Looking Forward to Finally Getting This Done - Raleigh, NC

At my heaviest, I was 300 pounds. I knew that being heavy was unhealthy and was really causing me some trouble but no matter how much my doctor told me or how often I heard the taunts in high school, nothing really made me want to lose the weight. It wasn’t until about two years ago that I had a huge wake up call. I lost my grandpa and grandma on my dad’s side and dad all within a month from health-related issues. My grandpa had beaten colon cancer, survived a heart attack but ended up passing away from heart failure. My grandma also had colon cancer. The colon cancer was from years of poor diet. My dad had been very much overweight with high blood pressure. He ended up dying from a massive heart attack. Even if a cardiologist had been standing next to him, my dad wouldn’t have survived because for all intents and purposes, his heart exploded. This was all extremely devastating and to this day, it’s still tough for me to think about.

However, it was a blessing in disguise. I realized at 19 and weighing in at 300 pounds, I couldn’t live like that. So, with my doctor’s help and guidance, I lost 135 pounds. I’m very happy with my weight loss and my new lifestyle of eating a lot healthier with portion control and I hit the gym almost every day. I’ve kept the weight off for over a year now and I’m looking forward to getting my tummy tuck done. I’m extremely excited but I’m really nervous because I’ve never had any kind of surgery before. I’m very happy that my insurance is going to cover my procedure, deeming it necessary.

My pre-op was on the 7th and it went really well. I have my prescriptions and I've signed all my paperwork. I am now exactly 10 days away from my procedure. Right now, I am a mixture of excited and nervous. I've never had major surgery before but my doctor says he doesn't anticipate any issues because I am a healthy, active young woman. In the middle of all this excitement, I am getting ready to help my mom move about an hour and a half up the road so I need to help as much as I can before I can't lift much. Then, about a month after my surgery, I will be starting school out of state. A lot is happening all at once so it's been interesting. I can't wait to have this done, though, since I've been talking about it for so long. I think the night before, I will be slightly manic. I'm looking forward to posting another POST OP update soon!

Three weeks ago today I had my tummy tuck done. I wish I had been able to take my prescribed pain killers (Percocet) but I couldn’t. My family has a history of intolerance to this drug; we cannot take it without getting ill. I had disclosed this to my doctor but he said we’d try it anyway because there was no way of knowing how I’d react. I have to say, vomiting twice after having abdominal surgery is the single most painful thing I have ever experienced. It felt like molten lead was being poured onto my stomach muscles and then they were being ripped and collapsing in on themselves. Upon my follow up appointment, I learned I had had diastasis of the muscles and my doctor had sewn them back to their proper place and that this was undoubtedly why it hurt so badly. As soon as I stopped using the Percocet, the vomiting stopped. After that, I just stuck to regular Tylenol. That aside, I am so far very, very happy with my results. I worked out rather aggressively in the weeks leading up to my procedure. And by aggressively, I would normally go to the gym three times a week and instead it turned into five days a week. I literally worked out everything but really put extra focus on ab work. I have no doubt in my mind that this has helped me on my road to recovery. Currently I feel like I am 100%. My doctor says I am one of those people who take surgery very well and I’m in the “99th percentile” regarding my recovery. Now, that being said and taking my bullheadedness into account… I believe I have caused myself a seroma. I had it drained on Monday (9/10/12) and it was only about 15+/- ccs. My doctor said everything looked normal and just to keep my binder on. My binder has lost some of its snugness so I wear two at a time which he said was fine. My concern is the seroma coming back, getting worse or becoming infected. I am moving out of state for school (10 hours away) so I’m on the nervous side as of right now. I’ve been told everything will be fine I am just a worrier. I plan on having it looked at as soon as I am up at my new place and hope to have it aspirated. That aside, I am so very happy with my decision to get my tummy tuck done. I wish I had known more about seromas prior to my surgery but I don’t think that would have changed my mind. I still plan on getting my breast work done and more than likely by the same doctor because I trust him and his staff. I am looking forward to the summer so I can show off my new tummy once the healing is a bit better and the seromas are all gone. I hope to post a before and after picture soon!