So I have finally decided to join all of you...
So I have finally decided to join all of you wonderful ladies. I figure why not help others make the best decision like you all have helped me. A little about me. I am a 28 yr old happily married mother of 3 beautiful children ages 11, 3 and 9mon. I have always wanted a tummy tuck since I had my first child but I was so slender and tall it really didn't bother me that my tummy was a little pudgy. It was not until after I had my 3rd child April of 2013 that I started to do more research and push the issue with my husband. My last pregnancy really took a toll on me and I was literally devastated after I got home from the hospital and finally saw what my tummy looked like. I stood in the mirror and cried and my husband looked at me with the most helpless look ever. Even after having my first two children my stomach did not sag and that's what bothers me the most. Also the fact that my hernia and stomach stick out more now. This tummy tuck is going to be a dream come true for me and I can hardly wait for the day to come.
I am 5'8 1/2, 163lbs my goal weight by my surgery date is to be between 150-155lbs. My pre pregnancy weight before I had my last baby was 150. My bra size is 36D and I currently wear a size 10 in pants/jeans. My procedure date is 03/18/2014
My wish pics are of myself!!!
I am very realistic when it comes to what I want to look like. Really I just want my body to be back to the way it was before I had my third child (Plus a very flat stomach with the help of a tummy tuck.) 2012 was a VERY good year for me as far as my weight went. I was a size 8 and extremely happy at that size. Here are a few pics of my former self. I'm not too far away from what I want to be luckily. All four of these pics were weight loss after my first two kids before I got pregnant with my third in 2012.
Met with my doctor today
I met with my doctor and went to put down my deposit today. Putting down my deposit made things more real for me. I'm still in disbelief I'm even getting this procedure done. Today while meeting with Dr. Chung I was able to ask more questions and he took his time answering them. Meeting with him again confirmed just why I chose him as my doctor. He's very down to earth, a great listener and he not only answers my questions he explains them in detail. I'm officially counting down the days until March 18!!!
Counting down the days!
In the meantime I have been reading others reviews and tt experiences. I am extremely excited and ready. I have a lot of support from my family and I will have plenty of help. My mother in law is flying in from Houston March 11th and is going to stay with us until April 30. I know that's a long time but she is going to be a big help and we get along wonderfully so that makes it even better. My husband will be taking leave from March 12 to the 27 and my mom will take the kids from time to time to help out. I wanted to post a pic of the beautiful dress my husband ordered for me from my fav store in the world lol Express. I NEVER wear form fitting dresses because I would not be caught dead in one without a completely flat tummy. It was very nice of him to order a goal dress to get into. I can't wait to wear it a couple months later or however long it takes after surgery.
Finally ordered a CG
I ordered my CG yesterday and it was shipped out the same day. I'm excited to receive it. What I like about it is it has 3 or 4 rows of hooks to adjust to my desired tightness. I ordered it from caribbeanshape.com and used a 5% off coupon and got free shipping.
Pre Op Appointment
I had my pre op appointment today. My husband and I asked whatever questions came to mind and Dr. Chung did a lot of explaining about the surgery and what to expect afterwards. I also got all my prescriptions filled. I made my final payment and now I'm just playing the waiting game. I CAN'T WAIT I have been wanting a tt for as long as I can remember. March 18th can't come any sooner. I am also close to my goal weight before surgery. I currently weigh 157 my goal before surgery is to be between 150-155 lbs.
My Surgery day is almost here!
Yay! I can't believe I will have a flat tummy on Tuesday. I am prepared and so excited.
I will be on the flat side tomorrow!!
My surgery is at 9:30am tomorrow. I just finished getting my last minute items and now I'm just waiting. When I started my review on RS I weighed 163 I am down to 157. My goal before surgery was to be between 150-155 I'm not going to beat myself up about it 6lbs down is better than no lbs lost at all.
I forgot to add...
