Jeannie MacDonald, MD

I am only on day 4 post surgery... The surgery went smooth. I had a full abdominoplasty with rectal plication. The recovery so far has been painful and very uncomfortable. I am wearing a binder and am taking OxyContin for pain. My breath is short. All of this feels normal and I am getting better each hour. Updated on 10 May 2015: Here is my post op tummy!

The biggest pro i am already experiencing is the knots in my shoulders are soft!I have had big boob since jr high,lost weight put ,weight back on but breast still very out of portion with my body size,4"10 150 lbs.38 to 40 DD.My br was done on May 1 2012.I will turn 50 in December,think this is a great present to self.My reason for doing it was to take one more thing that agrrevates my cfs and fibro my Updated on 9 May 2012: Off to see the surgeon for 1 week follow up!Need to get another compression bandage!Doing well! Tired but that is not new for me.!Showered and wrapped the girls on my own again today!Looking forward for the first time in many years of having a better quality of life! Updated on 10 May 2012: Good Morning everyone,Today is only day 8 get to remove all tapes today!I feel pretty good at this point!Saw PS yesterday forgot to ask how much she took off each breast!Will see her in 2 weeks will have to wait till then i guess!I am gratful to all you women for the support i have receives!Not comfortable with posting pics!! Updated on 10 May 2012: So today is actually day 9! Took all the tapes off today!I found myself looking in the mirror wondering who's body am i in! Day by day i'm sure this too shall pass!Anyone else experiencing mixed feelings! Updated on 12 May 2012: Today is day 11 ! not sure why but there is some blood on the pads ,protecting the sites,seems weird since i haven't had any till today!One side looks quite red! Anyway i gonna just take it a day at a time! So how long till i can get smaller size bra and where it!I am very bored being on the couch!Have to stop myself and remember its only day 11! Updated on 16 May 2012: Well good morning everyone today is day 15 so happy to be coming out the other side!The girls are beginning to heal ,but one spot at t joint not so well!I feel really good but wish i knew what size i will end up at! PS suggest not to buy smaller bras for few months!I am so excited that my shoulders are doing a lot better!Will continue to take it easy as best i can!Not my strong point! lol! How is everyone else doing!!!!!!!!! Updated on 17 May 2012: Hi ladies!!Wondering if anyone else has split a stitch at the t joint! Looks like the stitch next to it may have split as well!! I saw family doctor yesterday shouldn't he know if it is in need of repair !I It's raw sore!I feel good but concerned that have to week shouldn't have open wound!I mean should I! Updated on 17 May 2012: Went to er so the stitches had popped more than half way on one side!Doctor said can't stitch it or it will abbcess!So he steri strip on both sides to stop it from opening further!I 'm still very happy to be on the other side working towards full recovery! Updated on 19 May 2012: Good Morning Good Morning Ladies! Today is day 18! As i mentioned have had some minor hiccups!Feel bit better today!I was trying to crop a photo to upload but cant seem to do it!Looks better for sure!Still couple of opened up spots but think i'm on the other side some what!Staying still so not me!Hope everyone else is doing better! Updated on 22 May 2012: So still having a bit of a problem with one side remaining open and raw!Trying really hard to rest!Appointment with ps in morning!Hope she will tell me how to get it to heal!Thanks to all on this site for your reassurance and help! Updated on 23 May 2012: GOOD MORNING EVERYONE!Back from PS everything is healing up nicely!She showed me again what is happening!Said it is healing but will take longer than some people! Not to shock! .Very happy that i made the decision to have it down!When all is said and done things will be so amazing!She still has received the pathology report but will call when they receive it! I pulled my first stitch today LOL I can now drive short distances thank goodness cause i was feeling very isolated without my car!TODAY IS DAY 21 ! So gratful for all the help and encouragement here!Good luck to the ladies who are coming after me! Updated on 25 May 2012: Good morning everyone!Things here are going pretty well!Healing is happening!Super itchey !That is a very good sign! Wondering when all you lovely ladies started using the bio oil!I still have one open spot so not on there im sure!Looking forward to the day when i don't need to wear bra 24/7I'm use to taking if off as soon as i get home at night.So it has been quite the challenge for me to keep wearing it.Couple more weeks and well be home free!I am so glad i found this site when i did has made the journey alot easier!HAVE A GREAT DAY THINKING ABOUT zing praying all has gone well! Updated on 28 May 2012: Hello everyone! Today is day 27!Just took a new picture,going to try and post it!Things here are going fairly,sending my helpful son home today!Think I'm ready for some peace and quiet! My tt's are healing nicely,itchy itchy!Hope everyone else is doing well!Zing hope all is well !Rember ladies slow and steady wins the race! Updated on 13 Oct 2012: Well good afternoon everyone!I am a little over the 6 month mark now!Things are progressing slowly!Still wish they were smaller but such is life!Finding it very weird to be able to go bra less!Planning beach holiday so will need to get new swim suits!The great news for me is the injured shoulder is a lot better!I am so gratful i found this site !I meet some very amazing and supportive people here !SO gratful!

