So far I'm in the very early stages of this. But I...
So far I'm in the very early stages of this. But I wanted to document the whole process. I also wanted to make sure I could pay for this procedure with cash/check since it tends to not be a good idea to have cosmetic procedures financed. My goal is to get only local anesthetics, the wedge method, and the cost to be below 4k. But I will see what kind of things the doctors say, and I'll work with them from there. So far I have saved up about 2.5k and will get the procedure when I have the full amount saved. (I'm guessing I'll do it after the summer).
My first step has been to send out emails asking a few questions to the plastic surgeons including price, method, how long it takes to schedule appointments, etc. I only email plastic surgeons who specialize in labiaplasty and have it listed as one of their main procedures. I've emailed about 8 so far. And have had three responses back. One the doctor ignored everything and just sent me a generic message to make an appointment to ask questions (they obviously got nixed off my list). Another said they don't perform the wedge method and do twilight sedation cost approx 4k-4.5k. The other said they did do the wedge method under full anesthesia and the cost is approximately 3.4k-4k. I'm still waiting on a few email/phone calls back and will update from there. I think I will have consultations with 2-3 doctors before I settle on one to do my procedure.
Got a few responses back. But not really what I was looking for.
So far my search for a good plastic surgeon is proving more difficult. I decided I'm going to expand my options to gynecologists who offer this procedure also. A few of the plastic surgeons have gotten back to me, many of their prices were pretty high (6k for a trim?!?!). The two surgeons I was most interested in haven't gotten back to me at all (but its only been 4-5 days). I'm determined to find someone who will do it for 4k or under, and preferably under local anesthetics since I'd like to be able to drive home after.
Anywho, thanks for the support from those who already commented :)
Finally got some responses was looking for!
So all at once, I finally had a few doctors get back to me who sounded like they were offering me what I was looking for in terms of my surgery. I got 3 emails back from doctors who were charging 3k and under for the procedure and offered it under local anesthetic. I'm going to start scheduling appointments. After the appointments, I'll write a little something about the doctors too. There wasn't too much information for doctors in the Maryland area when it comes to this procedure. So hopefully it will help someone else out when they need to get this done and live around Maryland.
Went to my first Consultation!
I had my first consultation with Dr Tavallali in Northern VA. He was great, very thorough, really nice. And his staff were great too! I still have 2 consultations more to do, but honestly, I think I'll be doing the procedure with him. If anyone wants to know, the quoted price was $3000 total. And no twilight anesthesia, just local nerve blocks (which was what I was looking for).
Went to my 3rd consultation and I've found a doctor for myself!
I decided I'm going to go with Davison from DC of Davinci plastic surgery. Of the surgeons I met with, he spent the most time talking to me about what I wanted everything to look like. He was very realistic about how everything would be done and how they would do it. I'm setting up the date and putting in the down payment either tomorrow or monday, the procedure will be done sometime in the first or second week in August, I'll update with before and after photos when the surgery date gets closer.
2 months til surgery!
It's scheduled Aug 11 with Stephen Davison. About a week before, I'll put my before photos up :)
Almost 1 month out!
I'm a combination of nervous and excited. I know it will be worth it getting it done, I've been sitting on the decision for literally YEARS now. So I'm excited to not have to literally tuck my labia in anymore (thats how long they are! Grrr). I'm going to post before photos in about 2 weeks. I already paid the $500 booking fee, I'm going to pay the rest by personal check in about a week. I made sure to have all the money before hand. I'm not a fan of financing plastic surgery, I think there's so many things that can happen financially that would make it a bad idea.
Before photos, 9 days until surgery
A bit nervous/anxious. Trying to think of all the things I need to stock up on for recovery.
It's tomorrow! I'm nervous!
I got everything together that I assume I'll need for the first few days. My sister is driving me and I'm staying at her house for the first 2-3 days. Lucky for me, my sister is an RN so anything problems I can just go to her haha! I probably won't post any directly after photos unless you guys want, I heard if you look down the first 2-3 days it will scare the crap out of you due to swelling/etc. I'll post photos of the healing process. The only part I'm really not looking forward to is that I can't go to the gym for the first 3-4 weeks!
