***Mommy Makeover with Maikel Jimenez Ferreras***https://www.realself.com/tummy-tuck/cost

I will be having plastic surgery with Dra. Fatima Almonte on December 14, 2015. I has weight loss surgery and lost around 50 - 60 lbs and will be having a tummy tuck, lipo of full back, flanks, abdomen, armpits and inner thigh with a Brazilian butt lift to complete my transformation. I chose Dra. Almonte because based on the research I have done on her patients, I see results which I consider great on women who have a similar body type to mine. I see consistent results of great natural looking curves,, which is exactly the look I want to achieve. I am 5"5' and weight about 150 lbs so, base don what the vets have said, I can have my pick of surgeons, and I chose Almonte. She is "conservative" meaning she will not push the envelope as it regards your health and will only perform surgeries based on what your body can tolerate. I love that approach because there is no point in being snatched if you're going to end up 6 feet under or having a near death experience because of an overly aggressive approach. I have a 3 year old and my family who I want to come home to when all is said and done which means more to me than being snatched. To counter the conservative approach, I will start my surgery vitamin regimen: vitamin C, iron, and folic acid as soon as my shipment arrives (some time this week) to get my hemo up to at least 13.5. Since I am a sleeve patient, I already take B-12, calcium, a multi vitamin and biotin daily, so I am already half way there.

My body is boxy and man-ish. I have seen where Almonte has transformed women who looked like me initially into sexy, curvaceous mamas, I dreamt 2 nights ago that I woke up from surgery super satisfied with my off-the-table results. Fingers crossed dolls.

I received my order of vitamins/supplements yesterday. I also take a multi-vitamin, b-12, calcium and biotin daily. I need to check if those are ok to be taken with the iron, vitamin and folic acid concoction (meaning whether they interfere with iron absorption). I will be shopping for other post-op supplies soon. I will keep you ladies posted.

I found this on the website that i purchase my supplement. Has anyone tried this before? It contains iron, folic acid and vitamin c. The reviews are promising. I think I am going to try it. if you've already tried it, please let me know your thoughts.

My bags are packed and surgery is still 22 days away. This is getting so real dolls!!!

I hate to do this because of all the research I put into Fatima Almonte and I still do love her work, but, and that's a big but coming from me, I had to go with my heart. Dr. JF i snew on the international scene (well to me at least) but his photos speak volume even though some of them have been filtered,nI think he has the chops. Like the other popular doctors, he is board certified, teaches plastic surgery and has a clean track record. (Yes, I am still selling him to myself). He and his assistant Ruth have been nothing but responsive and direct in their assessment of my situation. He is known locally in the DR and is trying to break onto the North American scene now. I am excited about the prospects because he has something to prove, not to himself as he seems confident in his abilities but to us dolls who know little about his work. Please keep my in prayer.

I had mmo with full lipo to my back, flanks, and fat transfer to my laugh lines. 265 cc implants over muscle, tt and bbl.

I arrived in Santo Domingo not 100% certain of who I would ultimately choose to be my surgeon. I had originally paid my deposit to Dra. Fatima Almonte, done my research on her but and felt confident that I could entrust her with my life and also with delivering the results I want. However, less than a month before my surgery there was a wave of claims from her vets that she refused to perform multiple procedures on them claiming that their heno was too low. I have every intention of going through sx only once, so I started looking for alternatives. Tat is how I stumbled upon Dr. Jimenez Ferreras. His assistant picked me up from the airport and took me to Tropical Deluxe RH. was showed to my room and dinner was provided.

The next morning his assistant came by the RH and took me to the clinic for consultation with Dr. JF. I did not let them know I was not sure, but while doing my consult, I felt a sense of calm talking with him based on how he answered my questions and the direction he indicated he would go with surgery.

I had my chest x-ray, blood work and vitals checked out, they all came back good. My hemo was between 11-12 (I believe) but Dr. JF thought it was good based on the fact that my period had started that morning. I was walked to the OR where my IV was set up, they turned me on my side and the next thing I knew, I woke up stiff and sore in an hospital bed singing songs of praise in my mind and my over night nurse standing over me. I made it! I slept through the night and woke up ever so often to ask the time. In the morning I got up and was assisted to the bathroom by the overnight nurse, my bed was being changed, so I sat in the sofa waiting for Ruth to come pick me up and take me to the RH. My next conscious moment was of my laying back in the hospital bed with 6 people including Dr. JF, the on duty doctor and the anesthesiologist standing over me wetting my face, checking my vitals and feeding me juice. I passed out, my blood pressure was low. When I recovery, I was taken to the RH where I passed out once again. The staff there revived me and called Dr. JF to come check up on me. He checked my vitals and assured me that I was fine and didn't need to be transfused.