So Iv just had my consultation last week. All went well and I'm booked in for a tt with lipo on flanks for December 4th. Let me just say I'm so excited and anxious I just can't wait! My stats are 5'7 and 235 lbs. No kids yet. I'm currently on jenny craig trying to loose a bit of weight before my surgery. At my consultation my Dr went over the muscle repair(and everything else) I was shocked to find out my muscles have separated with weight gain. As shocked as I was I'm so excited to be getting this fixed and move on over to the flat side! Updated on 2 Oct 2014: I'm meeting with anesthesiologist to go over everything on Tuesday. I'm excited to be one step closer :) Iv signed all my forms and sent my measurements off for the cg. I'm obsessed with looking up pictures and reviews f the procedure! I'm hoping time goes by quickly! I have an amazing support system that I'm so thankful for! My mom has had the procedure before so I'm talking non stop to her about. She is also a nurse and will be taking care of me after the surgery. Other than my mom Iv only told one out of 4 siblings about the surgery and he had been super supportive of the whole thing too! Iv been trying to hold off on any clothing shopping until after the surgery but it's killing me! Does anyone know if I should expect to drop a size? Or more or less?? :) Updated on 3 Oct 2014: So today I was dying of boredom so i thought I should go shopping. Bad idea! I found a few bathing suits I'm more than in love with (and they are bikinis ) my hopes are that after my sx I'll be in a bikini. So now I'm dying to buy one to wear in some before and after pics but I don't know what size to get eeeek! My mom tells me I should wait because I don't know how it will fit but to be honest the bathing suit does not touch my stomach so i don't think the size will change that much. Anyways I put one suit hold until tomorrow but can't stop thinking about it ... so I'll probably buy it . And I'm hoping the bottoms will cover my scar .... if not I think I'll tell people I got attacked by a tiger in Asia Hahah! ! Updated on 4 Oct 2014: 2 months from today I'll be on the flat side! It still does not seem real but I'm so excited! Iv been a little worried after reading that alot of people experience itching after sx. I have very sensitive skin and everything makes me itchy so Iv been worrying about the insision. I suppose I should talk to the PS and get some super strength benadryl just to be safe! Jumped the gun a bit today and bought a swimsuit and I'm soo excited to wear it on a beach in Asia while soaking up the sun next summer (aka getting Hella sunburnt ) Updated on 6 Oct 2014: Today I'm feeling super anxious! I have alot going on with work right now and getting ready for the sx so i think everything's just kinda going on at once. My eating today was horrible(but tomorrow I'll be back on track) I meet with the anistesiologyst tomorrow and I'm a bit nervous about that for some reason. I tend to get anxious when I don't know what to expect so I think that's part of it. However I'm getting more and more excited everyday for the sx. My mom keeps pointing out how much better I'm going to feel about myself and how I'm going to look amazing! Her kind words really help me stay positive! I feel like my sx is so far away but everyday I'm a little closer. My younger sister (she's only 14) does not know Iv set a date. She's a worrier too and does not want me to get it done in fear of something happening to me. She has never struggled with weight (she a tiny size 3) so she does not understand all my reasons for doing this. I think her not knowing is part of my anxiety as well. This update is kinda all over the place haha but honestly today that's where I'm at :p Updated on 9 Oct 2014: Went back to work today after being off for the summer and than a awful strike. It felt good to be working and keeping myself busy to help time go by! Fell off track a bit from my eating plan but I'm back on track and feeling great. Have been drinking more water (my to do this week) so i feel good about that! My anistesiologyst cancelled my consult with him because he was caught up in surgery. The clinic that I'll be having my sx at was amazing about re scheduling and keeping me updated about If he would have been able to make it to the