c01armstrong

Mommy Makeover - Macon, GA

I've told my Mom and my sister. My sister lives in California is getting a BA done in October when her husband gets back from being deployed. My Mom wasn't to thrilled of the idea but like she said, I'm grown and I can do what I want to do and if my husband supports me then that's all that matters. Now I do NOT ever plan on telling anyone how much it will cost....which I have no idea right now but I'm thinking anywhere from $10-$13K. I was actually shocked that my husband is on board with it because he's tight with money...lol! But thankfully he understands how I feel about myself and he says as long as it will make me feel better about myself, that I do all my homework (which I'm a nurse so he knows I'm on top of that...lol) and that 100% positive this is something I want to do then he's all for it. I've had him online with me trying to help me pick out some sizes for my BA...lol!! I have still not found a tummy similar to mine though. I've emailed him thousands of pics of different stomachs asking if any of them look like mine...lol!!!

I am def going to schedule a consult with Dr. Zaworski in Atlanta. That way I will have 2 different PS giving me their recommendations and I always like to have a back up plan. All of my family lives 2 1/2 hours away and my friends where I live now all have kids, are married and work so I know they cannot help me out. Luckily, I have an amazing Mom who is coming up to stay with me for a little while and plus my husband is going to be home with me for a week so hopefully that will cover the worst of it all...lol! I have a very high tolerance for pain and absolutely no tolerance at all for pain meds. A Benadryl knocks me off my feet. I've been under general anesthesia twice...once for lithotripsy for a kidney stone and second for a kidney stone extraction. I had to have stents placed both times after surgery and they were so uncomfortable. I had 2 of my kids completely natural....no epidural or pain meds....and I didn't scream , cry or etc. I know after my second surgery I had a hard time waking up so that makes me a little nervous. They used the mask on me for my first surgery and omg....I'm clostrophobic and they did not tell me they were putting it over my face...they came up from behind me, crammed it over my nose and mouth and I remember it was so hard to breath like the gas was really thick, I remember trying to get the mask off my face and thinking I was going to die!! That was a horrible way to go under!! So, for my second surgery I refused the mask so I guess they used a little more IV meds to put me under and being I do not have a tolerance for meds I'm thinking that's why I had a hard time waking up. I do not remember anything from the day of my second surgery nor the day after. I just hope whichever PS I end up using gives me some Xanax for the night before and the morning off my surgery...lol!!

Did your PS mention taking Wellbutrin to aide in smoking cessation? It's a lot cheaper than Chantix also. My Dad took Chantix and he did quit smoking but it made him so sick and his mood/behavior changed while taking it. You may want to research both meds and look at their possible side effects before beginning one. My Dad never misses work and he missed several days while taking Chantix because it made him so sick. I wish I was educated on the med then because I would have known that his mood/behavior changes were a side effect of the med. I've had several friend's take Wellbutrin and they are still smoke free. :-) I'm glad you are planning on quitting smoking because it plays a big deal in wound healing. Good luck!! :-)

I would insist on staying overnight especially since you are having multiple procedures done at once. As a nurse, I've learned that you have to speak up in regards to your health and safety because some doctors try and take the easy way out. It would be wise to stay over night so they can closely watch your vital signs, you can continue to wear the compression hoses to help prevent DVTs (the ones that blow up every so often), to monitor your output, control your pain with IV meds since they act faster than pills, so they can monitor for bleeding from your incision sites and etc. If I were you, I would express my concern in regards to staying over night with the PS. Remember you are the one paying him. He will not have to be bothered during the night while you stay as long as nothing goes wrong so it is not going to cause him to do anymore work. Patient safety always comes first!!! Plus by staying it will allow you the opportunity to ask the nurses any questions that you may have not thought of before and the nurses can educate you and who ever will be helping you out on how to empty and care for the drains, they can give you step by step instructions on how to change to your bandages when it's time, tell you what signs and symptoms to look for in regards to post-op complications such as infection, tissue necrosis and etc. I'm sure the PS is going to tell you he will be giving you or may have already gave you all the post-op care instructions on paper, but sometimes it's better to be taught one on one and to be able to ask someone in person any questions, concerns or fears you may have about going home and recovery. I am planning on having a TT, BA and lipo done all at once and I will be staying over night. Majority (not always, nothin is exact and everyone is different) of the time any serious complications will arise within 24 hours....but like I said they could arise 48, 72 hours after surgery or not at all. The hospital I worked at kept all their surgery patients for a minimum of 24 hrs. Just remember its your body and your life, if you feel better about staying overnight then express that concern with your PS. If your PS still says you will not need to stay overnight then you may want to second guess using him because your safety should be his number one concern. Hope I helped you out some and sorry for the post being so long. :)

Atlanta is about 2 hours from where I live. I live about 35-40 minutes from Macon. I graduate in December (last day of class is 11/29) so I'm hoping to have my surgery the first week in December while the kids are in still in school. I'm concerne with the recovery time. I had a friend tell me she was only down about a week after her TT and lipo of her back and then I read to where some people say it took then almost an entire month. A month is a long time to be out of commission when you have 3 kids....lol!! She told me her nose job was more painful than her TT. She had her TT in 2009 and I was amazed when she showed me her scar because I could barely see it and it was really low. I am really long waisted and I read that sometimes long waisted people have to have a small vertical scar. I sure hope I don't have to have a vertical scar!! But then, I guess it beats my mommy belly...lol!! I am just so ready to rock a 2 piece again!! I haven't worn a bathing suit in almost 3 years. I've kinda got frustrated this week because I actually told a few friends what I plan on doing and I get the "Omg you are crazy!! Why do you want to do that?? You are skinny!!" and my answer was "Clothes do a good job of hiding...wanna see me naked and then comment?"....lol!! I could actually do without getting a BA but my thought is if I'm going to be put under and go through pain why not do it all.