Dr. Joseph is phenomenal!

I had surgery January 3rd. I was very nervous but everyone at the surgical center was extremely nice.
From the moment I got there to actual surgery the things went pretty quickly. I'd say about one hour.
I remember walking myself into the OR and laying on the table. At that time the anesthesiologists told me she was giving me something to relax me. Next thing I remember was waking up in the recovery room.
When I first woke up I felt absolutely no pain. Then, I tried to move a bit and realized that most of the pain was on the top part of my abs. It literally felt like I had done one thousand sit ups and I was super sore. That was it. As the day progressed I started to realize that although I was in pain it was much less than I had expected thus making everything very manageable.
The first night I spent at the surgical center. At night, the nurse took me for a walk and it was hard to get out of bed. The main problem is that you want to use your abdominal muscles to get up. The nurse tried to get me to relax my abs and just use my legs. Once I got my legs engaged the pain subsided and I was able to get out of bed. The walk itself was extremely slow but it went okay.
I was extremely thirsty for the first 24 hours. I did eat a few crackers and a bit of some chicken noodle soup.
I slept nicely during the night. The nurses kept me on my pain meds and it was pretty uneventful.

My husband went to pick me up at 6:30 a.m. We hanged out for a bit until Dr. Joseph came in to see me. Dr. Joseph is such a nice man. He is very professional, gentle and caring. I could have not chosen better. Dr. Joseph changed my dressings and showed my husband how to care of the drains and my belly button. He warned me I could get more swelling and bruising in the next couple of days.

The nurse changed me into my clothes. I brought a long sleeve sleep gown that I bought at Target. They worked great. No need for underwear yet I feel covered enough.

I wanted to walk to the car. The nurse provided me with a walker and off we went. Little steps but it felt good to get out of bed and walk a little. It was uncomfortable with the drains but very doable. Getting into the car was a bit challenging. I wish my husband would have brought my low care instead of the high SUV ... we made it work either way. The nurse helped me pull my legs up in the SUV. I buckled up and held a pillow against my tummy. I didn't need it but it helped me feel secure.

We got home and it felt good to walk again. I went directly into the bathroom. The nurse showed me how to squat using only my legs and not engaging my abdominal muscles. For the most part it has worked. Afterwards I went to the recliner. I had queued all of these shows on my Netflix but I barely had energy to keep my eyes open for 10-15 minutes. My day basically consists of trying to get up to to go to the baton, coming back, checking my phone, taking pain pill and going to sleep.

The pain is still very manageable. So far my recovery has been easy and uneventful. I'm grateful.

A couple of things I've found helpful during my tummy tuck.

1. Sleep on a recliner. I tried to sleep on my bed and it was disastrous!

2. Keep up with the stool softeners. You'll be grateful.

3. Load up on vitamin C and Zinc. My whole family got sick and I somehow avoided it.
Thank goodness because coughing feels like the most horrible experience you can imagine.

4. Showering wasn't too bad for me. My skin did need a lot of lotion and TLC. The itching was unreal for about 2 days.

5. I wasn't very hungry but I made sure o ate often (even if it's just fruit). It helped with the nausea.

6. Everything gets me exhausted. I was in great shape before surgery now walking down one aisle at the supermarket has me winded. Be patient with yourself. Take it easy and accept help when offered.

7. Wearing underwear with drains is annoying and painful. I opted for sleeping dresses and summer dresses if going out. It eliminated the need for underwear and it bothered the are of the drain less.