Tummy tuck worries!

[SweetSaso 92]

ugh! am thinking about having a Tummy Tuck veryy sooon (like one month from now)

I am almost 6 months post op and 10 pounds away from my goal weight, and they say afte a tummy tuck i can lose up to 25 pounds and it wont effect my new belly at all.

But am very scared and i beg those of you who have enough info. about this surgery to answer my questions. SInce am doing this over seas i dont trust the doctors cause even though he is a very reputable doctor and very well known, sometimes he talks too fast and doesnt answer my questions to my full understanding. I am going in today for my pre op appointment and to set up a real date. Here are my questions please answer the questions you know and maybe that can put my mind on ease and not be scared to death! (literally)

1. should i be worried about dying under full Anastasia?
   
   
2. i might go back to the states a week post op, will a 14 hour flight put me in danger?
   
3. how long do i have to stay at the hospital the doctor said that i leave the same day, how true is that? is he going to surprise me with couple days at the hospital and more expenses?
   
   
4. how long until swelling goes away, will i look swelled up when am all dressed? (anyone will notice?)
   
   
5. am still 20 years old and planning on having a baby in a year or so, i did some research and they said it might not effect my TT after i have a baby... how true is that? and can i deliver vaginally or will i have to have a C-section because of the tummy tuck.
   
   
6. How long before i can go back to normal life after TT (workout, sex, etc...)
   
   
7. How severe is the pain... is it much more painful than the gastric sleeve op?
   

I am too scared and googling all this made me not want to go through with it and am sorry if am asking a lot of questions, any feedback will be helpful and appreciated.

Thank you for your time and thoughts in advance.

[KristieAtkinson 588]

ugh! am thinking about having a Tummy Tuck veryy sooon (like one month from now)

I am almost 6 months post op and 10 pounds away from my goal weight' date=' and they say afte a tummy tuck i can lose up to 25 pounds and it wont effect my new belly at all.

But am very scared and i beg those of you who have enough info. about this surgery to answer my questions. SInce am doing this over seas i dont trust the doctors cause even though he is a very reputable doctor and very well known, sometimes he talks too fast and doesnt answer my questions to my full understanding. I am going in today for my pre op appointment and to set up a real date. Here are my questions please answer the questions you know and maybe that can put my mind on ease and not be scared to death! (literally)

[*']should i be worried about dying under full Anastasia?

[*]i might go back to the states a week post op, will a 14 hour flight put me in danger?

[*]how long do i have to stay at the hospital the doctor said that i leave the same day, how true is that? is he going to surprise me with couple days at the hospital and more expenses?

[*]how long until swelling goes away, will i look swelled up when am all dressed? (anyone will notice?)

[*]am still 20 years old and planning on having a baby in a year or so, i did some research and they said it might not effect my TT after i have a baby... how true is that? and can i deliver vaginally or will i have to have a C-section because of the tummy tuck.

[*]How long before i can go back to normal life after TT (workout, sex, etc...)

[*]How severe is the pain... is it much more painful than the gastric sleeve op?

I am too scared and googling all this made me not want to go through with it and am sorry if am asking a lot of questions, any feedback will be helpful and appreciated.

Thank you for your time and thoughts in advance.

Anytime you are under anesthesia there's a chance of death.

My concern about the flight is after surgery you have a greater risk of blood clots if you sit still too long. :-/

My surgery is coming up soon & unless there's a problem ill be going home after a 6 hour surgery. There's always a chance if there's a complication that I might have to stay overnight, but it is unlikely.

The swelling can take awhile but it probably won't be visible under your clothes.

You should still be able to have a vaginal delivery. Skinny women with abs have babies all the time. :-)

My dr said I can go back to normal life as soon as I'm ready but it will be slow going. Sex he said I might try other positions when I'm ready cause it may be uncomfortable.

My understanding is that it is more painful than the sleeve but everyone says they would do it 5 times if they had to, worth every bit of it!

I'm happy for you! Ps. My doctor said I could lose up to 40 pounds & their wouldn't be any issues (big difference in losing 150 & losing 40! )

[SweetSaso 92]

Thank you hun for the reply, i truly appreciate it... Good luck and congrats on your surgery and let me know how it goes and hopefully i will go through with it ill know when for sure on monday

[It's all new 453]

ugh! am thinking about having a Tummy Tuck veryy sooon (like one month from now)

I am almost 6 months post op and 10 pounds away from my goal weight' date=' and they say afte a tummy tuck i can lose up to 25 pounds and it wont effect my new belly at all.

But am very scared and i beg those of you who have enough info. about this surgery to answer my questions. SInce am doing this over seas i dont trust the doctors cause even though he is a very reputable doctor and very well known, sometimes he talks too fast and doesnt answer my questions to my full understanding. I am going in today for my pre op appointment and to set up a real date. Here are my questions please answer the questions you know and maybe that can put my mind on ease and not be scared to death! (literally)

[*']should i be worried about dying under full Anastasia?

