My Plus Size Tummy Tuck Experience! October 2014 Robles Doll BBW - Dominican Republic

Ladies, if you're feeling like you've lost your groove after a tummy tuck, give it some time. For the first time in months I was able to "put my back into it" in the bedroom. Up until tonight, I was SO stiff, it was hard to catch a rhythm & I felt like an amateur. Also, when I went out about 6 weeks ago, I couldn't even dance like I wanted to. My lower back/abdomen just did not have a lot of movement. I honestly thought it would stay that way, thank goodness I was wrong! Lol

The 4 month mark comes with lots of progress. I haven't seen any new shrinkage in my waist, but the swelling in my lower tummy is leaving slowly, but surely. The other night I fell asleep without my garment & to my surprise, no burning/stinging sensation! I was however, swollen, but just a little. My belly button is finally formed, it use to look weird & I had to keep cotton balls inside to hold the shape. My tummy now feels real, it's not hard & it even has a little jiggle.

Although I haven't noticed a decrease in my waist, my garment has become increasingly loose, so I plan to get it taken in; hopefully this will help shape my waist more.

Anywho, I did say quick update, so that's all for now.

Ladies if you know where I can get a solid, high quality compression garment in the Atlanta area, PLEASE PLEASE comment or msg me the contact info. I went without a garment for over 3 weeks! The lipo express garment that I purchased from Perfect Bodies broke & became completely dis functional! My tummy is swollen & has become wide & unshapely. Thinking about it brings tears to my eyes :(

I contacted my Dr's assistant the 2nd week & she said to get a garment ASAP & she said that igneous not affect my final results, but so far it has affected my present results. I ordered online from a company called Marena group (I know a few surgeons here in ATL who use them) & it's extremely soft & comfy, BUT it's a more mild compression than what I'm used to. I feel as if I'm at the end of my recovery & the way that my tummy is being molded now, will most likely determine it's shape forever. With that being said, this garment isn't tight enough (for me), it feels more like the stage 1 garment that Dr.Robles sent me home in. I can easily go down to the mall & purchase another garment from Perfect Bodies, but I would be a fool to do so. I only paid $73 for the Merena group garment so I don't feel super bad about it, but at the same, their an online company & have a strict refund policy, do your pretty much stuck with what ya get. I'm desperate & if I don't get something soon I'm gonna have to go back & spend money on the low quality piece of s*** that I used before.

Anyone had to go for a. Extended period of time without their garment 3 to 4 months into recovery? All feedback is welcome. Thanks in advance!

By the way, I'm posting pics, but I am not proud of them, I feel like my results have suffered tremendously from not wearing a garment for the past few weeks & my waist should be a lot smaller then what it is.

I got up at 4:45am because I was told to be at the hospital/clinic for 6am to have sx at 7am. I was running around, trying to make sure I had all my items together, rushing because I didn't know what time the driver would arrive, he ended up getting there late, so it was all in vain.

We ended up making it to the hospital around 6:30, and even though it was early, the atmosphere in the clinic's lobby was bustling. There were people everywhere, the sliding doors were opening & closing constantly from people coming & going. I was taken upstairs to the clinic's waiting area, it was full, only 3 seats available, and RIDICULOUSLY cold! I sat for all of about 5 mins before I started asking if it was ok for me to step out for a sec. They told me no, so I stayed. After about 45 mins of waiting, my name was called. I was escorted to one of the hospital rooms, which was only a few steps from the waiting area. There, signed a few consent forms, answered some questions about my health & sat up while my vitals were taken. At this point, I figured I was just minutes away from sx, I was wrong...

I was escorted back to the ice cold waiting room, which was even more full by this time. I was told by the nurse to wait here for a room. Since the seating was limited, I decided to stand outside of the waiting area. After about 10 mins I became impatient & went back inside & sat in between 2 Dominican women (the only seat available).

