Treatment Provider
Reviews you can trust, from real people like you.
How it works
- Our highly-trained Review Moderation team evaluates all reviews before they're published to ensure they're written by people like you and not a member of a doctor's office.
- This multi-step process takes up to 24 hours from review submission to publication.
- Doctors can't pay to have reviews removed or hidden.
- Reviews are only removed at the reviewer's request or if they violate our Terms of Service.
If you have questions or believe we should re-evaluate a published review, let us know.
Sort by:
*Treatment results may vary
3 weeks!
So I hit the three week mark two days ago and I feel like a whole new woman. Don't need the Tylenol anymore, I can sleep on my side with no problems, and even though the swelling is still pretty uncomfortable, I don't feel like an alien anymore. I can stand up straight and do normal activities all day without feeling like I got hit by a train the next day. I went to a cookout today and even played a little badminton!
Both drains out!
I got my second drain out on day 15. It was still draining almost 50CC per day, but the doctor said that at this point, the risk of infection would be too high if we kept the drain in. The nurses made me think it's almost certain I will end up having some fluid collect that will need to be aspirated, but I'm still crossing my fingers I won't! I should really be sitting still and trying not to produce fluid now that the drains are out, but it feels so good to be free of them and finally the pain I was still having when I stand up is not a problem anymore. I still can't stand totally straight, but nothing is really hurting. Oh my goodness am I swollen though. It's shocking to compare today's picture to the very beginning. I look like I gained 20 Ibs, but it is all just swelling and it's SO uncomfortable. The doctor gave me a foam pad to stick in my garment just under my belly button and that does help quite a bit. one section if my incision is getting a bit red, so I have started putting antibiotic ointment on it until I talk to a nurse again next week.
Day 9 update, pics, one drain out!
I had my first follow up one week after surgery (Wednesday), and Dr. Morea removed the tapes from my incision. I went back yesterday (Thursday) to get my first drain out. The nurse who pulled it out, Trudy, was super nice and explained everything really well. I had already switched from oxycodone to Tylenol on Monday, and I wanted to be able to drive myself to the appointment, so I decided to brave the potential pain and NOT take an oxycodone before having the drain removed. Yes, it hurt. Trudy had me take a few deep breaths and warned me that it would hurt but only for a minute, and she had me take one more deep breath before pulling it out quickly. OUCH. But really, only for a minute.
Even though both drains were draining 25 CC per day, Dr. Morea will only pull one out at a time. I was a little disappointed about that, because the office is closed on Fridays, so I have to keep the other one until Monday. Well, Trudy explained that when they take out the first drain, any fluid still collecting on that side will tend to drain out of the other one, so that one might have more output. Once both drains are gone, there is nowhere for the fluid to go, so if they both came out and then I do too much activity and generate more fluid than my body can absorb, I might get a fluid collection that would have to be aspirated. I decided maybe it's just as well that I keep this drain until Monday!
And then, of course, I was so excited to be out in the world again and driving myself that I decided to stop at Wal-Mart for a new embroidery hoop. I've been getting around my apartment like a champ and even collected the mail twice, so I thought this would be easy. As soon as I walked in, it felt like the sewing section was a million miles away. Being in public made it very clear that I am still walking very slowly and slightly hunched. And then I SNEEZED. OMG. Bad news bears.
As though the Wal-Mart adventure weren't enough, I decided to stop at Nordstrom Rack next to try on shoes. That was only about a 20 minute excursion, no big deal. Finally, I thought I would stop at the thrift store on the way home. I stopped at an ATM (a walk-up one), then looked across the parking lot at the thrift store and just imagined having to get in and out of my car again, walk a lap around another big store, and risk sneezing from all the dust. SO I changed my mind and went home.
By about 7pm, I was in agony and so tired. I laid down at 8pm, took a sleeping pill, and slept until 10am. My drain output the following morning (from the previous 24 hours) was 50 CC. It DOUBLED from what it was! I definitely overdid it yesterday and I'm paying for it. I feel worse than I have in a few days. I've been just sitting in my chair mostly today, and already my drain is up to 25 again. I hope the drainage will slow back down to 25 again by Monday so I can get this sucker out, but I would rather have a drain than a seroma or a hematoma.
I am attaching pictures from today. I am a bit more swollen than I have been, but you can see my incision now and the drain site.
Even though both drains were draining 25 CC per day, Dr. Morea will only pull one out at a time. I was a little disappointed about that, because the office is closed on Fridays, so I have to keep the other one until Monday. Well, Trudy explained that when they take out the first drain, any fluid still collecting on that side will tend to drain out of the other one, so that one might have more output. Once both drains are gone, there is nowhere for the fluid to go, so if they both came out and then I do too much activity and generate more fluid than my body can absorb, I might get a fluid collection that would have to be aspirated. I decided maybe it's just as well that I keep this drain until Monday!
And then, of course, I was so excited to be out in the world again and driving myself that I decided to stop at Wal-Mart for a new embroidery hoop. I've been getting around my apartment like a champ and even collected the mail twice, so I thought this would be easy. As soon as I walked in, it felt like the sewing section was a million miles away. Being in public made it very clear that I am still walking very slowly and slightly hunched. And then I SNEEZED. OMG. Bad news bears.
As though the Wal-Mart adventure weren't enough, I decided to stop at Nordstrom Rack next to try on shoes. That was only about a 20 minute excursion, no big deal. Finally, I thought I would stop at the thrift store on the way home. I stopped at an ATM (a walk-up one), then looked across the parking lot at the thrift store and just imagined having to get in and out of my car again, walk a lap around another big store, and risk sneezing from all the dust. SO I changed my mind and went home.
By about 7pm, I was in agony and so tired. I laid down at 8pm, took a sleeping pill, and slept until 10am. My drain output the following morning (from the previous 24 hours) was 50 CC. It DOUBLED from what it was! I definitely overdid it yesterday and I'm paying for it. I feel worse than I have in a few days. I've been just sitting in my chair mostly today, and already my drain is up to 25 again. I hope the drainage will slow back down to 25 again by Monday so I can get this sucker out, but I would rather have a drain than a seroma or a hematoma.
I am attaching pictures from today. I am a bit more swollen than I have been, but you can see my incision now and the drain site.
Provider Review
Board Certified Plastic Surgeon
7700 Lead Mine Rd., Raleigh, North Carolina