consult so i feel great about that and all the positivity there! So so excited about the surgery! Everyday all day it's all I think about. I had a clothing catastrophe about what to wear to work today and than it hit me soon I'll be able to wear what ever I want and look good and feel good in it! And next summer I think I'll be living in a bikini! Iv waited my whole life to feel comfortable in a bikini!! Ramble over :) bed time..wishing all you lovely ladies safe surgeries and recoveries and positive thoughts to all ya :) xoxo Updated on 11 Oct 2014: My Saturday night is consisting of the notebook, a slice of my jenny craig chocolate cheese cake (one slice was no enough I'm dying for more hahah chubby girl problem right :p) and real self Decided today I'm going to get my thunder thighs back into the gym...texted my trained tonight to set up some butt kicking sweat dripping (probably throwing up) work outs! I have not been in the gym since before my asia trip this summer(which was 2 months ago haha) excited with some anxiety about working out again. I'm dying to loose a bit of weight as well as tone up my thighs before my surgery so I'm more proportioned afterwards. Little nervous to tell my trainer about my sx but when it comes down to it I'm doing it for me and no one's opinions matter :) Well the notebook just ended time for chickflick number 2 and I guess a banana (more cake does sound way better tho) Hope all you ladies are having a great weekend and happy thanksgiving to and fellow Canadians :) Updated on 12 Oct 2014: New bikini pics...this is the bikini I had to buy for after sx ...here are the before pics...eeek can't wait for the after!! Updated on 12 Oct 2014: Just wanted to share what I'm going to be using on my scar once I have my sx. Iv used the regular coco butter and it honestly is amazing. So moisturizing and not greasy. And it helps stretch marks!! Its great for sensitive skin and I use it from my face to my feet! I saw the scar oil near the bio oil in target and it was like 7.99 verses a 30 for bio oil. I'll be picking up this plus the regular palmers coco butter lotion for after my sx. Updated on 15 Oct 2014: So I have 50 days till surgery and it can't come soon enough! I'm so ready and excited I can't wait! I met with my trainer (who I had not seen in 4 month) and started back at the gym. I'm not seeing the results from jenny craig I want so I'm going to be starting a new nutrition plan with real food that my trainer has suggested! I'm excited to start that this weekend :) it's been great going back to the gym! I have not been in four months so it was a rocky first few days after I went. But I'm a lot stronger than I thought I'd be so that makes me happy and push myself even more. Hope to tone up my thunder thighs and giggly arms a bit before surgery! As I was doing squats today I thought how much better I will look and feel once my dreaded tummy is gone! My tummy tuck is really just the start of this journey! I hope to get down to 180 after surgery with healthy eating and gym. I need this tt to tighten my muscles and give me the flat stomach I could no have without it. My trainer is so supportive about all this and is really pushing me to get to where I want ! I'm so excited for the future and what it has to offer :) Updated on 17 Oct 2014: Will I need more then the compression garment my PS provides me?? I was thinking of ordering one off of Amazon but won't if I don't need it! Updated on 17 Oct 2014: Met with my anistesiologyst today. All is good and a go. I have to get my iron check checked but I'm not to worried about it. One step closer t being on the flat side! I seriously can't wait! Updated on 21 Oct 2014: 44 day! Eek it can't come soon enough! Tomorrow I start me new eating plan..I had hoped to start sooner but life got in the way! I have not been going to the gym as much as I'd like to so tomorrow I'm getting my butt back in there! I have not mentioned before but I struggle with pcos. Let me just say how much I hate having this! It makes loosing weight so hard and gaining it so easy. It gives me anxiety and irregular periods(if any). I have low iron due to it to. Not to mention the horrible hair growth everywhere! So I had my usual pcos melt down the other night. Iv been battling really bad headaches for the