26 Year Old with 2 Toddlers...hoping a Tummy Tuck Will Fix my "Mommy Belly" and Restore my Confidence. - Virginia, VA

I am a 26 year old, married, mother of two. I have a 3.5 year old daughter and a 2.5 year old son. I've always been thin, athletic, and even when I don't work out I maintain a healthy weight. I am 5'3" and before having my daughter weighed 122llbs. I had gestational diabetes with her and gained 50lbs. My stomach was of course never the same and I got terrible giant stretch marks...but it wasn't anything I couldn't handle. I then got pregnant with my son, and gained 55lbs...but for some reason everything was so much worse. I'm a pale person...I have giant, wide, awful looking purple stretch marks, and a saggy front pooch. I had my belly button pierced when I was younger, but ended up getting a stretch mark between the piercing and my belly button is really crooked, and weird, and just sad looking. I'm at a relatively healthy 130lbs, and have skinny arms, and chicken legs...but have this terrible stomach.
I don't want to sound too over dramatic, but I am so unbelievably ashamed of how my stomach looks. So much so, that I wear spanx to "tuck it all in" everyday...yes....everyday! Not only is it uncomfortable, but it leaves hard panty lines in all my pants, is super hot on summer days, makes it hard to wear certain clothing...and lets face it....is totally not sexy. BUT, it helps smooth out my stomach so I can button my pants without a hanging skin muffin top. So pretty necessary.
Aside from this whole spanx situation, I constantly hear "but you're so skinny"...this is the worst. I'm not even ashamed to lift up my shirt, point at my spanx, and say "yea, thanks to these!" Which is then responded to with a "you don't need those." Thanks to my spanx I can wear skinny jeans, throw on a baggy t shirt and look thin. The problem is...I don't want to have to wear spanx, and I don't want to be restricted to baggy t shirts.
I'm still young, and I want to feel sexy, and confident, and much cooler in the summer! Haha.
SO...I thought about getting a tummy tuck a year ago. Had a consultation...and was terrified. There are so many things that can go wrong...awful things, infection, skin death, blood clots, death...and I want to be here for my children. This was a very difficult decision for me to make, but it's something that is a daily downer. It's always on my mind, and I'm young, and I'm healthy. I don't smoke. So my doctor assured me that I should have a great result. I'm scheduled for August 15, which is soon. Like a day and a half. I'm terrified, but also excited. I'm hoping everything goes smoothly, and that I won't regret this decision.

Today I have been on a all liquid diet (I've heard this helps prevent constipation post-op). Cup of coffee for breakfast, milkshake for lunch, and probably a smoothie for dinner...with watermelon to snack on all day. I'm pretty nervous about the pain, and I've read a ton of reviews where everyone has their binder on for the first week.This has me worried, because my doc says he doesn't use a binder until I come in for my one week check-up to get the drains removed? I feel like a binder would help me not to feel like my insides are going to fall out...but maybe I'll just hold a pillow over my stomach??
Hitting the grocery store tonight to make sure my husband has food for the kids for the next two weeks, and picking up some high protein meals for me (I've heard this promotes healing). Anti-bacterial soap, dry shampoo, ect. Other than that, the house is clean, and I'm going to try and get some rest early tonight, because I need to be at the surgery center at 6am....and I am definitely not a morning person.

I got maybe two hours of sleep last night before waking up at 4:45am to get showered and ready. Checked in to the surgery center at 6, and spent about an hour and a half in a holding room. In the holding room I was asked to remove piercings, leave a urine sample, wipe my body down with wipes, and put on compression stockings and my gown. At this point it was getting very real and my nerves were through the roof. I got an IV, and a machine was placed on my legs for circulation purposes before my husband could come back and hang with me for a bit.
Finally the doctor arrived and put something in my IV to calm my nerves. I kissed the hubby goodbye and the next thing I remember I was waking up! I thought when I woke up I would be in pain, but I felt NO pain! Thank goodness. What I did feel was the most tired I have ever felt in my life. They gave me some ice chips, and I drifted in and out for a while. My husband was brought back, and I was asked to sit up a little to get dressed. This did make me a little nauseous, but I took my time, and it subsided. They went over instructions on how to drain my drains ( I got two drains and a pain pump) and I got dressed and was put in a wheelchair to head home! I was scared of walking up my stairs, but I did absolutely fine!
Once home, I got in bed and tried to eat a piece of toast to take with my medication, but my mouth was soo dry I had to drink water with every bite to wash it down. Took a nap, drained my drains, and now I'm just waiting for my husband to bring me a slurpee :)
So far the experience has been good, and I'm praying it stays that way.