Tummy Tuck & BBL - Dominican Republic October 2013 - Dra. Robles! - Dominican Republic, DO

Hello,
After TONS of research, stalking, and reading posts, Ive decided to have a TT, BBL, & Lipo in the Dominican Republic w/ Dra. Robles. I met with 3 different surgeons here in Indianapolis, but none of them seemed to compare to the work that was done in the DR!

Just a quick BIO:
I'm 28, mother of 3 (9-6-2 yr old), Through dieting & exercise, in 2009, I lost close to 100 lbs (240lbs down to 145lbs). I'm currently 5'4, 155lbs and have a TON of loose skin. As u can see in my pics, I REALLY need a Tummy Tuck! Havent seen my belly button in quite a while! ;-( Ive been wanting a TT for a while now, and finally have the means and opportunity to have it done, so I'm jumping on it! This is my first surgery ever, so definitely going in blind with how it will feel and what recovery will be like....

I definitely found out, that there are very few people that are supportive of my plastic surgery choices ESPECIALLY since its outside of the country! Unless you find people that have the same issues or can relate, its hard to get others to understand about plastic surgery. So, other than RS & some close immediate family, I have decided to keep my plastic surgery adventure a secret.

I have set my date for surgery on Monday October 7th, so if anyone else is going around that time, please feel free to message me as I would love to have a travel buddy!
I really feel that Ive made the best choice, both in where Im going & the Dr. I chose. Ive been a nurse for the last 8 years and currently in the middle of my Nurse Practitioner program, so hopefully with my background, Ill be able to handle most of my own health care issues myself. (God forbid any serious problems) But I have SO MANY questions though, and email doesnt seem to be getting alot of my questions answered :- / . Didnt know if anyone could help me?

- So, Ive been reading post after post and alot of the girls bring feminine pads & adult briefs? Other than your monthly, what would be reason to bring those items?
- Also, has anyone flown in on Sunday? My surgery is not til Monday, but I will be arriving in DR at 1pm on Sunday and not sure how everything works... Will a driver still pick me up and take me to CECIP? Do they do labwork on Sunday?
- I really havent heard of any of the girls being on birth control, I use the NuvaRing and would like to leave it in throughout my surgery & recovery time- Does anyone know if Robles provides a blood thinner like lovenox or heparin or does she want BC to stop prior to surgery?

I appreciate any tips or suggestions that anyone can give me about the process, Doctor Robles, or Virginia's Recovery House.... It is much appreciated! Good Luck & God Bless!

Well.... I had some labs drawn last week and Im disappointed that my Hgb isnt more than what it showed... My Hgb is 12.6... I have been taking iron twice a day along with folic acid, B complex, and Vitamin C. I had a CBC drawn 6 months ago when I WASNT on any meds or supplements and my Hgb was 12.6 then too!!! It makes no sense! Kinda like I took all these pills for nothing! lol. I know 12.6 is still within range, but I would like to to be closer to 14 if at all possible.... Im now taking Iron three times daily and have added sublingual B12 just in case I have a gastric absorbtion issue. Hopefully that will do the trick!

Ok, So I got an email from Laura saying that alot of people were reserving surgery dates, but then ended being a no show at the airport so they were asking for a $100 deposit to secure the surgery date. - No biggie I totally understand and would do the same- but they asked to have it go through Xoom.com and when I tried, Xoom canceled the transfer and said since Dra. Robles is not family or friends, that I cannot transfer the money to her using their site.... Does anyone else know of a cheap way to transfer the money? Chase Bank said it would be a $50 fee to wire it- which is crazy expensive ... but it may be my only option at this point....

Well, time passed fairly quickly and I now onlybhave a lil more than a week before my surgery. I'm starting to feel nervous now questioning whether or not I really want to have this surgery and just keep thinking and trying to prepare for the future. I've never had surgery before so I can only anticipate what the healing process will be like. Every so often ill get a text message from my dad saying "did u change ur mind yet?" "U know u don't really need to have this surgery, u r beautiful the way u are now" lol No Dad.... I haven't changed my mind and Yes, I'm going thru with it! Lol
I've been following my vitamin and iron supplement religiously and was taking iron 3 x a day in hopes that it would increase my hgb , but it has made me very queasy and consequently I have gained 5 lbs trying to soothe my stomach :-/. I will go on Tuesday for another CBC to see what my hgb is now- it was 12.6 about a month ago

So, just my luck, yesterday I got diagnosed with having Strep throat & a UTI... it came out of nowhere and I literally went to sleep feeling 100% & woke up not being able to swallow! My dr has me on keflex 1000mg bid x 10 days to kill off both infections. So thank god Dra. Robles had whatsapp because I was able to message her and ask her if I was ok to still have surgery even though I would still be on antibiotics at the time of surgery. She replied with - yes, as long as the infection is gone I can still do the surgery. And she also said it was fine to be on antibiotics during the surgery. So looks like we are still a "GO" for Monday October 7th!

