I had a tummy tuck and thigh lift 1 week ago. Although I am extremely swollen in my thighs and hips, I am beyond pleased with my results so far. I will start my massages on Friday. Dr. Varon is a beast! I was referred to him by my cousin. He is very knowledgeable, patient, and has exceptional bedside manners. EVERYONE (even the employees in the hospital) absolutely loves him. I am planning for him to also do my arm and breast lift as well. Thank you Dr. Varon and staff! Everyone was great Updated on 13 Oct 2023: I did not post a picture the first time so I am Posting one now. This is at 1 week post op. I will post more updates and pictures as I continue to recover. Very pleased thus far. A little bit about recovery: the TT is recovering nicely. Although I am excited about the end results of the thigh lift, the recovery is alot. I have to “baby sit” the incisions a lot! Trying to keep them from opening has been tedious. It’s paying off but it’s still alot of work. Updated on 19 Oct 2023: I am now 15 days post op and my thighs are draining a lot. They are also softening up and I can see them decreasing in size. I am not in any pain from the tummy tuck or the thigh lift. The drainage is a nuisance more than anything else. I do have an opening on my tummy tuck incision just under the belly button (where the ABD pad is placed) but they have me applying Bactroban to it. According to my PS, it will close on its own. I have two compression garments that I wear. The faja is worn at night and then I wear the leggings in the pictures during the day along with my binder. I tried to upload a picture of my faja but it’s “too large” to be uploaded. The pictures are 9 days and 15 days post op. I’m happy to see some progress with my thigh lift. I have been so swollen in that area but massages and compressions…along with the draining of fluid has helped a lot! It’s a journey but so far I am happy with my results! Updated on 31 Oct 2023: These pictures are at a little over 3 weeks post op. Still a lot of swelling in my legs but my tummy looks fantastic. I have on compression stockings in these pictures. Legs are draining so I must wear something to catch the drainage. I was using ABD pads for a while then switched to using portions of “chuck” pads that people who are bedridden use. They seem to work better and are more cost efficient. My PS says I still have about 4-6 weeks worth of swelling to get rid of before seeing more results in my legs. As of right now, the legs are my biggest concern. I can see that they are smaller than they used to be but I am hoping they will decrease more in size. Overall, I’m still satisfied. Updated on 6 Dec 2023: These are pictures at 7 weeks post op. Tummy is on the flat side and I’m so pleased with the results. I do have swelling at times but for the most part, I do well with tummy swelling. The opening that I had at my hairline has completely closed. I have started applying scar tape as well as using the scar cream. Not seeing much different except that the incision has softened up. My thigh lift is healing well also. They still have a small amount of swelling but I continue to wear my faja. I do have a skin fold due to gravity but I’m still pleased with my results. Once I am released to start running and lifting weights, I do believe that the skin folds will Improve. Overall, I am still very pleased. Awaiting my surgery date for the breast and arm lift. After that, I will be done. Updated on 13 Feb 2024: I’m now 4.5 months out and I’m still very much happy with my results. I still see changes occurring from my thigh lift. I have had to literally buy a new wardrobe. My waist also continues to get smaller. I workout about 3-4 times per week. I do lots of leg exercises as well as core exercises….mostly using weights. The pictures that I am posting are from a few days ago. It has been worth it! Updated on 5 Jun 2024: I had my second and final procedure on 4/19/2024….which were the breast lift (no implants) and the brachioplasty. Honestly, the recovery has been better than the TT and Thigh Lift however the post op pain for the breast lift and brachioplasty was worse. It was more of my arms than my breast. Also I am 7 weeks out and still experiencing quite of swelling in my arms. I went from 17 inches to 13.5/14 inches in the arms. Dr. Varon is saying that the swelling will be present up to 10 weeks or so. I am wearing compression on my arms everyday. My breast look AMAZING!!! Updated on 18 Jun 2024: I’ve been asked to post my scars and the treatment that I have used. Please see the pictures for this update. As stated before, I have NO regret. I am back in the gym so I only expect to get better!
