How Much Sleep Is Too Much Sleep After A Tummy Tuck? (photo)

After surgery the body investors energy in healing the operative site. Patients often feel listless and require excess sleep. Sleep is much as you wish but you should but periodically to exercise the extremities.

I think it is normal for some people to require more rest than others following this type of surgery.  Especially if there has been some additional liposuction added.  At 2 weeks out, your body is still recovering from the physiologic stress of the surgery.  I tell my patients that there is a "hidden" expenditure of energy created by the tissues trying to heal themselves, and the greater the area affected, the more of your energy this may "sap."  Having said that, I also tell my patients to try to wean themselves from the narcotic pain medications as much as possible, especially during the day, because those certainly can contribute to somnolence and lethargy.  Try to substitute extra strength Tylenol for  a dose of your narcotic medication and see how that goes.  I tell my patients to avoid Motrin and other similar drugs until the drains come out, just so we don't have any issues with bleeding due to effects on platelets.  Make sure you stay well hydrated, and eat enough calories to keep your brain functioning too.  Again, your body is requiring additional calories to heal, especially protein, so don't starve yourself.  Don't go crazy either, but keep up with the demand.  In summary, I wouldn't worry too, too much about this right now.  Start slowly getting off the narcotics and finding things for yourself to do during the day.  You may still find yourself "hitting the wall" and needing a mid-afternoon nap even at 6 weeks or longer, so don't be surprised if you don't bounce right back and run a marathon at a month post-op!  Good luck.

Two weeks is a long time to still be sleeping so much, and to be taking so much in the way of pain meds which may well be contributing to drowsiness. Try cutting doses in half, and getting off the meds, other than tylenol or ibuprofen or the like over the next two days. If no improvement, call you surgeon. In the meantime, get up and walk as much as possible, and wear compression stockings to help prevent blood clots.

All the best.