23 Days PO - SO Swollen/New Pics - Lansing, MI

Well, another week under my belt, so to speak. I can not believe that I am already four weeks post op (day 29)!. The time is certainly going by faster. I worked a full week this week and it was exhausting but I got by just fine. The weather was frigid so it made dressing a challenge since I am still in the compression garment and not supposed to wear things tight on my waist. But, I had to wear tighter pants on Tuesday and tights today or otherwise I would have froze to death. Neither was tight on my waist, but I know the doctor would not have approved of either choice! I will be so happy when I am at the 6 week point!!

I am still swollen, especially in my waist and who who. Its amazing how I can start the day so thin, and then I come home and peel off my clothes and I am so swollen. That will take longer than 6 weeks to resolve itself. But, no other complaints. I just want the weather to be warmer and to be less swollen. I'm not one to want time to go by fast - but come on summer!

So, I went back to work part time on Tuesday (post op day 20) and that was rough. First, I wore pants that were loose and dragged the floor in the morning. By the time I got home that day, they were snug on my waist. Yes, serious swelling. I was very tired walking around and only lasted about 6 hours. I have to do a lot of standing and walking in my job so I was on the couch and snoozing as soon as I could. Thursday was a little better. I had more stamina, but the swelling appears much worse. I have noticed that the swelling is most pronounced in my who who, abdomen, and lower back. You'll probably see that from the pictures I am posting today.

I have added some pictures from post op days 10 and today. I will mention a couple observations from the last few days. One is that I did notice a big change in how I felt around day 10. My energy did pick up a bit and I was able to move around more and do more things. I am still having a very hard time sleeping, but I am hoping that in the next week that will resolve itself.

I saw my doctor for my post op visit on day 12. He removed all the bandages and the incision looked great. I had started to smell a foul smell very early on in my recovery and I was unsure of the source - whether the drain or the bandages. When he removed the bandages on Monday, and specifically the ones above my public area, there was a pool of black [RS bleep] of sorts, and that was the source of the smell for sure. He said that the the oozing had pooled from the incision and caused a blister of sorts. You can clearly see it in the 13 day post op pics. I am not at all concerned about it resolving itself. It will just take time.

I am still very swollen, and uncomfortable in my binder and compression garment. However, I noticed a shadow under my breasts today and realized that it was muscle definition. How's that for progress! The last picture that I posted is me sitting on the edge of the bath tub. You'll notice two things missing - the roll under my boobs and my belly. So amazing. I can not wait to see what the next 5 days brings in my progress.

Unfortunately, I still have my drain attached. It is getting clearer by the day, but I am scheduled to have it removed on Thursday (post op day 15). I have dubbed it my third leg. Once I lose this third leg, I think that my showers will be a splendid experience. I canceled my hair color touch up appointment tomorrow because I knew I was not ready. However, the combination of time and surgery has made the grey in my temples very vibrant. So, I sent my hubby to the store for a box of root touch up. Thursday after the drain comes out, so goes the grey in my roots!

I have been working form home for the past few days. I am able to work online with my job and they have been super flexible with me. For example, today, I skyped into a couple meetings and got a lot done with my colleagues. However, I do not physically go back to work until next Tuesday which will be post op day 20. I do not know what I will feel like on that day, however, being that it is a week away, I am feeling good about that choice. And once I go back I am only going back half days for a couple weeks. I think that this is really reasonable. I think that based on my past experiences with body contouring surgery, and the based on the amount of muscle work that is done in the TT surgery, it will probably be a good month before I start to feel like myself again.