Tummy Tuck No Lipo 33yrs Old 5'0 125lbs 2 C-Sections - Phoenix, AZ

Hello I have 2 children 7 and 3 1/2 both delivered by C-Section. After my first C-Section I was left with an overhang that got worst after my last child. I had my first consult before my last child's 1st birthday. I decided I wanted to get within 10 lbs of my prechildren weight. I gained 31 pounds during my pregnancies. It was hard for me to shed a pounds until I was diagnosed as hypothyroid. With my new found energy and optimism I joined a gym 2 years ago and lost about 10 lbs down to 120 and gained 5 back which I have been able to maintain. I am looking forward to not having to dress around my overhang and wear a bikini without feeling self conscious. Mostly I am excited to feel more comfortable in pants and not have pain from the bulging pressure of my belly or not to have to be panys that are saggy in the legs just to not have to deal with the comfort issue. I am more comfortable with my health and the fact that I tried to give my body an opportunity to heal itself before I went the surgery route.

I had a total of 3 consultations with board certified surgeons. The first I had about 6 mos after birth with the same surgeon who performed my BA. This surgeon said I was a good candidate then. After further research on the procedure, I decided I was too over weight with a BMI over 26. My research showed it was best to be within 10% of my body weight for optimal results. Fast forward 2 1/2 years later I decided to have a consult with another surgeon to gain a different perspective and also I was a little turned off by my previous surgeon's coordinator's pushiness for products I did not need and I did not like her attitude when I disagreed. It made me feel that I would not want to deal with that should something not go as planned or if there were to be a problem. So met with Dr. #2 and he had a very nice office with very trendy women running the place. I was placed into an exam room while he jumped from me to two other consults at the same time and everything could be heard between the exam rooms. His approach was to perform the procedure in his office, made no mention of anesthesiologist certification or accreditation of his surgical room. A woman came in who said she assisted him in his surgeries and would answer any questions I had and talk finances. I already knew this Dr would not be the one for me for a few reasons. When he walked in he looked nothing like his profile picture so much so that it became obvious his picture had some serious photoshop. I know it is not a big deal but I feel as though it is almost deception. He had a huge poster size picture of his family posed topless (his wife her breast were covered, small baby, and himself). He attempted to make a connection with me as if he were going through a scripted routine so he did not come across as geniune when trying to uncover a common thread to connect us. His costs were comparable to the previous surgeon the majority was his fee and the previous surgeon incuded an overnight stay. I was then urged to go home and cry to my husband as a means to get my surgery. Needless to say it was a no go. I tried non surgical methods (Vanquish) to see if I can improve the skin tightness and underlying fat at another's certified surgeons office (the only one to have the technology at the time) who said I would be a good candidate well what a waste of money. 5 months later I called my initial surgeon and her coordinator said I would have to come in for another $75 consult. So I did and nothing changed because I have not changed except for being more fit but her technique is pretty much the same regardless of the patient. My OB told me to get at least 3 consults so I went off to find another certified surgeon. It can be pretty difficult because I am easily turned off by the hard sell glitzy glossed over practices. So I tried to find someone with good rounded experience in reconstructive and cosmetic surgery. I also wanted to give Surgeons closer to my home a shot if they were equally qualified. So I found a good prospective surgeon who happened just to practice down the street from me. He was very personable and easy to talked to and answered all my questions i.e. is everthying and everyone certified accredited, technique, etc. I also had my 3 yr old with me which did not seem to bother him the least bit. During the examination his opinion was I did not need lipo and should still be able to get a great result. His practice manager came in to discuss finances. She was a breath of fresh air from the overly done personnel from a previous practice. She was just refreshingly beautiful. She gave me a couple of quotes one with a stay and one as an outpatient and took time to answer my questions. Lets just say when you find two equally experienced surgeons it throws you in for some serious confusion because they each have great pros. Previous surgeon has my trust from previous procedure and the new one is closer is equally qualified I liked his approach to incision tension management and I got to see the one year results of an actual patient in person. His results and scar management were awewome. Most of all he actively listened carefully and addressed my concerns and welcomed my questioning. Let's just say it was such hard choice that I had to try and find factors I had not considered before to decipher between the two. I decided to let it marinate in the back of my mind and see what my instincts push forward.

I chose to go with the surgeon who was closer to my home and equally qualified in experience and certification. The location day of surgery was closer to home. I also had the option of having my procedure as outpatient. The staff was awesome even accommodating my unannounced visit with a request to see more photos. I liked the Dr.'s approach to managing incision tension by not only using sutures but also using a surgical glue over the top. It was definitely a difficult decision to use a different surgeon from the one who did my BA because I already had a level of trust built. The surgery date and preop have been scheduled. It will be 6 weeks from now and I feel as though my heart is going to beat right out of my chest. I opted for an outpatient procedure and rented a hospital bed for 2 weeks. Is there anything else I am going to need?