Surgery is done!
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11 Aug 2014
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Day of treatment
So I'll go through how my day went (right now I'm laying on the couch with frozen peas on my crotch). So my surgery was scheduled for 3:30pm, I was to show up at the office at 3pm. My sister drove me over and we wound up getting there about 30 Minutes early. I had two rounds of topical numbing cream and then came the needle. That was honestly the worst/most painful part of the procedure. I literally almost kneed my doctor in the face. The entire procedure t. k 2 took 2 hours to complete. He stopped after one side and let me take a look to see if everything was the way I wanted it to look. He let me look at the finished product and already it looks waaaaay different down there. The first part of the procedure, iI was so nervous, my legs were shaking, but it got easier after. Feeling the blood run down my legs was honestly the worst part. he prescribed a pain med and an antibiotic. Even with the pain meds its pretty painful at this point. I'm icing it 20 On and 20 off at this point.
pain is MUCH better today.
Still icing every now and then, but not as much as I did last night, (7 hours straight of alternating icing the area). I didn't sleep so well last night, but then again I don't sleep well on couches (townhouse + first few days of a labiaplasty is a total no go). Its rediculously swollen, the outside lips are like rock hard. There's not so much bleeding now. Compared to yesterday when iI soaked pads and dripped blood all over the toilet when using the bathroom bathroom, yuckkk.
i finally.looked....
For the record it is really swollen but its not really purple, camera flash does weird things.
day 2 post op
Still pretty swollen, began the icing process again. I hate vicodin hahaha its given me more problems than its worth, I think I'll stick to Motrin from now on, its not throbbing or really painful anymore. Still doing the bed rest thing. I began religiously watching game of thrones. Its actually pretty interesting. I'm excited to see the finished product. Oh in case you needed to know, I have two follow up appointments, 1 in three weeks, the other after 6 weeks.
post op day 3/4
there's not really any pain anymore. just CONSTANT irritation. i think its from the constant use of pads, but its ridiculous, i'm so uncomfortable, even just sitting. its this raw itchy awful feeling. my skin feels horrid. the only way i was able to make it somewhat tollerable was to coat an entire pad in antibiotic ointment. as soon as i get home, i'm just going to leave it to the air without a pad and just a small coating of ointment. i'm going insane from this feeling!!!!!!!!!
Post Op day 4
(i'm going to try to keep taking photos every 2 days or so of the healing process, other member on here who did that helped me in knowing what to expect).
so the pain kind of comes and goes now. i'm on just motrin as of now, i took my last vicodin this afternoon. Last night was HORRIBLE i couldnt get comfortable no matter what. Turns out it was the pads, the photo i'm posting you can see the irritation marks. i'm still icing the area, just not as much as the first few days. The labia majora swelling went down, but the minora feels about the same size, both of which are still fairly hard to the touch. still tons of bruising and what not. But I feel better than day one post op, and all that matter is that we're moving in the right direction!
Post op day 5
Still really painful and I'm still bed ridden, it hurts walking. Since the labia majora swelling went down much quicker than the minora, part is stick out and rubbing on the majora and my thighs when walking. It doesnt help that pubic stuble is coming in and irritating the already sensitive tissue. i'm still icing, just not at often. I'm still taking motrin for the pain/swelling. I'm still using the antibiotic ointment also. I'm starting to feel rather discouraged and frustrated at this point, i'm very glad i took so much time off work. Anyone planning on doing this procedure should take off work a minimum of 1 week in my opinion.
post op day 6
i wasnt able to sleep more than 2-3 hours at a time. motrin isn't helping the pain. still basically bedridden. frustrated as hell.
post op day 6
Photo for you. it doesnt feel like the labia minora grew any larger, but comparing the photos, it looks like it. i'm assuming because the majora is finally decreasing in size. I was schedule to go back to work Friday, i may push itback.... I've been taking about 2400 mg of ibuprofen a day, its the only thing that really helps. If i still have this much pain by monday, i'm going to call my doctor to see if i can get a refill on some type of pain med. bedridden 6 days now...yuck. i'm still bleeding too, thats not 'unnormal' its rare on these posts where people desribe that kind of this, so for the record day 4-6 its been maybe a teaspoon of blood every 5-6 hours, not alot, but enough you would need a pad.
