5ft1 125lb Mom of Three Boys- Abdominoplasty

I’ve had a couple requests to see my scar and/or belly button. I’m still loving my results. Even with gaining Covid weight, my stomach still looks great.

Here are some pictures from the past weeks. I mentioned the vertical scar on one of my captions, but I'll mention it again now. I didn't have enough loose skin to pull my old belly button area down blow the incision line. If I feel the scar is too obvious, I will consider a scar revision. At this point, I just hope it heals nicely.
Also, swelling was initially more significant in the lower part of my stomach, now I find I swell more above the belly button area. Dr. Frank mentioned this swelling will continue on and off for the next 6-9 months. Also he mentioned the button of my belly button will be less puffy.

I posted a review right after my surgery and I'm just realizing I posted it! At the time, I remember thinking I should post something since I appreciated all the pictures and reviews I scrolled through (and was feeling bored in my sedentary state- since I seemed to be wide awake in the middle of the night) I also recall typing and thinking everything was deleted somehow. Not having the desire to write everything again, I decided to go to sleep instead ;)
Fast forward to tonight- by chance the review was on my phone this evening. I don't know if my children found it or what (?!), but I'm happy to have found it so I can follow up.

Here's how I recall the past two months recovery:
1st week- tough. Uncomfortable. You really need support. I had both my mom and my husband. Both for the first 4 days, my husband for the the whole week and then I had various friends or family pop in to help out on the second week. (Days 7-14, to be clear)
2 week- feeling much better but still not tip top.
3rd week- I started driving again. Dauntingly I started taking care of the boys by myself (and feeling like I was failing at it. I believe around this time I found my 2 year old on the top of our kitchen cabinetry!) I also seem to recall noticing my swelling was starting to noticeably decrease.
4-6 weeks. Walking lots. Felt very functional
6 weeks. Was allowed to stop wearing the compression garment at night which was a relief since my skin was always feeling itchy
8 weeks- could stop wearing my compression garment during the days but still require it to wear while exercising- which has been mostly running. Next Tuesday (10 week mark) I'm permitted to stop wearing the garment entirely.

I can't fully express how great it feels to have a flat midsection! The first time I tried on pants I had a very strong emotional response- everything fit so nicely. Perfectly. (I no longer felt that tinge of resentment for destroying my body). I really feel fantastic and would strongly encourage anyone who would like a tummy tuck to follow that path.