Yesterday I had to sit on my butt due to an emergency and drive. I am only 2 weeks post op. May I have caused some damage?

You should wait at least 2 weeks before sitting without a support cushion and sleeping on your back. Sitting with no support too soon can harm the newly moved fat cells.

Thanks for your question...Every surgeon has different post op instructions. Generally speaking, one is safe to sit for short periods of time after 2-3 weeks post op. However, you may continue to lose volume as expected due to swelling and the fat cells stabilizing itself. Your final result won't show until 3 months post op.If you are still concerned, please see your surgeon.You can learn more on our social media (Instagram and Snapchat): @realdrsix.

Regards,

Hopefully, you used your pillow to take pressure off the buttocks and placed it under the thighs for the drive.  It is critical that every 30 minutes or an hour you got up and stood for a few seconds to take the pressure off.   This reduces the chance for fat necrosis.  Sitting for half an hour at this point in your recovery should not cause any issues.  If this continues to worry you, schedule a post-op with your surgeon.

Different recovery protocols are present for different patients. On average patients may sit with a BBL pillow as early as 2 weeks. It is not advised to sit on the buttock directly without a BBL pillow for 4-8 weeks; meaning your recovery depends on the amount of fat removed from liposuction, the areas liposuctioned, and the amount of fat transferred to your buttock. 

There is actually no literature to support that keeping pressure off of your buttocks leads to more fat survival. Even if you stay off of it, you will lose 30-50% of the fat volume injected over 3-6 months after the surgery. I ask my patients to keep pressure off for 10 days after the surgery as I feel it can affect the shape in the early post op period. I also recommend they choose soft surfaces for sitting while they heal as hard surfaces can be uncomfortable. 

Its best to keep pressure off of your butt as much as possible for the first 4 weeks after surgery. However, its unrealistic to expect everyone to have no pressure on their butt for that long. I dont think it makes much difference if there is occasional pressure for short periods of time. Also, if you sit on something soft like a pillow, its much better than a hard surface. At this point, there is no benefit to worrying about it. Just do the best you can to keep pressure off of your butt.Paul Wigoda, MD