I was apprehensive about smart lipo. I was worried I wouldn’t see results and that the whole thing would be a waste of money. I was also worried about the pain. It was somewhat painful, but probably about as painless as one could reasonably expect from a surgical procedure. It was not excruciating…just pretty uncomfortable at times. I am very happy with my results, and I saw them almost immediately. Dr. Schlosser is obviously very knowledgeable and was honest about realistic expectations. I found this very refreshing as I get the impression that some plastic surgeons can give the “used car salesman” vibe. I think he is as experienced and as reasonably priced as one can find in Colorado, and I highly recommend him!
Would recommend it to anyone who has those stubborn areas and no matter how much you exercise and watch your diet you can't get rid of it!!!!
The staff are warm and friendly, as is Dr.Steven Schlosser. He allayed all of my fears and concerns with dignity and respect. He is a great listener and addresses all concerns with kindness and respect, and is not at all dismissive, even with the most trivial of concerns. My procedure was broken down into 2 surgeries: Back, flanks, bra rolls, and the other was lower and upper abs. The procedure was not comfortable, but does not hurt nearly as badly as Laser Hair Removal, permanent cosmetics, IPL Photofacials, or even waxing. The procedure doesn't even hurt the whole time. Just an occasional jab, followed by a yelp or 2 on my part. I have been sore for a few days, but that is to be expected. I was on my feet the next day after the first surgery, and am planning to travel on day 4 after this round of lipo. I can already see the preleminary results of the first surgery, and I am just thrilled!The only truly icky part is all of thr leaking wounds, but that is to be expected. Have lots of older towels on hand for the bed and the ride home. The office is well organized and clean. I am looking into getting facials there as well, and then some facial tightening procedures. I hope to have my inner thighs done doon as well. Dr. Schlosser and his team of lovely ladies are just marvelous! I highly reccommend them to anyone! They are just lovely! I'll post pics as they become available. Everyone there is just wonderful! You should definitely go and see them. Thank you Dr. Schlosser and Team! You're the best!
I had liposuction of the abs, flanks and "muffin top" area yesterday, Friday, May 6th and thought I'd chronicle my experience for others thinking of the procedure. I'm 142lbs and pretty average weight. I go to the gym/do yoga 5-7 days a week and after trying for many months to get rid of my awful muffin top I finally gave up. Every time I'd wear jeans, as soon as I'd start to walk, a muffin top would form (and quite a significant one). I got to the point where I hated wearing pants even though i'm a size 7, simply because I really hated how the muffin top looked. I spent about 2 months doing extensive research on what to do and decided on Smart Lipo. I had 6 consultations total and what cinched my decision was 1) how I felt about the doctor, and 2) the many positive smart lipo reviews written about him. I also contacted several patients directly via realself.com to ask for some personal feedback (and I'm really grateful for the responses). In my pre-op appointment, I was advised to stop all herbal medications, multivitamins and fish oil (many of which have a tendency to increase bleeding). I don't smoke nor drink, but you are advised to do neither for the two weeks prior. I was also told which compression garment to order, and was given four prescriptions to fill (anti-inflammatory, antibiotic, pain reliever, and a sedative). For a week prior to surgery, I have also been taking arnica montana (homeopathic remedy to reduce brusing and swelling). Here is my day by day journal: Day Before ---------- I was all ready for the surgery. Up until this point I had completely avoided even thinking about it. I figured I'd leave getting nervous until the last possible minute :-). I packed a bag with my compression garment and my 4 prescriptions. I was to begin the antibiotic and anti-inflammatory the night before surgery, which I did. All in all I felt pretty expectant. Day of ------- As instructed, I had a nice big protein breakfast with antibiotics and anti-inflammatory meds. I arrived bright and early at 8am with my wonderful boyfriend who kept singing "bye-bye muffin tops, bye-bye muffin tops" which had me cracking up. Jennifer was the lady assisting with the surgery and welcomed me. She is just the best - awesome, awesome, awesome. Talk about someone putting my mind at ease. My blood pressure was taken and I put on a surgical gown. Jennifer did absolutely everything she could to make sure I was relaxed, comfortable, and ready. The doctor arrived and we got "down to business" immediately. He drew various markings on my abdomen and flanks while I was standing, so that he would know from where to remove what. then I went into the surgical room. Flanks were done first, followed by love handles/abdomen. Oh my gosh. I was not prepared for the pain. I had just taken 2 halcion and 1 percocet and had hoped I woudn't feel much but jeeeeez, it was painful. There would be periods of nothing, followed by jabs that hurt. Within 5 mins I was sobbing like a baby. Wonderful, wonderful Jennifer kept reassuring me and making me feel at ease, she was a godsend. I don't remember much beyond that except for intermittent pain. I'm not sure if I whimpered and