25, No Kids..Stubborn Areas - Roseville, CA

So I have always been a little overweight, nothing drastic or ridiculous. I've jumped between a size 4-8 regularly. After I graduated college I gained roughly 25 pounds & have not been able to get rid of it. I tried a personal trainer, did cross fit for a few months 5 days a week & saw very little results. I've done the Dr. Furman Eat to Live diet & dropped maybe 5-7 pounds, not enough for me to eat nothing but veggies for 90 days, I've done slim fast for a while, so obviously I've just kind of bounced around trying to find something that works. When I hit 25 last year I was just tired of being unhappy with my body so I started looking into liposuction & found laser lipo, which won me over with the entire concept of no anesthesia, no stitches, & minimal down time. I guess I should throw in, another motivator, I'm getting married in 2016 & can't see trying to hide my stomach in a dress or hating the pictures.

I made an appointment for a consult last week & they were able to see me that same week on Saturday. The consult went great, we discussed my goals & everything was laid out realistically, to be told that I'll be able to wear a bikini for the first time in my life is just magnificent. After going over everything & agreeing on the best plan for my desired goals, we had a chat with the financial consultant (Katie, I think, I could be wrong, I'm terrible w/ names) & she laid everything out perfectly. She grouped together the procedures we discussed so I had a better idea of what I would be paying. The price was a little more than I expected (& wanted to be honest) but I deeply believe you get what you pay for & I only get one body so I'd rather do it right.

I set my appointment for my first procedure, laser lipo on my full abdomen & outer thighs, just to sort of smooth everything out, a cleaner silhouette for February 5th.
I'm incredibly nervous & have had to force myself to stop reading other reviews because everyone is just so different there's no way to know ahead of time.

I've included before pictures before & then I'll post follow up ones after the procedure, I'm so nervous though, kind of driving myself crazy about it.

So last night was a little tough, very very uncomfortable doing just about anything. Sitting down, standing up, anything that required me to be conscious was just not a happy time. The actual procedure went very well. The little cocktail of narcotics they have worked out truly is magical. I won't say I was totally loopy & out of it but I was definitely not nervous anymore (& trust I was completely nervous the night before, the valium I took had zero effect & I barely slept a wink). Dr. Rasi was great, he talked me through the entire beginning of the procedure which really helped me feel more comfortable. Everyone was totally right, the actually numbing is just like getting snapped with a rubber band. Once he started I could feel him moving around inside my stomach but it didn't hurt, it was really just the strangest feeling on the planet. The only part I will say hurt just a little bit was getting out the last bit of fat around my ribs (wanted to cry so bad) but then I put it in perspective & really, my Brazilian wax hurts way more lol. I even said that to Dr.Rasi & he got a kick out of it.

After the procedure they let me relax for a few & then I really was able to walk right out. My fiancé (who stayed with me the entire time, bless her soul) made me stay in the car while she filled my prescriptions & even got me Chipotle to eat later. She truly is amazing lol! By the time we got home I was a little dizzy, I hadn't taken any pain meds & what they gave me for the procedure was wearing off. So I ate a little food, took my norco & then was off to bed. I was uncomfortable sleeping (but I'm a stomach sleeper so that's probably not a typical issue), once I realized that I had to sleep on my back I got over it & knocked out. There was a bit of leakage, both in the car from the drive home & on the towels I slept on.
Waking up I was determined to do things on my own as much as possible & to my fiancé's dismay. I was able to brush my teeth, clean up a bit (no shower for 48 hours), & then get dressed. I was fully able to pull my underwear, leggings, & pants up on my own (I wore leggings underneath just in case I had any residual leakage).
Now here I am, at work, minimal pain when bending over or having to get up from a seated position or having to sit, but it's completely manageable. I feel a little slimmer underneath everything because even with the foam pad over my stomach, my sweater is still a little flatter in the front & that makes me so excited for the next few weeks/months to come.

I'll update with pictures tomorrow once I can take the garment off for the first time..
So so excited to see my results.
I think Dr. Rasi really did help make the entire procedure so calm & the first thing he says once I'm lying on the table & he uncovers my stomach is "Oh we're going to get this nice & flat."
Music to my ears..

Feeling ok..
I think that's the only way to describe how I actually feel. Sleep is a little rough, not loving the compression garment but absolutely not loving the hour that it takes to wash it & having to just sit without it either.
I should say, I am absolutely happy with the results on my stomach though, there is definitely swelling & my thighs have a bit of bruising/swelling on them as well but I can already tell the difference, especially in clothing.
I have my checkup tomorrow, it's a few days early to accommodate both mine & the doctor's schedules.
Feelings..
The first shower was kind of cruddy, but I think I built it up to be much worse in my head though. A few of my pads had stuck to my skin/scabs that had formed so that was no picnic trying to get them off.
Going to the bathroom took a few days, but before the procedure I read other reviews & saw that others experienced severe constipation so I started taking stool softeners the day of & once I finally could go (yesterday - day 3) it was rough, mainly because you can't push, but it wasn't terrible as far as being hard or anything. I would definitely recommend the stool softeners lol, I can't imagine trying to push with a ton of effort or success in this condition.

I am already back to work, I was back the next day though so that's not really a big deal. I'm not happy about it, my body feels like it needs to be just sleeping & recovering, but at least I'm able to just sit all day.
Stomach hurts a bit, I find myself holding it when I'm walking around, just sort of for additional support. My back definitely hurts, I think technically it's my lower flanks, but either way, that area kills me a little bit. I definitely had to take something this morning for the pain because I couldn't even sit back in my chair.

This review is a little scattered because I'm not really sure what to report, but just wanted to update it with something. I'm swollen/ very slightly bruised (only on my thighs), my stomach still feels a little numb, but all in all so far I'm pretty pleased. I can definitely tell that the fat is gone & it's just swelling because the size of my stomach varies throughout the day.

I'll update again soon, possibly in another week. Pictures attached below, can see the difference & definitely can see the swelling.