So Many Questions! - Lakeland, FL

I am so glad I stumbled onto this site, it's awesome! Thank you to all the beautiful ladies for sharing their experience, good or bad. I love the "real" photos. I have not yet scheduled my surgery but have decided to go with the tummy tuck with lipo to my thighs & flanks.

A little about me...I am 34 years old & live in Florida, where its summer all the damn time! LOL. I am married & have 2 beautiful children, my son is 18 & my daughter is 2 1/2. Yep, you've read it correctly. Trust me, I was shocked myself. I had my son @ 15 & it did a number on my body. I gained 62 Lbs. I was able to loose the weight over the years. I fluctuate constantly anyways. My daughter pretty much pushed me over the edge. I weighed 184 when I delivered her & at the moment I am 138. I feel I've done all I can with my body. My goal is to have the body that I lost 18 yrs ago.

I am very surprised at how much swelling there is several days to months post-op. I have concerns that I am hoping to put to rest so I can make the call for the green light. I would appreciate any insight so here goes...

1) what is the right amount of recovery time before I can return to work? (I am a judges asst, do mostly sitting & days where I am up continually)

2) the swelling that does occur, will I be able to fit in my work clothes, say 10 days post-op?

3) any recommendations how to handle my 2 1/2 yr old after surgery? My husband will be taking time off as well to help out.

Again, to all the ladies who have posted on this site, I thank you.

So today I call my doc to get info on the next step for me. The nurse informed that my next appt would be the pre-op where they do the blood work & "before" pics. Surgery would be scheduled 2 weeks from that appt, pending that all is well with blood work results. I was really shocked that surgery would be set so quickly. Needless to say, I didn't book the appt. I've looked nonstop at this website, saw the good, the bad & ugly results, with the good being at a better percentage & I'm still scared beyond belief! I'm worried about recovery, recovery time, what if it looks bad. But yet, I'm excited to be able to see the final result & be happy. I've read a lot of comments of how the surgery effects them emotionally & it never occurred to me how that can also be a issue. In my mind, you do the surgery, swell & heel, it NEVER crossed my mind how much swelling & how long it does last. I'm still a scardy cat & will probably continue to take the baby steps to get to the final result.