Current Weight 157
Waist 30 1/2"
Hips 38 1/2"
Bra Size 36D
Height 5'8 1/2
I don't know how I'm gonna sleep tonight
I still can't believe I am going through with this. I'm so excited I can hardly contain myself!
I am on the flat side!!!
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18 Mar 2014
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Day of treatment
I'm feeling pretty good post surgery. I thought I would be in a lot of pain. The actual incision doesn't bother me at all. It's my tummy that feels extremely sore. I am surprised at the amount of skin and fat the doc removed. I would have never thought I was carrying all that fat underneath. I still have not been able to see my tummy. Hopefully I will tomorrow when I ga back to see the docn
Sooo Happy!
Hello RS friends. I am extremely satisfied with my results. Despite having a lot of swelling I'm just thrilled. The surgery went very well. I'm not having a lot of pain mainly soreness times 100 in my tummy area.
Drains SUCK!
The drains are my biggest issue right now. My incision does not bother me at all. The Dr. told me I may be able to take one drain out on Mon if so I'm really looking forward to that. I am still walking hunched over and my back hurts a little. I'm just taking it easy and getting up to walk every time I go to the bathroom. Well that's all for now. I will update with pics in a couple days.
Feeling ok
Today I made smoothies for breakfast I can't believe how exhausted I was after I was done. I have not been having any real pain so I stopped taking the pain medication. I still take the muscle relaxer. I noticed that I get full very quickly I guess that's a good thing. I can't wait until I'm able to sleep on my sides instead of my back.
Taking this day by day
I'm feeling a little better today. As far as pain goes I'm not really experiencing an at this point. My back aches a little from being hunched over some. My tummy is still tight. My biggest issuse right now is having a bowel movement. I'm sure when that happens I will feel even better. Well that's all for now. I'm going to ask my mother in law to make pancakes for breakfast. Have a great day everyone.
More Pics
It was hard for me to take the post op pics. I didn't realize how much the binder really holds you in and keeps you in place. I felt like I was going to fall apart without it. My crazy husband didn't want me to take it off to take pics at all. I told him everything would be fine. As soon as I was done taking pictures he wrapped me right back in it lol.
I'm going crazy!!
I'm so tired of laying on my back it's getting to be very uncomfortable. Trying to sleep in any other position is not even possible right now. My mother in law arrived March 11 and she doesn't leave until April 30. I definitely appreciate all of her help she has been wonderful but there is nothing like having privacy and doing what you want when you want to do it. I just need to feel 100% again. Right now I'm feeling like crap.
One drain down. One more to go!
I met with my doc today and had one of my drains taken out. It didn't hurt as bad as I thought it would. Actually there was no pain at all. Just a very weird feeling. I was finally able to have a bowel movement after a week. Man do I feel so much better. My doc suggested that I pick up a suppository on my way home. That thing worked wonders lol. I must be like 3lbs lighter. Not much else going on just taking it easy and getting some much needed rest.
Another day with Henry :(
I really am going insane because my drain has a name lol!!! Not much going on. My next big milestone will be getting this second drain out I am praying that happens before the end of this week. I also can't wait to see my incision. My doc wants me to keep the tape that is over it in place for now. I'm still walking hunched over slightly. I can't wait to look back at all this and it all be a distant memory. For now I'm just going to take it easy and enjoy the ride.
I'm feeling A LOT better today
* I am having 0 pain
* I was able to sleep on my left side last night
* The ends of my incision are itching
* From the bottom of my breast bone to my naval I can feel pulling. It is uncomfortable but doesn't hurt. The pulling is the only issue that is preventing me from standing completely upright.
* I still have my right drain in
* Last but not least I'm bored out of my mind!
No more drains! 3-29-14
I got my drains out today!!! I'm sooo happy! I love my Dr he took the time out of his day to meet myself and my husband on his day off. His office is closed on the weekend. I also got the chance to see my incision. It is more than I expected I'm very pleased Dr. Chung did an exceptional job.
