Beauty is Pain(TT). Loving the flat side!! **New Pics**-San Antonio, Texas

OK, paid the PS today. It's a done deal. Preop is Monday afternoon. So excited & ready. Will post pics.

Per-op tomorrow afternoon! Then just two more weeks & it's my turn! Yikes! I am ready.

Here at my PS office for pre-op. filled out tons of papers, consents, medical history, etc... Just waiting to go in.

My pre-op went well. Unfortunately I felt rushed trying to fit it in between work & a meeting. The PS office didn't rush me I just didn't have the time to really absorb it all. They were very informative. I was given vitamins for before & after, told to stop my own vitamins & stop my motrin. I can do that no problem. I was also given prescriptions for Emend(for nausea, take before & after surgery), Keflex to start the day before surgery(antibiotics to prevent skin infections), Flexeril for muscle spasms after surgery, Phenergan for nausea just in case, & of course, Hydrocodone 10mg/Acetaminophen325mg for pain. I have never heard of the Emend, it is a new med for nausea that is preop. Lots of instructions & what to be ready for. I will have two drains that will come out below my belly button under my incision for 7-10 days. If the output goes down they pull them out. My husband will be taking me there & bringing me home & my kids will be helping too. I will a binder for one month. OK, I think I need to go get the regular Tylenol, stool softners, gas pills, etc... I don't know if I will get a shower chair & raised toilet seat or not. Hmmmmm..... I am debating that. I have heard they help alot. I do have a recliner if needed, it is giant! I don't think I can get in & out of it without help. I am planning on spending some time in my room with lots of pillows & stuff. I have to climb stairs so that is good for me & I plan on walking alot by day 3ish. I have to be able to walk from my car to my work in 14 days.(it's about 1/3 mile uphill ending with two stair cases to get into the building). Funny that this is what is worrying me the most. Once I am in my office I will be fine. Plus, I am a nurse in a hospital so I suppose if I am gonna get tired & collapse to the ground all my friends will come get me when they call a code. Ha Ha Ha Ha! That would NOT be good. Ha Ha Ha! I will be fine, I will be fine, I will be fine. It will be ok. You guys have given me strength up to now & I am just going to keep reading these posts to keep me going.

They also drew a CBC & took my before pics.

Ordered a shower bench, raised toilet seat & grabber/reacher off Amazon.com today. $52.00 total with free shipping, not bad. I will hopefully use them & they will help with moving around more after the surgery. 13 days & counting. Tick tock tick tock tick tock!

Picked up all my meds at the Pharmacy today. It's getting more & more real & closer & closer. 12 more days!

8 days to go, I'm on a cleaning frenzy, don't know why? I don't clean that much on a regular day but I guess if I'm gonna be home for two weeks it will be nice to be in a clean home. My kids usually do the cleaning but the window sills & edges get missed, you know the drill. They don't wipe the microwave, etc... Luckily my husband does most of the cooking around here, I'm really lucky. He took me to Ross today & I found a couple of cute dresses.(sundresses). I saw a pretty lady who was at her follow up wearing one, it was loose so she could have her binder on with the drains hooked on & it was disguised under the dress. I figure that will be comfy at home too. They were like $35 each at at old Navy & Dressbarn so I went to Ross and got 4 of them for $10 each. Can't beat that. Just counting the days.
I was told I was "Freakin Crazy" by a coworker yesterday. It was kind of funny because I didn't react the way she thought I would.
I just smiled at her. She then said, "well, I just don't think that you NEED it.". I said, "you already said what you felt & it's ok, this is something I'm doing for me, I don't expect you to understand.".She kind of stammered a little trying to take it back but it was too late. "it was already out there"(Harry Met Sally). Thanks to all of the stories I'm reading here on this sight it really didn't bother me at all. My hubby, kids, & sister know, they are the most important people in my life, & they support me. ;o) Oh, & you guys.
Time to sleep, gotta little party tomorrow, think I'll wear one of my little dresses. It will be nice when I don't have to "suck it in" all the time. Happy healing to all the pretty ladies that are fresh post op. may your night be pain free.

