Almost 53 and It's Time for a New Me! - Portland, OR

Hi! Thank you for the info on weight gain in other areas!! I have always been curious about that. Your before pics are so helpful!! I'm scared to post mine as well...there's a reason we want the surgery, because we don't want anyone to see the "before"! ;). I'm going to be following you closely as I will be getting the BL and am SOO scared about recovery! Keep us up to date...and thank you again for your brave pics. :)

Think I'm getting my abbreviations mixed up lol. I am having the extended tummy tuck...thought BL was body lift...just realized it was breast lift! Soon I'll be an expert. :)

Hello Cut it Off! ~ It took me about a month to get the courage just to take the "before" photos, but I know how important they to help measure progress and encourage others! I'm essentially having a BL and body lift with alot of lipo. Even decided to add a little lipo under my chin and jaw a couple of weeks ago. I'm spending almost $19K on everything, which is freaking me out a little! Well, maybe more than a little! The extended TT (my PS is going to extended my previous TT scar towards my back, and make like a seagull type incision above my butt) will take up loose skin, lift my bottom a little and take care of what they call these "puppy ears" that are on either side of my old scar. Basically I am having a major overhaul! Are you choosing Dr.Bohley for sure? I really like him! I thought about Dr. DeMars, he did my daughter's TT and a little lipo on her thighs and lower abs, which she is pleased about, but he wasn't very aggressive with the lipo on her. She didn't need much, looks great and is 5'4", 125 lbs. I think I need more carefully aggressive lipo & "sculpting" and I think Dr. Bohley has those features. He is also known to be an excellent breast-doc and I need the "girls" to be perked up and rounded out. They look sad and deflated now so a BL in July and then Lord willing, implants next Spring! He didn't want to do the BA with the BL on the first go around, which has me disappointed, but I trust his professional judgement! Oh and Fairview isn't far from me! I live in Gladstone, my 2 daughters live in Gresham & Troutdale! Dr. Bohley's office is an easy drive for both of us! I keep reading all the profiles on here of ladies going to Mexico, the Dominican Republic, even Venezuela. I know it's less expensive to go out of the Country... but I'm to afraid to consider this! I like knowing the doctor's office isn't far from home, esp. post-op! Do you have an idea as to a date for your surgery? What all do you want to have done specifically? This is such a huge, life-changing decision! Isn't it? I feel confident that for me, it's the right move for me. Not getting any younger! Recent weight loss hasn't helped my belly at all. And the weirdest place I gained weight after my TT was on my upper back! What's up with that? LOL! I too, worry about the recovery period! Big time! I'm having so much nip, tucked & sucked out in quite a bit of my body! I'm bound to be fairly miserable for maybe up to 3 months afterwards. I will deal with the swelling, soreness, etc. trying to bear in mind the final results, and how very, very long I waited to get this work done. Just want to get it underway & OVER with! Thanks for letting me ramble on here, sorry about that! I hope you find peace in your decision and truly look forward to claiming your new, improved shape! Take care! ~ Cyndi

I too, am trying to get a handle on all the abbreviations they use here on RS! It's a learning curve! As long as they use them in context, I can usually figure it out. I did have a hard time guessing what a BBL was! When I did, I knew right away I didn't want one of those, LOL!

I'm about 99% sure I'll be going with Dr. Bohley. I have two more appointments, but unless they "wow" my pants off then I'm going with Bohley. He was just so personable and understanding, not to mention full of information!!! Have you met with other surgeons? Who did your TT previously? The $$ is CRAZY!! It's literally our life savings! The fact that my husband is willing to agree to move forward with this is incredible to me! I still don't think he understands completely, but he sees where I'm coming from in my lack of self-esteem and body image. Yes, we do live close...your daughters are practically my neighbors! :) I would never go outside the country for surgery. Just too scary for me...besides it's only about 15-20 minutes for me to hop over to dr Bohley's office for follow up. You really can't beat that! I have a medical issue I need to address before I can schedule surgery. I'd love to have it by the end of summer, but that will depend on how my tests come back. :/ I will be having a lower body lift with some lipo, silicone implants, and a Binelli lift on my right breast to correct unevenness and what I've learned is called "tuberous breast", which just means my areola sticks out a little farther than it should.

