Panniculectomy and/or tummy tuck questions and costs...

[Rovobay 920]

Hey Bariactric Pal family!!!

I am down over 120# over 10 months out and near my goal weight. I have never considered plastic surgery in my life, but I got a new lease on life and the skin is bothersome and I would like it gone. I would love to hear simple numbers on what you had and how much it cost and if insurance paid for any of it!

I have Blue Cross Blue Shield (BCBS) Federal Employee Program (FEP).

How did you find your surgeon?

Anyone recommend one in Portland Oregon?

Also, how long was your recovery? time off work? 2 weeks?

Thanks so much for all your input!

[no onions 258]

@@Rovobay

@@CowgirlJane

and @@AvaFern

have both talked about plastics on some different threads. I think they share a lot of good info. I'm not anywhere near considering it - I have a ton to lose yet. I might consider it in the future too.

Edited July 31, 2015 by no onions

[lexiemustang 268]

I definitely want both of these when I get close to goal weight. I've got a way to go though. I have a panniculus and I've never had children! WTF?

Edited July 31, 2015 by lexiemustang

[ASUgrad 61]

I'm interested to know as well.

[CowgirlJane 14,259]

I lost more than you have and I had no medical reason for skin removal....no rash or whatever...I just wanted it the same as I wanted to get rid of my 3x sweatpants... I didn't even try for insurance approval.

Get several consults. Go to realself.com to see tons of before and after photos. I advise you to seek out people with similar"befores" as how you look. Docs can cherry pick amazing results...the 35 year old mommy make over who was never obese is a different profile than a late 40s woman who lost almost 170#. It is the best way to get educated...pick good local surgeons and do the free or cheap consults.

[Elode 8,093]

@@Rovobay Hey I have FEP when you find out let me know, oh and look I'm not in the "guys room" it's a modern day miracle

[AvaFern 3,516]

My surgery was not covered by insurance. In terms of cost, the below is a breakdown of what I paid:

Abdominoplasty- 12K

Breast lift/augment- 8K

Thigh lift- 8K (I think- it was either 7K or 8K)

Posterior body lift with auto augment- 8k

Brachioplasty-8k

Lipo- $1800 each area

I found my surgeon by googling. I used Real Self a lot too to look at other people's results but my surgeon didn't have a ton of reviews. I had planned to get consults from multiple surgeons and I had only originally intended on having my boobs done. I went for a consult for the girls, liked the doctor so much, I went back two days later for an abdominoplasty consult, and then stuck with him for all three procedures (multiple procedures were done in 3 surgeries spaced out over about 7 months). I used Dr. Ankit Desai in Jacksonville, FL.

My recovery from the Tummy Tuck and boobs was easy- very little pain, I was walking 8-10 miles a day at 10 days post-op. I was back to working at a desk from my home at 5 days post-op for 12 hour days. My arms and thighs were another surgery...also minimal pain and I was back to working 12 hour days at about 4-5 days post-op. The posterior body lift was a b*tch of a surgery...you can't sit on your butt for like a month, which when you work in a chair makes things insanely annoying. I also ended up with wound separation first and then a whopping abscess that basically ripped apart a 6inch portion of my back and gave me a giant hole, which made this procedure by far the worst. I was again working in 5 days purely because I had to, but I ended up laying in bed a lot the first few weeks to work because sitting was impossible. I had that surgery in March and just this week my last wound has finally closed, so while the complications were no fault of my doctor and just a matter of how I healed, there is the potential for plastics to be a huge pain in the rear- in my case literally, lol.

[Rovobay 920]

@@AvaFern

perfect post. exactly what kind of info I was looking for!!! Sounds like you are happy with the results. Thanks for sharing.

I actually found and joined realself yesterday before I posted this thread. good stuff on there.

[spiritedcowgirl63 108]

I had bcbs Oregon. Paid for panni portion but I upgraded to a fdl.