My day was spent looking for a new cg because the faja that I ordered online would not even fasten. I could hardly believe it! I was able to fasten the faja before my surgery. I know I'm still experiencing swelling but geesh. I already feel so slim even with the swelling I can't imagine myself being any thinner once the swelling is gone. I will post more pics of my progress soon.
My day was very good
Each day really does get better. This whole process takes a lot of time and patience. I am pretty much doing everything I was doing before surgery except for exercising and sex. My husband and mother in law insists that I don't pick up our humongous 28lb 12 month old lol. I still can't sleep on my stomach but I can sleep perfectly fine on my sides and back. When I wake up my belly is nice and flat but of course by the end of the day I have lots of swelling. Either way I'm loving my results and I'm excited to see even more progress.
I have reached 2 weeks HOORAAAY!
So today is my 2 week mark of course I have to update with new progress pics. Things just keep getting better as the days go by. I'm so glad I did this and I'm even happier I chose the right doctor to do the job.
Current Stats
Current Weight 155
Waist 30"
Hips 38"
Bra Size 36D
Height 5'8 1/2
Pant Size 6/8
6 Weeks Hooraaaay!!
Current Weight 152
Waist 28"
Hips 38"
Bra Size 34D
Height 5'8 1/2
Pant Size 6
New Pics and brief update
Everything has gone so well. I have been so grateful to have a wonderful and supportive family through this all. I have had NO complications thankfully. I resumed working out at 4 weeks and that has been fine. My tummy is still pretty tight. I am afraid to do crunches so I will hold off on that for a little while longer.
The joys of clothes shopping!!! Lol you can't keep me out of the store these days. I LOVE the way my clothes fit now. I'm so happy I don't have to worry about pulling down my shirt who left sitting or worrying about if a certain top can conceal my tummy area. It's a great feeling to be able to wear anything and the only worry is whether or not I want to wear it today!
The gym is my second home!
I just finished a really good workout at the gym. My previous goal weight was 150 but now I would like to be able to fluctuate between 147 to 150. I do not want to see my weight above 150. I alternate between doing brisk walks outside, workout dvd's and going to the gym and doing the elliptical and treadmill. I set the resistance on the elliptical at 15 and the treadmill incline at 4.5 and speed at 4.3. I realize now that people run at a speed of 4.3 but I AM NOT A RUNNER! I absolutely HATE running. Brisk walking has always worked fine for me and it has always been the main factor for my weight loss.
Beach Ready
Yesterday I had an amazing day at the beach with my family. It felt so good to not have to try and conceal my stomach. I never realized how many women wore bikinis. Mostly younger girls that looked to be in their early twenties. I'm glad to be apart of that group now.
I would have worn a swimsuit but my swimsuits from last year are humongous and my new swimsuits from Victoria's Secret have not yet arrived.
Trying on my swimsuits
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16 May 2014
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2 months post
I just love Victoria's Secret's swimsuits. I bought 3 of the same bottoms in different colors and 4 of the same tops in different colors. I'm going to mix and match them up and that will allow me to have more options. The bottoms arr suppose to be high rise but they fit like regular bikini underwear to me. All of Victoria's Secret's other bottoms that aren't high rise are extremely low! I love the bottoms I got they cover my incision perfectly. I even emailed VS to let them know that they need to make more colors and prints in the high rise bottom lol.
I have also reached my weight goal and I'm super excited about that. I have been fluctuating between 149 and 150lbs. I couldn't be happier.
Life is GREAT!
I can't believe I'm almost at my 3 month mark. I really don't have much to update except for the fact that I'm thoroughly enjoying my new tummy. I have been maintaining my weight just fine. I fluctuate between 148-150. This tt procedure has been the best decision of my life!!
Where does the time go?!
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16 Aug 2014
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5 months post
I still feel really good. I feel as if I never even had the surgery. I'm enjoying my new self so much. Here's a few pics. Good luck to everyone on your journey!
Enjoying myself and my life thoroughly!
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27 Dec 2014
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9 months post
So many things have happened since my last update. I don't want to bore you with a long story so I will update you all through my pics.
