Not a Mommy, but Having a Makeover - Boise, ID
I'm a 21-year-old from Boise, ID. I have not...
I'm a 21-year-old from Boise, ID. I have not had any children. I grew up overweight from about age 5 and weighed around 240 lbs. upon entering my freshman year of high school. I lost a total of 100 lbs. between then and shortly after my graduation. The weight loss changed my life dramatically, on both physical and emotion levels. I'll admit, I went overboard with the weight loss. I became obsessed.
I think my body's natural weight is around 150-165lbs. When I reached that plateau during my weight loss, I started doing HIIT training and had to train like an olympian to get down to 140 lbs. The stress of this led to anxiety and the buildup of a severe panic disorder that peaked at the end of 2008. Since then, I've recovered almost 100% and have a much healthier view on eating, exercising, weight, and body image.
However, I've also realized that no matter how skinny I get (and 140 lbs. is TOO skinny for my body structure), the droopiness in my stomach and breasts will never go away. So I decided a couple of years ago to get both a full abdominoplasty and a mastopexy (just the breast lift).
My surgery is scheduled for January 5, 2012, just 12 days from now. I am both nervous and excited. I wanted to get my side/back fat liposuctioned but cannot afford it. I'm hoping I can lost 5-10 lbs. proceeding the surgery to get rid of it, as it will reduce with just a small amount of weight loss. I've had trouble losing any weight these past few years, maybe because of all the medication I'm on for the panic disorder, or because I'm not crazy obsessed with weight loss like before, so I am unable - and don't want - to push myself to the extremes I once did.
I've taken a few before photos, so I'll post them up here for now. I'll probably take the first post-op photos 2 or 3 weeks after the surgery, so almost February.
jayeeebee's provider
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Two days post-op: Hey everyone! So I've been...
Hey everyone! So I've been back home since about noon yesterday. My hospital stay went very smoothly and according to all the nurses, I did very good with recovering so far.
To start off, my estimated 8-hr surgery was only roughly 5 hours long and when I woke up in the recovery room, I was not nauseas or in much pain. I was then transferred to the hospital room I stayed in for the night and was able to eat and everything. I never experience nausea or pain above a 4 or 5 on a scale from 1-10. Most of the time I was at a 1 or 2. When I went on my first walk, I did the whole hallway loop, which they said was awesome.
After I got home, I realized it would be a bit harder, what with having to drain my own tubes, give myself blood thinner shots and keep up with all my meds. I've been able to get up quite often, going to the bathroom and just walking around like an old lady. Pain is controlled well with Norco, but my concern is mostly on the drains right now, making sure they aren't clotting and are draining enough. The right one was clogged a bit last night but this morning we stripped it and unclogged it.
Besides all of that, I'm doing well. I've kind of been able to see my body but not everything just yet. Kind of hard when you're bending half-way over. But my stomach is super smooth and flat, my belly button is much higher than before and my boobs are UP. I haven't felt any pain from my chest area, just the stomach, and it's still pretty numb at the incision sites, so it'll be weird to see how it feels after the numbness wears off and my drains come out. I'm looking forward to being able to get a good look at the results though. I'll have my first post-op appt this next week so hopefully then!
Replies (2)
Thank you so much for sharing your inspiring story on RealSelf! And congratulations on that weight loss. It sounds like you know what is healthy for your own body and mind at this point. I'm sorry you'd had to go through so much. I'm sure you've come out on the other side a stronger woman.
I know that sometimes plastic surgeons will "throw in" the lipo when you are getting the other two procedures done as well. You might want to ask about this, or at least ask for a discount. It can't hurt to try.
Please keep us posted on how you're doing! Looking forward to following your journey!
I've found RealSelf to be super helpful at setting my mind at ease.