complained the entire time or just the beginning (hopefully the latter). I don't remember leaving and I don't remember getting home (my boyfriend later told me I was telling everyone I was just fine as I kept nodding off and swaying as I walked! he and Jennifer wheeled me to the car in a wheelchair). I don't remember getting crawling up the stairs and getting smothered in kisses by the dog, and I don't remember getting into bed. 5 hours later I woke up in bed, lying on surgical sheets. All together there were 6 very small incisions (I was actually very happy to see how small they were) 3 on the back and 3 on the front. I had on an adult diaper with 6 maxipads, one over each incision. Two of the maxipads were soaked through with leaking fluid (totally normal and expected), the others were minimally soaked. My boyfriend helped me get into the compression garment and put 6 new maxipads over the incisions. The incisions are purposely left open to allow for the necessary drainage, which helps drastically reduce post operative swelling from what I understand. I was starving, ate a wonderful dinner in bed, and changed the pads again. All in all, the pads were changed 5 times by midnight (drainage was quite reduced by then). I went to sleep at midnight after taking meds and 1 percocet. I was not necessarily in "pain" but everything really, really ached. I slept on and off on my back. I didn't want to take the halcion as I really didn't like that weird amnesia feeling. Day 1 ----- Well, I was shocked to actually feel pretty good! My hips and abdoment really ached though, and I needed help sitting up. But within minutes I was gently walking around and within an hour felt great! The bleeding had completely stopped during the night. I mean, I felt so good that I called the doctor to tell them how I was (as instructed) and asked if I could do a 5 mile walk with some friends. The answer, of course, was a resounding NO! It's really important to take it easy and do light, gentle walking. Overdoing it = major swelling. The compression garment feels good. Had a very quiet day. I was previously advised by my massage therapist to do some gentle bouncing on a large pilates ball (sit on the ball and do gentle pulses to stimulate the lymphatic flow). I did that for 15 mins, twice during the day. I have to sit up/down and stand up/down carefully as everything is really sore. But I'm not in any pain and have taken no pain meds at all today. I have very, very little bruising which is a surprise (I don't know if that is due to the arnica montana but I'm very grateful as I usually bruise very easily). My abdomen feels rather numb and puffy under the compression garment, normal and to be expected. So far, so good. The pain of the surgery seems like a long distant memory and it's only a day away! :-) I will continue to update daily with progress. I will also post pictures soon. Updated on 8 May 2011: Day 2 ----- Day 2 is going very well. I really feel great, and I'm waiting for all this swelling and bruising that a lot of people seem to get, but I don't really have a lot of it! Woohoo!!! Bruising is next to non existent. There is definitely some swelling, but not what I would call "a ton" of it. I was able to sleep on my sides a bit with the help of a big, soft and poofy cushion. I'm moving around a lot more, though taking it easy. Everything is definitely very "tender" and I'm very "protective" of not letting our dog jostle me or getting bumped around my midsection. I took my compression garment off for the first time to take a shower, and also took pics which I uploaded. The incisions look absolutely GREAT for just 2 days post op. Shockingly, I can already see signs of my new shape (I say that because many people don't see the results until the swelling subsides). But, I can see my shape has changed, it's smoother and curvier. My belly looks a bit strange (flat with boxy sides), but it's way too early to judge that with the swelling and tenderness. I'm also larger/more swollen on the right side, which is more sore and tender too. Hopefully that will become normalized :-) I'm drinking tons of water and peeing lots (as the massage therapist recommended), and I'm gently pulsing on the pilates ball to stimulate my lymphatic system. I'm also continuing with the arnica montana twice a day for bruising and swelling. Updated on 12 May 2011: Days 3/4/5 ---------- Nothing much to report except itching. Itch itch itch itch itch! I'm just gently stroking the compression garment which is enough to temporarily relieve it. Still not much swelling and hardly any bruising. It is tender and sore (like you've worked out much too hard and your muscles are very sore). Some areas are "semi-numb" but that seems to be slowly getting better. I went for a manual lymphatic drainage massage which was absolutely wonderful because the therapist also taught me how to do this myself. Every morning and every night I gently stimulate my lymph nodes and lightly massage the lipo areas towards the lymph nodes (t feels reeeeeally good!). I've uploaded pictures of all the fat that was taken out!!! It's such a neat thing to watch during the procedure - seeing all that fat get suctioned out helps you get through it all. I was told approximately 5lbs of fat was removed - woohoo!! Still drinking lots of water, pulsing on the pilates ball and taking it easy. Due to the high dosage of antibiotics, I'm also taking a probiotic called "saccharomyces boulardii+mos" which is resistant to being destroyed by antibiotics. Updated on 12 May 2011: Day 6 ----- Well, today is a really exciting day. I decided to try on a pair of pants that pre-op were tight on me and had a muffin top hanging over it. Well..... oh.. my.. god.. See the pic below. Bearing in mind I have some swelling, the pants are WAY too big! If I start walking they fall down!!!! And it's only gonna get better as the days go by.....! I'm so damn excited that I'm running around the house singing my head off, with my dog going nuts at my excitement :-) :-) :-) Updated on 12 May 2011: I've been getting quite a lot of emails asking me to summarize what I'd recommend doing/not doing. Instead of sending out a bunch of emails, here are my recommendations. But here is my disclaimer: check with your doctor first as this is just my personal advice :-) 1-2 Weeks Before ---------------- 1. Stop taking multivitamins and herbs. Some of these increase bleeding and others have not been studied enough to understand their effects on bleeding 2. Start taking arnica montana internally (I take the Boiron brand - 5 pellets in the morning and 5 in the evening). As it is a homeopathic, try not to have food/water 15 mins before and after taking these 3. Take 2,000mg Vitamin C daily 4. Don't drink alcohol, do drugs or smoke. Why do things which will slow your healing and potentially cause serious complications... After ----- 1. Wear your compression garment all the time (reduces swelling). 2. Drink at least 1/2 your body weight in water daily (reduces swelling). 3. Don't eat high sodium foods. 4. Get a large pilates ball, sit on it and gently "pulse" 15 mins twice a day (this assists in stimulating your lymphatic system, increasing fluid drainage). 5. Eat very high quality protein. I drink "Plant Fusion Multi source Plant Protein" every day which I highly recommend (www.plantfusion.us available at Sunflower Market). 6. Fill your body with a ton of healthy foods (fruits, veggies, nuts, etc.). 7. As SOON as you can, have a lymphatic drainage massage - once you've had it done, you can then do it yourself daily. I do it twice a day. 8. When you are able, do some gentle stretches. 9. Do not overdo it, or you will swell. Take it easy with lots of rests throughout the day. 10. You will most likely be on a high dosage of antibiotics. Take a probiotic - I use "saccharomyces boulardii+mos" which populates the intestinal tract with benefical bacteria and is resistant to being destroyed by theantibiotcs. 11. MOST IMPORTANT: Throughout the day, visualize you body as you want it (find a picture if you want and make several photocopies, pasting it everywhere), and repeat an affirmation to match. My affirmation is "my body is now firm, slim, supple, and beautiful". The mind is an incredibly powerful tool. If you give it a quantified objective, it's amazing what it can accomplish. I CONSTANTLY visualize the image I want and silently repeat my affirmation. Updated on 13 May 2011: Today I'm coming to realize that none of my pants will fit me anymore. It's quite shocking actually to realize that there will be no more muffin top. No more constantly pulling up jeans to try to cover it. No more self consciousness about that fat rim. It would be nice if Smart Lipo came with a clothing allowance...! :-) I went on the scales today and it shows me 2lbs lighter. Considering all I've been doing is sitting around with no physical activity I was worried i'd put on a ton of weight. Most people report little to no weight loss after having lipo which seems odd (perhaps because of the water from the swelling? something to ask at my post-op). The areas worked on are still sore/tender to the touch. I'm still very protective of them being jostled. The massage therapist said I had more water retention on my flanks than abdomen (because of sitting and sleeping on my back, that's where it's pooling) so I'm trying to vary sitting and sleeping positions. Not much else to report. I'm *really* wanting to get back to a workout schedule - I'm feeling lazy and unfit not having any real physical activity. Updated on 14 May 2011: 8 Days ------ Soreness and stiffness is settling it, and has been for the past day or two. It's similar to when you have have a really hard workout and everything is stiff and sore, leaving you feeling very inflexible. My back is aching the worst (flanks) but doc said this was completely normal and to be expected. Other than that, very uneventful with no problems at all. I like it that way :-) Updated on 26 May 2011: Well, this past week has been fine (3 weeks post op). Most of the swelling seems to have disappeared, although there is still some. In it's place I can feel a lot of hardness and some lumps. Both of these were to be expected and I was given notice to expect them. At first I was a little worried - they are not "visible" but they feel like little fatty lipomas under the skin. Other areas are very hard. The nice thing is that neither of that is visible :-) Both the lumps and hardness will begin to diminish in their own time. Everything is still very tender, although I can go back to all my other activities and I've eased back into a workout schedule. I do appear to have a seroma (a billowy, soft area about 2 inches by 2 inches) on my right flank. Doc said it should resolve within a week or two. I don't have any restrictions and I have been told to wear the garment during the day only until week 3, which is today! I think I may continue it for just a few more days as it feels good. The area that was done definitely doesn't feel back to normal yet. It's still tender and a little numb, but no pain.
