47, Hourglass Was Getting Too Full! - Austin, TX

I'm 5' 10" and weigh 175 pounds. I've always had a very small waist and a good hourglass. Recently my hips and thighs were out of control. I had to buy size 14 pants to accommodate my saddle bags, but then the waistband was always gappy and I had to pin/sew it. So I decided to have liposuction on my outer thighs and hips. My goal was to remove the bubbles on my hips and to have a smooth contour on my outer thighs. I wasn't nervous at all about my appointment because my week had been really busy and I just hadn't thought much about it. Unfortunately, my doctor made me a little uncomfortable because he spoke very quickly and our encounter that morning was a little awkward. But the 9 am procedure was done quickly, I went straight home and slept until 7 o'clock that night. 1600 ccs were removed, but some of that was tumescent as you can see in the photo. I experienced a lot of bruising and some pain in my thighs. Mainly it was hard to sit on the toilet and I had to hold myself up. But I got up early the very next morning to attend my daughter's sports tournament and did just fine. When I measured on day two, I had lost two and a half inches on my hips and those bubbles were gone. My thighs still look similar to pre-op but I do expect a change soon. One of the most helpful explanations I have read about why it take so long to see the change is this: most of the fat cells are sucked out but some just atrophy and take time to leave your body. The remaining fat structure is like a honeycomb that fills up with fluid and it takes time for that fluid to get out of the honeycomb. Something like that. So, I'm having lots of faith that in about 3 weeks, I will have much better measurements.

Things I observed: Thigh lipo makes it very hard to sit on the toilet with any comfort. I only used a painkiller for the first night and then did fine. I noticed that my bowel movements seem to change. I wouldn't have one for a couple of days and then I would have a large one. I liked to imagine that was all the fat leaving my body. I don't feel like very much fat was taken off the side of my thighs, which is where I have the protruding. But I won't let it bother me until a month has passed and I see how much swelling goes away. My husband was following me up the stairs and said he could totally tell the difference in my thighs. And the bumps on my hips went away immediately which was awesome. Pants and skirts fit me so much better now. I hope it just keeps getting better.

The changes keep coming five weeks later. Capri pants that fit great before now almost slip off my hips. I'm so much more confident than I was before. We are on vacation this week and I'm wearing short little dresses, stretching my leaner legs out on the dash for my husband to admire. Heehee. Looking forward to getting home so I can measure again.