He filled in my hip dips when others said it was impossible

When I started researching skinny BBLs, I was surprised by how hard it was to find a board-certified plastic surgeon who was willing and able to operate on me. My weight is average (5'5", 125 lbs), but I don't have a lot of subcutaneous fat. Many doctors—including those who have built a reputation for skinny BBLs—refused me. At one point, I had done a virtual consult and paid the deposit for a skinny BBL, only to have the doctor (Dr. Sieber) cancel the surgery when he saw me in person.
I was surprised and sad that the relatively minor changes I wanted were “impossible”. I didn’t need any additional front-to-back projection in my butt at all. All I wanted was to fill in my hip dips--something that no amount of diet or exercise can change. After Dr. Sieber abruptly cancelled, I told myself I needed to give it up and accept that filling in my hip dips wasn’t a possibility for me…but I couldn’t stop thinking about it. I decided to consult with a few more doctors just so that I could stop obsessing about it.
Luckily, Dr. Kaplan was one of these doctors.
I had come across Dr. Kaplan’s name in my initial search, but I was turned off by the lack of “before and after”’s on his website and his heavy social media presence. Social media can be a cool way to communicate, but I’m wary of professionals who have a highly curated online presence. There’s nothing as reassuring as a surgeon who’s too technically inept to post fake reviews, right? (I’m only halfway joking…)
Yet, once I got past the Instagram-only marketing, it was clear that Dr. Kaplan was highly skilled. His BBLs all have that cute upside-down heart shape, not the “Miami diaper” shape (you know the one). He also gets a nice, smooth contour. I was worried about contour irregularities, so this was a big deal. Finally, I was impressed at his knowledge and professionalism during our consultation. He was realistic enough to tell me that we would only be able to fill in the hip dips; yet he was bold enough to take on my case when so many other surgeons had rejected me.
I paid using CareCredit and had my first BBL in late June. Dr. Kaplan was able to get a liter of fat in total from my abdomen, flanks, back, and inner thighs. It was purified and transferred to my hip dips. I healed over the next few months. I was happy with my results, although my hip dips weren’t completely filled in after the first round.
The amount of fat a surgeon can get during a BBL is not necessarily bounded by the amount of fat a patient has available. There comes a point during the operation at which more blood than fat is being extracted, and it’s both useless and dangerous to continue after that point. Dr. Kaplan reached that threshold with me before all my fat was taken out, which is why we didn’t fill in my hip dips 100%. Because of this, I decided to get a second-round BBL in early October.
My second BBL went great as well. I’m still healing, but I’m thrilled with what I see so far. I don’t see any contour irregularities, which is amazing considering that Dr. Kaplan covered such a wide surface area (abdomen, flanks, back, thighs, calves) and had to deal with scar tissue from the first round. Once the swelling goes down, I think this will be exactly what I wanted.
After the first round, I lost 1/2” on my waist and gained 1/2” on my hips. The same amount of fat was extracted during the second round, so I’m guessing my measurements will change similarly.
The recovery for both of my BBLs has been surprisingly easy. I’m not sure if this is due to Dr. Kaplan’s technique or if I’m just lucky, but my pain is a 5/10 without medication and a 2/10 with medication. I was so scared before my first BBL because I had read reviews about how intensely painful the recovery is. It hasn’t been bad for me at all, and I have a low pain tolerance. I was going on 3-4 mile walks after the first week and lifting heavy weights after the second week. The only barrier to physical activity was some lingering stiffness in my thighs. (I was deadlifting after two weeks, but it took me two months to squat again.)
The one thing that did really hurt was washing the incisions with with antibacterial soap the first day. I almost fainted, seriously. For anyone reading this, make sure to take some pain medication at least 30 minutes before stepping in the shower.
Misc other nice things about working with Dr. Kaplan:
- Everyone at the office is sweet and makes an effort to get to know you.
- Phone calls and emails are returned promptly.
- The office fills your prescriptions for you and gives them to you as part of your goodie bag.
- Dr. Kaplan doesn't require you to get lymphatic drainage massages (which are SO expensive and time-consuming).
- It's surprisingly easy to get appointments. There isn't a massive wait list.
- The office is in a nice neighborhood, not downtown like most other surgeons' offices. I appreciate the surplus of parking and the lack of violent screaming homeless guys.
I’d highly recommend Dr. Kaplan for a skinny BBL.