39 Year Old, Stomach, Lower Back, Thigh, Hip Lipo - Illinois, IL

I'm a 39 year old woman with two kids. I'm an active person who completes 2-3 half marathons a year and did a full marathon in January. Even though I consider myself a physically fit person, I've been very unhappy with my appearance since having kids. I initially went to my PS to discuss a breast lift and/or implants and a tummy tuck. He suggested trying lipo and was very honest about what to expect. Namely, I'm likely to have some loose and wrinkled skin and would have to get a tummy tuck if I want a totally flat stomach. I decided that it's most important to me to look good clothed and I'm not planning on wearing a bikini anyway. Lipo seemed like the best option to get the most results for the money. I'm still considering implants, but that would be something I would do many months from now.

My PS does lipo under general anesthesia and I was fine with that. I don't handle needles, blood, or medical procedures very well and I had no desire to be aware of what was happening to me. I showed up the morning of my surgery feeling pretty nervous about the whole thing. I met with the anesthesiologist first and he was wonderful. He asked me about my history with general anesthesia and if I had a tendency to get motion sickness. Since I'm very prone to motion sickness, he put one of those patches behind my ear and said he would be giving me a shot of anti-nausea medicine before I woke up. Then he gave me something to relax and my PS came in to mark me up. After that I walked into the procedure room, laid down, and was out really quickly. I woke up in a recliner wearing my compression garment. The nurse helped me get dressed and I went home. They gave me a shot for pain and I was really comfortable for the rest of the day.

I was told to be as active as possible and my husband made me go for a 20 minute walk after I slept most of the afternoon. I felt sore, like I had done a really tough workout, but I didn't have any sharp pain. I also had almost no fluid leakage. I took a pain pill that night and slept ok. I had to use the bathroom a lot and it felt like I was constantly waking up to go.

The day after was definitely my worst day. The pain meds made me sick and I had to stop taking them and switch to Tylenol. I couldn't eat much and started to swell. I managed to walk a mile as directed by my PS, but spent most of the day with my feet up wondering why I thought this was a good idea.

I haven't had much pain at all since day two. It was uncomfortable getting in and out of bed, but that was it. I continued to take Tylenol at night, but haven't needed anything during the day. I did bruise terribly even though I was taking Arnica and using the cream. My swelling seems to have peaked yesterday and today (one week after surgery) I noticed significant improvement. I've been wearing my CG 24/7 and this morning it felt loose. I did swell up a bit as the day went on.

I've had a lot of problems with feeling lightheaded and dizzy. I felt well enough to return to work on Monday, but was so lightheaded that I stayed home another day. I ended up calling my PS because I was concerned and he had me come right in. Turns out I just needed some Gatorade and I was fine. While I was there, he removed my stitches and explained what he had done. He removed 4,400 ccs of fat and told me that he could have removed more from my stomach, but left some because he didn't want me to have wrinkled and loose skin. I should be happier with the final result this way.

I already see results after only one week and the recovery is going much better than I expected. I'm back to walking 4-5 miles a day and will be able to run in another two weeks. It really does feel better to be active and I'm glad I was able to resist the urge to lay around afterwards. I'm having trouble fitting into my work clothes because my legs are quite swollen and I'm certainly uncomfortable by the end of the day, but it's not that bad.

My PS gave me some advice that I haven't seen posted here before. He said I should stop wearing my CG at night after a few more days because that will allow for better circulation to reduce swelling and bruising. He also suggested taking a baby aspirin each day to help the bruising go away. He gave me the standard advice to do self-massage as soon as I can tolerate it.

All in all, I'm really glad I did this and I can't wait to see my final results. I've got a follow up appointment in two weeks and I'll post an update then.

I took arnica before and after surgery, but I've still got extensive bruising.