Tummy Tuck: Stories

Hey y'all!

I'm a 26 year old mom of one. I have spent my entire life being heavy however a few years ago, I had lost 90lbs. Unfortunately, when I was pregnant, all my hard work kind of went down the drain and I regained 70lbs.

I've always wanted to have a tummy tuck. Honestly, I've been thinking about it since I was 18. My stomach has always just hung. It's awful. When I lay down, it just lays right down next to me. I can lift it, pull it, pinch it. I had always envied those women with pot bellies because realistically, if they had lost weight, their stomachs would be flat. Not mine. Even after losing 90lbs, I had hanging skin. My stomach wasn't even flat when I laid flat on my back.

So 2013 is my year! I'm back on track. Eating healthy, exercising, getting enough sleep, drinking tons of water. I'm down 20lbs since October and working to get the next 50lbs off. My reward will be a TT, BL/BA, and a BBL. I can't wait to be the person I envision in my head. I want my insides to match my outsides.
Now, I know I have to be realistic and that my results may not be exactly what I picture, but honestly, anything would be better than what I feel now.

I've been researching doctors all over the world. I'm very diligent. At the moment I am trying to decide between two doctors. Both are roughly the same price so I can't use that as a deciding factor. One is Dr Tachmes in Miami, Florida and the other is Dr Carmina Cardenas in Tijuana, Mexico.

I've actually spoken with Dr Tachmes on the phone for a consultation and he is very professional, although almost stand-offish, I liked that he was able to answer all my questions and put me at ease about the procedures. His receptionist Tina is super nice too. I like how quickly they return emails and phone calls.

I haven't had a chance to speak with Dr Cardenas but as per all the reviews I've read on Make Me Heal and Real Self, I can't wait to. Her assistant Fatimeh is also very nice but I wish the emails were a little more professional and timely.

If anybody has any advice or info about either of these doctors, feel free to message me.

November 2013 is my goal date for the procedures. It gives me enough time to lose the weight, save the money, and it's also exactly 8 weeks before New Years Eve, so hopefully I'll be recovered with no complications *crossed fingers* and ready to show off my new body!

So I've been doing mad research on the procedures and on Dr Cardenas. I must say that I really like what I have to hear about her and I'm super excited about meeting her. I've officially set the date with Fatimeh for Nov 4, 2013. It finally makes it real. I've been going through so many different emotions already and it's still 9.5 months away! I can't even imagine what I'll feel during the last few days of waiting before I hop on a plane.
I do have a few concerns though. I just posted a pic of my back and as you can alllllll see, my booty if definitely lacking. I've always been really self conscious of this and my friends make fun of me because I wear 'butt pads' in my undies when we go out.
I heard that a lot of people aren't happy with their fat graft or say that they lose it all within a year post op. I don't know why but hearing this really depresses me.
Oh, and I have very slim hips and I just want a 'Kim K' figure. I know it's unrealistic but anything to get as close as possible would be awesome. I've sent my new pics off to the Dr and I hope to hear that she can work with what I have to give me something close to my ideal body.

Does anybody know if I'll be able to achieve my goal!? Also, I'm planning on losing 40lbs before my surgery so will that leave enough 'use-able' fat to make my dreams come trueeeee? I read that after the fat is lipo'd and purified that usually only a third of what was removed will be usable in a graft. For example, if 3000ml was lipo'd, only 1000ml would be able to be injected and some of that would be reabsorbed anyway. Am I just getting my hopes up too high?

So it's been about a month since my last update. I find that sometimes I get a bit unmotivated until I come on this site and see everyone's great results. It makes me impatient though lol and I feel like November is ages away. Good news though, I'm down 29 pounds!! YAY. I still want to get another 40lbs off before my sx and I think I'm more than capable. We have a 'Biggest Loser' compeition at work and the person with the highest percentage of weight loss will win $1000. Definitely something I'm aiming for to put towards my surgery. :)
I had a conference call with Dr C a few weeks ago. She seems so sweet and genuine! I really liked the vibes I got from her. I had talked to other surgeons before her and they were all really professional but kind of hard to talk too. Dr Cardenas was the opposite. Her accent reminds me of my tias (aunts) and it was just so easy to talk to her. She also gave me a little motivation lecture on losing weight. haha. I can't wait to meet her.

I am stressing out a little though because I only have a week of vacation days for November. I'll basically be leaving Calgary on Nov 3, having surgery on Nov 4, and returning to my desk job on Nov 9. Eeeeep. I know this is farrrr to early to return to work but I've talked to my boss and there is no way of taking of more time for this as it is completely cosmetic. I'm hoping that as the day approaches I may be able to figure something else out, or take it extremely easy at work. Time to go for now ladies, but I will update again in a few weeks!

