Facelift: Stories

Sharon from Realself found me because I had posted on someone elses post. I've been asked to tell of my plastic surgery experience. It had been 5 weeks since my surgery date when these two after pictures where taken. I will be 62 years old in a couple of months and knew it was time to do something finally for me. A few days before you go in to have your surgeries you need to Buy from Super Supplements, Natra Bio Arnica Montana cream (in a tube) & start taking Arnica Montana in pill form, It helps with the pain and brusing and continue to take it atleast up to a week after the surgeries but start using the Arnica Cream on your Face and Neck bruises & continue until they go away. It has been 7 weeks now and I still use a thick white moisturizing cream 1 or 2 times a day and gently massage my face and neck due to the lumps, bumps and raised lines on both sides of my face. This will also help hematoma's in your face and neck area.

The surgeries I had were:

1. Face Lift
2. Neck lift
3. Blephoplasty (upper & lower)
4. Rhinoplasty
5. Tummy Tuck.

It was a lot of surgeries in 1 day but even at 61 I was in really good shape since I had been exercising for an enitire year before I scheduled for this. My nose had been broken 35 years earlier and this was the 1st time I had anyone look at it.

My body and face is still swollen & discolored and will be for months to come. My Tummy is still numb and swollen but due to having exercised for that full year before I went down, my stomach muscles even at my age, after some of this swelling went down, were pretty well defined, I had my Grandson take the pictures and he said "Gee, Grandma's got abs".

I know everything will continue to get better, well that's what I'm telling myself. Like I said my face and body is still pretty swollen in these 2 after pictures but I'm fairly pleased.

Dr.Rafael Velasco (Cancun, Mexico) did the surgeries and I scheduled my entire stay in Cancun through International Patients Facilitator's CEO Sheri Burke. I found & paid for my own flight but all 5 surgeries Cost me $10,500 which included, the Condo stay for 2 1/2 weeks, all the transportation, all my medication, post op garments, a life long friend from Texas that was my room mate, & thank god for a room mate, & of course Sheri Burke, her wonderful Husband Eric & their 2 children.

If your anything like me and buise easily & I didn't think I would bruise this bad, you better plan on taking make up because they don't have what you need in Cancun. The make up you will need is one that will cover Tatoo's. When I got home I ordered DermaBlend. You'll need the DermaBlend cover creme, leg & body cover creme corrective (in a tube) which I did use on my face, a transluscent powder to brush on to set the make up & they also carry a primer tatoo color stick but i didn't buy it because i am now broke.

It will take me a year to pay this off but then I'll be going back to Visit Sheri Burke and her family, stay at their Condo & get a few more things done.

I'll try and post more pictures in August 2012

Good Luck to everyone else

My Surgeries came in a package deal of $10,500 due to me having a number of procedures. The Tummy Tuck was just one of them.

I am 61 years old & I had been tiny almost all my life, 106 to 110lbs. I wore that bikini top until I was almost 50 years old. I had always had a nice body until I was injured and put on steroids (prednisone). My body & face on that medication were so swollen up, like a Balloon / Marshmellow and I gained a ton of weight because of the prednisone. Then I just seemed to give up & not care anymore, gained more weight & went from 106 lbs. up to 213 lbs. I got tired of the way I was looking, started to exercise, & diet. I firmed up my core(abs), and lost 77lbs over 1 year & 3 months, scheduled my 5 surgeries & just went for it.

I had my surgeries April 17,2012, 8 weeks ago. Now because of the weight lose I now need my Inner Thighs, Arms, & Breast Lifted. Remember, You've come this far, Never let yourself go from this point on, because your worth it (that is if your done having babies).

I still tape my incision & wear my 2ND stage body suit. It's time to start massaging my Tummy Tuck scar. I am in desperate need of that breast, arm, & inner thigh lift due to the weight loss.

I think for 2 months out, my tummy is looking pretty darn good for a 61 year old & I'm actually LOVING IT. It's to bad I'm not in my 30's again, I would be going out to the beach this summer in my bikini. The bikini top I have on is the last one I ever wore, DAMN IT, atleast I kept it. After the weight gain, I just never got back out there, maybe someday (with more surgeries) but by then I'll be looking for a 90 year old man.

Well, better late than never. I had to tell my daughter not to worry, I won't be going out anywhere in my yoga out fit or in that bikini top. It's just that I got tired of holding those 2 big droopy tubers up, I call boobs, while taking pictures of my Tummy Tuck to post.

Let me know if you want to know where specifically I had this done & who to contact for information on this wonderful Surgeon & Patient Facilitaor in Mexico.
I have already written a list on the do's & don'ts, what to take & buy while out of the country having Plastic Surgery.
What an experience, you just never know until you go through it.

Take Care & Heal Well

I have posted Tummy Tuck pictures under greenblackpurple Tummy Tuck.

I was asked about hematoma's & the healing process. Yes, I did have hematoma's in my neck & nose & they will slow up the healing process. It's been 5 months now & the stingling & hurt to the touch of my face has gone down to a tingling sensation at this point. That the Lumps, bumps, & bruisning will all smooth out. It just takes time. The healing process is long but worth it if it's done right the first time. If you're going out of the country to have this done I have a list of things to think about, how to heal quicker, what to buy while there, & how to save some money. Basically the DO'S & DON'Ts based on my mistakes & how I'd do it differently.