How long after a tummy tuck until you can stand straight and back pain subsides?

Pulmonary embolism is a rare but serious complication of a protracted abdominal operation such as an abdominoplasty. It can be associated with shortness of breath, back pain, rapid pulse, and sweating. This should be reported to your plastic surgeon immediately.

I have my patients starting to stand upright after the first week. But I have heard this complaint from many other patients, especially on this message board. The back pain is almost certainly because you are walking bent over and are forced to use back muscles that you normally are not using. The inability to stand upright should resolve with just time. I would be curious to know if your surgeon used something called a "running loop" stitch to tighten the abdominal wall. I have always been curious why surgeons like to use this type of suture instead of several interrupted sutures. The problem with a "running loop" suture is that it not only tightens the abdominal wall in the horizontal direction (which is what you want) but it also tightens the abdomen in the vertical dimension (which can make standing upright difficult). Just would be curious to know.

What you are experiencing is very  normal for tummy tuck recovery.Pain, pulling, and tugging
along the incision quite common after tummy tuck surgery. The discomfort
can get worse a few weeks after surgery as some of the nerves start to wake up
and work again. Pain can also increase because at three weeks out patients start
to get more active once again.

Sometimes the pain is
caused by tugging of a stitch that will eventually dissolve, sometimes it
can be caused by scar tissue. Generally these aches and pains and zings
will come and go for a few months after surgery, but usually they resolve.

You may feel more
comfortable if you speak to your plastic surgeon directly. He or she
should be the one to recommend medication to you.