Former Obesity, 95lb Natural Weightloss & 2 Babies Thru C-Section = Extra Skin! - Tallahassee, FL

I had wanted a tummy tuck for some time after initially losing some weight. I was always a "big girl" and at 5'1" my top weight (OUTSIDE PREGNANCY) was 220lbs. My family has a long history of obesity and 7 family members have had gastric bypass! I really wanted to avoid that but it wasn't until I had my first child that I became really motivated to take control of my weight and health to show my daughter better than I was taught as a child. I started my weight loss journey in 2012 and continued pushing on thru another pregnancy, major thyroid issues leading to surgery and major family loss. My 2 girls are my motivation to continue to do better and be better every day and it has become SUCH a lifestyle change that I have gone from being a technology consultant to a Certified Fitness Instructor.

What they DON'T talk about with massive Weightloss however is that after losing almost 100lbs (and having to pregnancies & c-sections in 18 mths) is that you have a lot of excess skin and tissue hanging around that the workouts do nothing for. Also I had a good amount of separation in my ab muscles from the csections that I was not able to pull together thru normal exercise. It was after 4 years of working my journey and getting to my goal weight that I decided it was time to invest in the new me and close the chapter for good on the "obese me".

So far I am amazed by my results (it is 5 days Post Op as I write this) and very glad that I was in good shape before doing this because it definitely would have been MUCH more difficulty if I would have done it when I was heavier and weak!

My biggest update is that my drain is out and I am SO excited for that. The drain and I had a bad relationship from the beginning- I had a lot of issues with the drain leaking and it was such a pain to pack it with gauze to try and not have a mess, then the last few days he area really started hurting and aching so when they said it could come out I was so ecstatic.

Another issue I had been having was with my compression garment. From the beginning it has been a moving target. The garment they put me in 1 day Post Op was simply too tight. My thighs were going numb and because I am so short wasted the top was folded over and I could barely take a full breath. After suffering in it for a day or 2 I called in and they told me to take it off and use my post op Binder and compression leggings (because thankfully I had some at home) instead. That "works" but again the binder is pretty long on me so it hasn't been too comfortable. Which is also why I am SO VERY HAPPY to have the drain out because now I am able to try some "Spanx" type garments instead. It took a few tries but finally I found a body shaper today that is great! It may be a little loose on my belly but I really have been worried about getting compression on my thighs and it is doing well for that.

At my drain appointment I talked to the nurse about the pain I have been having in my left thigh. Basically from my incision down about 6" is super numb and then when I stand or sometimes walk I get an INTENSE burning pain in that area. It has been very difficult and they believe that it is a compressed nerve and will hopefully get better as the swelling comes down but could take a while :(

Overall I just have to remember that I am a week out and that all these things are really minor compared to the surgery I had done. I tried on a swim suit just to see how the scar is sitting and that made me really happy (even if my thighs are really swollen from Lipo - haha) but I am going to try and just stay positive and look forward. My next appointment is in 2 weeks and hopefully I'll be closer to normal by then ;)