40Yr Vaser Lipo on Upper, Mid and Lower Stomach - Athenix Irvine, CA

I had gained 105 lbs with my first child 22 years ago. I have tried many diet and exercise plans and this stubborn junk around my trunk refuses to go away. After much research, I decided to get Vaser Lipo. I found the perfect surgeon in Irvine California. Here are some photos of before. One thing I did notice is that on this site there really aren't any big girls on here. I'm 5'7" and weigh 270lbs. So this review is for the big girls :)

Doc said he could take off 5 litters. In the whole scheme of things that doesn't seem like much. More importantly, I want my tummy "skirt" gone. Before we do that though, I needed to de-bulk my center. Hence the Vaser Lipo.

I had my surgery on Thursday Morning (9/4/2014). It took about 2 hours. I guess I was really talkative but I don't remember a thing! I put a nausea patch behind my ear that morning and I think it made me drowsy. I Also started my antibiotics the night before. They used local anesthesia along with two types of oral pain meds. I took two pills right when I got in to pre-op before PS did the markup and photos.Then an other two right before we walked into the op room. When we got to the op room, the nurse sanitized my skin from hairline to boobs. (the stuff itches at day 1 -3) Then the nurse gave me a shot of something right after the PS started pinching my stomach with something. I think this was the local anesthesia. It felt like a bee sting. It hurt a little bit. Then I was in lala land. I remember waking up a few times in pain when the PS got near my rib and hip bones. I was whimpering a little bit and I remember the nurse telling me to breath. I guess I was holding my breath. This only happened 3 times that I remember. In a two hour period - not bad. They also gave me a rubber ball to squeeze onto. I thought it was the nurses hand lol. After the surgery I remember them putting a compression garment on me. Then I was led to my recovery bed. I don't remember how I got there. Not sure if I walked or was rolled. I do remember climbing off the op table. Oh well, So after 40 mins in bed they woke me up and wheeled me to my ride. I did get a photo of the junk they took out of me. PS said they were able to get 5 litters. When I got home I went straight to bed. Slept for 2 hours then up. Then slept for 1 hour then up, then slept for 1 hour then up. In my UP stage, I went to the bathroom and drank a lot of G2 Gatoraide. I think this really helped with my recovery. After the third up, my nurse friend let me sleep through the night. I did wake up at midnight and was wide awake for an hour or so. Then I went back to bed. I sleep on my back the whole time. I was sore. Like someone beat the crap out of me. One of those "I exercised to much" pains. I'm not sure about the swelling. I was too sleepy. I did take my pain pills as needed. Oh, one really weird thing. My belly was so numb it felt like it wasn't part of me. Like I was touching a pillow not my skin. Totally weird!

I got up that morning all stiff and sore. I took a pain pill (percaset sp?) It hurts the most when I bend to the sitting position or right after I stand. Once I get up and move around and everything "settles" it doesn't hurt anymore. I still have on the white pillowy compression garmet. My follow up apt is at noon so I wanted to get some shopping done. We went to Lowes' for some flowering plants for my patio and then to Best Buy for a new camera. My iPhone sucks at photos and I wanted to document this. Ok, so we get the Doc apt and they are really impressed. They said they couldn't tell I just had surgery! I contribute that to the electrolytes I've been drinking. One thing that concerned me was the compression garment. It wasn't long enough. I couldn't get it to cover both my skirt and my upper abdominal area at the same time. Doc liked the way I was healing and said I was doing awesome. I go back in one week for a follow up. They fitted me with an additional garment. This one is black and goes from my knees up to my shoulders - looks like a spanks shape-ware. It has a huge hole in the crotch area :) Then I put the white pillowy garment on over that. After a busy morning, I went home and took a nap for a few hours. Got up and was sore so I took an other pill. My garments feel snug. I think this is the swelling. No worries though - it is to be expected. That night my nurse friend and I went down to the ocean pier and ate dinner. I didn't eat much - didn't feel like it but I have been drinking G2 non stop. We took a stroll on the beach - a very slow stroll. I wanted the energy from the ocean to fill me up lol. Then we walked down the pier and back at sunset. I attached a photo. It was a new day! Then we returned home and tried to watch Man of Steel but we both fell asleep. lol When I went to get into my bed I took off the white compression garment and slept with only the black one one. I continued to take my antibiotic.