Ok, so, just had my cbc done 3 days ago and my hgb is 12.5 -_- all of that taking iron 3 x a day shit was pretty much for nothing... my dr here pretty much told me that 12.5 - 12.6 is where my body "lives" as far as hgb is concerned and that more than likely I would never be able to raise it much more than that..... well shit ; (. This was also taken on the last day of my menstrual, but I have very short n light periods that usually last only 3 days. What's so crazy is that my wbc were 7 - which is normal as well- so 1 day before I got sick and my body still had not detected an infection.... weird!

My flight got in at about 2p and I was able to meet the driver at the exit doors after having to go through customs, getting a visitor's card ($10) and passing two other little check points. It is sooooo HOT here compared to Indianapolis! But definitely a nice feeling :). The driver took me to CECIP and I was placed in a room. Then a ma came in who said he was one of the doctors here and did a quick H&P. A nurse took my blood and then Laura arrived. Dr. Robles was also with Laura- mind you- today is Sunday- I didn't expect to see anyone until tomorrow morning, so it was a great surprise to see them. Laura and Dr Robles were both very nice and polite. Laura spoke perfect English and was able to translate everything the Dra said, but I understand Spanish fairly well and speak ok too, but it was good to have both !
I am currently waiting on the blood test results and was told that if my HGB was under 13, they would want to start an iron infusion now and also after surgery. which I believe will end up happening due to my hgb always staying at 12.6. CECIP is nice, clean- a lil outdated- but realistic and what I expected. The room is comfortable and clean- that's all that matters to me! Wifi works wonderfully in this room- Ive been able to Skype, make google voice calls and use both my phone and computer no problem!
I was told that Dra Robles doesn't come in until 12pm on Mondays and that is when I will have my surgery. Super excited, but very nervous now as well. I just pray everything will turn out great and I will heal quickly.
Ok, that's all Ive got for right now.... I know Im probably not the best narrator here, but if u have any questions, feel free to ask! Im off to get some homework done. Will probably write again once Im on the flat side! Wish me luck and pray for me!

Ok ladies I am now 2 days post op. But the pictures were from yesterday. I initially came here for a TT, lipo of my back, sides and armpits, and a BBL. They were only able to do a TT and lipo on my sides due to my hgb not being high enough (12.4).
I remember taking the blue pill (versed), but very little after that. I think I woke up twice trying to grab at the blue sheet but was out a few seconds later. What I do remeber is waking up freezing, my teeth chattering because I was so cold. I then remember trying to call my my and dad, but I was crying and emotional through the calls and had to get off the phone.
The nurses and staff at CECIP were very patient with me and i never had trouble getting them to come when i pushed the call light. It was very uncomfortable in the hospital bed and very hard to move. I wanted to get up all eve and night but they wouldn't let me and kept saying " you have to wait til the Dra sees u in the morning" finally morning came and Dra Robles came to see me. Her and Raquel did my bandage changes and the found my drain was very clogged. Dra Robles had to cut out my stitches and pull the drain tube out some to get the clog out. Hands down this was the most painful part og my whole surgery. I cried through the whole thing, but was relieved when it was over. I no longerbhave stitches holding my draintube in place so I have to be very careful not to snag or pull it out.
I'm going to go ahead and admit that I eas very stubbirn and uncooperative at times- and they always say nurses make the worst patients" about an hr later the nurse came into to put mor meds in my iv, butbibasked her to use the higher ports and to go slower because the site was very tender and burned everytime they would put meds in. Well, she understood what i was saying , but wanted to do things her way and it burned sooooo bad- so I took my iv out myself after that last incident. I think my iv infiltrated anyways because my hand is still very swollen even now.
Well after that I was feeling a little better, I was up getiing my things packed when wilson showed up at the door with my wheelchair ready to transport me to the van. I remember sitting at the edge of the bed and then getting up and walking to the wheelchair, saying " I am feeling very tired" next thing I know, staff is pinvhing my feet and had smelling salts under my nose. I guess I had passed out when sitting down in the wheel chair! I figure I was doing to much too quickly and my BP had dropped to 86/40. So the fainting spell held me up a cpl more hrs at CECIP, but I was transported to Virginias later that afternoon. I will post on virginias here in a cpl of days- so far so good tho. I would really like to see my body tho....

