Cellulaze and Smart Lipo Legs Only - Federal Way, WA

Hi folks,
I am 45yo, 5'2", 130lb and in great physical condition. This is my second procedure in the last year (breast lift and aug last November). I have cellulite on my outer and inner thighs and a little on my butt. During my consultation my doctor suggested that my inner thigh cellulite which is in the lower thigh area was very minor and some of the rippling was actually caused by the heaviness of the fat on my upper inner thigh pushing down on the skin below. So we decided to address the upper inner thighs with smart lipo during the same procedure. I decided to not do my butt, maybe later as it is not that bad. The smart lipo procedure (especially when combined with cellulaze which made it a five hour procedure) is pretty intense so my doctor normally does that with twilight sedation. However since I would be on my stomach for a good portion of the procedure it would make it difficult to monitor my airway. Therefore my doctor recommended general anesthesia. This drove up the cost but I thought was worth it.

I am now roughly 12 hours post procedure and I have to tell you that the immediate post-op recovery was more difficult than either the TT ten years ago or the BL/BA six months ago. Being under for five hours was the primary cause since I was extremely nauseous when I woke up (I've been under before and never had that). My inner thighs where I had smart lipo were also extremely painful - a very deep pain that I've read others describe on this forum. A double dose of pain meds plus Tylenol kicked it back after about four hours and I was finally able to sleep. Thank god for HGTV! I've now been up walking around the house several times and the soreness is very manageable. Im wearing the usual compression garment and foam and I'm draining like crazy although some spots never make it through the foam and others drain constantly. Overall the draining has steadily decreased over time.

I had the procedure done on the 31st and return for my follow up on the 3rd (day 4). My doctor said to remove my compression garment and foam at that time and replace it with spanx. Can't wait for that! The compression garment isn't bad but it stinks to have to wear wet clothing (from the drainage). The foam also makes me look HUGE which is obviously not the look I am after :). It should be interesting taking off the garment as the nurse told me it took three people to get it on me in the OR.

Not worth taking pictures yet since I'm wearing the garment but I'll post my day 4 pics as soon as I take them!

First things first, getting smart lipo and cellulaze over most of your thighs is not for the faint of heart! I actually really appreciate the small portions of my thighs where nothing was done because the skin there looks so good compared to the rest and those small areas are pain free!

The first four days were hell. In addition to the pain from swelling and bruising, the burning and itching sensations, and the painful procedure of getting the garment off and on for bathroom trips and showers, I also have felt completely run down. I usually have tons of energy so it has been pretty frustrating.

On the bright side, I am just starting to see a bit of the swelling go down on the cellulaze'd outer thighs and those areas are also a bit less painful. My inner thighs (lower where I received cellulaze and upper where I received smart lipo) are still really swollen and tender. I am measuring my slow progress by how much pressure I can stand when sitting on the toilet. I was hovering a few days ago and I can now actually touch my thighs to the seat. Progress!

On day three I briefly thought I could manage with just Tylenol but that only lasted until dinnertime! I'm now back to meds in the morning and evening with Tylenol in between.

The bruising, as bad as it looks is actually a little better. I am taking arnica and bromelain and doing very light self message (only what feels good) with arnica cream. I am also doing a fair amount of slow walking and movement (not miles on the treadmill, just making sure I am up and about). I am used to running 15 miles/week so this is a big step back. I have to believe this helps with circulation and the movement of all of the extra fluids in my legs.

In spite of all of this, I'm still happy with my decision. I will post again around day ten when my stitches come out and I received my first round of external ultrasound therapy.

Yesterday was two weeks post op. Brusing and pain are almost gone on my outer thighs although I am seeing the dreaded purplish gray mottled look that almost EVERYONE seems to tall about! I will be relying on the expertise of my spray tan gal to get me through this. I am still a bit swollen on my outer thighs. I'm not even looking for cellulite at this point, would just seem like a set up for disappointment.

My inner thighs are a different story. While the swelling has gone done enough for me to have my knees back, I still have what feels like a considerable amount. Progress though seems to be speeding up. A week ago I could barely bend my knee to a 90 degree angle. Now I can easily cross my legs. Next milestone is sitting cross-legged and sitting all the way back on my heels.

I've had two external ultrasound sessions and one manual lymphatic drain massage. The massage therapist used brushes instead of her hands. I was worried it would hurt but it felt DIVINE. I highly recommend this. It is exhausting to be in constant pain for a long period of time so the massage if nothing else was an hour of absolute relief.

I was taught how to apply kinesiology tape a couple years ago, not an expert, but have tried my best to apply it to some of my remaining bruises to see what happens.

I keep scaring the crap out of myself by reading all of the reviews in Cellulaze and I have to say that the actual Worth It rating seems like it should be more like 50%. However there is nothing to be gained for me to be pessimistic at this point so I am just going to keep doing the best I can to heal and hope for the best.

One positive note is that I can really see the smart lipo results on my upper inner thighs. That is awesome and I know the results will continue to improve.