So I finally received my tax refund and let's just say, it was far more than I anticipated, so it's time to move up my surgery! The reason I was waiting for November was so I could comfortably lose the weight slowly and SAVE SAVE SAVE money. So I've decided on June 24 2013 for the BIG DAY. One of my best friend's is getting married in Jamaica on Aug 29 and I want to be in tip top shape. I figure it's 8 weeks post op so hopefully I am healed enough to enjoy myself on the beach. *fingers crossed*
Now onto the frustrating part, I have been in touch with Fatimeh for the past few weeks asking her about availability in June. She had nooo problem at all emailing me back within an hour when I told her I would like to reserve space for June 24. I've already sent my deposits and she said they have time on June 24 so we could rebook my surgery for that date. Wooohoo, HOWEVER, when I responded to her with some very important questions about anaesthesia, fee break-down, etc, she didn't reply. It's been 7 days since I've sent that email, and I even sent a follow up one, just in case she was busy, but still nothing. Today, I decided I would call the office to get answers. As soon as the receptionist heard my name, she said that Fatimeh was in meetings. Convenient! I'm getting bummed and actually starting to rethink my choice of picking Dr. Cardenas. I feel like it's a bit sketchy that she can't answer a few simple questions about the procedure. I'm not willing to rebook or send the rest of my fees until I get these answers.
Has anyone out there had surgery with Dr Cardenas and can reassure me that this if normal!!?

So I heard back from Fatimeh a few days ago. Finally!! She did give me most of the answers I was looking for. She wasn't able to break down the fees which I've heard is pretty normal and unfortunately she couldn't forward me a copy of the consent forms. :( I guess I just have to wait it out.
Thank you ladies for the comments and reassuring words. I'm def feeling a lot better about things now. So Fatimeh confirmed my sx date for June 24!! Yay yay. I feel actually nervous now. Even though it's still over 3 months to go, I have butterflies!
Starting to organize all my lists and I am so happy that all of you posted yours so I can figure mine out. I will def keep you all posted!
Another thing to ask you all out there in Real Self land, how do you deal with loved ones that are not as supportive as perhaps they should be? Normally I am one of those ' Eff you haters' kind of people however it's a little bit different coming when the 'hate' (lol) is coming from my mother, for example. She does want me to be happy, I have no doubt about it but it seems I can't even mention my sx or anything without her getting cold on me. Help!?

Sitting here in Cancun, MX on vacation with my sisters and best friend and I can't believe I'll be back in this country in less than 100 days to get my surgery. I'm such a creeper. lol I have been sitting here on my ipad checking before and after photos and getting excited for all the ladies on here that are preparing for their surgery in the next month or two! Think I'm going to start making my lists soon. Eeeeeee. :)

So there are only 66 days left until my sx. It seems close but not close enough. I can't wait until there is only a week left! I went for my blood work last week as Fatimeh said I had to do it 8 weeks before. Everything came back good with my blood but for some reason my EKG is showing abnormal. :( I'm only 26, I've never been diagnosed with heart problems, and I eat really healthy and exercise. Don't know why my results are coming back like that. I have a follow up EKG this sunday and I really hope that it was just a machine or tech error. My doctor said he isn't too worried about it because I am healthy and he thinks it was just the leads being placed wrong. It's still super stressful. It's be seriously consuming me for the past few days. I'm trying not to stress because that's probably the worst thing I can do days before my second EKG.
I was planning on booking my flight this week but something is telling me to put it off until I get my result back next week. I hope this isn't a sign. I've been stalking everyone on here lol and I'm just so excited for my own transformation.
OOOOH, and guess what peeps? We were doing a biggest loser compeitition at work for the past 6 months and we had our final weigh in at the beginning of this month. GUESS WHO WON FIRST PLACE?! That's right. I did. A grand prize of $1000 to add to my pot for sx! YAYYYYY. Quite proud if I do say so myself. I'm still working hard to get another 15lbs off before June but lately it's been such a struggle. I've fallen off track for the past week and I'm finding it difficult to get back on. One day at a time I suppose...
Anyway chicas, if any of you have any experiences to share about labwork not going right the first time, pleaseeee share. I need a little help getting through the waiting game. Ta ta for now!

Wow. There are only 6 LONG ASS weeks left until I fly to San Diego! Geez. It feels so close yet so damn far. I feel like I've been getting more nervous. It will come in waves. I honestly wasnt worried about anything before but now I have passing moments where I get deathly afraid. How am I going to do this? I've never gone to a 'foreign' place by myself EVER and now I intend on leaving Canada completely alone to get a huge surgery. Wtf is wrong with me. I have so many negative thoughts lately. What if I'm not happy with my results? Thats $6500 that I could spend on my daughter. What if I die??!! OMG. WHAT IF I DIE!!!!? lol
Anywayyyy, on a happier note, I passed my second follow up EKG and sent off all my labwork to Fatimeh last week. Just heard back from her today and everything looks good. I have the green light. Woooohoo.
So now I just have to patiently wait out the next six weeks whilst eating clean and working out. I've lost 40lbs now and hoping to have another 10lbs off by June 23. Its just so damn hard to stay motivated these days. Ugh. Im just feeling so stressed and overwhelmed that the last thing on my mind is my diet. Does anyone know if it will be difficult to lose weight after the surgery?? I was concerned about that because I plan to keep losing afterwards.

Oooh I forgot to mention that I contacted Fatimeh to ask how much more lipo to my inner thighs and chin would be. (Might as well do it as I've always been insecure about my inner thighs and double chin) She wrote me back saying the thigh lipo is an extra $200 and Dr C would do the chin for free!! Yayyy. I can't wait! 42 days baby!