daughter was born in August 2010 I have lost 50 pounds (slow and steady!). Overall, I am a confident woman and although I have learned how to dress my body to hide my belly (my “blob” as I refer to it), I would love to be able to have the freedom to wear the clothes that I actually like not just the clothes that cover me.

A couple of months ago I came to the final realization that no matter how hard I exercised or how healthy I eat it would never correct my separated ab-muscles and loose skin under my belly button. I always feel like I look 3 months pregnant, and I avoid tight clothing in favor of loose shirts and dresses that hide my stomach.

I have my TT with MR scheduled for July 11 and I am SO excited! I am a bit nervous about the recovery, and I am hoping that everything goes smoothly. I will upload photos before and after, but in the mean time thank you for all of your support and encouragement!

July 8 - 3 days until surgery!

For the past few weeks I have been excited about my upcoming surgery. I was not really nervous, and just going on about life like normal. Well, I own my own business so I have been trying to wrap everything up to make sure that my current clients have everything they need from me. I truly want to take a good 2 weeks off to relax and heal (which is RARE becuase I usually work ALL THE TIME!).

Well, last night the realization that the surgery is only a few days away hit me. I went from being my normal, happy self...to being totally stressed out! A thousand things I still need to do were going through my mind...I was making a huge to-do list, and went to bed feeling VERY overwhelmed to say the least!

Today I am feeling much better (thankfully!). I accomplished a lot today and checked a ton of things off my to-do list. I actually received a phone call today from the Anesthesiologist to introduce himself, and he give me specific directions about what to eat, what to wear, and when to arrive. I was definitely impressed that he called (even on a Sunday evening!).

I will take some "before" photos in the next day or two and post them. I only have two more days (Monday and Tuesday) to get everything done and then the surgery day will finally be here! Eeek! :)

At this time in 24 hours I will be in surgery! Wow...time flies! I just received the final reminder phone call from my doctors office to arrive tomorrow at 8:00am. My prescriptions are filled and sitting in the bathroom....and I will be getting caught up on all my business stuff today so I can relax for the next couple of weeks.

I'm still contemplating if I should go out and buy a recliner today (way to leave it to the last minute!). I dont really have anywhere to put it in my house besides the middle of the living room (which would look awkward). However, I do know that I would be much more comfortable in a recliner instead of my bed. I just think it's silly to buy a recliner and then turn around and sell it in a month or so. Does anyone have any suggestions? Is a recliner a definite necessity?

I am uploading my "before" photos today as well. So embarrasing! I should mention that I am 5'6" and weight 170.

surgery day!

Wow...today went by quickly! i arrived at the surgery location at 8am, had to pee in a cup to make sure im not pregnant, filled out some last minute forms, and then the doctor came inand drew all over my belly. All of the nurses and the anestiagolist were so nice.

When i woke up i was extremely groggy and tired and my stomach felt very tight. Not necessaryl painful, but super tight and achy. Before i left the surgery center the nurse helped me get dressed and then i went to the bathroom and walked out to the car. They loaned me a walker to lean on as i walk since i cant stand up straight.

On the way home, my husband got me a fruit smoothie since the nurse said to take all medications with a little food. I havent had much of an appetite, but i have had part of a smotthie, some oatmeal, and some cherries.

i have been laying in the recliner all day...with the exception of getting up to walk to the bathroom every couple hours. It's 10pm now and i am still very groggy. it has been hard to keep my eyes open...i am so tired!

Overall, i am doing a lot better than i expected. i will update tomorrow. i have to go to the doctor tomorrow morning to have my dressings changed. Happy healing everyone!

Ps...sorry for the typos. im a bit druged up.

Its the day after surgery and I am doing much better than i anticipated! I have been taking all of my medications and my pain is very minimal. My entire stomach area just feels tight and a little sore, but not painful.

I went to the doctor this morning and they changed my large bangages, cleaned my belly, and then put new bandages on. I got to see my whole stomach and it looks amazing! My whole belly is completely flat and the size of my belly button looks great! I only saw everything while i was laying down, but so far I'm excited! I go back to the doctor again on Tuesday afternoon to get one drain removed and new bandages again. My doctor is insistant that I can NOT take a shower until both drains are out (at about the 2 week mark). I guess I will be taking a lot of sponge baths!

oh, the nurse and the doctor were both hapilly surprised at how well i was walking and how good I felt. They said I was a rare patient! lol.

