Extended-Mini Thigh Lift & Belt Lift 7/11/16

[amazon 579]

The count down as begun! The OR is booked, my final surgical consult is on Tuesday and I hand over my money. (I'm SO broke, but it's been worth it)

I've healed well from my breast augmentation that was on 4/25. It looks like there may be one more procedure in my future, but that won't be until the winter. The girls may still need a nipple lift - but waiting to see. That will be NC.

Any how...The belt lift will essentially complete a 360 lift. I understand the thigh lift recovery is the tough one. My husband has taken the week off to help me out. I'll be off work for two weeks. I'm really looking forward to it overall - just like with the panilectomy...having that loose/hanging skin gone will be awesome. Just have to get past the recovery.

One thing I have learned is that my skin did not survive obesity well. The elasticity is SHOT. I will NOT be running around in a bikini when I'm done, lol. But I'm much better off and it's still worth it.

I'll post updates/pics as I go. I always appreciate folks that do that :-)

Previous PS: 12/9/15 Brachioplasty, panilectomy, abdomiplasty

4/25/16 Breast augmentation

[Daisee68 2,493]

Best of luck to you! Look forward to hearing your journey!

[Valentina 2,642]

Right behind you.

Getting my date July 6th.

Best wishes for your skin surgery and recovery.

[amazon 579]

Best of luck to you! Look forward to hearing your journey!

Thanks!

Right behind you.

Getting my date July 6th.

Best wishes for your skin surgery and recovery.

Thanks! Good luck to you too!! :-)

[esskay77 785]

Best of luck!!!

[AvaFern 3,516]

@@amazon

Good for you! What is an extended mini thigh lift? Lol, I had the mini thigh lift, which is the groin incision one and I thought the extended one was the one that went down to your knee, so have they figured out a way to extend it without going all the way to your knee? Of the plastics that I have had, the thigh lift is probably the one that gave me the least awesome results because I didn't want the scar to go to my knee. In hindsight, I'm still not sure if I made the right choice on having that version done or not, but after almost a year of recovery from three plastics procedures, I am so totally over them for awhile.

I also had the back of the 360 done and this with my thigh lift was probably my worst procedure, if mostly because it was the one I ended up having the most annoying complications. The first day I was laying on my couch (which thankfully was covered in those adult puppy pad bed wetting things since I learned from past experience incisions leak) and I got up and it look like someone had been murdered. My entire back incision line was still bleeding. Then the midline separated, leaving my a nice gap in the middle of my back which had to be closed twice, then I got a whopping infection in the middle of scar on one side of my butt, which took 6 months to heal and left me with a hole that literally I could fit most of my hand into. Now it's just a scar and it looks like I got shot in the butt, lol.

So, I'm telling you all of this because it was all worth it. I would still get the procedure again even if I knew the disaster it was going to end up being for 6 months. The misery was worth it.

Oh and one more thing, have you read up on care for the thigh incisions? The trick to keeping those from getting infected is to keep them clean and dry. You only have to do it for about 2-3 weeks, but everytime I went to the bathroom I cleaned all of the incision line with wipes, a clean wet towel, and then I used a blow dryer on the cold setting on top of that. Truly gross sounding so apologies if that's TMI, but my incisions healed perfectly.

Good luck!

[amazon 579]

Best of luck!!!

Thanks!

[amazon 579]

@@amazon

Good for you! What is an extended mini thigh lift? Lol, I had the mini thigh lift, which is the groin incision one and I thought the extended one was the one that went down to your knee, so have they figured out a way to extend it without going all the way to your knee? Of the plastics that I have had, the thigh lift is probably the one that gave me the least awesome results because I didn't want the scar to go to my knee. In hindsight, I'm still not sure if I made the right choice on having that version done or not, but after almost a year of recovery from three plastics procedures, I am so totally over them for awhile.

I also had the back of the 360 done and this with my thigh lift was probably my worst procedure, if mostly because it was the one I ended up having the most annoying complications. The first day I was laying on my couch (which thankfully was covered in those adult puppy pad bed wetting things since I learned from past experience incisions leak) and I got up and it look like someone had been murdered. My entire back incision line was still bleeding. Then the midline separated, leaving my a nice gap in the middle of my back which had to be closed twice, then I got a whopping infection in the middle of scar on one side of my butt, which took 6 months to heal and left me with a hole that literally I could fit most of my hand into. Now it's just a scar and it looks like I got shot in the butt, lol.