Post op day 7
Everythings looking a bit better down there. weird thing i noticed, i can start feeling the stitches slightly pull, i just thought it was odd since i figured i would feel it more when the swelling was more. this weekend was pretty bad for me, the pain comes in waves and especially bad at night and during the morning. i called the doctors office this morning, they said they would call in another pain prescription, thank goodness, i can't keep taking so much motrin. i call my manager at work and told him i wouldnt be coming back on friday, and would be back sunday. 2 more recoup days, i need them.
post op day 8
i dont really visually see a difference. but bruising looks worse and swelling feels slightly down. pain is getting better, its just bad in the mornings and at night. still taking some ibuprofen for swelling. i didnt ice at all yesterday, its the first day i skipped it, and now i dont see much progress. so i may ice again today, but for 10 min at a time, not 20.
Post op day 9
First morning i woke up and didnt need to take any pain med! inner lips look great (getting closer to normal....woo!). outter lips are still gross and bruised. nopain when walking though. i'm still taking it easy until sunday though. everytime i over exert myself thinking i'm getting better, my progress regresses. so i'm just going to do some house work without bending/lifting too much for exercise and reading. i'm feeling really good about things today though :)
Post op day 10
Normally i would post a photo, but i got my period so everything is not....photo friendly. everything is looking better down there though swelling of both the inner and outter lips has lessened and the pain is significantly less. i still feel stitches pull/poke here and there but not as much. the itching is absolutely HORRIBLE though, its only the outter lips which itch though. Sometimes dermoplast helps, sometimes in doesnt. either way, i was so miserable last night i took an entire vicodin (i've been using half pills the past few days), and got knocked out hahaha. either way, SO itchy. need better recoup days, so although i feel better, i'm only doing minor activities. Next week i go back to work and its spent entirely on my feet, i heard the best to do is wear loose pants and cotton underwear, so hopefully that will help.
Post op day 11
the itch factor is still coming and going, dermoplast seems to help sometimes, but it still gets so itchy i shiver. The rash was still there, i called the doctors office yesterdat, but the nurse that helps already left. I asked if it was okay to email her since its uncomfortable still to drive and i started my period. i thought i emailedher yesterday (turns out it never sent due to a problem on my phone). but she was nice enough to email me this morning anyway. i sent her pictures and described my concerns, she said due to the warm area and the antibiotics, yeast infections were common and to get an otc cream and if it didnt clear up i would go to the office. So far i'm really happy with the Davinci staff, they've always been really incredible and helpful throughout this process. Now if only I could stop itching, I would be a happy camper....
2 weeks post-op
My yeast infection got pretty bad this weekend, no pain just horrible itching. after 2 tubes of monistat i gave up and monday (today), they called in a prescription for me to get rid of it. I'm feeling better about things though. The yeast infection really got me down, but its almost over with, and i'm 2 weeks post, so from here on out, it should get easier. I go back to work tomorrow. Cotton underwear, loose pants, yogurt, no sweets, and plentiful probiotics. Don't make the same mistake i did, take probiotics with your antibiotics! and go easy on the sweet stuff til your healed!!!
20 days post op
The yeast infection is finally almost gone, just a few scars healing on the outside. The labia minora feels very healed, but is still slight taut to the touch. Parts of the labia majora feel still partly swollen, you can tell by the creases what i'm talking about. It feels much better to sit now, as long as i dont plop down hard or sit on hard benches. I still havent seen my clit yet, im afraid the skin is still too new to pull up the hood and take a look, i'll probably try around week 4-5. Walking feels much better, i'm still slow, but theres no awkward walk like before.
