Slim Lipo Upper and Lower Abs and Flanks

I had the procedure done 6/18/10. The only pain I felt during the procedure was the flank area and it felt like I was getting a bikini wax. I probably would not have felt any pain if I would have asked for more pain meds which they keep offering, but I have a high pain tolerance and I was focused on getting as much fat out as possible. I had a lot of drainage. In fact, by the time I got home, my clothes were soaked. I definitely wasn't prepared for the amount of drainage. My Dr. applied foam pads about the thickness of neopreme which absorbed the liquid, but not enough for the first few hours. You definitely needs towels in the car and anywhere you sit for the first few hours. There was hardly any pain after. My procedure was over at about 5:00 p.m. and a few hours later I took a walk around my neighborhood and the following night I attended a wedding and danced. It does feel very strange when you remove the binding and try to walk. I felt a burning sensation running down my abs everytime I got up and started walking and I was very numb. The drainage stopped within 24 hours. I was REALLY bruised (I bruise very easy) and this was the only real pain I experienced after and only when I had to lay on my back where the bruising was. I started taking Arnica a few days after the surgery and it helped immediately. I would recommend taking it a few days before the surgery as well to help with bruising and swelling which my Dr. had recommended, but I had forgotten to get. DEFINITELY GET THE ARNICA. You can buy it at any vitimin shop. The numbness started wearing off at about the 10 day mark. I wore the compression binding (it looked similar to the kidney belts worn at Home Depot but taller) for three weeks. Those things are evil - for some reason it killed my ribs and I frequently had to take it off and give my ribs a rest. I noticed that having the compression garment off was uncomfortable at first and I felt like I was super swollen (although it didn't look any different) it felt much better to wear the compression garment especially the first week. I had to wear the compression binding an additional week because I started exercising too soon and ended up with a pocket of fluid. I saw an immediate difference especially in my waist. At about three weeks when I stopped wearing the compression garment, I thought it looked really bad and I was a little disappointed about my results (even though my Dr. told me that it sometimes gets worse before it gets better). It gradually started to smooth out and there was less numbness. I am 5 weeks out and I still have numbness in some areas and crazy itching all over, but I can definitely see a big improvement. No more muffin top and I love my results and it was definitely well worth it.