Wow 2 months already!

I can hardly believe it's been 8 months.
I feel well. I've healed well and I am back to my regular level of activity. I can challenge myself in yoga again...even back bends! However, I can feel a little swelling when I am over zealous with any sort of hard work. Mountain hiking left me a little slumped after a couple of days...but I was also camping so sleeping was not super comfy.
I also have some residual numbness which increases a little with fatigue. I hope it goes away completely someday...we'll see.
My scar is mostly smooth. I think it might not have spread a it in back if I would have been willing to hold off on stretching a bit longer, and would have worn the gel zone wrap more over the summer (kind of difficult with a bunch of kids and a pool that we basically live in all summer). I have noticed a marked improvement in my scar since getting back to the wrap, that makes me wish I had worn it all along. I am anxious for my scar to fade, but I am fair skinned, so it remains a purplish pink. This is a normal process for me...wounds heal and stay darker for what seems like a long time then fade almost completely. I told myself not to judge for at least a year.patience isn't my strong suit though, HA!
I am so glad I did this. I feel great about it, my husband feels great about it, even after his trepidation.
I will try to load up some more comprehensive pics soon
Good luck to everyone out there

Well, I made the two month Mark yesterday. The most remarkable part is how normal I feel. Don't get me wrong, I still have things to attend to...such as the little wound opening up front, but I don't feel like there is really anything I wouldn't consider doing in my day to day routine at this point. As far as exercising, I do swell when I work even a little harder, but I am adding back more and more as I go. I feel like my upper abs could be tighter, but that makes sense ...they haven't been worked much in 2 months after all, so that's nothing that won't improve with time.
I went to a post op yesterday...drove to Seattle 4.5 hours and back in one day...with a few kids in toe and wasn't to uncomfortable. A month ago car rides like that we're my biggest fuss.
My appointment went well and the PS 'cleaned out' the wound that I have been packing with an alginate dressing since it was last cleaned out 10 days prior. It didn't hurt at all but I would be dishonest if I don't mention that it creeped me out a little.it looks (and actually is) deeper now but the new healthy tissue is visible too and both the nurse and PS were pleased with the progress. They claim it is healing beautifully and tell me that in the end it won't look any different than the rest of my scar. I did not get asked to come back in 10 days this time, yay! on to my 3 month in May, unless things get icky. I am trying not to let this open spot discourage me much. It's a little icky to change and repack the dressing and tape on my skin is irritating...but that's the deal and really, it's pretty minor in the scope of things. It seems like I can feel things in that area a little now, but maybe just a mild itchiness. Of course this could be more psychological than physiological. The rest of my incision is pretty stinking awesome and I am still overwhelmingly delighted with my results and I feel great!
So the gelzone wrap...I like it but it makes me pretty itchy after a few hours. I am fair skinned and so somewhat sensitive. Nothing unbearable, but I ordered some scar zone this morning. I will let y'all know my preference when I can ascertain it.
I hope everyone else is healing well.
Someone asked about skin pulling and sitting afterward on another post...was not much of an issue for me, totally manageable. The pain was no where near as bad as the anticipation of it. This is totally doable! Your body is amazing and can do this with your love & support...go for it!
Blessings to all

Hi everybody.
I can't believe more than two weeks have flown past since I updated. I don't even have any new pictures to share today. I will work on that. Aside from "swell hell" I feel really well. I do still have my little opening in front, above my vagiant. It is not infected and has been watched very closely. At about 4 weeks I was cleared to exercise as long as I listened to my body. The day after I 'exercised ' a little with my husband it got a little wider, so we have to be a little more creative about that now. The nurse recently told me that it probably wasn't the cause. Rather, it is likely that the tissue underneath just there wasn't as healed up as the surface. this little irritation is quite preferable to an abscess. Eewww! so I'll take it. It is about an inch wide across and just more than .5 inch top to bottom. The PS had me use a wet dressing for a number of days prior to an appointment then he cleaned out the [RS bleep]/softened scab (painless) so that it could continue to heal from the inside out. All of which makes perfect sense. That made it look uglier but it is healthy tissue and it does not hurt. They have me packing the wound with something called a calcium alginate dressing that is derived from seaweed. Very interesting stuff. It looks kind of like a thin felt. It's very fibrous and dry & I pull it apart a bit so that it is loose enough not to hold the wound edges open too much. It's like putting a flattened bit of cotton candy in there. It sticks easily. i cover it with a bandaid pr gauze and it soaks up any wound moisture (exudate) and turns gel like. I change this a couple of times per day. I can cover this with a standard size bandaid, so again, it's not very big. But it does keep me out of the pool and that's inconvenient. The rest of my scar looks pretty phenomenal and I am excited about my results.
This 7th week has brought on some more significant swelling especially above my navel (that the PS called a work of art on Monday). I know swelling like this commonly happens. It is more likely when I do more of course.
The good news is, I am back to walking 3-6 miles per day, usually on trails and I swell more when it's a more challenging trek. Sometimes I wear my binder for a little added support. My back pain has returned a little so I know I need to work on that core ASAP....however, even the slightest indirect ab work leaves me well aware of my limitations and I swell even more! That's a little discouraging but quite consistent with my own lack of patience, to be honest.
The other big swelling contributer is wine, especially when paired with anything salty...but really? Skipping wine completely is just not gonna happen sometimes. LOL a girl has to have some priorities!
Life has predominantly returned to normal and busy. I was able to relieve my daughter of her morning assistant role a couple of weeks ago as I am able to manage the more physical parts of my job independently now.
I had a great time at a couple of parties recently. It was flattering and a little uncomfortable getting the attention, but most people seemed to assume I had just lost some more weight. The one friend who seemed a little focused, especially post hug, had a quizzical look. This friend happens to be a surgeon though, so even if he did guess something he would be too respectful/professional to mention it...interesting behavior to observe.
All in all things are fabulous and I would definitely do it again! I believe firmly that it comes down to choosing a great surgeon, and knowing what you are getting into as well as preparing physically, emotionally and nutritionally. Im still consuming extra protein and trying (struggling some) to eat clean.
I have to have more frequent follow up appointments which are inconvenient due to living 4-5 hours away. However,I appreciate the quality of care even though I gripe about the drive a little.
I hope everyone else is doing well too. I think of you often.
Cheers