Hard to believe that this time next week it will be all over. It's getting closer. I'm soooo ready! I talked to one of my coaches today expecting to get "torn a new one" & told "you don't need that!". But instead he said, "well, if you feel it will help you feel better then we will just take it slow to get you back in shape afterwards.". I was shocked, & happy. He asked if I was scared & said he will pray for a quick & healthy recovery. The Crossfitters have been my biggest surprise supporters. I love those people.

So it was a real nice 4th with family today. I have posted a picture of a prime example of my "buda belly" still sticking out even though I try to hide it. Two more days of work & then two weekend days & it's time for the "buda" to be placed into the incinerator. Yipee! Then I can get on with my life & back to my great exercise regimen(when cleared of course). Hope everyone had a good 4th of July. Happy healing to all that have had their surgeries!!

Lots of family in town so I have lots of distraction today to keep me busy. I love it! My daughter has been a little jewel, she is excited for me. She can't wait to see how flat it might be. She works out with me & knows how important exercise is. 3 more days! Yippee! My hubby is ready as well, my son, well, he is 17, a sweet heart, he will be around. I'm so proud of my sweet kids. I have one day of work then it's almost time. I am planning a workout Saturday & Sunday. My last ones for a while. That makes me sad. But I will be back. I will be a lean mean NURSE-ing machine!

It's only 48 hours away now. My mind is racing, I am going to go to Crossfit to work off the nervous energy & then go to this huge pool with my sister, brother & nieces. It will get my mind off of it & hopefully make me tired so I can sleep tonight. I go in at 10AM on Monday. I'm ready. They aren't prepping me with laxatives or anything like that(I've seen some of you ladies have to do that), just nothing to eat or drink after midnight Sunday. Think I'll stick to my regular routine to not through my body into shock. I eat Paleo. The Emend 3 hours before surgery only. I keep thinking, "why am I going to mess up a perfectly good abdomen". I see so much stuff at the hospital, gunshot wounds, stabbings, car wrecks, etc... These people are JACKED UP! But they are internal bowel injuries & I just have to keep telling myself, he isn't touching the bowel, not even coming close to the bowel, just the outer parts, muscle & skin only. I'm scared of hernias, colostomies & fistulas you have no idea what I see. It's just awful. Mines gonna be beautiful, mines gonna be beautiful, mines gonna be beautiful! I start my antibiotics tomorrow along with the Bromoline & Arnica. 48 hours! YES! Fist bump!

24 hours to go and counting. Gonna do my laundry, sheets etc.. I am starting my antibiotics today along with the Arnica & Bromelain. Can't wait to get done & start the healing process. I'm even excited not to have to thnk about work for a while. I'm gonna watch a bunch of "chick flicks". Ha ha ha! Yesterday I went with the family to a giant spring fed pool in New Braunfels, Tx. It's amazing, but there was all walks of life there. I have to say, I felt pretty good about myself out there, even before the TT. Ha ha ha! Talk about obesity being out of hand! Yikes! Well, we swam all around & it was fun, the kids really enjoyed it. Slept pretty good too. Let's get this day starred so it can end. My sis in law wanted pizza last night so we did have some. It was delish. (it is NOT Paleo) ha ha ha! I will take it easy on the food today, lots of fruits and veggies.

Is it a bad sign when you cut your hand opening a bottle of Arnica? Ha Ha Ha! Well, at least my hand will heal up quickly. Ha Ha Ha!

I am sitting here in bed watching the morning news, there is rain here in San Antonio, wrecks everywhere. I'm so glad I'm not driving to work this morning. We will leave here at about 9:15AM. I check in at 10AM. I am ready, spent the day yesterday washing sheets, clothes & just cleaning my bedroom. I needed to make sure that I don't have my usual tennis shoes, gym bag, sweat towels, foam roller & pressure balls laying all over the place.(that's all I need to do is trip on my own stuff).
My weight today is 174 lbs. I will take the Emend at about 7:30.
I put all my meds in one box with the over the counter extras.(I labled each bottle top with a sharpy so they are easy to grab). I have some dressing supplies, gloves & medicine cups too.(to measure drain output).
I even picked out some of my favorite movies to keep in the bedroom so I can watch what I want.
Here we go!

