•I had a BR on 1/9/19 with Dr. Welch. Five isn’t enough stars, I couldn’t recommend her more. I am 25 y/o Black female, never had any type of plastic surgery, scoliosis sufferer and found her through my insurance network. Started at 32H cup at 5’8”, 150lbs. •I was nervous about every step of the process. Doc Welch and her team helped me with EVERYTHING—the procedure itself, cost, downtime, getting my employer to sign off on leave, insurance benefits! Her energy and knowledge made you feel like you were in great hands. Her IG page shows her certifications and results of some procedures, plus her other reviews were very good. I wanted a female surgeon in particular, and I preferred a doctor who understood skin with melanin, she heard that and we discussed my options in a completely judgement-free way. I was approved thanks to her letter to my insurance. !!Shout-out to her scheduler Jody who was amazing with all of my calls and questions. I’m only 8 days post-op and my healing is perfect, everyone says my body looks perfect and I sincerely thank Doc Welch and the AM Team for their work, professionalism, and would highly recommend especially if you are considering this procedure. My mom has expressed to me she will go to Doc Welch when she gets this done.
I can’t begin to tell you how amazing Dr Welch is. She is so kind, compassionate, and made my process so smooth. I was very nervous about my sizing, and she reassured me in every way. I had 110% confidence in her. She take the time with you to make sure your completely satisfied. She may cost a little more than others, but I’d pay over and over again for the trust I have in her. She is amazing and we are so lucky to have her close to the Toledo area. She is a true gem, and her staff is too. AM Skincare is clean, chic, and quick! No waiting times ever! If you’re trying to decide who to go to for cosmetic surgery/breast aug. don’t think twice.... see Dr Marlene Welch. Promise you’ll be just as thankful as I am!
If I could give Dr Welch and her staff 10 stars I would. I had breast augmentation, a breast lift to my right breast and liposuction to my abdomen. At my consultation appointment I was initially nervous, but Jodi and Dr. Welch made me feel comfortable. They are so upbeat, genuine, and caring. I just had my surgery yesterday (may 8, 2017). The pain is not bad at all! I'm just sore. I would recommend Dr Welch to everyone. She is gentle and the look in her eyes that she just understands and cares. I'll post photos shortly!
10 days after surgery. My breasts are beautiful! Yes, there is pain. You must take the required time off! (2 weeks for me) I saw Dr Welch on 7 Th. day post op and she was very happy with my healing and answered all my questions. Also, the morning of surgery I had tears in my eyes and she gently talked me through and said I'm gonna do a great job on you. I want you to be happy!
Night before- As I sit here trying to figure out how I am going to fall asleep, I am contemplating how I got here. I am 48 years old about to have, what I believe to be aggressive cosmetic surgery. The plan is to have an abdominoplasty, breast augmentation, and a little lipo on the upper inner thigh. Why am I doing this to myself? Is this all going to be worth it? Do I really want to go through all the pain? These are all the questions I am asking myself. Why am I doing this. I am doing this for aesthetic as well as functional reasons. You see I am a 48-year-old who has been a pretty intense athlete her whole life, and when I say intense I mean intense. I was a collegiate and post collegiate distance runner, competitive cross-country skier, and most recently a world age group qualifier in the triathlon. My average training time is around 1-2 hours a day plus strength training up until recently, where I have been suffering from lower back pain, hip issue, and hip flexor issues. Through lots of consultations and a lot of research I have resolved that the abdominoplasty may actually help these injuries, and I may be able to train like I like to. Let me explain, 15 years ago, I had a beautiful baby boy, the boy is awesome, but the pregnancy left a side effect which is distended oblique muscles. That is right most women get a diastasis, but not me. Due to the distention, I look 4 months pregnant all the time no matter how skinny I am, no matter how hard I work my abs. Since my abs do not support my core the way they should my lower back picks up the slack, which they cannot handle all that stress therefore my hip flexors and piriformis step in, thus pain all the way around. The other two procedures are occurring because I feel while I am on the table I might as well perk up the breast, and lose the thigh rubbing I have had since I turned 40. Is this all going to be worth it? I hope so, I think so, I know so. Yes, yes I believe it will because after the many conversations I have had with Dr. Welch, she has given me the