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Wow! Almost 5 years later!
Everything with my tummy tuck is looking great. I did eventually have to have my belly button removed because after 3 revisions, it just was determined to close up. I'm now left with a little scar where my belly button was, but I'm ok with it. At some point I might get a tattoo on the spot!
The nerve endings in my abdomen are squirrelly and never came back to normal. It's weird- I can feel pressure and in some spots I can feel close to normal, but mostly it's just kind of dull all over. Not completely numb, but not normal either. Sometimes I get an itch and I literally can't scratch it because the nerves aren't communicating correctly. Or I scratch in a different place than I feel the itch and it takes care of it.
I'm really glad I did this blog though, because I was thinking recently (after my debacle with my belly button) that maybe it wasn't worth it. Then I came in here and looked at my before photos, and damn, it was totally worth it!
Almost 4 Months Post-Op
Just a quick update. Despite my little setbacks, which seemed huge at the time, I am healing super well and feeling almost completely normal. My issues were small compared to some - I had that infection and hole I had to pack for 6 weeks - but of course, to me, they were huge!
I just had a follow-up with my surgeon. He says I've got about 10% more swelling that will go away eventually. My belly button keeps trying to close up, so I"m keeping an earplug in it for several weeks. If it continues to try to close we will do a revision in his office, so I'm not super concerned about it.
My tummy is still numb around and below my belly button, but if it stays this way it won't really bother me. Of course I hope the feeling comes back, but it's not a huge problem. I only worry that I might not notice if I hurt myself in that area.
Just wanted to let you all know that I didn't believe early on that I'd ever feel normal again, but I do! I'm not even scared to do crunches or exercise anymore. I spent two weeks walking all over Italy - 10 miles a day minimum, and did just fine. No soreness, and just a bit of swelling at the ends of the days.
You will get through this, and you will be normal again. And gorgeous!
Photos finally!
Provider Review
I am redoing this review as of Post Op Day 24. I did not have a perfectly smooth recovery, but not everyone does. Having said that, Dr. Patel did a great job on the way I look and I couldn't be happier with my results. When I began having issues, he and his staff were very responsive and communicated with me constantly. The customer service given by this office is really among the best I have ever seen in the medical community - and I work for a hospital. Additionally, the surgical center he uses has wonderful staff. Everyone I encountered treated me very professionally and in a friendly way, and made me feel like they really did care about taking great care of me. I would absolutely recommend this surgeon to anyone seeking out plastic surgery services. He really cares about what he does, and doing it right.