PO Day 1:
I made it to the flat side! It went so smoothly. Checked into the surgery center, felt like I was the only patient there. Got changed, IV started. Met with my doctor(he drew on my belly), shocked me as to how much he would be removing but he is amazing. Met the Anesthesiologist & discussed medical history. Then the RN came in, turns out she is my husband's cousin. That was so comforting to know that she would be there. She hit me with an antibiotic & some Versed & then I don't remember anything else. I woke up, already extubated & no nausea. There was some pain, tightness in the upper abdomen. They gave me several doses of Morphine & then the Anesthesiologist gave me a Hydrocodone, Valium & something for nausea just in case. He said it was for the ride home. I then stood up, walked to the bathroom & pee'd. I then had my IV d/c'd & got dressed. The nurse put me in a wheelchair & my hubby magically appeared. A tech took me to my car & helped me in. They were all so kind. My hubby took the "smoothest route home" & we were there in no time. He helped me in the house. Put me on the couch propped with pillows & legs up on the ottoman. He made me some tuna salad with apples. I ate in between falling asleep off & on. I then drank a bunch of water & slept for about two hours. It was very restful. I woke up at about 6pm. The pain is just aching, tightness, not horrible by any means. I cannot stand up straight(PS said that I will not be able to for about one week, he made it really tight). The Hydrocodone 10mg(with food) is working very well. I just ate some dinner & took another pain pill.

My Raised Toilet seat, shower bench & grabber arrived to the house while we were gone this morning. Perfect timing. The Raised toilet seat is sooooo helpful. If you are going to get anything to help you, that would be the thing to get.

The Anesthesiologist just called to check on me & said to keep pushing fluids & walking. I told him I was very pleased & comfortable.

I am to remove the binder & dressings on Wednesday on my own and can shower. (The drains will be hooked to a lanyard around my neck while I shower) I will continue to rest for the rest of the week & have a f/u appt on Monday. PS said I didn't have hardly any fat in the abdomen, it was just skin & muscle so I shouldn't have too much drainage. Yay, I won't get my hopes up though. They are below the bellybutton below the incision.

The best part of the whole thing is that the Crossfit games are on this weekend on ESPN3. I can watch my friend compete! We are so proud of him. It is something to look forward to.

Well, passing out now. Hope all of today's surgeries went well. Happy Healing!

PO day 2:
I just woke up, my hubby is leaving for work. He is going to wake up my daughter & have her come to my bed just in case I need anything. I'm getting in & out of bed on my own, surprisingly. I climbed the stairs last night with no problem. Maybe I worked myself up expecting horrible pain but it is tolerable at this point so that is good. it is 6AM but I had to Pee. I also slept most of yesterday & for about 5 hours straight in my bed. I'm gonna empty these drains & relax.

PO day 3
I am sleeping in my bed with 3 pillows under my head & 3 under my knees. I only slept about 1-2 hours at a time but that is ok. I get up by myself to the bathroom & pee with no problems. This morning was the morning to take down the dressings & shower.(per my PS) My daughter was still asleep & the hubby at work so I did it myself. Wow! Too cool! I stood in front of the mirror after taking off the dressings & I don't recognize my belly at all. I then became light headed & feeling faint so I put the binder on & a robe & got back in bed for about an hour. I then ventured out again with my daughter's help. I have a wonderful shower bench that is my best friend in the bathroom right now. I can sit on it to take a "bird bath" in front of the sink & it is so light I can put it in the shower with me which is what I did. I was able to sit, wash my hair, wash my body & let the soapy water just run over my incisions. My daughter then assisted me to dry off, get dressed & put on the binder. Success! I blow dried my hair & now am relaxing on the couch with my feet up listening to the rain & thunder.(a rare thing in south Texas) I ate some lunch made by my daughter & we are just "chillin" now. I took a pain pill at about 6 AM. It is now 1:30pm. It is getting longer & longer apart that I need them & my tummy is completely numb now. It might be time to just try Tylenol & my vitamins. I am still on antibiotics, which will be done today. I have some quick pics I snapped in the bathroom. I am still amazed that this is my tummy. My Left drain is putting out more than the Right but that is the side that appears more swollen. I am going up & down the stairs with no problem. My low back is the worst pain right now. Hopefully it will subside when I start to stand up straight. I feel that I am doing way better then I expected at this point. I am very pleased. I hope my fellow TT-ers are having some improvements. Thank you all for all your stories, I knew what to expect because of you guys. I really appreciate it! (((Hugs all around)))

