Greetings! I am 27 years old with a 4 year old son who absolutely ravished my body during pregnancy. I was a size 5 before I became pregnant with him and after the 70lb weight gain, I was a size 14 after I delivered him. I have lost all but about 18 pounds and I'm ok with that being that I am older and I have more curves but my stomach has been a thorn in my side for the past 4 years. I work out 5 times a week and it won't budge anymore. So I've finally decided to do something about. From the second that I met with Dr. Terranova, I knew he was the one to perform the surgery. He was very honest and he didn't just tell me what I wanted to hear. Even when I wanted to see him again (and again) he made time for me and never made me feel rushed. His staff are the absolute best as well! He is also going to do my breast augmentation in June. Initially I was going to get both procedures done at the same time but because of the post operative swelling with the lipo, I decided to split them up so my stomach could be flat and healed by bathing suit season. The areas that I am getting done are my upper&lower abdomen and flank area which is known as the whole trunk area. My surgery is tomorrow at 830am and I am so excited. I have all my medicine filled and my sweatsuit is hanging up on the door. I'll check back in tomorrow if I'm not too woozy from the meds :)
Circumferential Tumescent Liposuction of the Trunk Area (Upper and Lower Abdomen & Flanks) - North Charleston, SC
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April Nichole
- Worth It
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Cost:
$5,231 - William A. Terranova, MD, North Charleston, SC
TODAY IS THE BIG DAY!! My appointment was supposed...
TODAY IS THE BIG DAY!! My appointment was supposed to be at 830 this morning but I got a call yesterday and was told that it was pushed back to 915am, which isn't bad. Joan, the office manager is so sweet and she reminded me of the things that I would need to ease my comfort and I am going to share them with you guys:
-Buy a large shower curtain to place underneath your sheets to catch the drainage (I bought mine from the dollar store. Large trash bags will also suffice)
-Get some maxi pads and dog wee wee pads to help wrap around trunk and incisions (I also got these at the dollar store)
-Come into surgery wearing dark clothes (preferably black) and shoes that you don't mind getting dirty. Also bring in comfy socks so your feet don't get cold.
Make sure you stock your fridge with ginger ale, yogurt, mashed potatoes and oatmeal. These are little things that help with nausea and make med taking easier because it coats your stomach so you won't throw up. Well that's it for now, I'll be back later with pics and more updates :)
-Buy a large shower curtain to place underneath your sheets to catch the drainage (I bought mine from the dollar store. Large trash bags will also suffice)
-Get some maxi pads and dog wee wee pads to help wrap around trunk and incisions (I also got these at the dollar store)
-Come into surgery wearing dark clothes (preferably black) and shoes that you don't mind getting dirty. Also bring in comfy socks so your feet don't get cold.
Make sure you stock your fridge with ginger ale, yogurt, mashed potatoes and oatmeal. These are little things that help with nausea and make med taking easier because it coats your stomach so you won't throw up. Well that's it for now, I'll be back later with pics and more updates :)
Ok so its done! My appt was at 915am and at 913am,...
Ok so its done! My appt was at 915am and at 913am, Deborah was calling my name telling me to come on back so we can get this show on the road. Yayyyyy! When me and my mom came back to the private room, I completed a few pages of final paperwork, took my meds and changed in a robe. Deborah who was knowledgeable as usual answered last minutes questions for my breast augmentation that is coming up in a couple of months. After this, Dr. Terranova came in and marked me up. Ahhh the wonderful smell of a permanent marker! When he left, the anesthesia doctor came in and introduced herself. After a bit of small talk, she escorted me to the room where dreams come true and stars are born. After I was comfortable on the table and the nurse place my leg cuffs on (to promote circulation so I dont get bloodclots) the doctor began talking to me about my time in Iraq (all the while hooking me up to sleep juice). Then I was out!
I woke up with all of my clothes back on and in PAIN! Whew! Thank God I wasn't disoriented or I would have thought I was in labor!! My mom and my son came and seeing their faces calmed me down a bit. After my mother was debriefed, we were on our way home. I practically slurped down that yogurt just so my mom could give me my pain pills (let her tell it, I was acting like a dope fiend wating on her fix). After I took my meds, I fell asleep and now I'm back up updating this review.
When I looked in the mirror, my stomach is swollen but its not puffy like it was before, I can already see a flat silouette. Watch out now!
I woke up with all of my clothes back on and in PAIN! Whew! Thank God I wasn't disoriented or I would have thought I was in labor!! My mom and my son came and seeing their faces calmed me down a bit. After my mother was debriefed, we were on our way home. I practically slurped down that yogurt just so my mom could give me my pain pills (let her tell it, I was acting like a dope fiend wating on her fix). After I took my meds, I fell asleep and now I'm back up updating this review.
When I looked in the mirror, my stomach is swollen but its not puffy like it was before, I can already see a flat silouette. Watch out now!
Ok, its the day after surgery and I am feeling...