[*]i might go back to the states a week post op, will a 14 hour flight put me in danger?

[*]how long do i have to stay at the hospital the doctor said that i leave the same day, how true is that? is he going to surprise me with couple days at the hospital and more expenses?

[*]how long until swelling goes away, will i look swelled up when am all dressed? (anyone will notice?)

[*]am still 20 years old and planning on having a baby in a year or so, i did some research and they said it might not effect my TT after i have a baby... how true is that? and can i deliver vaginally or will i have to have a C-section because of the tummy tuck.

[*]How long before i can go back to normal life after TT (workout, sex, etc...)

[*]How severe is the pain... is it much more painful than the gastric sleeve op?

I am too scared and googling all this made me not want to go through with it and am sorry if am asking a lot of questions, any feedback will be helpful and appreciated.

Thank you for your time and thoughts in advance.

As Kristie said, with anesthesia comes risk. The fact that you have had anesthesia before and not had complications is a good sign, but things do happen. I felt it was a risk worth taking when I had my plastics - one surgery was 12 hours and the other 10 hours.

I seriously doubt it's a good idea to fly internationally that soon after surgery. I don't know that you can expect to be sufficiently recovered, in any way, to have a long day of travel - even by car - at one week out. Realistically I would wait a minimum of 4 weeks to travel somewhat comfortably and 6 weeks to travel truly comfortably.

I did not stay overnight for my procedures so if that is what the doc said you likely won't have to.

You can start walking slowly about 1-2 weeks after surgery on a treadmill, you do not want to raise your heart rate above a resting heart rate until around 4 weeks out - at which point I was cleared to raise my heart rate while doing elliptical or walking. At six weeks I was cleared for all activity - but that didn't mean I could actually do it. I am exactly 12 weeks out and my stomach feels totally fine moment to moment, I can do sit-ups, but when I try to do a pull-up it is impossible because of the pain. You tense those core muscles incredibly to pull-up and at 3 months I absolutely am not healed sufficiently. I expect it will take another 3 months to get my abs fully healed and be able to train the way I want to. In the meantime, my stomach is flat, but I want to be developing muscle and it is holding me back. I don't remember how long I waited for sex - but it was a while. I had my thighs done at the same time, so you can imagine with all those incisions I was in no hurry.

My TT pain was pretty severe, not comparable to the sleeve at all. My sleeve was like having a splinter removed - not even in the same league. However, I didn't regret the surgery due to the pain at any point, and that should tell you that the pain was manageable. TT are not painful at the incision line at all, it is the suturing of the muscle to create the flat tummy that is painful. The feeling is as if you did 5,000 sit-ups in one sitting. So, getting up and down is very difficult at first. By the 5th day my tummy started to feel a bit better each day.

And yes, there is swelling. A fair amount. Expect to be wearing only things with an elastic waist for a few weeks. I actually had to go buy bigger underwear and sweats because I held onto so much Fluid initially. It wasn't until I was getting in all of my fluids regularly and moving around plenty that the swelling started to go. If you are dehydrated at all, your body will hold onto all of the swelling! By 4 weeks out you will be looking probably quite good. At six weeks, even better.

I thought it was 100% worth it. Somewhere in the cosmetic surgery forum I have a thread and the title says something about a tummy tuck and thigh lift - it has my before and after photos.

Feel free to send me a message if you have additional questions.

[SweetSaso 92]

As Kristie said, with anesthesia comes risk. The fact that you have had anesthesia before and not had complications is a good sign, but things do happen. I felt it was a risk worth taking when I had my plastics - one surgery was 12 hours and the other 10 hours.

I seriously doubt it's a good idea to fly internationally that soon after surgery. I don't know that you can expect to be sufficiently recovered, in any way, to have a long day of travel - even by car - at one week out. Realistically I would wait a minimum of 4 weeks to travel somewhat comfortably and 6 weeks to travel truly comfortably.

I did not stay overnight for my procedures so if that is what the doc said you likely won't have to.

You can start walking slowly about 1-2 weeks after surgery on a treadmill, you do not want to raise your heart rate above a resting heart rate until around 4 weeks out - at which point I was cleared to raise my heart rate while doing elliptical or walking. At six weeks I was cleared for all activity - but that didn't mean I could actually do it. I am exactly 12 weeks out and my stomach feels totally fine moment to moment, I can do sit-ups, but when I try to do a pull-up it is impossible because of the pain. You tense those core muscles incredibly to pull-up and at 3 months I absolutely am not healed sufficiently. I expect it will take another 3 months to get my abs fully healed and be able to train the way I want to. In the meantime, my stomach is flat, but I want to be developing muscle and it is holding me back. I don't remember how long I waited for sex - but it was a while. I had my thighs done at the same time, so you can imagine with all those incisions I was in no hurry.

