What is the Best Non Surgical Procedure to Remove my Pouch and Stomach Fat from 3 C-sections?

It’s not
unusual for patients to have significant changes in their bodies following
pregnancy.These changes are especially
noticeable in the abdomen where they can cause fat accumulation, redundant
saggy skin, weakened stretched abdominal muscles and stretch marks.Unfortunately, it’s impossible to treat
changes of this magnitude without performing an abdominoplasty. Although Zerona, Lasers,
Coolsculpting and Thermage can all be used to treat minor contour
irregularities, they all have significant limitations.For these reasons, patients who have
significant contour irregularities should consult a board certified plastic
surgeon.This surgeon should be able to
formulate a treatment plan that addresses anatomic findings and achieves
aesthetic goals.In the majority of
cases, this will require abdominoplasty.

That is a great question. It depends on what your
pouch is made of. If there is lose skin and muscle separation then there
is NO non surgical alternative. A tummy tuck is designed to remove excess
skin and tighten muscles. Now if you have stubborn fat and pretty good
skin quality then I encourage you to research Coolscultping. Cold suctions are
placed on several areas of the tummy to freeze fat cells. It is recommended to
target specific areas in two office visits to achieve the best rests. Good luck
in your search.

Hi, iwnt2losete
Thank you for your questions regarding the non-surgical removal of a pouch and stomach fat from 3 c-sections. This is a very common question.  The best non-surgical treatment to remove your abdomen and stomach fat would be a high protein diet with low carbs and exercise. It is as simple as that. I would suggest doing as much walking as possible. Since you have had three c-sections, your abdominal skin has been stretched. Your skin has difficulty bouncing back because of your pregnancies. I would suggest you do conscientious eating right and exercising for six months. If after six months, your abdominal has not resolved, I would suggest you reconsider your abdomen. Because of your pregnancy history, I do not think coolsculpting, Zerona, thermage, will improve your abdomen. However, a more thorough in person examination will be needed to make a thorough analysis. When seeking any plastic surgery procedure, please seek a board-certified plastic surgeon with many years of experience. If you have any questions regarding body contouring or plastic surgery, call my office. Thanks
Thank you,
Dr. Timothy Katzen

It's a great question. Noninvasive fat removal offers minor results, which works for some people. However, for the most dramatic body contouring there is nothing that matches a liposuction procedure. If you're considering a non-invasive procedure check out the patient reviews on realself to make sure that you like the reviews as well as the before-and-after photos posted by people have had the exact same treatment.

Thank you for your question. Many of the changes that happen to the belly after pregnancy are not well treated by non-surgical methods. If there is muscle laxity or loss of skin elasticity, a tummy-tuck is a better solution.

If your desire is to treat areas of unwanted fat, Coolsculpt is probably the best option. It uses a technique called cryolipolysis to remove roughly 20%of the fat in the treated area. The best part is that there is no recovery. 

All of the other options haven't shown the long term efficacy that you would want. I would suggest an evaluation by a plastic surgeon to fully go over your options.

Best of luck with your belly.

Jeff Rockmore

 Thank you for the question. For patients who present with abdominal wall muscle laxity after pregnancy and/or weight gain/loss, there is no good noninvasive modality to improve their situation.  This includes cool sculpting, which targets diet and exercise resistant adipose tissue ( assuming good overlying skin elasticity).  Although there are a lot of gimmicks that come and go, there is no good alternative to tummy tuck surgery to remove excess skin/adipose  tissue and tighten abdominal wall muscles after pregnancy or weight loss. Be careful: if it sounds too good to be true, it is!  Best wishes.

A photo is needed to answer this properly. If the pouch is excess skin, nothing but removing the excess surgically will be effective. If it is mostly fat, diet and exercise. External fat removal devices may give modest improvement.  If it is laxity of the abdominal wall, again, surgery will be your only option.

When you ready for an in person consultation, RealSelf has listings of surgeons in your area. You should consider cross referencing the listings from the The American Society of Plastic Surgeons (plasticsurgery dot org). A listing in the ASPS website assures you that your surgeon is not only board certified,  but also is a member in good standing of the major plastic surgery organization in the U. S.

Thank you for your question, best wishes.

Exercise and weight loss are an important component in the revitalization of your body after pregnancy. Removal of the fat can be accomplished by several methods. Coolsculpting, which freezes the unwanted fat cells and Liposonix, an ultrasound device that heats fat so that it will melt away. Both of these techniques have little or no recovery time. They are very effective for patients who regularly exercise and cannot seem to loose that little bit of fat from isolated regions. They are not good for people who are fat. Liposuction will provide more dramatic results in contouring, but obviously invasive and requires much more recovery than the 2 previously mentioned procedures.

From your question however it sounds as your skin will require tightening as well. This cannot be accomplished in any great significance by exercise or any the aforementioned procedures. For this you will require an abdominoplasty (tummy tuck), which will not only remove the excess skin, but will also tighten the abdominal muscle wall.

For a more comprehensive consultation I would suggest to obtain an in-person evaluation by a Board Certified Plastic Surgeon. Thank you for the question.

Best wishes

There are modest gains that can be accomplished given your history. Exercise, diet and Cool Sculpt would be a good start. Cool Sculpt removes fat by lowering the temperature in the problem areas. The underlying fat dissolves over the course of months and the skin tightens. You can expect about a 15-20% reduction of fat per area treated. However, after 3 pregnancies, you probably have at least a few stretch marks. These decrease the skin's ability to tighten; possibly leading to more loose skin after the fat dissolves. This coupled with a lower abdominal scar from the 3 C-sections further decreases your chances of losing that pouch without surgical intervention.  

In 10 years there may be many non-surgical methods to solve your problem but presently the best solution is still surgery or a combination of weight loss, suction assisted fat removal and surgical skin/muscle tightening. Remember, your abdominal muscles have also been stretched by the preganancies.  Discuss your options, as well as the pros- and cons to surgery, with a board certified plastic surgeon. I'm sure that the consultation will enable you to make the right choice.