So this is me 3 days PO.... still super swollen and numb in my belly

Ok ladies, so tomorrow I will be on a flight back to Indianapolis. Part of me is sad to go and part of me is so homesick. I have to say that so far, I am glad I made the decision to come to DR and have Dra. Robles do my surgery. I am 7 days PO now and feel very good.
There is so much to say, where do I start? Ok, well I guess I will start with the realization that I truly am my worst enemy. Being stubborn and wanting things "my way" only held up my healing process. Let me explain. I don't take many meds at home and had never had surgery berfore & i think I started to feel overwhelmed with all the meds, ivs, & injections they were giving me so I refused my last 2 iron shots & refused to go to the oxygen chamber as well. When I went 4 days later to see robles, she told me that my circulation wasn't very good & it would affect the healing of my incision. She was right. She said everything she prescribed for me was for a reason and out of necessity. I was very swollen & had large amounts of fluid built up in my armpits and stomach. So after my lecture from Robles I went ahead & got the two iron shots and went into the hyperbaric chamber x 2. I also was given a topical heparin lotion to break up all of my bruising and hematomas. I've never been a water drinker& probably only drink a glass a day at home but have been drinking about 4-5 bottles of water a day here. Believe My pee was crystal clear!!! The redness around my incision and the fluid slowly began to disappear. I went back tonight for my final follow up and Robles said that everything is healing much better! The only way I can describe the feeling of all of this is soreness. Not so much pain, but stiffness, swelling, and soreness. For me it was very manageable and at times it hurt more to walk bent over (the way you're supposed to) than to walk upright!

I couldn't have asked for a better doctor to tell you the truth. She is nice, but very firm and direct which I truly appreciated and needed. She doesn't mess around and will call you out if you are doing something wrong.
Now on to the Recovery house. I have nothing negative to say at all. All of the women there are so helpful and supportive. Yalitza is there during the day mon-fri and Virginia is there eves and overnights mon-fri and stays the entire weekend. Joanna cooks and helps with cleaning. They are wonderful ladies and I am so glad they were there to help me through this. Yalitza and Virginia helped so much with preparing the meals, putting the creams and fajas on and also with my drains. They really made me feel comfortable & also pushed me to drink fluids and take my meds. I'm a nurse and can tell you that they were more personable and genuine than any nurses that I know in the states. I can't thank them enough for making my stay such a good experience.
I was there with 3 other women who also had had surgery and were wonderful company. They helped make the time go by and were very nice. The days do tend to be a little long, but then again you are there to recover and heal, not to be running around. So I took advantage and caught up on some much needed sleep!
Ok... I'm sure i have left things out, but will continue to post and have pictures ready once I am home and settled.

Well tomorrow will be 2 weeks po and I have to say I am feeling 100% better. I still have alot of swelling in my lower stomach and have noticed knots & hard spots in my sides & armpits. But I guess the biggest problem I have now is that the middle of my incision is not healing well & has actually opened up& appears to have some necrosis. After looking at my pictures from PO day 2 it looks like this was a problem spot from the start. Maybe a hematoma that blocked the blood supply to my incision. I just pray it does not get any bigger & heals from here on out. I'm using silvadene crm on the necrotic parts to hopefully help heal & debride it. My belly button lost the scab, but now has a whitish thick area at the bottom. Its not drainage or puss snd its as thick as skin.... not sure what it is. Also, when cleaning my belly button w/ a qtip I noticed it is very deep-not sure if anyone else's is like that.....

Open area in the middle of my incision is finally healed amd closed!

Well, next month will make it 1 Year since I originally had my TT & I have to say that I am completely satisfied with everything!!! Now, in the past year, alot has changed and my swelling was almost all gone after 3-4 months. My incision and belly button were fully healed by January 2014. I wore my compression garment religiously for the first 5 months, but then started slacking off & that's when I noticed that my teeny tiny 26 inch (was 33 before TT) waist was starting to expand. I hadn't gained any weight, but my tone and shape were loosening, so i now wear a waist cincher to keep my curves. I would live to eventually go back for some leg & back Lipo and a BBL. I can't believe my before & after pics though!!!! It's crazy what a great job Dr. ROBLES does at sculpting the body.