PO day 4
Yesterday I only took regular tylenol all day. Pretty cool. I took one Hydrocodone & a muscle relaxer last night & slept really good all night. Got up twice to pee only. This morning my hubby brought me an apple & some water on his way out the door to work & my daughter came into my room to sleep with me just in case I need anything. I ate the apple & slept for about 2 more hours. I finally woke up at 9:30, my son brought me some tuna at 10:30 & then I tackled the shower again. I took a nice long shower using my favorite thing, the shower bench. I used a stretchy headband around my neck to hook my drains to. I even shaved my legs. I then dried off, sitting on the shower bench off & on, it is so light I can just take it with me to the sink where I finished drying off & put some gauze pads on my incision & around the drains & put my binder back on. I then got dressed, dried my hair & did my "Mary Kay routine". Girls, we cannot neglect our skin. Ha Ha! We must moisturize. Plus my skin is so clear from the antibiotics. Just a little perk. I am walking more straight up today. It is so much better on my back. Just watching some movies. Enjoying the quiet time in the house. My kids are pretty quiet. I am so glad that this is not permanent. I keep telling myself, this is just temporary, I will get better every day. The girls at work are very proud of me. My coach too. I will keep walking around during the day to prevent blood clots & deep breathing to prevent pneumonia. Coughing is definitely a challenge, so far I haven't had to sneeze. (that is a blessing) Can't wait to get the drains out. I might try to drive tomorrow if I feel like it, my son might want to run an errand. So far so good. I am chugging along. The drains are getting lighter in color & less in amount, that is definitely a good sign.

PO day 5
Nice day today, feeling good, got up, took a shower(long one again), able to bend over & dry my hair(that is new). Went with my son to run errands today, talked to some people at work & updated them. Less swelling today. I am sleeping really good. I think the sleep & rest has been terrific for me. It was nice to see the sun today. I just wore sweat pants over my binder with the drains tucked in with a big T-shirt. (my son was afraid I would get accused of shoplifting) But no one even seemed to notice, plus, I know it is just temporary. It will be awesome soon enough.
I posted new pics from this morning. I am concerned about the Left side swelling but I won't do too much worrying because it is still so early & swelling happens. My tummy is flatter today & softer(it was so hard & swollen at first) Drains still draining. No pain meds during the day at all. I take one at night to make sure I rest & sleep.
Hope everyone is doing well. Happy healing.

POD 6
OMG I think I slept for about 12 hours last night.(I took my pain meds & muscle relaxer too) Holy cow. I guess my body really needed it. I took a shower, cleaned myself up & am wearing the binder with the drains pinned to it.(I DO NOT want one to fall off) I have a sun dress over that. My hubby, son & I are going to go to a movie in a little while. Adventuring out again. Awesome for me. The most I will have to do is walk from the car to the theater. It should be nice. Tummy looks pretty much the same as yesterday for the most part but now my mind is saying, "you can move around more, your incisions are 6 days old today". Pain is very tolerable. Still tightness at the top of the tummy but that is to be expected.
Happy Healing ladies!

POD 7
Great day, slept good, got a shower, hubby made bacon(that's always good). I wore some sweat pants & a sports bra where I tucked the two drains between my boobs.(hid them pretty good). Wore a baggy TShirt & my binder of course, & off to the grocery store my hubby & I went. We walked around for about an hour, checked out, ran into a friend who did not even notice the drains or anything, went home, emptied the car. I let my hubby put it all away, I rested. Then I drove for the first time to pick up my son from work. Not too bad. I did experience "SWELL HELL". My belly bloated out & felt really tight. I put my feet up for about two hours & it went down a little. Now I have showered & am in bed, it goes down overnight. I see my PS tomorrow. Praying I will be drain less after that. Fingers crossed. I am being very patient, I know it will be a long healing process, I will be a big girl if he leaves a drain in.(I won't cry in front of him). Ha ha ha!

