38-year-old Mom of Three Ready for a New Body! - Grand Rapids, MI

I've never had a terrible weight issue, but the same trouble spot plagues all of the women in my family -- the belly. I've never had a flat tummy, even at 125 pounds that semester in college k couldn't afford food (and I'm 5'10").

In addition, three bouts of pregnancy and nursing have taken their toll on my breasts. At an FF, I want to go down a little (probably to a D cup) and definitely hoist them up a bit.

I met with Dr. B for my initial consultation last Thursday. The office is beautiful, and the staff is incredibly friendly.

First I met with his MA, Nicole, who took my "before" photos. She stayed while Dr. B examined me and we discussed what I wanted -- namely, a flat tummy, smaller and higher breasts, and slimmer thighs. He said that my abdominal muscles were pretty badly effected by pregnancy. I asked if I had a bad separation; he said it was more that my entire abdominal wall was pooched out. (I think he used a more technical term!) He also suggested that at my height, I probably didn't want to go smaller than a D cup, which I completely agreed with.

I asked the doctor how flat he could get my abs, and he said "very flat," but cautioned that the more weight I lose the more I'll like my results, because the visceral fat under the abdominals will limit how tight he can pull my muscles. I also asked about pain, and he told me that they use a long-acting local anesthetic that's injected into the area and helps tremendously with recovery.

Afterward, Nicole left and Dr. B and I went to a small conference room. He answered my questions, and drew some sketches showing how the procedures he'd perform would work. Nicole then came back to show me the results of my 3D imaging for my breasts, so I could see how the "after" would look. She warned me that it wasn't always perfect (and pointed out that my nipple placement would be a bit different than in the pics), but overall it was pretty impressive!

Then I met with Elizabeth, the patient care coordinator and scheduler. She was super sweet and chatty, and we talked for quite a long time. We set the date -- Nov. 11 -- much sooner than I'd hoped and expected!

Afterward, I realized I'd forgotten to ask a lot of questions ... I was uncharacteristically unprepared, I guess, with all the excitement! I have a followup visit in a couple of weeks and will follow up with them.

WOW, it's hard to share these! I had such a tough time at the appointment not sucking in my tummy -- I don't think anyone's seen me naked since my last pregnancy without me sucking it in for all I'm worth!