confidence it will all go great. She has been amazing through the whole pre-op process, she has been willing to spend as much time with me as needed to make me feel comfortable, and knowledgeable about what I am about to do. She is the only surgeon that asked me about my lower back pain, before I mentioned it, she was the only surgeon to look at all the different possibilities on how we might go about the abdominoplasty in the least aggressive way. She was 100% supportive on making sure we didn’t augment my chest to an enormous size instead she listened, look at my body frame, and demonstrated all the different options so that we both agreed what size I would look best in and be most comfortable. Finally, she was honest she didn’t sugar coat anything she let me know what might or might not happen, and let me tell you that was refreshing. See, Dr. Welch is an athlete herself so she totally understands an athletes mind set, and how certain changes in the body can affect training and appearance. Which leads me to my last question is all the pain going to be worth it? I whole heartedly believe it will be, but only time will tell and hope is the people that read this blog will follow me in my journey. I plan to document my entire journey (pictures included) from tonight the night before all the way up to a full year. My hope is that if there are any athletes (or anyone for that matter) out there who have my same issues, or just don’t like how they look and are thinking about surgery, I can put them at ease. Updated on 1 Feb 2017: December 12th, 2016 The morning of my surgery, I was a nervous wreck, and so was my husband. It didn’t help that I got confused on which surgical facility we had to go to, therefore we were a tiny bit late. Once we arrived they took me back right away, gave me a paper gown and told me to strip down. Once I was stripped down and in the bed a nurse came in and put an IV in for the anesthetic, and they put these plastic sleeves on my lower leg that blow up and deflate to increase circulation in the legs to prevent blood clots. The scariest pre-op procedure was when the anesthesiologist explained his disclaimers for being under, the more he revealed the whiter my husband’s face got. So just note to yourself if your companion is going to be with you maybe give them a heads up so they don’t panic. My BFF was with me too and that was priceless because she kept everything light and airy which kept us all relaxed. That all took or at least it felt like about 30 min, then they started to put drugs in my IV and that is the last thing I remember until post-op. When I woke up after my surgery (which I felt like I was only under a minute), I was STARVING, groggy, and a little disoriented. Once I realized what was going on and what just happened, I immediately asked the doctor if I should have had the abdominoplasty. Dr. Welch said absolutely she said there was no way I could have fixed the damage my pregnancy had done. I in fact she said I did have a diastasis in my abdominis muscle, which really surprised her, because before surgery those was zero indication that I had one. Then she continued to explain that my obliques were so distended the she had to put two layers of stitches to pull them in. In my mind that means the risk was totally worth it because maybe just maybe I have fixed my lower back issues. Leaving the surgery center wasn’t too bad, but walking up the stairs to get to my room was a little tougher. You can’t stand up straight and because I had my chest done as well use of the arms was out of the question too. However, we made it and thank god, I had an adjustable bed that was my savior it made it much easier to get in bed and comfortable. Updated on 1 Feb 2017: Week 1- Week one seemed to go really fast for me, but that may have been because I spent the whole week on pain meds. I highly recommend keeping up on the pain meds throughout the whole process of healing, I would swear this is what has made this so easy on me. I have a girlfriend who is totally anti-drug period not even cough medicine or Advil, and she told me having an abdominoplasty was the worst experience of her life and if she had it to do over again she wouldn’t. In my case I would because to me it hasn’t been that bad. The challenges I had during this week was dealing with the drain, getting in and out of bed, and going to the bathroom. Oh, and my first shower was an adventure too. I was lucky because for the first 24 hours I had a nurse and a nurse’s aide at my disposal. I highly recommend it if you can afford it because it took a lot of pressure off of my family and me. They helped getting me out of bed, my meds, and my drain. Plus, someone was available all night and I didn’t have to disturb anyone. Getting out of bed was less than a challenge for me then some because my bed was adjustable, therefore I could put the legs all the way down and back completely up which