PO Day 7
Saw my PS this AM, cleaned out my belly button pulled a few stitches around it. Apparently mine was an extremely tight pull, so my Belly Button is vertical instead of horizontal. OK? I didn't think anything of it but he did say that it was tight & there was only skin & muscle, not much fat. So anyhoo,.. I had my Left drain pulled(Yay!) My Right drain never bothered me as much as the Left anyway. They were crossed as well, the Right is actually on the Left side of my belly & the Left is on the Right side of my belly. I felt the pull all the way up to the top, it didn't hurt, only at the entry sight. She was very sweet, pulled the stitch & yank! I go back on Wednesday for the other drain to be pulled. (hopefully, if the drainage is less this time)

On another note, I wore a sundress with the drains pinned to my binder at the bottom, then tucked into my panties. Afterwards my son wanted to go to the bookstore so we did. I ran into another friend there & she hugged me & said I looked wonderful. She had no idea that I had had surgery or was wearing a binder or had a drain. Cool huh? Very cool. Those sundresses rock!

Welp, gonna chill out & relax the rest of the day.

Happy healing ladies!

POD 13
Sorry I haven't updated in a few days. I went back to the PS on Wednesday POD 9, the PS was busy so I got to meet with a wonderful nurse who pulled my 2nd drain & free'd me! Ha Ha! I am cleaning my Belly Button every day or every other day with Hydrogen Peroxide. Everything else is looking fine. I get my stitches out on 7/23/12, which incidentally is my 1st day back at work. So after work I will go there. I have been feeling really good. I have been to several movies with my kids, out to lunch, to the mall, to the dentist etc... Of course by the end of everyday I have a swollen upper belly that makes it hard to breath but after a good night's sleep it is down again. I am ok with the swelling because thanks to all of you wonderful blogging women I expected it. This has been a wonderful experience because of reading all of these stories. There is always someone you can relate to & I learned so much from this. I will also share this with one of my co-workers who has decided to do a TT in October. I was ready, I was prepared & the pain was not as bad as I expected. It was sooooo worth it. I am being patient because I know it gets better a little every day.

I went on a "girdle" hunt with my daughter. I got a one piece "waist cinch-er" at Walmart for $12 & some change & then a girdle with hooks in the front from JCPenney's for $25(thinking surely the Walmart one would not work) I since hated the JCPenney one & LOVE the one piece one from Walmart. It is hard to pull it up to where you need it but it is so comfortable compared to the other one. So funny. Anyhoo... I'm sure a Spanks it even more comfy but I want to make sure I have enough compression. The more the better for me, I don't swell as much.

So I am up & around with no problem, I took a peek under the tape covering my sutures in the incision, it is healed over & nice & pink. Looking good. I am pleased.

Keep up the great blogging ladies & keep us posted on your progress. Oh, & I DO NOT recommend reading "50 Shades of Grey" during your recovery. It can be frustrating when you read a book like that & you can't do anything about it. Ha Ha Ha!

Happy Saturday & Happy Healing!!! Good luck to all who have your up-coming surgeries!

POD 14
Well today I went to look at Spanx because they are supposed to be the best & I felt like walking. So I am standing there in Dillards & a lady walks in the door & sees that I am looking at Spanx, she says to me, "Honey, you don't need that!" smiles & walks away. OMG! How sweet was she?!? Made my day! So anyways, looking at all of the nice stuff & the Wacoal brand as well, they did not fit as well as the cheep one I bought at Walmart. So there it is. I did the research. Ha Ha! I also cut the front metal wires out of the garment because they kept poking me in the groin. It's much more comfortable now. (I have no belly roll to keep folding it up anymore) I have to adjust the front of the bottom once in a while but it is not a problem.

