Tummy Tuck, Muscle Revision and Lipo

I’ve done a lot of prep in advance of surgery day based on recommendations here. I’ve been drinking a gallon of water every day, added daily protein shakes to my diet, rented a hospital bed for two weeks, and just generally readied my house, work and whatnot. I have a very supportive husband and a 15 year old daughter, both of whom are eager to help me in any way possible.
Prior to surgery, I weighed 155, I’m 5’3.5”. My weight has fluctuated within 5-10 pounds for the last 10 years.
One 10 pound kiddo, one normal size baby, and a hysterectomy resulted in ongoing changes to my body composition that I can’t seem to resolve with diet and exercise. I’m sick of seeing myself in clothes, dressing to camouflage my stomach, holding my gut when I run down the stairs, etc. 
I scheduled 3 consults with surgeons when deciding which direction I would go. Dr. Bene was such an easy choice; he was kind, never made me feel uncomfortable sharing (or revealing) my biggest physical insecurity. I chose him on instinct, which is crazy in hindsight. I didn’t look at before and after pictures from his portfolio or anything. I just knew it was going to be him. I felt that good with him.
I have had 2 c-sections and a full hysterectomy and I’ve been left with scars, loose skin, muscle separation and stubborn stomach fat. I’ve been a cross fitter and an avid hiker and even at my most physically fit, I still struggled with the stomach. Then, following the hysterectomy, the weight settled in. It’s hard to explain but menopause just hits different with that pre-existing belly fat!
Surgery itself: Surgery at 7, out by 1! I made it clear that I nearly always vomit following anesthesia and they gave me a triple blend of avoidance and, so far so good! 12 hours later and I would say my pain is 3 or 4, primarily achey muscles. I had lipo but have no lipo sites because he went in in the tummy area he would later remove! I do have drains, 2 of them, and they are fine so far.
I’m only taking a half of an oxy rather than a full to stay ahead of the pain as it comes on. But I’m a one ibuprofen at a time kind of girl so I’m not interesting in the full pill unless I have to. I had experal so I’m assuming the pain will worsen as that wears off. I’m also taking an antibiotic and a laxative and wearing a binder.
I feel like I had such a great experience. The clinical staff at Advent Surgical Center were so kind and reassuring and attentive. I really can’t believe how great every person was, the nurses, the anesthesiologist, everyone. And Dr. Bene, he is everything! At consult, I asked about adding a breast lift (I just figured, while I’m sedated....)and he told me I didn’t need it and the results wouldn’t make much of a difference. He simply couldn’t recommend it. He could have easily talked me in to it snd charged me another couple thousand dollars, but he didn’t. And his work, thus far, looks great! I can’t wait to see the improvements over the coming days, weeks and months!

I’m 24 hours past my surgery and I can definitely tell the exparel is wearing off. The pain is still manageable and I’m hoping to be off the narcotic tomorrow. I walk around the house every time I get up to use the bathroom and I’m drinking a gallon of water each day. The drains haven’t bothered me at all, nor has the incision site. I can feel some muscle spasms in my abs but that’s all manageable. I’m wearing a binder and Dr. Bene placed some memory foam inside. I suspect that improves comfort significantly because I have no complaints and I’ve seen many people on this site that struggle with the binder.

I’ve peaked at the progress so far and I’m super excited about what I see, even with the bruising and swelling!

I stopped the narcotics after 24 hours and switched to Tylenol. It definitely isn’t as effective but my digestive system doesn’t handle narcotics well.

Yesterday, one of my drain sites began leaking, the drain itself had clogged unbeknownst to me. I was outside of the 48 hours so I decided to shower and clean up the mess and remove and replace dressings. I really felt pretty good so I didn’t expect to have an issue. Thankfully, my husband was with me. We got the dressings half way off in the shower and I passed out for the first time in my life. That became a whole ordeal, finishing what we started while trying to get me back in bed, dry and bound back up, as soon as possible.

Everything turned out okay but it was scary. We called the after hours line at Dr. Bene’s office and the on call doctor called back in 2 minutes. I hadn’t planned to test their after hours service but it was definitely responsive and helpful.

I have some hardness and swelling in my upper stomach but I believe that’s all to be expected and normal. As far as I’m concerned, nothing in this recovery is surprisingly difficult or reason not to pursue the surgery. I’m looking forward to seeing Dr. Bene on Tuesday for a follow up, learning next steps, and just thanking him for his great work!