“New Year, New Me... - State College, PA”

I am a mother to 3 wonderful children...and now it is time to get rid of the mommy body! I am scheduled for a breast reduction and tummy tuck December 30th and am looking forward to starting 2012 with a new outlook!Updated on 18 Dec 2011:Time is running out to get ready for Christmas...and that means time is also running out to get ready for surgery!
This year I was able to get surprise gifts not only for my kids, but also for my husband. I hope his awesome gift makes up for all the things he will have to do to help around the house post-op!
I had been wondering about compression garments and found out that my surgeon places them during surgery, but if you want extras you have to purchasethem...any advice out there on good brands? Look forward to hearing from others, and best wishes to everyone with upcoming surgeries!!Updated on 20 Dec 2011:So, I got a call from my PS office today asking if I was planning to pay for the breast reduction if the insurance auth didn't come back in time...
This came as quite a surprise to me as I was told at the office that the insurance would cover as long as she was able to remove 896gms. She indicated this was the only reason the insurance initially denied and that she would be able to remove that amount.
Next call was to the insurance company. Sure enough the denial was pending in an appeal process. I was unable to get an answer as to how long this process takes or if it would indeed be covered considering the surgeon said she could remove the specified amount. The closest thing to an answer I got was "that was the only criteria that wasn't met, so it SHOULD be covered" and "the final day for the appeal is Jan 11, 2012". Well, that's all just great. Surgery is scheduled for Dec 30th and I will definitely know by Jan 11. Sorry for the sarcasm, but I am just a little frustrated and not sure what I should do. Any ladies out there with similar situations?

Updated on 27 Dec 2011:
Ok...got the news at the end of last week that the insurance definitely is NOT covering. I struggled with the decision, but do plan to go ahead with it. I will make payments for a short time, but I think it will all be worth it in the end!

Updated on 30 Dec 2011:
The surgery took a little longer than anticipated, but it is all over now. I got to my room about 630 pm. I am finally getting my wits about me. I was very loopy for awhile post op. The pain is def present, but not unbearble at this point. My biggest struggle seems to be attempting to move around. I feel like I am made of lead!

Updated on 5 Jan 2012:
6 Days post op...
I am feeling ok, but when does the swelling start to go away?
I have lots of swelling along the sides of my breasts (incision line and lipo) and my flanks and upper abdomen. It looks like eventually there will be some nice contours there, but for now it looks and feels bloated, swollen, and disgusting! Where is the light at the end of the tunnel? How long can I expect to be swollen? And, is there anything I can do to spead up the process?

Updated on 12 Jan 2012:
Went for my 2 week appointment today and had my last 2 jp drains removed. One felt like a worm and the other one I did not feel at all! Yay for a good PA in my PS office!
She also removed the few non-dissolvable sutures and peeled off some of my dermabond.
They were both (the surgeon and her PA) very pleased with the results. I still have some swelling and a slight hematoma in my right breast, but nothing that was concerning to them. I will return in 2 weeks for a follow up and hopefully start to decrease the time I wear compression garments.

I did find out a piece of info from my PS that may be helpful to other ladies. I asked if instead of a stage 2 compression garment, I could just use spanx or flexees. She prefers the surgical garment because the spanx, etc sometimes have tighter compression in certain areas which can cause ridges in the skin/tissue if liposuction was done.

So, sticking with the binder for a while and might check out some web sites with surgical garments.

My husband and I went to the appointment and then to lunch. It was so nice to not have drains attached to me!

Updated on 14 Feb 2012:
I have not updated for quite some time...
I am now at the point that I thought I would never reach! I FEEL LIKE ME AGAIN. It was a bit of a struggle there for awhile, but I am feeling better. I have been back to work for 3.5 weeks, working full time. The first week or so was incredibly exhausting! I am in dire need of a shopping trip for a reason I have not had in the past...my clothing is too big! Yay! Under my left breast, I did develop a small opening in my incision, but that has healed. The scars are darkening, but getting thinner, so I am hoping once they fad they will be much less noticeable.
Good luck to all of you out there considering plastic surgery, I think it was one of the best things I have ever done for myself.