The past two days have been much easier than I expected. The pain is LESS then my c-sections were. I have been spending most of my time in the recliner, and i get up every cople of hours to walk to the bathroom.

I hope everyone else's recoveries are going well! I will post a photo later of my garmet and drains.

Today was very similar to yesterday....my stomach feels very tight and achy, but Im not really in a lot of pain. I am able to carefully get myself up and down from the recliner, walk to the bathroom, and hook my CG myself. Im just taking everything very slowly. My husband went back to work today, but he came home on his lunch break to check on me and make me lunch. So sweet of him!

Im still very hunched over when i stand up, which is expected....but the back pain is horrible if I stand up for more than a few minutes. The recliner is my best friend!

Another update today....so I finally had a BM! Yay! You have not idea how constipated you get after a TT. Sorry if this is TMI but I definitely wasnt prepared for it.

Anyway, i unhooked my garmet about an hour ago becuase it was so tight! Being swollen, and having a rock hard stomach is not very comfortable in a CG. Sorry to complain....but do you think its ok if I continue to unhook the garmet every once in awhile? My whole tummy area is covered with bandages, but it feels soooo good to breathe! My doctor told me I have to wear the CG for 2 weeks 24/7. Im going to re-hook it now, but please let me know what you all think. Is it really necessary ALL the time? Thanks everyone!!

I feel like I dont really have anything exciting to update. Today I stopped taking the perscription pain medicine and instead I am just using Extra Strenght Tylenol. I gave myself a sponge bath today by sitting on the side of the bathtub and then washed my hair in the kitchen sink. After all that I was so tired!

Im feeling pretty good, just sore in my stomach area and mid/lower back. I have just been laying in the recliner watching movies and playing on my ipad. Its nice to relax, but Im definitely not used to it (Im always soooo busy!) so I am going a little stir-crazy! lol.

I hope everyone is having a nice weekend!

5 days PO....

I forgot to mention that I have had a sore throat since I woke up from surgery. I'm guessing that it's from the tubes that were put down my throat. My throat feels dry and I can hardly talk becuase my voice is so raspy. Is this normal? Any suggestions to make it better?

Besides the sore throat, everything else is doing good. I have an appointment tomorrow afternoon with my PS to change the bandages and (hopefully) remove one of the drains (yay!).

Thankfully the pain and the recovery has been better than expected. I walk around my house several times a day, but I do notice that I get tired after just a few minutes and then need to sit down. Also, I have been taking long naps everyday since surgery...I guess my body just needs the sleep to help recover becuase sometimes I can hardly keep my eyes open.

I hope everyone else is doing well. I love reading all of your updates!

Today I had my one week post op appointment with my PS. Thankfully they removed one drain and it didnt hurt at all. My stomach is nice and flat, just a bit swollen. When my PS saw my stomach he said "wow, isnt that dramatic?!" and held up a pre-op photo to compare. What a difference! Its so nice to look down and see a flat stomach instead of my big blob hanging there! I have been wearing my garmet pretty much 24/7 for the past week, so the only times I have actually seen my stomach are at my doctor appointments. Next Tuesday I will go back for my two week post op appointment to have the last drain and my belly button stitches removed.

My PS said not to shower until both drains are removed, but I am going crazy! Sponge baths can only do so much and washing my hair in the kitchen sink isnt ideal. I definitely dont want to risk getting the drain areas wet....but if anyone has a suggestion for how to take a shower I would love to hear it. :)

Today I am standing about 90% straight. My lower/mid back have been hurting from being hunched over and from sleeping in the recliner for a week. I think I may try to sleep in bed tonight with a few pillows behind me. Fingers crossed that I can get comfortable.

I do have to say that they past week has been easier than expected, and thankfully I havent had any complications so far. Coughing, laughing, and sneezing are sooooooo painful. I learned that the hard way today :(

Happy healing everyone!

8 days po....