My TT pain was pretty severe, not comparable to the sleeve at all. My sleeve was like having a splinter removed - not even in the same league. However, I didn't regret the surgery due to the pain at any point, and that should tell you that the pain was manageable. TT are not painful at the incision line at all, it is the suturing of the muscle to create the flat tummy that is painful. The feeling is as if you did 5,000 sit-ups in one sitting. So, getting up and down is very difficult at first. By the 5th day my tummy started to feel a bit better each day.

And yes, there is swelling. A fair amount. Expect to be wearing only things with an elastic waist for a few weeks. I actually had to go buy bigger underwear and sweats because I held onto so much Fluid initially. It wasn't until I was getting in all of my fluids regularly and moving around plenty that the swelling started to go. If you are dehydrated at all, your body will hold onto all of the swelling! By 4 weeks out you will be looking probably quite good. At six weeks, even better.

I thought it was 100% worth it. Somewhere in the cosmetic surgery forum I have a thread and the title says something about a Tummy Tuck and thigh lift - it has my before and after photos.

Feel free to send me a message if you have additional questions.

I woke u to read your reply and i love the fact that you were honest about the pain but still made it sound like it is nothing. You are lucky you are done with your plastics congrats! and am happy that your pain has somewhat subsided!! I will look for your thread because i love seeing before and afters. I thank god everyday that my stomach is the only area that needs to be tightened because i dont tolerate pain so well. If i stay alive (after the surgery that is) i will let you know how i feel and after your replies i will not go back home until i am comfortable!. thank you again and good luck with everything.

[CowgirlJane 14,259]

Dr S, the mexican doc I was researching, has you stay pretty much 12 days before getting on a flight. Even then, alot of people get help at the airport with a wheelchair etc.

I haven't had surgery yet, one of the reasons I postponed is I had somehow thought "cleared for activitiy" at 6+ weeks meant I could actually return to normal activity. I have since come to understand that it will likely take longer as the previous poster mentioned.

Of course, I have more extensive procedures then just a TT, but I am told that the TT is the killer because all those ab muscles.

[SweetSaso 92]

Dr S, the mexican doc I was researching, has you stay pretty much 12 days before getting on a flight. Even then, alot of people get help at the airport with a wheelchair etc.

I haven't had surgery yet, one of the reasons I postponed is I had somehow thought "cleared for activitiy" at 6+ weeks meant I could actually return to normal activity. I have since come to understand that it will likely take longer as the previous poster mentioned.

Of course, I have more extensive procedures then just a TT, but I am told that the TT is the killer because all those ab muscles.

Thank you for your reply 12 days post op are doable (i think) after watching a lot of videos on you tube most of those who had TT can move around and walk at around 8 days out but i think i will know the time frame of everything by monday as my doctor promised and according to my date, i will get a ticket out of hell and back to heaven!!! i hate it here

[erp 2,016]

Mrs. Sasso- I am far from goal but just curious or want to give some considerations. As young as you are, I have read that age may be on your side in reducing loose skin over time. Similarly, I have read that people should wait until 1 year after hitting goal. Your skin will rebound some. It is my understanding that pregnancy will stretch your ab muscles and people are advised to wait until after prencancy to get a TT hence the name Mommy makeover. Not trying to talk you out of it but it might make sense to wait. Again not an expert or judging just my thoughts when reading your circumstances. Good luck in your journey.

[SweetSaso 92]

Mrs. Sasso- I am far from goal but just curious or want to give some considerations. As young as you are, I have read that age may be on your side in reducing loose skin over time. Similarly, I have read that people should wait until 1 year after hitting goal. Your skin will rebound some. It is my understanding that pregnancy will stretch your ab muscles and people are advised to wait until after prencancy to get a TT hence the name Mommy makeover. Not trying to talk you out of it but it might make sense to wait. Again not an expert or judging just my thoughts when reading your circumstances. Good luck in your journey.

Thank you for your reply and advise, everything u said is true... BUT i am not planning to have babies anytime soon and the look of my stomach just disgusts me (its not as bad as i make it seem its just that i look like i had a baby) i came from my plastic surgeons office couple hours ago and he said i will never have a flat stomach by my own ( i have been exercising) and i might have to have a mini tuck after i have a baby which is fine with me.

On the other hand, i have half of the money saved and my parents said that they will pay the rest.. I dont want to spend the money on anything but the thing that will make me happy which is becoming the inner image of myself!!

Again thank you for your reply and concerns and i wish you luck hitting goal soon,,, U made me think twice whether this is what i want or not... but i find it worth my money and pain even if it is for one year!