Monterey , Ca Smartlipo

Days 7-9
I am feeling much better. Kind of swollen, but I have not taken any pain medications at all these past 3 days. I am still taking the Arnica Montana pills, as well as, the Arnica gel I apply after I shower and before I put on my garment. As you can see from my photos I posted I have no bruising :) Thank you Arnica! I do however have these hard spots/lumps under my skin ( like 10) I called my Dr and was referred to have a Lymphatic massage on day 9. I paid $70 to have this massage and can already tell the difference (thank God) I am scheduled again on Tue and then again on Friday. As far as the massage therapist is concerned this is normal and this type of massage is needed several times a week until gone. Also I was told to drink Apple cider vinegar shots 3x day and fresh squeezed lemon in my water to help flush my system.So my 3900 procedure is getting more expensive by the day. I have 17 days before my husband and I leave for Hawaii. I will try whatever advice I can get to help this resolve. I am still pleased with my results, I just hope my blog helps others. I will blog again in a few days and will post pics again right before Hawaii :)

Day 4:
I attempted to return to work which was the worst mistake I could have made! I do not reccommend that and would urge you to wait atleast a week or more to do so! I was in so much pain and I ended up more swollen due to this! I almost passed out at work and had such a hard time even sitting at my desk to chart due to the garment pressing on my abd and causing added swelling to my vagina :( I got home, took tylenol 3 w codeine, a Lasix ( diuertic) and laid down with feet elevated for the rest of the night. I'll be calling in tomorrow!
Ok so day 5-7 :
After day 5 being the worst of the swelling, I see a decrease in abd, vaginal area and back, but pain remains about 5/10. I have a hard time standing for very long without getting dizzy and my legs swelling, so I have to lay down intermittently throughout the day (kinda hard when your a nurse working in a hospital) so needless to say I had to take 3 more days off of work :( not what I had expected! I have added 20 mg of Lasix ( water pill) and colace ( stool softener) and an iron supplement to my regimen to combat my new symptoms. I am adding my pics today, but have not taking any new photos since day after procedure. I will wait one more week to retake pics. I am still pleased with my results and do not regret the procedure just wish I would have planned to take more time off to heal is all. My advice is to atleast take a week and a half off! I dont understand how anyone could go back after 3 days!! Trust me you feel fine after procedure but the body reacts after day 2 or 3 and it all catches up to you! Drink plenty of water and increase your iron ( red blood cell production to combat dizziness) and protien for healing. I started using the rolling pin last night (day 7) which can be a little painful but after a while you get used to it and your will be happier with the results I'm told.

Also I am changing my garment to a side zipper due to the front enclosure causing a rash down the middle of my abd and to get a XS now vs SM bc I need a tighter grament :) Shrinking! :)) I'll post again in a few days

I had Smartlipo on my lower/ upper abs and flanks/ bra fold, 3 days ago in Monterey, CA. Pre-procedure : 5'3" and 145 lbs. I recently lost 30 lbs dieting ( since Dec) and had pockets of fat around my midsection that bothered me. I have been exercising more recently and felt that this procedure would give me that extra boost of motivation needed to completely tone up all over. I heard from other nurses I work with that Smartlipo would work best for me, so I gave it a try! :) FYI I started taking Arnica 30 a week before surgery to reduce chances of bruising. I also purchased Bromelain which reduces swelling that I will start taking after. Day off Lipo on 4/9/12: Had to be there at 8am to take my pictures and meds (Ativan 1 mg, phenergan and Oxycodone). I was relaxed and put my headphones on to listen to some music. Overall the went well, I actually laughed when she went over or close to my rib cage. A little discomfort with introduction of the Lidocaine solution and a few times with pinches here and there, but the Dr immediately introduced more solution when I told her it hurt a bit. I was able to take a break, eat a light lunch and use the restroom. My husband and best friend where sitting down next to me, talking and distracting me the whole time :) The Dr continued to reassure me the whole time during the procedure that I was doing great and her staff was attentive and friendly. My whole procedure took 3 hours. After all was done, I sat up, used the restroom, my incision sites where covered with antibiotic ointment and a dressing and I was placed in my garment. My husband drove me home and I slept all night. I didn't wake up once LOL. Good meds! I had 1 mg of ativan and an oxycodone before bed. Day 1: Slept well in my garment and the 2 exercise abdominal binders I purchased for extra support. (I highly recommend this) Woke up with slight drainage, but the shower curtain and extra towels kept my bed dry. I'm a little sore, but not much. Ate a light breakfast and took my antibiotics, phenergan (anti nausea) and a low dose pain pill (Tylenol 3 with codeine). After having my husband help me up out of bed I decided to take a shower. Oh boy!! caution! I would def have someone around when you attempt this! After removing the garment - I passed out! Not from the site of blood bc there was none, I just had a vasovagal episode. After my husband helped me to the toilet and had me drink some gatorade I was fine after about 5 mins. So nevertheless I took a quick rinse off with non scented body wash which still kinda hurt my incisions, but I managed. I only proceeded with the shower bc I felt super sticky from the drainage. On a good note, I surprisingly have no bruising and only slight swelling. ( Pics to post) My husband applied new antibiotic ointment and band aids to my incision sites and helped me back into my garment. (Again I decided to use both the abd binders for extra support) Took my pain pills, phenergan, arnica and bromelain as scheduled then strict Bed rest for the whole day. Dr's medical assistant called to check on me which was nice :) Day 2: Slept good all night although getting in a good position is tricky! Woke up in pain like about 5/10 so I took an oxycodone with phenergan along with my breakfast. My husband had to roll me out of bed and standing up hurt the most! Sorry if this is TMI but my vagina was 5x its normal size! EEK! I was expecting that because other ppl had told me but wth! lol Not cute! It is swollen, red and warm to the touch. My husband helped me into the shower once again, but this time I sat down immediately after taking my garment off, felt slightly whoozy, so had some fruit juice and in the end had a successful shower. My husband redressed my incision sites and off we went to my post op appt. Appointment lasted maybe 10 mins. Undressed so the Dr could see the results. Talked to her and the staff about my vaginal swelling which they advised me is natural and with time and ice, would subside after a few days- THANK GOD! I also addressed that I might want a touch up on my pouch area of my abd ( which I'll show you in pics) but the Dr thinks its just swelling and will go down after a few wks. Again a day of bed rest and movies. All meds as scheduled but used the lower strength of Tylenol 3 instead of the oxys. Day 3- Worst of the nights so far! I woke up in pain like 10/10 around 1 am. Couldn't fall back to sleep. I felt swollen, my vaginal area was engorged more than earlier (I even slept with an ice pack on it) I managed to roll myself out of bed and into the kitchen to eat some crackers and take an oxycodone and 1mg of ativan to relax. I started to regret what I had put myself through! I didn't want to wake my husband up because I didn't want to scare him, so I stayed up praying and meditating till about 4am before getting back to sleep. I had terrible dreams and tossed and turned all of the early morning hours. Day 4- Ok so last night was rough! Even recalling it now brings me to tears! I'm an RN so I know there is pain with any procedure and I researched all the pros and cons and outcomes. I also know to keep your pain medication schedule even when your feeling better and I did all of that! I can't explain what happened but I never want to feel it again!! I woke up this morning less swollen in my vaginal area and it is the first morning I am able to sit at the table to eat breakfast. I'm still sore and am keeping to my med routine. My husband went back to work so I'm alone for the day. I'll try to take pics when he comes home. Praying for a better day! Will keep you posted!