helped push me in an upright position without having to use my arms. You see I can’t use my arms to get up because you aren’t supposed to do anything weight baring due to the augmentation, I can’t use my core due to the abdominoplasty. Due to the drugs and extent of the surgery someone had to still assist me out of bed (adjustable made it easier but still needed help) and walk me to the bathroom for the first 3 days. On day 4 I took a shower, which felt fantastic but I started to get nauseous and light headed before I was even able to get dressed so we finished dressing me in bed (the nurse was there to help with the shower too, she came back out of the goodness in her heart). The nurse said between the meds and the blood rushing to the areas where I needed to heal that is why I got a little lightheaded and nauseous, she said it was normal. I got lucky with the drain because I only needed one, most get a drain on both sides of the stomach, but the doc said because of my fitness level one was the number. The drain is very easy to deal with, I just had to be careful it didn’t get caught on my clothes that’s all. I had the drain in for the whole week however my body was pretty much done expelling fluid around day 4 or 5. By the weekend I could get in and out of bed on my own and I cut my pain meds down to 1 every 4-6 hours during the day when needed ( most of the time Advil was enough) and 2 at 11p.m. and one at 5 a.m. I also went down the stairs for the first time, but only made it about an hour before I was ready to get in my bed. The things to remember during week one of the surgery is you need help, you can’t do it by yourself, you need help doing everything, you need an adjustable bed or a ton of pillows you must lay on your back in an upright position with your legs propped up. Keep up on your meds, don’t torture yourself it is not good for you mentally or physically. Updated on 1 Feb 2017: Week 2- First day of week 2 I leave my house for the first time, because I have a follow up appointment with Dr. Welch. So far everything looks amazing, my incisions look great and I didn’t even notice when Dr. Welch took the drain out. She told me I was the first person she ever had were she only had to use one drain and could not have been more thrilled with the results even after one week. We looked at the before pictures and my body now and we couldn’t believe the difference. I was told to wear a small binder on the top of my chest to help them drop and push some of the swelling down and the binder on my abdomen I must wear one week for every decade I have been alive, since I am almost 50 that means 5 weeks. The other purpose of this appointment was to get my first lymphatic massage. This is an important part of recovery through using light pressure in a rhythmic, circular motion it helps to stimulate the lymph system clear sluggish tissues of waste and reduce swelling, which in turns greatly assist in the healing process. Leaving the house took a lot of energy for me and I wasn’t totally upright but close. Getting in and out of the car wasn’t bad I just have to remember not to use my arms a ton. My right boob is feeling a little sorer than my left, right under my arm like my chest muscle is in a ball, so I have to remember not to use my right arm so much. I am not sure if I have mentioned this but no driving for 4 weeks, when you can’t use your core driving is not a good idea because you really have the inability to do any sudden movements. Week 2 was the week before Christmas so I had a lot to do and do without help, I did all my shopping online, wrapped all the gifts on the counter. That all went fine, but the day before Christmas eve while my husband was at work I decided to make him a faux fur blanked, I got it done but it was WAY too much I was really swollen and really sore after that, I probably should not have done it. Christmas went fairly easy by now I am spending most of my time downstairs, however Christmas night I sneezed for the first time, and let me tell you it hurt like a mother%!er. It felt like I was ripping my bellybutton out. Things to remember for week two even if you feel great keep activity level to a minimum, no sneezing, coughing, or laughing the tummy can’t handle it yet. Meds I am down to one a night and a couple Advil during the day. I am icing my stomach and my chest before bed every night as well it helps with the swelling. Updated on 1 Feb 2017: Week 3- Week three is all about the burning, or what the doctors say nerves adjusting to the changes I have made to my body. Everything is looking great I could not be happier, however I cannot say it is feeling great. The more active I am the more I have this burning sensation, especially in my breast. I would say it started about day 17 or 18, everywhere but especially around my incisions, and around my belly button. I had to suffer through a few days until my follow-up appointment, so