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POSTED UNDER Smart Lipo REVIEWS

I'm Surprised I'm Not in Pain, and Curious to See Results

ORIGINAL POST

I had smart lipo yesterday on my legs from the top...

hopingNovember 18, 2008
WORTH IT$7,000

I had smart lipo yesterday on my legs from the top of my hip to my knees.  Some parts were painful, my doc had to go into some parts that weren't numb at the end to even out, but overall it was pretty much painless.  I'm 23, 5'9" and weigh about 147 lbs, but my doc said I've got "polish legs" which means just big apparently.  I work out all the time, but never can get certain areas to respond and it has been affecting me since I can remember in the confidence arena.  I was told when I was done that I had 4 litres taken out ( I think that's the measurement) it was 3 huge canisters, and he said 3 of it was fat.  Apparently this is the first time they had taken out that much from anyone, so I'm a bit nervous, but the office was very friendly and supportive of my anticipated results. 

Oh lordy, is the drainage a mess.  My best friend stayed at my house and I think she almost passed out when she saw blood like substance running down my legs everywhere.  I had to change my feminine pads I put on each incision 4 times in 4 hours.  They were soaked beyond belief.  I put lots of garbage bags and old towles down on my bed but still everything I touched was covered in the blood/lidocane mixture.  I'm told the more you drain the less swelling you will have so I hope this is the case for me. 

I'm curious to know why I'm still not in pain though?  I was unable to fall asleep last night for some reason, but there wasn't any pain.  With how "agressive" the doctor said he was, I was expecting more.  I hope to get the before pics from him when I go for my follow up, because I have had traditional lipo previously and it did absolutley nothing.  I actually saw chunks of fat comming out of me though so this had to have done something.  I thought I would be freaked out by the procedure, but I wanted to watch everything, It was quite funny. 

Can other people tell me how many litres were taken out of them so I can compare somewhat?  Thank you for any replies, especially on the not sleeping part, I'm a full time college student and I need my rest.

hoping's provider

Replies (20)

berf
November 18, 2008
Hi Hoping, I am 28, 115 pound and 5,2.I got smartlipo on my lower and upper abs yesterday morning(11-18-08)..it was so painfulduring the treatment.but today I feel better ,i couldn't sleep good at night .my back was hurting and everytime any small move was waki ng me up..I am still taking painkiller,hope will sleep good tonight.they took 1100 cc from me.good luck
gardencity_gal
November 18, 2008
Hi there. They took 300 cc from each arm and total arms/abs I had 3 of those huge canisters full too-which is pretty amazing. I am at day 15 post op. I am excited to hear about your progress because I would love to do my legs!
hoping
November 18, 2008
Today is much more painful than my pain free yesterday. I'm still leaking quite a bit. Which meant I had to have like fifteen overnight pads stuck to my legs, 2 pairs of sweatpants *the one will show through in no time* and go to school. Pretty funny if I might say so. I'm very tired, and I can't wait for the draining to stop so I can see what I look like under all this crap. If I try to take one pad off it immediatly soaks my whole leg and clean up crew is necessary! I'll update.
alexac143
November 18, 2008
hey! i'm getting my inner/outer thighs done next week.. really nervous! do you feel any different as far as your legs getting smaller? i hope you're feeling better!
hoping
November 19, 2008
When i take the garment off, I feel like my legs look amazing, however; when I try to put any of my pants on, they don't fit. So I guess, I can see the new shape they will hopefully be, but I still have quite a bit of swelling. I had to buy these huge bulky pads to last long enough to sit through one of my classes yesterday, and so I'm hoping that all this drainage the past two days will equate to less swelling sooner. I'll let you know when I start to have a difference as to fitting in my pants, but to answer your question, yes I do "feel" smaller. Feel free to ask any other questions. :)
love
November 22, 2008
dont be nervous just had it done at 9 this morning its a breeze!!!
poodlerider
November 19, 2008
Hi Hoping - You're the first person I've read about on this site who sounds like they had the same procedure I had. On 7/1 I had my thighs done, hip to knee, inside, outside, front and back. I'd had large thighs for years and described them as having dense muscle mass surrounded by too much fat with some lumpy areas - attractive huh? The doctor cautioned me several times prior to the procedure that thighs are the most difficult area(s) to recover from, so hold on to your socks! I had 8,000 cc's suctioned, which I believe equates to 8 liters - ugh! Wore my compression garment 23/7 for the first 6 weeks post-op, then another 6 weeks to sleep in. I massaged like crazy every time I thought about it - and still do - (driving in traffic, sitting at my desk, in front of the tv, in the shower), returned to my workout routine 2 weeks post-op walking 4 15/min miles 3-4 times a week, drank gallons of water daily and tried to eat really healthy foods. Also found that apx. 80 grams of protein a day helps to promote cologen growth (found some pretty good tasting egg white protein powders that make that chore an easy one) and was told that using a lotion or cream with a lot of shae butter in it is helpful. I found some at Walmart of all places that seems to be helping - only $5 for an 8 oz bottle. Be prepared for your legs to swell up so much that you swear the skin will split wide open. Brusing and patches of leathery skin may appear. Try to massage the leathery areas a lot as they may lead to scar tissue. If you swell up that may last 2-4 weeks. Closer to week 5-6 you may begin to feel like someone stuck you with dozens of hot needles and they're being wiggled under skin. This, I'm told, is the nerve endings that were damaged by the laser repairing themselves. On the positive side, by week 6 or so I'd lost 20 lbs, my legs no longer looked like those of a linebacker and I was looking pretty darn good in jeans. I'm now 4.5 mos post-op and not ready for shorts yet, still a little lumpy and a little loose skin, but I'm way ahead of where I was in jeans. As far as pain is concerned, I never really experienced what I would consider pain. Discomfort, yes and sometimes in spades, but it didn't last long. Only drained through day 2 post-op so I was lucky there. I'm now having LipoEx treatments done to try to smooth out the remaining lumps, break down the scar tissue that formed (in spite of all my efforts) and hopeflly tighten up the remaining loose skin. My doctor advised early on that it takes some patients up to 8 mos before they see the final results. Didn't mean to write War and Peace, but hope I have provided you with some helpful information. Take care, good luck with your recovery and feel free to ask if you have any questions as you work your way through the next few weeks.
Lane
November 19, 2008
Be careful when showering while you're draining. The 2nd day after my procedure when the water ran down my leg and into one of my incisions, it felt like a knife jabbed me deep inside. It throbbed badly for a few minutes, and then hurt in that section when I walked for the next few days. It was attributed to an exposed nerve from the cut. After that I left my taped gauze on. Other than pinching during the procedure.. and the aftermath of knowing what Nancy Kerrigan felt like after being whacked with that pole... there never was discomfort that wasn't tolerable. I went to Victoria's Secret the day after my procedure.. a Dodger game the next. Just take it slow and you can resume most activities.
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