Ok, its the day after surgery and I am feeling sexy! When I sit down, my stomach doesn't roll!! Whooo hooo! I had a sleepless night but it really wasnt due to pain, I've always been a night owl. I had to make sure I kept repositioning myself in bed so that I didn't get sore on one side. I've been on top of my meds with no nausea. I had my 1st BM today so no constipation. I've been drinking lots of water and eating fiber, fruits and yogurt so maybe that has been a factor?
Dr. Terranova called me today to check up on me. I have stopped leaking (the leaking wasn't as bad as I thought it would be) so he told me that I can remove my dressings and take a shower. Then he proceeded to break my heart by telling me that my newly flat stomach will get very swollen and then take 4-6 weeks to come back down. Sigh.....thank God, I decided to get this done before summer. He told me that he removed about 6000cc's. WOW. He explained that it was roughly 3 Coca Cola 2 liter bottles! Now I'm way excited to see the final outcome. My mom (who is here as my caregiver) thinks that its too early to take my dressings off and that we should wait a day or two. I'm going to try to throw an old school temper tandrum to get my way. I have to go back on Monday to get fitted for my compression garment. I'll check back in a week.
Dr. Terranova called me today to check up on me. I have stopped leaking (the leaking wasn't as bad as I thought it would be) so he told me that I can remove my dressings and take a shower. Then he proceeded to break my heart by telling me that my newly flat stomach will get very swollen and then take 4-6 weeks to come back down. Sigh.....thank God, I decided to get this done before summer. He told me that he removed about 6000cc's. WOW. He explained that it was roughly 3 Coca Cola 2 liter bottles! Now I'm way excited to see the final outcome. My mom (who is here as my caregiver) thinks that its too early to take my dressings off and that we should wait a day or two. I'm going to try to throw an old school temper tandrum to get my way. I have to go back on Monday to get fitted for my compression garment. I'll check back in a week.
The swelling and itching has begun!! So today my...
The swelling and itching has begun!!
So today my mom took off my bandages (gross and painful). She was worried that showering would reverse how fast my incisions have been healing so she suggested I do a sponge bath instead and hold off on my shower another day. I was just excited to be free of the bandages that had begun to itch me like crazy so I agreed to sponge off and wash only my "hot spots". When my bandages came off I was still happy with the results, even though I can tell that I am beginning to swell back up as Dr. Terranova warned me. My mom dabbed my incisions with witch hazel and covered them up with my son's Captain America's band-aids (he was and still is angry at us for using them all up). Afterwards, she helped me into my compression body suit that I bought from Marshalls a couple of weeks ago (remember, I don't get fit for my official one for another two days, so I bought a few to carry me over until I go back to the Doc's). Once my body suit was placed on, I felt a world of a difference! I can get around much easier and I'm not as sore. However, I started to itch even more. I combated this with a Benadryl and I feel much better now. Enjoy the new pics, I'll update in about a week or 2!
So today my mom took off my bandages (gross and painful). She was worried that showering would reverse how fast my incisions have been healing so she suggested I do a sponge bath instead and hold off on my shower another day. I was just excited to be free of the bandages that had begun to itch me like crazy so I agreed to sponge off and wash only my "hot spots". When my bandages came off I was still happy with the results, even though I can tell that I am beginning to swell back up as Dr. Terranova warned me. My mom dabbed my incisions with witch hazel and covered them up with my son's Captain America's band-aids (he was and still is angry at us for using them all up). Afterwards, she helped me into my compression body suit that I bought from Marshalls a couple of weeks ago (remember, I don't get fit for my official one for another two days, so I bought a few to carry me over until I go back to the Doc's). Once my body suit was placed on, I felt a world of a difference! I can get around much easier and I'm not as sore. However, I started to itch even more. I combated this with a Benadryl and I feel much better now. Enjoy the new pics, I'll update in about a week or 2!
Excuse my prolonged absence but I wanted to check...
Excuse my prolonged absence but I wanted to check back in. I am about 3 months post op and I am feeling much better. No pain and i'm loving my new contour. I'm not totally flat yet but I am getting there. Since my surgery, I have went on to lose about 15 pounds so my self-confidence has really improved. In two days I will be going back to Dr. Terranova for breast augmentation and I am so excited! I'm posting pics that I took recently while bathing suit shopping. I've been really focusing on my abs and I'm starting to see a little 6 pack surfacing. Yay me :)
This staff has it going on! I could not have asked for a better experience! Dr. Terranova is a walking textbook/latest magazine periodical. I had really researched everything before seeing him but he knew and explained even more to me. He was very warm and engaging and the staff were like little Sunday school teachers. Especially Deborah. She went above and beyond to make me comfortable and at ease throughout the whole process. A+
5 out of 5 stars
5 out of 5 stars
5 out of 5 stars
5 out of 5 stars
5 out of 5 stars
5 out of 5 stars
5 out of 5 stars
5 out of 5 stars
5 out of 5 stars