I go to work tomorrow. :( Oh well, back to reality.
I feel absolutely great today. The fog is gone, I am back on my regular Advocare Regimen & will be going to the track this evening to get a light workout in. Let's see what I can do. I will not push it to hard. It will feel good. We are waiting because it is 101 right now & this garment will make me sweat even more.

Good luck to all the ladies going in for their surgeries tomorrow! Hope it goes smoothly! Happy Healing.

Almost 3 weeks post op.
Going to work daily without a problem, wearing my store bought girdle. I do get very tired by the end of the day so I am making sure I go to bed on time. It's been good. I am sore around the hips because of sitting at my desk where the girdle kind of bends. I also developed a little fluid around my belly button & down the left side. Drew off about 45cc yesterday, it looks better but there is more for today. Apparently it's a really common thing. I will try not to worry. My friends at work looked at the incision yesterday(they are both going to do TT's in the next month)& they are impressed & say it looks great. It will be fun to compare. I am happy for both of them, just a coincidence that they are planning theirs now. I told them both about this site. I wish all women could do what they want to do when they want to do it. So many of them have told me, "I'm so jealous, I want one so bad.". Poor babies, it's not fair that they can't do it for whatever reason. $$$, time off, kids, no support, etc...
I hope all my Realself buddies are doing good!
Happy healing!

4 weeks Post Op
So I am extremely happy with my results thus far. I have been very careful not to overdo it on a daily basis. It is funny how when you wake in the morning your tummy is flat & pretty soft & by the evening time it is swollen, harder & even the incision feels swollen. It isn't horrible, just different. But it is noticeable.
I go to the PS on Tuesday, hopefully he will release me to start harder workouts. I miss my Crossfit buddies something aweful.
My waist looks smaller everyday. My belly button has improved, my incisions are pink but closed.
Here are some pics.

Sorry I've been MIA ladies. I am now 11 weeks post op. I started back at Crossfit at 4 weeks. My coaches & friends knew & we modified everything so as not to use my abs. It was ok, as long as I was moving I felt better. I have been wearing my girdle for support the whole time, day & night. My first 4 weeks of exercise had lots & lots of rest breaks but I was there & I need it like air. I was using the "girl 35 lb bar" at first then gradually added weights to it the more confident i became. If I felt any type of pull I would stop & do something else. The last three weeks I have increased my lifts. I am ready to be given the "release" by my Dr. Next week is my 12 week follow up appt. I have had swelling to enjoy, at first it was high under my diaphragm & the last two weeks it has shifted down around my belly button. It is more at the end of the week, then one 8-9 hour good night's sleep & it is soft again. It is kind of funny. I also bought one pair of new jeans. That is all I've bought thus far. I know that if I apply myself it will be next summer when I really see the results. I am so glad I did it. I have been doing fine, started putting Maderma cream on the scar & my hubby is very impressed. Hope all is well, good luck ladies, happy healing!

Well, all went well till about month number 4 when the swelling was actually muscles pooching out right in the center of my abd. The PS said it is because my muscles are so big, they relaxed & pooched right out. He is going to do a revision for $1500. I am ok with that. It healed up great but the BB scar is kind of big & so is the low scar. It was so tight at the beginning(as tight as he could make it) so it really pulled & made big scars. So he is going to fix that as well. I went ahead & added lipo to the hips too. Might as well. ($3500 more) I am scheduled for 1/29/14. My pre-op is done & I am all set. I know what to expect & I have my Rx's filled & some dressings ready to go. My husband will be with me for 5 glorious days. Yay me! He is most likely going to place a drain or two but that is how it goes & I want a good outcome so I will not whine. Well, maybe I will a little. Or a lot. We will see. I still have my raised toilet seat & I have an electric recliner now so I am all set. I need to get it over with so I can get back to my exercise routine. I sure love it & I will miss my friends at the gym.

I waited to do this because I just wasn't ready yet. I wanted to make sure that there wasn't a lot of internal scar tissue, it is softer now so I hope it will go well. I has been 1 year 7 months since my first TT.