46 Year Old Mom of 3...Let's Do This TT... - Wake Forest, NC

I'm a 46 y/o Mother of 3 (17,15 & 6).im 5'3" & when I decided to lose weight 2 years ago, I was 182. I got down to 133 & am probably 145 now. I work in an office & Finally decided to get a TT. I didn't do a ton of research because I knew this was something I desperately wanted & I had a budget. My paperwork says I'm getting an "abdominoplasty w/lipo of the flanks", but I've read a lot here & don't know if it's a "full" or "mini" TT. also, don't know if I'm getting the "muscle repair" I've read a lot of people mention on here. I'll be asking those questions. My Pre-op appt. is 10/24 & I'm scheduled for the TT on 11/14. This is all new to me and while I'm excited, I'm also scared. I'm scared of the pain, scared the recovery period will take longer than I thought and for whatever reason, I'm scared of those drains. There's not a whole lot to post between now & the surgery except this introduction & some Pre-op pics. I'll still be lurking around reading all of your stories, suggestions & lists! (those are so helpful) So here I am. ???? I wish all of you peace, strength & quick & painless recovery. Thanks.

Still playing the waiting game. Got my blood work done & I'm going to start back at the gym tomorrow. Just in a last minute push to tone up a little more.
4...weeks...wow...

OK, so I went to my pre-op last Friday. I think it went well. For those of you using the Wake Forest Baptist Resident Clinic, here's some specific info.

The 2 residents doing my surgery are Dr's Lindsey Wong & Adam Purzicky. They are 6 year residents. I asked them how they "won" me in the "patient lottery", instead of another Dr, and they said that in the residency program there are only 2 Dr's at a time, so for 6 year residents, they are it.

They have a good bedside manner. They took time with me, and I didn't feel rushed while asking all my questions. My apt was at 3:30, I got there about 3:20, and within about 10 minutes, I was taken to a room & about 10 minutes after that, they came in to see me. I left around 4:30-4:40 so they were with me for a good hour. They also said if I had any additional questions to contact them & they gave me their emails.

I asked if Dr. Marks does surgeries & they said, yes & the only difference is price. Also, the resident program only performs surgeries on Friday's. I may or may nor get to meet Dr. Marks the day of my surgery, but they did say he would be in the building and would probably be in/out of the OR. I have not met him yet. They assured me they've done a lot of procedures in this program, but couldn't give me a number.

I asked about possibility of staying overnight, since it's an extra expense. They said usually patients don't stay & unless I'm not keeping anything down or extremely nauseous or am not walking around, I should be able to go home. I check in at 7:45am and they said I should be going home around noon-ish.

I asked about revisions if they are necessary. They said I am their patient, and if a revision is necessary, the resident clinic will take care of me. I'm not on my own, even if they're personally finished with their residency program and are gone. I also asked Dr. Purzicky if he specialized in TT's or plastic surgery in general & he said in general, and he's performed all types of procedures.

They measured me for a compression garment & they will provide one for me. I inquired about "pain pumps"; they are an extra expense and they said they don't use them. They didn't make it sound like it was out of the question, more like, because it's so expensive, most people don't request them.

I asked about "Arnica", and Dr. Wong said a lot of patients have asked them about that, and swear it works. Although a lot of people use it, she said there is no conclusive scientific proof it works one way or the other. As a result, she recommended I stay away from it just to be safe.

They gave me my scripts for meds to get filled. Percocet (pain) & Biaxin (antibiotic). They said I can get generics if I want.

I asked if there were any foods I should specifically avoid or eat to help with BM's post-op & they said no. Just take stool softeners (ie: Colace or Miralax).

I asked if working out like a fiend, specifically targeting my abs, would help the recovery process & she said not really. If I'm working out, keep doing it, because obviously being in shape is better than not, but don't go out of my way to kill myself trying to get the abs ready for surgery.

I asked if the pain in recovery was like a C-Section & Dr. Purzicky said no. He drew me a diagram explaining that in a C-Section they cut all the way through the muscle wall & in a TT they stop at the muscle wall.

I asked about shaving or Brazilian wax & they said it wasn't necessary. They'd trim/clip what they needed to. Personally, I'm going in clean shaven just in case (that's just me).

I've heard of some PS' doing "drainless" procedures, but in this program, they definitely use drains.

Finally, if this helps, for the blood work, if you need to pay out of pocket, I went directly to a local Labcorp. The bloodwork itself was less expensive than just an office visit anywhere else.

I think that's all for now. If I think of anything else, I'll revise this post. If you ladies think of anything you want me to ask, just let me know.