I had 3 post-op visits with Dr. JF and we agreed that the result were looking good. He was always attentive and answered my million questions gracefully, provided me with pictures and videos of my surgery. I discovered an abdominal wall hernia while doing my tt and he repaired it. It was an extra cost of $500. What has endeared him to me is that he didn't tell me while I was in a "fragile" state as he called the day after surgery when I saw him, he brought it up in our first official post-op visit. I had brought emergency funds, so I paid him on my second post-op visit.

My stay at the RH was mostly good. It is located in an upscale neighbourhood in a secure condo complex. At the recovery house, the staff cleans constantly and does laundry daily. When I first arrived, I found the food to be on the salty side for my taste, I pointed it out to Naomi - the chef and she adjusted the salt level accordingly. Naomi asked me everyday what I wanted for breakfast, lunch and dinner and delivered said meals. She also prepared a variety of freshly made juices daily. The shifts for the staff from my observation begin at 8am. I am usually not an early morning eater, but I found that i was hungry by 8/9 most mornings, so perhaps having someone start earlier to prepare an earlier breakfast could be considered. The maintenance staff constantly checked my room to ensure everything was in order, swept and wiped the floors several times a day, which I found impressive. I always had a cool beverage in my room and snacks to munch on.

I got daily massages after my doctor cleared me, and that was followed by a sponge bath by the nurse. Ruth (mother) is the owner of the RH and she did the massages. They were extremely painful initially, but I found that if I took a painkiller before, it was more bearable. Apart from tem being painful, Ruth did a good job of ridding me of fluids.

I never saw the full set of medications that were prescribed for me by Dr. JF. Personally, I would prefer to know what was prescribed, what they are for, how many to take and how for long. The nurse brought my meds to me daily at different times, so I never got the full understanding of the schedule, or it was not being closely followed. I can appreciate the 'big brother' approach but, I am an adult and am capable of taking my medications as prescribed. Nurses are humans too and can make mistakes, if a mistake is to be made with my medications, I'd prefer to be the one to make that mistake.

I had a hospital bed which I found very useful, the only drawback with that is there is not call button on it, so if I needed assistance and no one was around I had to holler for someone to come assist me.

I paid for an all-inclusive package, so the only thing I had to pay for out of pocket was heparin which according to Ruth (daughter) cost $60 since I didn't get a sales receipt from the pharmacy indicating this. I also paid $150 for a stage 2 Colombiana faja.

In terms of improvement, I think my experience could have been better if some sight-seeing activities was included with the stay especially after day 7 when lots of people begin to feel somewhat normal again. I was bored being indoors all the time. Even a trip to the beach , which is across the street from the RH for some fresh air would have been nice.

Overall, the ladies treated me well, and I felt like family. I feel like they had my best interest at heart and did all the could to make my stay as comfortable as possible.

Recovery has been tougher on me physically than I thought it would have been. I am admitting to myself that it is alright to be "weak" and dependent on others for help. Seeing my body gives me hope though! I am very happy with my results so far. I have only gone out to dinner once since returning home and have attended church where people are already telling me they didn't recognize me and asking if I ate chicken pill (a harmone they feed chicken to get them mature). That was hilarious being the girl who had no ass all her life to now having a noticeable one.

I am 5 weeks post-op mommy makeover with Dr. Maikel Jimenez Ferreras today. I measured my waist this morning and it was 27.5 inches. Swelling is going down because it was 29 like 3 weeks ago or so. Never would I dream that I would see a waistline under 30 inches in my life ever again. I am super happy with my waistline!

Swelling in my back and tummy is going down well. I feel almost back to myself after suffering low energy and weakness for a while.

I have been receiving quite a few questions about my stay at Tropical Deluxe RH, so I am just going to say a few things to help someone who has chosen this recovery house. They have most of the supplies you need to recover. I used my own poise pads, personal and disinfecting wipes, female urinal, arnica creme. If you are scared of pain, I would suggest taking your own pain meds (not that the ones provided are not adequate), so you have options.

In terms of food, I only ate out once and that was only because I wanted to get out of the house. Naomi is a good cook, she made everything to order for me, sometimes I had to tell her to surprise me!

There are no hidden fees which I loved about this RH. I only paid for heparin post sx. Everything else was included in the quote.

I have been using a waist trainer for a couple weeks now to help with swelling in my lower abdomen ( along the t incision) and my lower back. It could be that my body is doing it on its own or it could be that the trainer is helping, but...the swelling is subsiding.

My lumps and bumps are almost all gone. I only still have lumps (minor) in my arms from lipo, my back is pretty much all healed up. But I am still feeling the pain from time to time in my sides. Life is good. No regrets.