what I did was ice and take Advil. I also looked on the internet to see if this was a normal sensation to be experiencing, and it said yes. The internet said it was the nerves re-adjusting and that I should touch those areas to desensitize them. I gave that job to my husband. It did help initially then it started to feel like they were way over sensitized, to the point where I couldn’t even stand fabric on them, so I would lay in bed still with nothing on, that did help. Next week I meet with the doctor I can’t wait hoping she can help. Other things I am dealing with this week is if I am to active my stomach gets sore and swollen a bit and so do my breast, I tend to start to lean forward a bit because it hurts when stomach rubs against my compression garments. The hardest part to this week is laying low to keep swelling down and thus keep the burning to its minimum. I don't have any pictures because there wasn't much change. Updated on 1 Feb 2017: Week 4- This week I had my last lymphatic massage, second follow-up appointment with Dr. Welch. Massage went great and follow-up did too. I told Dr. Welch about the burning in my breast and she explained to me that my chest muscles where so strong that it was tough to place implants underneath and that the stretching of those muscles to accommodate the implants is what is causing the burning, she prescribed me a muscle relaxer and some Percocet to take as needed. Both have helped, the first couple days of having the prescriptions I used the muscle relaxer during the day, and took one Percocet to sleep and completely eliminate the burning. Sleeping is becoming to become an issue because I am a side sleeper and there is no way I can sleep on my side, it stretches my stomach too much, which doesn’t feel that good. This is the week I begin to get my life back to normal, I started taking the kids to school in the morning and pick them up in the afternoon. Driving is interesting because you don’t realize the muscles you use to turn a steering wheel. There isn’t any pain, but it does feel a little tight and awkward. This week is a milestone week because I was cleared to start walking for exercise. Updated on 1 Feb 2017: Week 5- This was an uneventful week things pretty much stayed status quo, UNTIL I went to work in a school cafeteria, it was just a little bit too much for me. I was supposed to work for 3 ½ hours right around the 2 ½ hour mark my lower back started to ache and I had to lean on the counter or a chair for relief. I also used my arms a little much therefore my chest was really sore especially under my arms and on my right side around my rib near my incisions. When I got home, I was really swollen, so I took a bath and then laid in bed and iced. The next day I laid low, but let me tell you it took me a while to recover. Lesson I learned just relax, if I had a broken bone I wouldn’t even be walking on it for another 3 weeks. This week I took a hot jacuzzi bath every night, that helped a lot with removing any scabs or dried blood from my incisions and it felt great on my stomach, and chest. Biggest mistake I am making is not drinking enough water the few days I got 3 liters in I felt much better the next day, on the days I barely drink water I am more swollen and sore. This week I am still wearing compression when I leave the house from knee to chest, but let me tell you I am over the compression stuff. Updated on 2 Feb 2017: Week 6- This week I have a follow-up appointment, I have finally recovered from last week’s manual labor however the rib is still sore. I mostly wear my waist binder, I am not doing much compression on my thighs, and I am tired of wearing sports bra’s. I tried to shop for some real bras but did not have much success but I think mostly because I didn’t have the patience for it. The couple bras I tried on looked great but I guess I really wanted my husband there, so I will wait until we can go together. At my follow-up appointment I was told I could set my bike up on the trainer and start riding a bit, I can start walking and doing some very, very, basic ab exercises. The week went fairly well the only a few things to note: 1) my belly is sore right down the middle where everything got sewn together, it is not bad, feels like it is bruised. The soreness mostly lingers around the belly button. 2) This is the week I can finally sit up off the sofa, I no longer have to turn to my side and then stand up, although I think I sit up a little too much sometimes because a I get a little sore at night. Finally, 3) I spent all day Saturday without compression, I went to a swim meet and then 3 basketball games. THAT was a mistake, I was incredibly swollen (refer to pic) and my back was killing me by the end of the night. I am positive I will be wearing some sort of compression for a while longer. I also added some update pictures of my chest so you can see some after shoots 6 weeks out from surgery.