past few months. Went to my eye doctor and it looks like I have some swelling in my eye from too much fluid in my Brain. Sounds a hell of alot scarier than it is. But as I was researching it it was linked to pcos. Which than caused me to have my melt down. Went to my family doctor and I'm book in with a endocrinologist who will hopefully help me manage my pcos. Also going to see a brain/eye doctor. All of this just kind of added extra stress in did not need last week. Any ways I'm getting everything in order hopefully in the next 44 days haha back to the gym and eating good tomorrow . Rant now over! Haha Updated on 27 Oct 2014: Everyday I look in the mirror and get so excited to get rid of my jiggly tummy! Iv been working really hard at eating good and working out. Even went to an extra boot camp with my trainer today! I'm seriously so excited I just want my surgery now! I start a new job this week which will hopefully make these 38 days go by fast. I will have to fill out a leave of absence when I start, hopefully they won't mind :p I'll only be taking two weeks off and than 2 weeks I already have off for Christmas break :) Anyways thought I'd post some wish pics. Also found out I'll be going to Vietnam and Cambodia this July and I'm so excited to rock a bikini! I have a reunion in January with a group of people I went to burma with this past summer so I can't wait wait for everyone to see my new body! Hope everyone is recovering well xoxo Updated on 6 Nov 2014: Well I have 28 more sleeps till my sx! I want it to be here now! I just started with a new child (I work with special needs kids ) and it's alot more physical then my previous students. I'm a bit concerned about going back to work after sx. I will be off for 4 weeks and 2 days lol so I'm sure I'll be fine. I started training my replacement for my other job today for while I'm off after sx. This is a relief that someone will be able to take over and and my student will still get support. I'll probs take off less time for this job as its not as physical and my clients families are flexible. I still have to ask for my time off work which I'm nervous about since I just started in the position. But I'm thinking they can't say no to a surgery and they don't know it's a optimal surgery. Anyways in exactly 4 weeks I'll be on the flat side! Really hoping time goes by fast! !! Updated on 9 Nov 2014: 25 more sleeps! Had my first nightmare last night that I got the sx was in no much pain but I looked the same before and after! Eek I'm so ready for this surgery! Can't wait to be on the flat side and start my recovery. Since I go in for sx beginning for December I need to get my xmas shopping done before I go in! Next week I will go out and do that and check another thing off my to do list :) Updated on 18 Nov 2014: 16 more sleeps...eeek it still feels surreal but I know everyday I'm a little closer to reality! I feel like Iv been bit with a roller coaster of emotions this week. I'm nervous scared excited happy scared anxious excited and more excited! I'm very ready to be on the flat side and not have to worry about my horrible tummy! I just booked a trip to Vietnam and Cambodia for the summer and I can't wait to show off in a bikini :D Updated on 24 Nov 2014: So I'm a week and 2 days until surgery and I got a call from the surgery center. Iv been having some tests done on my eyes because of some swelling my eye dr saw. Anyways it looks like it due to intercranial swelling(sounds wayyyyy worse than it really is) the anistesiologyst said he wants a nuro report but I ha e not been seen by a nuro dr. So I had a melt down after talking to them thinking my surgery was going to be cancelled and jumping to conclusions. Thank goodness for my amazing amazing mother who called the surgery center and figured everything out. She also works in a hospital with the nuro dr I need to see so they are able to squeeze me in tomorrow!! All is good now it was just a very overwhelming phone call. And to boot I have a horrible cold I'm trying to get rid of by next Thursday. Updated on 25 Nov 2014: Has anyone been on Topamax? I was prescribed it today by my neurologyst for headaches and intercranial pressure. One of the side effects is weight loss. I read some reviews and it's like a significant amount of weight loss. Just