So, I have never in my life had a flat stomach and although I would love it, I'd rather be realistic. I have 3 kids and they have done quite a number on my stomach. I've always been a shapely girl but my stomach is where I lose all confidence. I have been asked if I am pregnant several times and it just isn't a good feeling. I have actually had the procedure done back in 2013 but it was one of those pop up clinics and I only paid $1800. So with that being said. I got what I paid for. It looked like they had hardly removed any fat. I have always considered just getting a tummy tuck and just being done with it all but after a few tummy tuck consultations, no liposuction would be included. I want a shape. Not just a flat stomach with a spongebob squarepants build! LOL Anyway, back to more research. I got approved for care credit so my options were now open and possibilities endless. I could easily afford to finance the tummy tuck with care credit but I don't want to be cut up just yet. I came across Sonobello and I have always heard of them but back then I think they were only down south in Texas. I had my consultation and was impressed by before and after pictures and even more impressed with the cost. I also felt that they knew what I wanted. Which was to be a stacked, snatched, lookin like a snack brickhouse. To be continued....
I am having surgery next Thursday. Excited and nervous at the same time. I called Sono Bello to make an appointment and the whole Process was really quick. Weird thing is I went to another consultation with another doctor and he told me that I couldn't do smart lipo until I dropped some more weight. When I went to sono bello they said that we can do it since my build only carries fat in certain areas. Weird. The whole time I felt I was being rushed and I only met the consultant who couldn't really give me technical answers. It was like speaking to a car sales person rather than the mechanic. I did enough research going into the place and decided I wanted to go ahead and made an appointment for surgery. I'll keep everyone updated. Updated on 2 Jul 2015: It was an over all good experience. One thing that annoyed me was I was scheduled a 3 pm appointment but somehow it was at 8. Not a big deal but annoying. Dr Thiet was very patient and funny. Considering she has been doing this for over 30 years I trusted her. I even named my fat!! Lol. They thought I was anxious because I was laughing and making jokes but honestly that's just my personality. The nurse was pretty nice and he was hilarious as well which makes the whole experience wonderful. During surgery I pretty much fell asleep. I snore so it was pretty funny in the room. The lidocaine was not bad only a certain spot. The sensitive areas around the rib cage but nothing bad. I didn't jump just said ouch in my drowsy mode. My chin though was pretty intense since there isn't much fat there. But I was pretty much snoring/sleeping so it was too too bad. Dr. Thiet kept me in the loop the whole time and she is definitely a perfectionist. Side note: the little bra and underwear they give you is ridiculous. My butt pretty much ate that thing up...lol. I forgot to take pre-op picks with markings so maybe you can see from what I took. Updated on 3 Jul 2015: Reading back my review yesterday. I was all over the place lol. Well the swelling is there and it definitely hurts. But I don't want to take any hydrocodone because it's too strong. Hopefully the regimen of Tylenol and arnica will help. Here are some pics....it's kind of weirdly shaped but I'm thinking it's still the fluids I do see it smaller thought. They took out about 2100 cc that's a lot. Well off to a good recovery. Updated on 6 Jul 2015: I am back at work already. A bit of soreness here and there but overall pretty good. For some reason I haven't had a huge appetite ever since surgery. It could be medication or the pain around my neck area. I have been walking a lot since getting out of surgery. Even hit the gym yesterday. Only cardio. No abs or lifting. Overall, it has been a great healing process. I see a huge difference on my abs but my chin looks worse than before. We will see. One week post-op is this Saturday. Updated on 11 Jul 2015: So I find the pain is mostly gone. Numbness is still there though which is expected. I do have to say the staff seems a little distracted and I didn't even see the doctor post ops. They need to get better customer service in there. But the main thing is that I look great! I ended up losing about 8 lbs. I only lost about an inch off my waist...it's probably because of the build up fluids around where she measured. As you can see I don't have any significant bruising at all. My nurse was really surprised it was my one week. Lol. She asked me how I did it. I have no idea!!! I think the healthier you are and the quicker you get up to walk the faster it heals. I wear my compression gear religiously and that helps a lot.
