Body Lift Done by Dr. Capella - Ramsey, NJ
I had a Lower Body Lift done on January 3rd by Dr....
I had a Lower Body Lift done on January 3rd by Dr. Joseph Capella, and so far, I am very happy! Even though I am only 2-days out from the surgery, the results are astonishing! First let me start off by telling you about my surgeon and his team:
Things like liposuction, or the medial thigh lift did not really apply to my body type, and he felt that I could do without those additional procedures. One other surgeon had recommended that I do the thigh lift, despite my thighs being relatively normal size. The cost for this surgery would have been an additional $3750 for this surgeon; and I dont think I needed it. I really appreciated Dr. Capella's honesty, and not looking to make as much money off his patients as possible.
After the surgery (performed at Hackensack Medical Plaza in a beautiful, pristine facility), I was in recovery for a few hours with a nurse who was tending to me and just one other patient. She was also wonderful.
CareOne Recovery
After the short time in recovery, the Ambulette came and whisked me away to CareOne in Paramus, NJ (a Nursing Facility). I received a lot of attention and care at CareOne, and the staff were incredible (joking with me as they took care of my drains, and checked my blood pressure etc).
Pain
I underestimated what the recovery would be like, at least initially :-) Having had c-sections for my pregnancies, and previous surgeries, I thought this surgery would be run-of-the mill, and I would be just fine. I ended up alternating Percocet and Tylenol w/Codeine every few hours to help manage the pain. As long as you expect that it's going to hurt, and be uncomfortable, then you should be OK. The worst part for me was the tightened muscles (Dr. Joe warned me that this part would hurt). It was like I had done a million sit-ups. I could barely move my abdomen. It felt like it would split open! Now that I am on day 2, I am starting to get some feeling back around the incision sites (which go all the way around your body... hence the term 360 degree body lift), and it hurts a bit, but is more uncomfortable than painful. As long as I take the pain medication every 4-6 hours, and drink a lot, and keep walking in short increments, I think this will help.
My New Body
Dr. Capella removed 7.5 pounds of fat and excess skin from my body. I was a size 10 (I had one pair of size 8 pants) before surgery. Since I am still swollen, and not wearing normal clothes, I have no idea what I will be once I return to wearing clothes. Maybe a size 8? Either way, my tummy is flat, my thighs are much smoother, and I am thrilled with what I see so far! And this is only 2-days post op!!!
secretbandit's provider
This morning, I am one week out from surgery. I...
First, I had 2 of the pesky drains removed yesterday (was going to be today, but they needed to change my appt to accommodate a surgical client who added to her procedure... No prob for me!!!). Second, I spiked a fever. Obviously, #s 1 and 2 were related since I felt like a champ before having the drains removed.
Drains:
Went into the office and saw Scott/Dr. C, who told me that I was doing great, walking around, and they were really impressed with my progress (not really hunched over at all... Which I attribute to my activity lever! Walk around people!!)
Scott gave me two shots of numbing medications on either side of my crotch area, so it would be "humane" as he called it, when he removed the two innermost drains. I don't know why they chose the inner ones, they just did. One deep breath, not a drop of pain later, and my two drains were out. The gentleman explained that I would have some oozing from the drain site, because they don't want to close up the wound with a stitch and risk an infection. Go buy some surgical pads from your local pharmacy, it will suck up all the oozy goodness (which I have changed about 4x so far).
Fever:
3 hours after the appt, I started feeling icky. I had the chills, and I started to get warm. I also had discomfort around the drain site (which they said would be normal for a few days). I chalked it up to having had the 2 drains removed and watched a movie. Over the next 5-6 hours, I became lethargic, feverish, and even a little off in my thinking. I had hard time processing my thoughts. My temp was 102.4. We called Dr. C. He was calm and told me that if is not uncommon for people to have a feverish reaction to the removal of the drains. More research explained that the drains had become a part of the body, and in removing them, my body was responding as though there was a predator or enemy attacking it. Antibiotics, according to Dr. Joe were likely not needed, but he wanted me to call the office the following day, to make sure the fever was gone. In the meantime, take 2 extra strength Tylenol (separate from the pain pills). He was really nice about my late 10pm call...
I will, at this point be providing you guys with a 2 week update (when the other drains are out), a 4-week update, 2-month update, when the swelling has started to subside, and then a 6-month. This was you can see the progression. I will try to find some before pics for you too!
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Two Weeks Later... So, I will start my update...
So, I will start my update by saying that my experience is NOT the norm, and even with all the difficulties, I still am happy that I did the surgery, and I am still pleased with my surgeon. Let me tell what has transpired...
10 days after the surgery, I woke up in the morning, feeling a pain in the calf of my left leg. I figured that I had maybe had a Charlie horse in the middle of the night, and I tried working it out that day. it was sore and tough, but I was able to put pressure on it. It just hurt. I had already had 2 of my drains removed, and I was doing well otherwise. Around this same time, I also began to notice that one of my drains was putting out more of a pus-like fluid than blood. Well, I knew this wasn't normal, so I called Dr. Capella and he scheduled me to come in on Monday (1/14) to have the drains removed (which would be 3 days earlier than normal). During my phone call, I should have mentioned my leg pain to Dr. C, but I didn't think to, since it was just a Charlie horse. I continued to walk on my leg, despite the pain, and after another day or so, I couldn't take it. Monday morning came and 6:30am I called Dr. Capella and said, "I probably should have mentioned this to you, but my leg is killing me." He told me to get to the hospital, as I might have developed a blood clot.
In the ER, they did testing and determined that I had developed a blood clot in my leg (Deep Vein Thrombosis or DVT) which had also spread to my lungs causing multiple pulmonary emboli (bilateral - in both lungs). I remained in the hospital from 1/14 until today 1/18 (just discharged this evening actually), and I am on blood thinners and antibiotics.
I will say though, Dr. Capella visited me in the hospital twice (and this is not his jurisdiction). He made an obscene number of phone calls to my treating physicians to ensure that they were including him in my treatment planning. When one of the doctors wasn't listening to me about pressing to hard on my belly, I told Dr. Capella, who spoke to this Dr., and magically, this Dr became the nicest of my treating physicians in the hospital.
Now that I am out, I am rehabbing myself. walking slowly, taking it easy, and starting from scratch. I still believe the surgery was worth it for me, and everytime I hear someone tell me how amazing I look (despite how swollen I am), I feel so good. I think the blood clot was an eye opener for me to slow down, and I intend to do so. :-) I wont be posting any pictures until I can get myself standing straight again, because I don't think it would benefit anyone to see where I'm at right now. So, maybe I will post some pics 1-month post-op.
Replies (9)
Thanks so much for sharing your experience with us. Your review is very detailed and a great help to the rest of the community!
Happy healing and please do keep us updated with your progress!