wondering if anyone has tried this for what ever reason and had weight loss? I'm going to be starting it a few weeks after my surgery and hoping it will help me drop a bit of weight while taking my headaches away! Updated on 28 Nov 2014: 6 more sleeps! I could not be more excited! Iv literally waited my whole life to have a flat stomach. Iv battled with this darn stomach my entire life! I want these 6 sleeps to go by fast!!! Only 3 more work days. I have finished my xmas shopping just need to wrap everything (the hard part haha) . Booked a hair appointment to get my hair coloured Wednesday so it will be nice to have fresh hair when I go to the flat side hahah! Updated on 1 Dec 2014: Eeeeeeek I'm so excited three more sleeps! Pre surgery measurement Under bust 41 inches Waist 44 Around belly button 50 Just under bellybutton 49 Around bum 49 Can't wait to loose some of these inches :D Updated on 3 Dec 2014: Tomorrow is the day! My or time is 11:00am. Nerves hit me today like a ton of bricks carrying anxiety! Just got my hair done and going to try...key work is try...to get some sleep tonight! Wishing everyone a safe and speedy recovery :) xoxo Updated on 4 Dec 2014: All went well today. I woke up very sore and nauseated but soon got it all under control. My surgeon was beyond amazing! Tightened my muscles up really good. They had a very big gap she said. She said she gave me a little waist and really defined it! Yay!!! She did some extra lipo too to get the best result. I can't wait to see it in a few days. Too scared to even look now. My mom has been so amazing taking care of me! My best friend who is also amazing is going to come be my nurse when my mom goes back to work. Anyways my meds are kicking in so I'm going to relax and watch hunger games AND hope to sleep :) happy speedy recoveries for everyone! Updated on 5 Dec 2014: I'm alive! I'm sore but nothing too bad. Worst part is sleeping. I'm a big stomach sleeper so I'm having a hard time getting more than an hour. I've been up and walking around a little :) i can't wait to see under this Binder and bandages lol Updated on 6 Dec 2014: Here is the on pic Iv been able to take so far. So far looks very flat! When im standing there's definitely definition in my waist :D I'm so thrilled with this so far. Hardest part is sleeping but im managing. Also peeing is hard from all the meds. But so far nothing has been too bad. (Knock on wood) hopefully drains will come out Monday as they are definitely a pain in the booty. Off to get some sleep now. Happy recovering to everyone !! Updated on 7 Dec 2014: I don't even know what day it is lol pain is not too bad. Been keeping up on my meds. Iv been able to get out and in of bed by myself once. Yay! Still no bm :( hoping today. I'm ready for these drains to come out! Hopefully tomorrow..fingers crossed. Overall nothing is too bad thus far :) Happy healing everyone Updated on 7 Dec 2014: Not the best pic as I have my binder on but can definitely see in smaller!! Sorry for the drains eeek! Updated on 7 Dec 2014: Ugh forgot to upload it lol Updated on 9 Dec 2014: Got my drains out yesterday!!! Yay feel so much better without them. My surgeon said everything looks great. I did have a bit of a reaction to the steristrips so i have a little bit of weird bruising from that but it will go away. Had a shower today and it felt freaking amazing! I also got to see my stomach for the first time!!! It looked so good even with the allergic reaction!!! Yesterday i had a very emotional day for what ever reason. I cried at everything and anything. I guess it was good to get it all out and today I feel wayyyyy better :) Updated on 10 Dec 2014: Today I went to see my PS for the second time this week. I had a horrible allergic reaction to the steri strip after surgery so i have some ugly bruising she wanted to check on. It does not look like the skin is dead and it's getting better every day..phewww I had a bit of a panic about it but dr said it looks good. I wore a Tshirt today and looked in the mirror and omg it looked amazing! My stomach was so flat!! I was so happy!! :D I can't wait to try on clothes. I went to target for a bit after the Dr and boy was I tired! Had to leave after about 10 mins and came home and slept for a few hours :p Happy healing to everyone! Xo