I have been very emotional for the past couple of days, which is not normal for me. My entire stomach area feels very sore and tight, and I still cant stand up completely straight. I have not been out of the house (except for my dr appts)since surgery, so I am going a little stir-crazy! My husband works all day...I cant drive until next week...so I am just hanging out at home. I must admit that I want to go out, but I feel a little self conscious since I still have one drain, I cant stand up straight, and I'm walking slowly.

I am happy with the TT results, but I am emotional becuase I just dont feel like myself. I cant wait until next Tuesday when my last drain will be removed, I will be able to shower, and I will be able to drive. The countdown is on!

I am hoping to "turn a corner" soon....hoping the soreness goes away soon...and hoping that I can get back to my normal activities soon. I am always so busy, so I should be happy to have some down time. Go figure. lol.

On a good note, I slept in my bed for the first time since surgery last night! I had several pillows behind my back and under my knees, and I slept on my back all night. I am usually a side-sleeper, but my stomach feels like its pulling apart (painful) when I try to lay on my side. Add that to the list of things that I want to return to normal. :)

The past week has been such a roller-coaster! Im looking forward to more "highs" than "lows" going forward! Just trying to stay positive and remain thankful that everything is going smoothly.

PO Day #13...

Woo-hoo! The past couple of days have been much better! I actually got out of the house this weekend and went out to lunch with my family and did a little shopping. On Saturday I walked through stores for about 2 hours...I was tired when I got home, but it felt so good to get out and walk!

I'm standing up almost completely straight (yay!), sleeping in my bed (with pillows!) at night, and then alternating between sitting on the couch and laying in the recliner during the day. I'm not taking any pain medicine; just a mutli-vitamin and vitamin C.

I will update more tomorrow afternoon after my doctor appointment.

Two Weeks PO....yay, yay, yay! I am so happy to be getting back to normal. I went to the doctor today, and they removed the last drain, the stiches around my belly button, and all of the bandages. It feels so good to not have all of that hanging off my body!

I came home and took a shower and I feel great now! I even tried on a couple of my summer dresses and they look great with my new flat belly. I think my lower stomach is still swollen, and I notice that I cant stand up straight toward the end of the day...but I'm very happy with everything so far.

15 days PO....

Today was my first day driving again and it felt great. I went and got my nails done, and then came home and tried on almost all of my clothes. Suprisingly, most of my tops/shirts were too big. I used to buy loose fitting tops to cover my belly and when i put them on today they were so baggy looking! My pencil skirts all fit perfectly! They look a million times better now with my flat stomach! I didnt bother trying on my jeans because my stomach is still swollen and I dont want to wear tight pants just yet. I think I will continue to wear summer dresses for at least the next few weeks.

Here are a few stats: The doctor told me he removed 4 pounds of skin....I weight 5 pounds less today than I did before surgery...my scar is 19 inches long (yes, I measured it!)....and I have lost almost 2 inches off my hip measurement since before
surgery.

Hope everyone is doing well! Good night.

Wow...it's already been four weeks since my Tummy Tuck! Time flies! I have to say that during the past two weeks, life has pretty much returned back to normal. I am back to work, back to doing normal things around the house, driving, etc.

I met with my doctor today and he gave me the green light to start working out again. Obviously, I will take it slow and not over-do it but I am looking forward to getting back to the gym a few days a week.

Thankfully, (as stated before) my recovery was much easier and faster than I expected and I have had no complications. The scar is long, but already healing up really well. I have worn my CG 24/7 (except for showering of course!) for the past month. The DR said I dont have to wear it anymore if I dont want to, or I can switch to a different type if I prefer. I actually like having the compression and I actually think it has helped with my recovery.

I have maintained the initial couple pound weight loss (down about 5 pounds from the surgery date), and thankfully my stomach is really not very swollen. The only time I notice swelling is if I have been on my feet all day!

I am so thankful to have my "blob" gone! It's nice to look in the mirror and see a flat stomach, and all of my clothes fit so much better. The one thing that has been suprising is not many people have even mentioned me looking different. When I'm naked, its definitely a dramatic difference, but in clothes its not so noticable. I did this solely for myself, so I dont mind that most people havent noticed. It was just a suprise becuase to me, its so obvious! Hello flat stomach! Haha.

I will post again once I start working out to see how that effects my healing. I hope you all are healing well!