This is my 2nd thigh lift surgery. First surgery was 2 1/2 yrs ago along with a tummy tuck which came out very well but the thighs not so much which led to this 2nd surgery... My results are much better this time around. My surgeon didn't put in jp drains so of course I'm draining without it. Very upsetting and annoying to me cause blood and fluid drains dwn the back of my left leg. I'm constantly putting nonadhesive gauze to try and catch the drainage. Appears to be losing a lot of blood. Very concerned. I will see him on monday to see what he suggest. Don't know if this is normal ( not having drains) It's been 8 days and I haven't taken any pain meds in 3 days. Didn't like feeling drowsy but my pain is not bad just some discomfort and swelling. Updated on 26 Nov 2016: It's been 15 days since my surgery. My drainage have since eased up SOME. Still a lil swelling and fluid retention. I have an opening along the incision of my right thigh about the size of a dime. There is no drainage or odor coming from it. I was prescribed Bactroban for it but I am concerned with the area thats right above it. That area is yellowIsh. I'm not experiencing much pain but a little discomfort. Trying to maintain my sanity has been very challenging. I will see doc again on monday. Updated on 7 Jan 2017: Open areas are starting to heal. Thank You Jesus.... It's been a real struggle but things are starting to look better. Still hv a few concerns that I will address with my PS on my nxt visit Updated on 7 Jan 2017: A few pics of thighs 7wks post op
A mother's priority is to focus on the children. When the children are grown and leave for college, you find you have time on your hands. What's a girl to do but look at herself in the mirror. So you gotta get real with yourself and pull yourself back together! That's my story, just like many others. I'm no different. Still in recovery, but looking forward to seeing the final results...I remain positive because so far so good. Updated on 16 Apr 2016: I'm a fairly conservative kinda person. I take risks after some consideration of my options. Ultimately I'm the one who has to live with my decision. I never really looked at my body before having kids. When I looked back at pictures I realized I was a skinny kid. I'm on the petite side at 5'2" so a little 5-10 lb weight gain is noticeable on me. I remember the moment I first started paying attention to my weight. It was when I got pregnant with my first child. I was exactly 100 lbs so any weight gained by the pregnancy would be extra. I had to shop for bigger clothes and at that time, a size 2 was big on me. I was a stick, even at 3 months into my pregnancy. I wore a 5-6 and sported a baby bump by my 6th month. Overall, I gained 36 lbs but was so consumed in my new love affair that I wasn't really concerned about losing those 36 extra lbs. I had my second child 2 yrs later. The only thing I recalled about my weight was that I didn't gain as much, but I don't remember how much the final weigh in was. It wasn't until Fall of 2002 that I noticed I'd let my weight get out of hand. My weight was about 145-150ish. I was about to have to buy clothes in the double digits and that's when my pride stood up to say, "Uhh, No! This is too much!" I attempted a healthy lifestyle of whatever made sense at the time, but I didn't really know what I was doing. I got a cheap gym membership that allowed me to go 3 times a week. I knew nothing of workouts, but that something was better than nothing. A year later, I was down to about 115-120. I maintained that for about 12 years... up until a year ago. Now I'm at 136-138 and my movements are feeling limited. I'm now 40. The kids are gone off to school and I hate the idea of things going downhill from here. There's no need for that. I've had the benefit of being a young mother which means it's time to allow myself to be a little selfish and get my body back. I'm having a harder time with getting my mentality in check to lose the weight like I had before. An opportunity came my way to do this surgery and I opted to explore it. I hate that every year I dread swimsuit season. Even when I was able to get my weight down to 110 (6 yrs ago), I still felt awkward in a bikini because of the stretch marks and pouch that I had no control over. That's what it boils down to for me. It's not the weight, because I've proven to myself that I can make that happen with serious hard work. What I couldn't do for myself, I had to hand over to doctors. Updated on 16 Apr 2016: I can't wait to get these drains removed. Hoping I can get in on Monday to see the doctor, but otherwise my follow up appt isn't until Thursday. I'm supposed to go back to work on Monday, but how do I get dressed with these things? My back hurts a lot because I can't use my abs. Tired of sponge baths. It's hard to breathe