“So Worth It! 3 Wks Post Op - TT-No Muscle Repair, BL/BA (325cc silicone)”

I am a mother of 3 and after the birth of my first child I was left with a sagging stomach full of stretch marks. I had my daughter 11 years ago and now at the age of 33 I am divorced and the thought of another man seeing my body creeps me out. So... I am regaining my self confidence and my body and I couldn't be more excited about it.

In one week from today I will be having a full tummy tuck, but no muscle repair, and a breast lift with the insertion of 300 cc silicone implants as well. I am nervous but more excited than anything. I just can't wait to get it over with!!!

Updated on 9 Oct 2011:
I can't believe that in 48 hrs I am going to be laying on a surgery table. I have been so so excited but now the nerves are starting to come. There are so many questions going through my head.
Am I doing the right thing?
What if the scar is super high??
Am I going to be happy with only 300 ccs?
What if I can't go back to work in 2 weeks?
Are the scars going to be horrendous?

And a million other questions. I am trying to focus on wearing a bikini next summer but I am really anxious today.
I bought bomelain, arnica montana, scar away strips, stool softner, and actipatch's as well. I am hoping that I am prepared. I just need to start hydrating myself today and tomorrow to be ready!!

Updated on 12 Oct 2011:
So, today I am one day post op. Yesterday went so well. They called yesterday morning and said that my Dr. was running early and that if I could make it they would move the surgery up from 11 to 1030. That worked for me because of course I was very anxious to get it over with!
When I get to the hospital there was very very minimal waiting. They took me right back and had me change, took vitals, and had me try to go to the bathroom. After that I met with the anesthesiologist who was great (I am highly allergic to Naproxen-like I go into anaphylactic shock- and am not supposed to take any NSAIDs at all) and he put my mind at ease as far as medication and anesthesia was concerned. He actually did my iv for me which I was so thankful for because I have tiny veins and so many people have missed them in the past.
After that my Dr arrives and begins drawing all over me with a blue marker. It was kind of funny watching her....she was like an artist the way she was concentrating! At the last minute I was having boob greed and asked her if we could go up to 325 cc as opposed to 300. She had no problem and just borrowed the 325 cc silicone moderate plus profiles from the hospital supply. I was so happy that I asked because I was under the impression that she wouldn't be able to change it because she had to order them for me. So I ended up going with 325 instead :)
After the Dr was done with me they put versed into my iv to relax me and I remember very little after that. My surgery was done around 3 and I remember waking up briefly around 3:20 or so. I left the hospital around 6 to go home.
Last night was good. We had alarms set so I could take my medication on schedule and I slept on my recliner in the living room. I actually haven't really left my recliner! HA!
I am in pain but have decided to just take 2 percocet every 4 hours today to keep it at bay. I am in less pain but I sure do itch...ugh....
I still have no idea what my incisions look like. It is going to be like christmas morning come Monday! I will update pics as soon as I can see something :)

Updated on 12 Oct 2011:
So, I finally got my actipatches in the mail, so when I was undoing the compression garments to place them in I couldn't help but peek really quickly. Ugh....I really wish I didn't have so many stretch marks on my stomach, but oh well. It still looks so much better!

Updated on 13 Oct 2011:
So today I am 2 days out and already feel much better than I did yesterday. I am walking around so much better and I am not talking like I just woke up!
I am still trying to take it easy. I don't want to think I am okay then overdo it and pop a stitch or something. I was able to scramble eggs for myself and make tea with relative ease.
Although last night I did take a sip of something and it went down the wrong pipe.....not fun. The coughing from that was SOOOO painful. I would suggest using straws the first few days just to help to prevent that from happening.
I called my PS for more pain meds and to ask a few questions about the itchiness and icing. I was pleased that they got back to me in a reasonable amount of time. She called in vicodin (i was taking percs before) and she also told me I could put a thin shirt under the binder to help with the itching.

Updated on 14 Oct 2011:
Day 3...I washed my hair and took a sponge bath this morning. Feels so good to be somewhat clean. Can't wait to shower!
So I have been using the actipatch's and I took them off a bit ago. The metal taste in my mouth is to strong and I wonder if they are the cause. I will probably put them back on later, but for now they were freaking me out a bit. Has anyone else used these before?

Updated on 14 Oct 2011:
Also, wanted to mention that I can really tell that having no muscle repair is going to speed my recovery a lot. I am starting to use my abs a lot to get up and down without any pain. So that makes me happy to realize that I will probably be able to get back into working out sooner rather than later.

Still afraid to weigh myself.
I am 5'5"
pre-op weight - 144 (morning of)
My highest weight during pregnancy was 210, non pregnant peak was 170. Been between 135-145 since March '10.
My ideal weight is 130 and my goal is to be there by next May. My thighs need help. The cellulite is out of control. I actually have a Velashape consult scheduled for next month....

Updated on 15 Oct 2011:
4 days post op and I am feeling better than yesterday. Made my own scrambled eggs this morning. Even chopped the avocado and tomatoes that I put in it. So far I am feeling great. I think I can start to come off of the pain medication but not sure if I will until Monday when I have some work to get done.

I am hardly draining anything today. In the past 18 hrs I have only had like 15 cc. I am hoping that at my appt on Monday she will feel comfortable removing it altogether.