4.5 weeks post op
Its been a LONG journey but i'm finally able to sit and walk comfortably. I'm still not exercising, it still doesnt feel 100% healed to me, the labia is almost fully back to normal consistency, but the places which were sewn back together are still tough and sensitive (scar tissue i think). i'm almost at 5 weeks, i can't believe i'm almost in the clear for healed! i have a post op appointment with my sugeon at 7 weeks, i'm considered 'fully' healed at 8. I cant remember if i posted about it, but i did get the labia majora reduced too, he cut off sections where the majora met the minora and sewed it back together, hence why my majora looks like a train wreck in most photos.
Just some advice for anyone looking into this procedure (especially in the DMV area)
What you really want:
I can't stress this to you all enough, get this procedure for you, not anyone else. Most of the women on here felt the same problems I had, where the labia hung enough that it would cause discomfort. Literally everytime I used the bathroom I would have to tuck mine in, or else it would cause discomfort when walking. Hygiene became an issue, no matter what I did, toilet paper would always get stuck to the edges. I never had a problem with men making comments about it, but they would get in the way during intercourse. But you should get this done based upon how you feel, not anyone else, or else you may be unsatisfied in the end.
Finding the right doctor:
Talk to as many doctors and offices as you can, find the perfect doctor who will give you what you are looking for. Go into the office informed. Look for doctors who SPECIFICALLY specialize in this procedure, I say that because it's still a fairly new procedure, not a lot of plastic surgeons specialize in it. Go through price ranges, is 5k for a trim under local cheap or expensive in your area? Find out before you pay, most doctors are going to be non-refundable. And especially if you pay out of pocket and not on credit, get your moneys worth, but remember, most times, you have one shot to do this right, spend as much time as you can to make sure you are ready and able to be able to sink enough money into this.
Prepare yourself:
Flat out, surgery SUCKS! I wasn't able to go back to work for 2 weeks. It took 3-4 weeks until I was able to walk and sit without wobbling or pain. I would personally recommend 7-10 days of recouperating time. Get a bunch of the items you'll need before hand: pads, ointment, babywipes, spritz bottle of saline solution, etc. I think the first 10 days I went through 1oz of triple anti biotic ointment a day. And don't learn the same lesson I did with a yeast infection, buy some probiotics if you're going to be taking an antibiotic.
6 weeks post op
Everything's going well, no pain sitting or walking anymore. Once or twice I sat a little too hard on a wooden bench, but besides that, no pain. I was going to go back to the gym this week, but I still have a cold, as soon as it's over, I'm going back! As of yesterday, I started doing light massages with coconut oil to try and speed up the scar tissue issue. It's not bad, and on one side it's basically completely gone, but it's been 6 weeks and I'm getting...impatient haha. The normal color is finally starting to go back to my vulva, and the swelling and those funny looking creases are going away too. I'm starting to notice the "lumps" people were talking about post surgery with things like the thread coming through, I hope it goes away soon!
Post op 8 Weeks.
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10 Oct 2014
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2 months post
Welp, I'm considered "fully healed" at this point. And I definitely feel it. No more uncomfortable walks or using the bathroom, anything like that. Going to the gym now feels completely normal. I do notice I have less of a 'camel toe' with tight clothing, I think that was due to the labia majora reduction. Everything down there looks great. My hood was reduced a bit more than I really wanted, the bottom half of my clit sticks out, which I initially wanted it to stay covered like it was before. I do notice a difference of the sensitivity of my clit now that it is more exposed, it definitely seems more sensitive. So I can understand why some women opt for getting their hood done, but I kinda just wanted the lips done, either way, its not bothersome enough for me to really care. I do still have the little bumps that come and go near the incision sites, I'm assuming its from migrating stitches. I still have fairly large and apparent scars towards the top, but they're only noticeable when I stretch the skin out. Either way, I think I'm going to pick up a scar cream in hopes of lessening them. Overrall, I'm still very happy with my results, it was worth every penny. I've almost completely lost the urge to 'tuck' after using the bathroom, haha I guess that means I'm getting used to it.
post op 4.5 months
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16 Dec 2014
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4 months post
It really feels normal now, i still have old stitch remnants popping out here and there. My scars fade more as time goes by.
