I started my research about 2 months ago because I am so tired of my stomach. It is not in proportion to the rest of my body after 2 children with a c-section. I am 5'6" and weigh about 145. I work out, eat vegan and gluten free. Nothing that I do changes my stomach which is stretched out with fat deposits that won't budge. After meeting with 4 plastic surgeons, they all agree that a tummy tuck would give me the best results, however my children are very active and I do not have the down time that comes with a tummy tuck. I have been told that smart lipo will give me the next best result with minimal down time, so that is what I am going with! My procedure is scheduled at 9:30am tomorrow and I am so excited! I will share before pictures in a little while. Updated on 2 Nov 2017: Today is the day of my Smart Lipo procedure at Pure MD Med Spa! I am really excited! I have to be there at 9:30am. Thought I would include my before pics! Updated on 2 Nov 2017: Had a great experience at Pure MD Med Spa! The staff is so wonderful and made me feel cared for the entire time! Dr Perrine was great! I was funny and professional and it was obvious he is extremely experienced! I am so thankful that he did my procedure! Even though I was still filled with fluid after, I could tell that the upper abdomen fat that I hated was finally gone! Hurray! I am kind of groggy and sore but will post about the actual procedure later. Updated on 3 Nov 2017: So I had a really hard time sleeping last night and ended up going downstairs to sleep in the recliner. This morning I am in a lot of pain because the numbing solution has worn off. I am swollen huge and so nauseous! I haven't vomited but have almost vomited twice. I think the only reason that I didn't is because I am so swollen and my compression garment is so tight it is hard for my stomach to really heave the contents out. Hopefully I feel better soon, but even with the swelling I can see that the fat that was in my upper abdomen is gone! Hurray! Updated on 3 Nov 2017: Updated on 5 Nov 2017: So my oldest daughter had a cheer competition today and we were there from 8:30am to 5pm and I was sitting on the bleachers the entire time! My faja is now too loose for me and my smaller one hasn't arrived yet. I put spanx over top of the faja for extra compression but because the garment is too big it kept folding at my middle while I was sitting, even when I was sitting super straight! I am terrified that I am going to get a crease across my middle! I just got home and put an ab board in my garment and am laying down. Hopefully it helps! So just as an update to my day after surgery post, my nausea turned into vomitting so I had to call my doctor. He said that it was a reaction to the pain medicine and the nausea may last a couple days. I am now 3 days post surgery and my nausea is gone. I feel really good only extremely sore! I'll take some updated pics tomorrow! Updated on 6 Nov 2017: So I was going to post some updated pics after a shower but I swelled up so much during the shower that the compression garment that was loose before the shower could barely get snapped up after the shower. I think maybe it was the combination of the heat from the shower and the length of time my garment was off? No idea, but I will post some updated photos once the swelling goes back down. Updated on 8 Nov 2017: So I am still really swollen but not as bad as the last couple of days. It is my understanding that the swelling is just a sign of healing so even though it is discouraging to see myself puffed up again, I am happy that I am on the mend. Here are a couple of photos from today. I know it doesn't look like a huge change from my before photos, but I can feel the swelling in the front of my abdomen. I think my flanks look better though. Updated on 11 Nov 2017: So I went in for my 1 week follow up appointment and was fitted for a new compression garment. The nurse said that I had gotten so swollen because my compression garment was too loose and was bunching in the middle. My new compression garment feels so much better and my swelling has started to go down! Yay!! Here are a couple of updated pics from today. Updated on 20 Nov 2017: So it has been a little over 2 weeks since my Smartlipo procedure on my upper and lower abdomen and flanks. So far I am very pleased with the results. My swelling had gone down, but I just returned from a work trip and have started swelling again. I think it is from the plane ride and all the walking in the city. Here are a couple of updated pics. I am swollen in these. Also, I need a smaller compression garment. My second one is too loose when the swelling goes down. Updated on 27 Nov 2017: So I finally found a massage therapist near me that does lymph drainage massage! I scheduled my first appointment for tomorrow and I am so excited! I really hope it helps with the swelling. I was in the car for 10 hours on Saturday driving home from Thanksgiving with family and I have been really swollen since then. Fingers crossed! I will post an update after the massage!! :) Updated on 7 Dec 2017: So the massage last week seems to have helped with the swelling. I am still a little swollen, but so much better than before! Here are some updated pics! I am a month and a few days post op. Hopefully my stretched out skin continues to retract as well! Updated on 19 Jan 2018: So it has been a little over 3 months since my procedure and I am SO happy with my results! My stomach is so FLAT! and I have lost over 4 inches off of my waist! I have lost an inch off of each thigh as well! The only thing that is still concerning is my stretched out skin, although it is getting better slowly. Dr. Perrine told me that is will continue to contract up to a year from my surgery and told me that I should continue wearing my compression garment as it will help my skin to contract as well. However, he told me if I am still unhappy with my skin after 6 months, that we can look at a mini-tummy tuck for the skin only. He said that I wouldn't need a muscle repair (yay!!). So, I may talk to him about that in May if my skin is still this loose. Otherwise, I could not be happier with the results of my procedure and I would highly recommend Dr. Perrine! He is a wonderful surgeon!
As a person Dr Perrine is very nice. However, my experience with smart lipo and PureMD in Dayton was very poor. I had smart lipo to my flanks and thighs in May 2016. I never saw a difference after the procedure, no change whatsoever after all the swelling went down. I am very healthy and work out almost daily and my weight never increased after. I took measurements but never saw an improvement in any area. I gave it an entire year to measure the outcome. I now have loose skin that I hate, even though I was told I was a good candidate and that smart lipo would “tighten” the areas. I was never given a follow up appt and the Dr never called me after. One of my sutures got infected and left a scar because they forgot to remove them. I am very sad I had it done and wish I could get my money back.