Yesterday I had my PS call in an order of diflucan for me. I think the antibiotics gave me a yeast infection. Hopefully I caught it early enough and that combined with probiotics that I bought yesterday will clear it up and prevent another one. I haven't had a yeast infection in years. I forgot how much they sucked! Now my list of daily medications is out of control!! I feel ridiculous taking all of this stuff. Right now this is what I am taking daily-

-robaxin (muscle relaxer)
-cephalaxin (antibiotic)
-vicodin
-daily multi-vitamin
-emergen C packets
-stool softner
-arnica montana
-bromelain
-pribiotics


The actipatches were freaking me out and so I asked my brother to try it out and see if it was just in my head. He has some stiffening of his hands from working construction and so he figured he would see if they helped and also if they gave him the metallic taste in his mouth. Well....they worked. He was amazed this morning at how much better the hand that he treated felt vs the one he didn't treat. He was so impressed that he promptly began treating the other hand! He also confirmed the metallic taste and told me I wasn't crazy. It is like putting a dying 9 volt battery to your tongue. Anyway....since the battery taste seemed normal I have resumed with the actipatches. Especially since he was so impressed with how much better they made his hand feel. My hopes are that they will help me heal faster.

Got my little ones (2 & 4) back today. I for some silly reason tried to pick my 2 year old up. Not a good idea and it hurt. Hurt my breast more than my tt though.

Breast still itch but not as much as yesterday. Still sleeping in the recliner and I got a really good night's sleep last night.

Can't believe its been 4 days already....

Updated on 16 Oct 2011:
Today I am 5 days post op and what a difference a day can make!! I feel so much better today. I wasn't able to come off the pain meds entirely but I did cut it down to half of a vicodin. Too chicken to try just aspirin and I am allergic to NSAIDs...so no ibuprofen for me. But I managed to get around so well today. I almost felt normal...almost....you know, except for bloody bulbs coming out of my hip and a binder that is driving me mad.

But, enough about that. The highlight of my day was being brave enough to try on some shirts from my closet. OMG!!! I LOVE my new boobs! I fit cup wise into an old 36 D bra from pregnancy....which means that right now I would be wearing a 34 DD. Bigger than what I originally wanted but man they looked awesome in clothes! I think I am going to have a new obsession with V necks..... They are still high and have lots of dropping and fluffing to do but I am so happy being just 5 days out. The lift incisions also seems to be in the perfect spot to be hidden. I am really happy with my PS so far. Can't wait for my first post op tomorrow!!

Updated on 17 Oct 2011:
6 days post op today and I am drain free! YAY! It was so nice to get all of the bandages off and to have the drain removed. I feel like a new woman!

But I still feel kinda yucky.....just bloated and worn out....just blah. The pain is mostly gone. Just kind of aches I would say at this point. I did almost everything I would normally do today. Probably too much but I am going to take it a little easier tomorrow. Just put around the house and catch up on laundry.

I think my tummy tuck looks great! I am anxious to see what it will really look like. It is pretty swollen right now and my belly button is more closed than it should be because of the swelling but overall I am feeling better at this point than I had originally expected to.

Updated on 19 Oct 2011:
8 days post op and I feel so much better. I have been doing pretty much everything the past few days. I am even walking completely normal and I slept in my bed last night!

My stomach numbness is such an odd feeling! As I am slowly regaining feeling it is becoming more evident that it is numb in most places.

I'm also pretty anxious to heal enough to work out....for some reason I am not one of the lucky people who lost their appetite during this process....go figure ;)

Updated on 25 Oct 2011:
I was just getting home from surgery 2 weeks ago today. So weird how time flies. I feel so much better now. Still have a few stitches that will be taken out tomorrow. Then home free.....

I am pretty much using all of my muscle at this point. Picking up my children, standing up using abs, etc. Hopefully I will be able to start working out sooner rather than later. I am so so happy with my incision site. It is so low. I couldn't have asked for it to be in a better place. I do still have some loose skin above my belly button. I am hoping that it is just not healed all the way yet, or swelling, and that it will resolve itself.

Tomorrow is my first day back to work. Wish me luck!!

Updated on 1 Nov 2011:
3 Weeks!! Wow, can't believe that! I am feeling great now. Although still pretty tired. I am thinking that is all the lazing around catching up to me though. I am one of those that needs to workout or I get all screwed up and lazy. So this surgery is def setting me back. But soon enough!! I took the kids trick or treating yesterday and had to carry my 2 year old for 2.5 miles. Literally. I had him in my ergo and we went 2.5 miles round trip. So I would say I am healing up okay :)

Going back to work was a breeze. I def did not need anymore time off than what I had.

I also started applying rosehip oil to my scars yesterday. I will do this for the next week or so and then start with my silicone strips.

My breasts feels funny. They are certainly not settled where they need to be yet and it is a little annoying to have them at different positions. But I am not concerned. I know eventually they will fall into place! I need to be better about massaging them.

Updated on 1 Nov 2011:
I am just looking at my photos and I am so glad that I am documenting this for myself and for everyone else. I am amazed at my before and after pictures. And I can't believe how well my scar is progressing in only 3 weeks! I can only imagine in a year! You won't be able to see it!!!! (fingers crossed!)