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4 weeks and counting
Today marks the 4 week mark prior to my surgery. I've gone from excited to nervous. I guess this is probably normal. I've never had major surgery before, though I have been put under anesthesia (I had tube placement in my ears several times as a child and for wisdom teeth removal).
I've been thinking about what the nurses were telling me and I think I'm going to ask them to hold on the urinary catheter. That was one of the big things they said they would be doing during surgery and then I would be sent home with it. If they feel they must put it in during surgery I will ask to have it removed prior to my being woken up or else I will likely remove it before I leave. I think having to deal with the Jackson-Pratt drains will be enough.
Has anyone else ever had urinary catheter placed and left in for the first night at home? As a medical professional I know how to care for it, but I'm just not sure I really want it.
I've been thinking about what the nurses were telling me and I think I'm going to ask them to hold on the urinary catheter. That was one of the big things they said they would be doing during surgery and then I would be sent home with it. If they feel they must put it in during surgery I will ask to have it removed prior to my being woken up or else I will likely remove it before I leave. I think having to deal with the Jackson-Pratt drains will be enough.
Has anyone else ever had urinary catheter placed and left in for the first night at home? As a medical professional I know how to care for it, but I'm just not sure I really want it.
When I was a young kid I lost both of my parents....
When I was a young kid I lost both of my parents. From this I turned to food as comfort and found myself hovering above 300 pounds by the age of 17. By the end of my first year of University I had set out to begin losing weight. By my 3rd year, with diet & exercise, I had gone from 310 to 160 pounds. This degree of weight loss left me with a large amount of skin, mostly around the lower abdomen. I was fortunate not to have a lot of laxity in the skin of my arms or my chest.
I was 27 when I first realized that no amount of exercise was going to get rid of the excess skin around my abdomen and that I would need surgery to help correct it. I decided to put it off, as I would rather spend my time and money traveling. But now, after years of travel, I have decided I will wait no more.
After some soul searching I made several appointments with plastic surgeons in the Twin Cities area. I finally decided upon Dr. Douglas Gervais to have perform my procedure.
My first experiences with Dr. Gervais are very positive. From the moment I stepped into their practice in Minneapolis I was blown away. Everyone I encountered was very kind and respectful in the process. After I waited in the waiting room for maybe 10 minutes I was taken back to one of the examination rooms where the nurse went over some of the finer points of both the surgery I was enquiring about as well as about the facility itself. She went over some of the finer points of the process, as far as needing an exam by a physician prior to surgery, etc. Afterwards she put in a DVD which thoroughly discussed the procedure. When I was done with the DVD I slipped out of my clothes and into a hospital gown, cracked the door and waited for the surgeon to arrive. I didn't wait more than maybe 2 minutes and Dr. Gervais came in to greet me. He was very personable and respectful. He was always kind enough to ask before doing something, such as touching me or lowering my underwear lower to get a better look at my lower abdomen, which still respecting me and my person.
After a good 30 minutes with him, we decided upon the abdominoplasty with contouring procedure, as I had also wanted to get liposuction of my lower back. He did mention that I would probably be a better candidate for a lower lift, but at this time I wasn't sure I would be able to afford that and that I could always look into that at a later time. I don't think I need anything done with my chest, outside of having a barrel chest, the only other thing I wouldn't mind having done is something with my back. But that will have to happen another time.
After the rest of my consults I thought about dates. Originally I was going to have the surgery done in July...... which quickly turned into May ... which ultimately turned into March. I want to have this done as soon as possible so that I can begin my healing and begin the rest of my life.
I'll post photos about 1 week prior to surgery.
I was 27 when I first realized that no amount of exercise was going to get rid of the excess skin around my abdomen and that I would need surgery to help correct it. I decided to put it off, as I would rather spend my time and money traveling. But now, after years of travel, I have decided I will wait no more.
After some soul searching I made several appointments with plastic surgeons in the Twin Cities area. I finally decided upon Dr. Douglas Gervais to have perform my procedure.
My first experiences with Dr. Gervais are very positive. From the moment I stepped into their practice in Minneapolis I was blown away. Everyone I encountered was very kind and respectful in the process. After I waited in the waiting room for maybe 10 minutes I was taken back to one of the examination rooms where the nurse went over some of the finer points of both the surgery I was enquiring about as well as about the facility itself. She went over some of the finer points of the process, as far as needing an exam by a physician prior to surgery, etc. Afterwards she put in a DVD which thoroughly discussed the procedure. When I was done with the DVD I slipped out of my clothes and into a hospital gown, cracked the door and waited for the surgeon to arrive. I didn't wait more than maybe 2 minutes and Dr. Gervais came in to greet me. He was very personable and respectful. He was always kind enough to ask before doing something, such as touching me or lowering my underwear lower to get a better look at my lower abdomen, which still respecting me and my person.
After a good 30 minutes with him, we decided upon the abdominoplasty with contouring procedure, as I had also wanted to get liposuction of my lower back. He did mention that I would probably be a better candidate for a lower lift, but at this time I wasn't sure I would be able to afford that and that I could always look into that at a later time. I don't think I need anything done with my chest, outside of having a barrel chest, the only other thing I wouldn't mind having done is something with my back. But that will have to happen another time.
After the rest of my consults I thought about dates. Originally I was going to have the surgery done in July...... which quickly turned into May ... which ultimately turned into March. I want to have this done as soon as possible so that I can begin my healing and begin the rest of my life.
I'll post photos about 1 week prior to surgery.
Provider Review
Board Certified Plastic Surgeon
4825 Olson Memorial Hwy. (Hwy. 55), Minneapolis, Minnesota