After 4 years of considering whether I should have Smart Lipo to get rid of my muffin top and post-partum pooch, I decided to go ahead and "just do it". I couldn't be happier with my results. I have always been thin ( 5'9 and a size 6), but now I don't have this annoying spare tire hanging over my pants. My jeans fit perfectly and I can wear form fitting camis and t-shirts. Even though they say you can return to work the next day, I did not find this to be the case. There is a considerable amount of leaking and minor discomfort, and I was relieved that I had 5 days to take it easy before putting in an 8 hour day at the office.
I am just 3 days out. The procedure wasn't bad. painful only around ribs. I am glad that I was awake for the procedure. I can already tell that the mid abs are going to look good. I am a very active volleyball player, who even did some bodybuiling and I was never able to get rid of these problem areas. Waiting for swelling to go down but very hopeful. Denise was my nurse and she was amazing, made the whole experience better, made you feel comfortable and seem to really care!
I did it because I was tired of not getting results with lots of exercising and dieting. I had my "spare tire" around my middle - Abs, flanks and hips done. I was surprised at the fairly quick recovery to daily activities. I had it done in 2 procedures. Back/hips/flanks done first. That was a little more tender as you have to sit on that area for driving,etc. But it's been 5 weeks and feeling good. The abdomen was just done a little over a week ago. May take longer to see results, but again all worth it. Some pain, but not unbearable
Liposculpture. I did this to augment my weight loss as I was carrying alot of fat. A little painful but almost no downtime.
Some doctors wouldn't even operate me on account of the different kinds of results that men experience from this type of procedure. To date I wonder what the long term effects will be. I have delayed making this post due to changes I have experience every week since the operation. Week1: Did not take any narcotics for the recovery. Took antibiotics on track as RX. Regularly took 3 homeopathic aids, which I couldn't recommend more... 1: Arnica Montana 200ck 2: staphysagria 30c (for surgical healing) 3: hypericum perforatum 30c (nerve pain) I got all these at Whole Foods Day 1: slept all day Wk1 continued: only went to bathroom & down the hall to hotel restaurant. Fortunately family rendezvoused with me in town to help bring food etc. I took it very easy in everything I did for the few waking hours. Wk2: went back to work for office duties. Still mild pain to the touch, but entirely bearable. Wk3: feeling much better, started doing crunches, pushups, and light jogging as permitted by Dr. S as long as I felt ok. Wk4: brace completely off, feels and looks good Wk5: noticing some swelling. At worst, at first glance, I seem to have returned to my pre-op state! It it weren't for the fat that I actually saw in the containers, and knowledge of the fact that fat cells do not regenerate (they only swell)... I'd be very concerned! But I have done research to find that swelling like this is normal and that the results will get better. Wk 6: felt some stinging in the general area for a few days. haven't felt any since, except for poking with finger. AREAS OPERATED Small of back, flank, lower abdomen (it annoys me when people refer to that are as the stomach). Dr. S assures me that the general area will look better at about the 6 month mark. I look forward to it! I will be running and working out between now and then AS I WAS BEFORE THE OPERATION. I will post pictures in the Spring. SUPPORT STAFF I just cannot say enough for Dr. S's staff. Especially during the tender moments following the operation, they made all the difference. I opted to not take the anti-anxiety meds for the operation. Dr. S accepted this, but still recommended I take them. I was wheeled back to the doorstep of my hotel room across the street. DURING THE OPERATION It helps calm the mind to think about what's going on before you lay down for the operation. You are being punctured and ripped apart. Realize and meditate on the violent sensations that will occur and you will be better mentally equipped to handle them before you begin. If you do not know how to do calming anti-anxiety breathing, I highly recommend you spend the half hour it takes to learn (via youtube or therapist). That being said. Remember you are in the hands of a professional with tremendous experience. Of course, if you take the anti-anxiety meds none of this may bother you at all anyway. Dr. S's location is optimal for this procedure considering he's next to two hotels, the Whole Foods to stock your fridge & homeopathics, the pharmacy for your op meds.
Procedure went fine. I did experience nausea although the rest of the day due to the medication. I experienced very little pain both during and after the surgery. As well the staff and doctor were very helpful and professional. I wish I had thought about it more myself and had more taken off as I can see what he did worked but still do not have optimal shape I would have liked. I'm not expecting perfection however see room for improvement and do not want to go through procedure again.