with this binder which feels even tighter with the added bloat of not being able to have a BM. The pain & bruising from the lipo on my sides is gradually subsiding on a positive note. Incision looks and feels just fine, but probably because I've barely removed my binder. I saw it once when they changed my dressings at discharge from the hospital and once more when my husband helped me to adjust the binder a couple nights ago. I was instructed not to take a laxative and only to take the prescribed medications. I think I'm going to try some prune juice as I've gotten desperate enough after waking up in major discomfort today. Can I get some feedback regarding what brands or websites to browse for a new binder or next stage compression garment? Updated on 17 Apr 2016: Thankfully didn't have to go the prune juice route because I had forgotten about something I already had in the pantry that would work...Dandy Blend! I bought it last year to substitute for all the coffee I was drinking, but it's great for helping with constipation or if you want to do a safe & natural detox. It is very gentle. Also thankful for the dried apricots. We rewrapped by binder... now I can show a photo of my tummy in it's current state. I'm getting a bit worried about having creases. I ordered a post op abdominal compression foam board and some compression shape wear. Can't wait for the foam board to come in. When I lay my hand over my belly, it feels so tight...a weird feeling indeed. Everything looks good so far. Hoping to get into the doctor's office soon except the weatherman is predicting flooding over the next 2 days; lovely. Otherwise, everything is under control. Updated on 20 Apr 2016: I'll hopefully get some answers tomorrow when I see my doctor for my first follow up appt, but I'm panicking a bit because I'm feeling hardNess along my flanks because of the creases from my binder. They told me to do kneading massage 3 times a day which I do periodically throughout the day. I'm afraid I'm going to heal in a deformed way. Anyone have any feedback, please?!! Updated on 23 Apr 2016: So my instructions upon discharge was to call the doctor's office when my drains were at 35 CCs within 24 hours. I was discharged on a Wednesday so that unfortunately took place between Friday & Saturday. I emailed the doctor's office to see if I could come in on Monday, received a reply on Sunday to call in the morning. Cool, no big deal...until a historic flood decided to happen. Crazy, right? So stranded at home for 2 days. My follow up appt was already scheduled for Thursday so I decided it's best to wait. There are still areas with high water so getting to certain parts of town aren't exactly easy. A surge of heavy rain hit about about 2 hours before my appt. I was not going to chance it so I left my office early to account for traffic & detours. It took me an hour to get there and I did run into some scary high water...chanted the whole way through "please don't flood my car". Success, car came through like a champ! The surgeon's assistant came in to remove my drains. She has such a calming voice, very sweet and gentle woman. She warned me that as she pulled the drains out that it would be a weird sensation and indeed it was!! Creepy! I could feel the ends were up along side my belly button and of course they are inserted down by your hairline. That's a few inches! Haha and you feel it being pulled out, ew. SO glad that's done & over. Had a list of questions for my doctor but forgot to ask what the total duration would be to continue wearing my binder, ugh. Happy to be cleared for a full shower, yay, no more sponge bathes!! I purchased some very handy waterproof bandages & tape. The adhesive on the tape was very gentle so no issues there. It's also very flexible. Enjoyed my first full shower in almost 2 weeks...feeling like HALF a million bucks ;) My doctor wanted me to wear a tank top under my binder so the incision wouldn't be irritated by the binder. That wasn't very comfortable for me. Everything seemed to get bunch and I'd like to avoid creating more lumps. Decided to use some non stick pads and paper tape. Applied some neosporin to my belly button and drain sites. Everything is in place & secure now, yay. Now if only I had more clothing options haha Everything is healing nicely. Bruising is going away slowly but surely. You know what's funny though? The doctor showed me my before picture and I totally forgot I had a mole on my tummy...not anymore!! Haha it's kind of surreal. On a side note, I need to get a copy of those pictures. Updated on 3 May 2016: All the bruising from the lipo is gone now. Luminescent seems to be smoothing out. Still feeling numb in certain areas. When did y'all start noticing the numb areas get feeling back? The area between my belly button and incision is still