So, I'm telling you all of this because it was all worth it. I would still get the procedure again even if I knew the disaster it was going to end up being for 6 months. The misery was worth it.

Oh and one more thing, have you read up on care for the thigh incisions? The trick to keeping those from getting infected is to keep them clean and dry. You only have to do it for about 2-3 weeks, but everytime I went to the bathroom I cleaned all of the incision line with wipes, a clean wet towel, and then I used a blow dryer on the cold setting on top of that. Truly gross sounding so apologies if that's TMI, but my incisions healed perfectly.

Good luck!

Thanks @@AvaFern

I had read about your experience. I thank you for sharing it. It certainly weighed in on my decision making.

Regarding what an extended mini thigh lift is - it will stop just above the knee. A mini goes about half way down. This will go a bit further, but not to the knee. At my age (53) I think I'm ok with it. I heal pretty well. I have the arm scars and they're fading well. I wear short sleeves and tanks all the time now and never think about them. I hope these do as well.

Thanks for the tip about the puppy pads! I was thinking towels, but those would be much better!

And that's a good way to keep things good and dry too!! :-)

[esskay77 785]

What is a 360?

How much, generally, does plastic surgery cost? Specifically the Tummy Tuck, then the arms? For each one, approximately how long before you can go to work or out in public?

Thanks

[ausmith 374]

What is a 360?

How much, generally, does plastic surgery cost? Specifically the Tummy Tuck, then the arms? For each one, approximately how long before you can go to work or out in public?

Thanks

A 360 is a lower body lift. So you are cut and lifted around your whole lower body. It helps with your stomach, hips, bottom and outside thighs.

I'm going to Bangkok to have a 360 body lift then 2-3 weeks latter breast reduction and lift and also arm lift. It's costing about 35,000 Aus which is about 26,000 US not sure what you would pay for it there

Sent from my iPad using the BariatricPal App

[esskay77 785]

Wow. thanks.

[amazon 579]

Final consult is in the bag, and lab work done. Consent forms signed and money paid. :-)

We are doing the belt, extended mini-thigh (will end a little bit above the knee), and get the rest of the skin from under my arms. A bit of history - when my brachioplasty was done, the incision didn't go as low under my arm as it could/should have because I had planned my breast augmentation next. That was going to take up some of the excess skin. Now that that is done, we are going to remove the what's left of the excess. (this is NC) There's just no way implants were going to take care of all of that!! I wish it were the case, but I still get large folds over the bra band. So they're going bye-bye. Yes I'll have scars going down further, but I'd rather be able to rest my arms comfortably at my side. And scars fade :-) Oh, also nip a little dog ear from my left elbow. (also NC, it happens)

I'll have 6...SIX (save me!) drains. One under each arm, two in my back, and one in each thigh. The arms and back should come out the first week. The thigh drains the second week (they better or I'm going to look real funny at work when I go back!).

[amazon 579]

Start of day one post op. Everything went well. Have gotten up twice to walk (yah, not so easy!)

They did keep me overnight. It was an option and I was ok with it. Considering how I feel, I'm glad I did.

I won't have pics to post until I get "unwrapped". But I have leg binders that also act like a girdle (for the back sutures I presume). I have a chest binder for my under arms. (No drains there for some reason) I have four instead of the six expected. I'm so wrapped up I feel like a mummy! Lol

They took me into the OR at 7:30 and I was out at 1:30. Five hours. Good nap :-)

Overall the pain isn't awful. Getting up is not fun. The pressure on my thighs when turning to sit on the edge of the bed is the worse part.

Here's a pic of the problem area I had under my arms and why I was so happy to get it removed.

q

Edited July 12, 2016 by amazon

[esskay77 785]

@@amazon Thanks for sharing. Keep us posted. I am so curious on the recuperation process since nobody really ever talks about it.

[amazon 579]

@esskay I'm more than happy to talk about it

Hopefully folks don't think this is TMI or gross ...but this is my view of my thighs this morning...

I'll get pics of the others areas once I'm "up" a bit more. It will probably be more meaningful if they're unwrapped, too. But you can at least see how you start off.

I'm leaving the hospital shortly. Yay!

Ps...I have no idea why my images are showing twice.