The wifi signal was weak, I was shivering from being so cold, I was the only person dressed down & I had to carry around a big duffle bag with me everywhere I went>> This made for a very uneasy, uncomfortable me. Once again, I got up from my seat & attempted to ask a receptionist if it was ok for me to step out, she didn't understand, so I left anyway. I located Dr. Gonzalez, who speaks English, and I complained to her about everything. She told me that it was ok to leave the waiting area as it would be a little while before they needed me. She also told me that the wifi signal was better downstairs in the lobby, so to the lobby I went!

I called my husband & responded to a few texts from concerned friends & family. Talking to my husband really eased y mind. After about 45 mins out convo became boring, I decided to go back upstairs to make sure my name hadn't been called. Nope, still not ready for me. I stepped out into the hallway to get wifi, for the next 2 hours of so, I went back & forth between the lobby & the waiting area, finally, I ran out of things to talk about in the phone, and things to do on the internet. I was hungry & becoming growingly annoyed at how long I had been waiting. I went back to the waiting area & took a nap because there was absolutely nothing else to do! Finally they called my name & gave me a key to my room! I was so relieved!!

The room wasn't as bad as I had expected. Simple & dated, but clean & functional. There was a bed, a rolling stand that sits over the bed (to sit food, books, phone, etc), a tv, a couch a window, that was fully functional, a mini fridge, a bathroom & a air temperature control. The first thing I did was opened up my Lysol wipes & wiped down everything, the couch, bed handles, door knobs, remote control, pretty much, anything that I had to touch & sprayed the room with disinfectant spray (I'm a germaphobe). After that, I opened the window to let in some heat because I was still freezing from the waiting room stent. I unpacked & organized some of my things, then headed back downstairs to update my hubby. Once again I waited, and waited before I decided to go downstairs to use my phone.

Dr. Gonzalez (Robles' assistant) found me & took me to Dr. Robles' office. The first question that she asked me was if I had weightloss surgery. I explained to her that I had lost 92 lbs prior to coming to her. She went in to tell me that I needed a lot of work which included a breast, thigh & arm lift because my skin was loose & I had lost volume in my breast. I agreed & proceeded to show/tell her what I wanted. She made it very clear to me, that I may not be able to receive my bbl. She said that I had a lot of fat that needed to be removed & that our bodies can only take so much at one time. At thus point, u knew it was a good idea to mentally prepare for the possibility of no butt :( Dr. Robles marked me up & sent me back to my room.

Shortly after I returned to the room, a nurse came in & gave me the infamous blue pill & a shot of water. At this point I knew that it was about to get real. I FREAKED out!! I broke down the 2nd that the nurse left the room. I thought about how selfish my decision to have this surgery was, and what my kids' life would be like if I didn't make it & how hard my husbands life would be having to raise our kids alone. My mind became consumed with every negative thought imaginable. I cried & then prayed. Once I was all cried out I took the pill, I knew (from reading thousands of Realself reviews) that the blue pill would settle me down, so I sent my final "I love you's" & then laid down & waited to fall asleep. Although I didn't fall asleep, my mind cleared, the tears dried up & I became relaxed.

At approximately 2:30pm, a guy came, with a wheelchair, he wheeled me to the sx room, he was nice & attempted to hold a conversation with me, but was unsuccessful, we just spoke broken language & laughed the whole way there lol. The room, was basic to say the least. The floor was bare concrete & I'm pretty sure the only thing that kept me from panicking was the blue pill. There were 2 women in the room with me, neither was Dr. Robles. They were not very friendly, just serious & straight to the point, no English. Although they were cold, there was no awkward silence because they were playing some Spanish music in the radio, which helped a lot. They had me stand on a stool & climb into the operating table, I was instructed to sit up straight with my neck bent forward (I was completely comfortable with this, as I've had 2 c-sections, so I felt good about receiving an epidural). Once I was sitting properly, one of the women placed an iv in my hand & after that I don't remember a thing! I was out cold! Lol.

I woke up in my room, in my bed, in my compression garment. It was late & the lights & tv were off, the room was dark. I was going in & out of deep sleep until I've if the nurses came in, and gave me some jello or something jelly like. I asked her to turn the tv on (no English channels, just needed it for dim light), I picked at the jello & fell back asleep.