Silicone implants are what I want to have! And it sounds like you're looking at having alot of work done as well! So sorry you have a medical issue to have to figure in! After losing 100 lbs, you probably improved your health by leaps and bounds! I'm keeping my fingers crossed, and you will be in my prayers that the medical test results will allow you to proceed with this self-esteem, body image project of ours! My TT was done by Dr. Jolly with the Longview Surgical Group in WA. She was marvelous and the post-op suites you stay at after the surgery was like staying at a 4-star resort spa! I hope doing post-op at home is going to work out o.k. I still have the paperwork file of that procedure and pulled it out to take to my consult appt. with Dr. Bohley. The original invoice for my TT and lipo of my arms was only $7500. My how prices have gone up in 10 yrs! I wanted to stay closer to home on this go around. I live alone now and want to do as much self-care recovery as I can. I'll have help from my daughters & my Mom the 1st 5-6 days, then I hope I can fly solo in a slower, modified fashion! You might be very wise having PS done at the end of summer or fall even! Wearing a CG during the heat of summer is not something I look forward to having to do! If I were a smarter, more patient person, I would ideally have chosen to do all my PS in the fall! But timing has never been one of my virtues, LOL! "They" say you need to wear the CG for a minimum of 6 weeks to 3 months, then control lingerie like Spanx for another 3 + months! Doing that in the fall and winter seasons makes alot more sense! I have A/C at home which, along with all the ice packs I'll be using, should make recovery bearable! I hope anyway! I checked out 3 other surgeons, besides Bohley and considered going back to Dr. Jolly. Dr. Bohley just seemed like the best fit for me! I like the fact he is Board certified and has many years of experience, his bedside manner probably won me over! The doc and I are also the same age, both born in 1961! So he appreciates some of the aging issues I'm concerned with. I don't want to look like I'm in my 30's, but the early 40's wouldn't be so bad. My face still looks younger than my age, or so I'm often told! I just need to get the body in agreement! ~~~ Can I ask you about how you lost your weight? I have been chronically chubby most of my life. I used to battle with an extra 15-25 extra pounds, now after menopause, it's ramped up to 30-50 lbs excess! I can't imagine losing 100 lbs! That is so awesome! What an accomplishment! How long did it take you to lose that much? If you don't mind me asking? It's so wonderful that you have a supportive husband by your side! He sounds very understanding! Count yourself very fortunate there! Let me know if you have any other questions or concerns, or just need to vent ~ you can contact me anytime!

May I ask which doctors you have seen? You can private message me if you're not comfortable posting them here. I don't think the CG will bother me too much. I've been wearing spandex "suckers", as I like to call them for about four years now just to "smooth the muffin". Not sure it's the same idea, but I've been bound up since 2010. ;). As for the weight loss I've been a Weight Watchers member since 2009. I actually work there now-super part time. I've been heavy/chubby/overweight/obese since I was about 7 years old. After my little guy was born I decided enough was enough and set out to lose 30 lbs. in May 2009. Well success breeds success as they say and I hit goal in January 2011. Total duration of 1 1/2 years. I feel amazing in clothes and would love to have that same feeling out of clothes!! :)

Thanx Beth! I really appreciate the list! Trying to keep busy with activities & work as much as I can. This waiting period before PS is awful! I'm so anxious to be a post-op, "after", even though I know the recovery process will probably be rough. I just want to get it over with! I'll have help for 4-5 days. I live alone & everyone's schedule is so busy, I'm grateful to have that! I'll be taking it slow and I have 3 weeks off from work! Thanks again for your quick response! Cyndi

Three weeks off from work will be really nice. Ask your doctor when you can start going on short walks post-op. I've heard this little bit of exercise can help get you through the post-op blues around day 7 or so. Good thing you'll have help the first few days. I bet you'll be anxious to do more by day 5!

I'm so anxious (and preoccupied with my PS!) during this waiting period, and worried about the recovery stage! I'd really like both to pass quickly! Ahhhh! It's crazy! ~ I do have a question... Is there a good forum or place on here that recommends what CG's to get. I know I'll come home with one, but would like to have one available for laundry day! I bought 2 Spanx, firm control cami's, but I don't know if they'll work during the 1st week or 2 post-op. Any recommendations? Thanks Beth!

You may want to check with your doctor first but here is a link where you will find several forums started by other members with comments regarding CG's. There's even a Doctor Q&A that talks about Spanx versus a typical CG. Hope you find some good info!