tight. That's the area I feel the most numb. It's such a strange feeling when I touch it to clean, even more so when I don't look. Shaving is awkward since my drain holes are still healing. I don't have the courage to take my razor to it so I trim with these super small pointy scissors. Gotta do it ever so carefully so I don't accidentally stab or cut myself. Feel like I've gotta buy stock in those waterproof Band-Aid pads that I use for showering. I don't have to rush through bathing...ahhh... I'm getting antsy to start working out but doc said I couldn't until 6 weeks post op. Are any of y'all doing any kind of exercises? Started taking 500mg of Bromelain twice a day. I'm still quite swollen too. If you're taking Bromelain, how much & how often are you taking it? How do you know if it's helping? Updated on 10 May 2016: I'm anxious for my 1 month follow up appointment with my doctor on Thursday. I really am hoping he'll tell me I can get my incision wet. Waterproofing my incision so I can enjoy a full shower is time consuming and those bandaids aren't cheap. It basically costs me $12 per shower. And in 2-3 more weeks I'll be cleared to start exercising again! Part of me doesn't want to push my recovery too hard and the other part of me thinks I'm babying myself too much. All I know is I don't want to have to redo this experience haha So, the stabbing on my belly button is slowly starting to clear up. The drainage holes are pretty much healed; one has healed faster than the other. I have this fear of being resentful from the residual numb areas, like regret because I'll never be completely normal again. Or I'll be forever uncomfortable & weirded out because of the numbness. How have some of y'all coped with it? I mean, how awkward is it really? Updated on 31 May 2016: A couple of weeks ago I learned from my aunt that she and my cousin were both really sensitive to medical tape. That made a lot of sense for me because I have also been irritated by the tape I've been using. Not sure if anyone has noticed the pinky irritated skin in my pictures. I usually try to put the tape in a different area when I change my bandages. Sometimes I'll get a blister from it. I don't like wearing a shirt between my skin & the binder because it rubbed more that way whichever caused more irritation and blisters. Call me crazy, but keeping the bandages on for this long has been like my comfort blanket...until my incision is pretty healed up, I'll be keeping it covered mostly to protect it from getting irritated when my clothes or binder rub up against the incision. My doctor suggested that if the surgical tape wasn't bothering me to just keep it on which would help my scar to heal better. So I haven't been in a hurry to remove it as it hasn't bothered me at all. The only thing that has had me concerned was right in the center there has been some kind of liquid leaking out. It has a sweet scent to it oddly enough. It's not red or warm and since I'm still pretty numb in that area, I can't tell if it's hurting so I can't decipher if it's infected. I decided I should remove the surgical tape to finally see how the incision looked. I put some neosporin on it and put fresh bandages on. Is it weird that I feel vulnerable without the surgical tape on? Haha like I'm going to bust open because the protective tape isn't holding me together anymore. My imagination is getting crazy haha. I'm still swollen so even though the doctor says I'm clear to remove the binder, I'm still wearing it. I've decided to buy a new waist cincher with the 3 rows of hooks. It will probably work better than this velcro one. I have to have my husband wrap me up. I shouldn't need him so much once I've got the new waist cincher. I'm starting to feel a little more normal these days. My skin is feeling less and less numb which is great! I'm trying not to measure my progress against others here because I know everyone heals differently. I just hope I'll feel comfortable enough by July to run around in a bathing suit because I'm expected to attend a beach weekend Bachelorette party get away.
Hi ladies! I have been researching and going on consultations and trying to make a final choice. Has anyone had work performed by Dr. Varon? If so please share your experience(s). I'm thinking of a tummy tuck, lipo, and a possible bbl. My other surgeon is the lovely Dr. Sato who has an awesome staff. Updated on 21 Jul 2016: Looking for any information both good and bad so that I can make final decisions. Updated on 8 Oct 2016: Hello Ladies, I am really trying to narrow my search with hopes of atummy tuck and naval hernia repair. Does anyone have a reports or can help me find information about Dr. Jacobo Varon here in Houston,Tx.?I have really trying to narrow my search before the end of the year as I want to go into the new year with a new body.
