Tummy Tuck

Hi...I had a tummy tuck in 2007. I was 38 at the time. Mine was as a result of weight gain during pregnancy and the fact I had a really big baby.

Yes, I would do it again in a heartbeat! However, it is a tough recovery. Mine included a lot of muscle repair since the pregnancy did some damage. I couldn't stand up straight for a couple of months. They tighten you up that you are hunched over for quite awhile. I managed to go back to work in about 10 days but it was tough and I only do a desk job. You might need help the first week, I know I did. I wore a waist cincher for a couple of months as well. It was required of the procedure. I also had drain tubes and staples. The tubes for several days and the staples a bit longer.

Like I said, it's not an easy recovery since it involves all those stomach muscles that you use for everything! Don't watch any funny movies after surgery....lol! It was seriously worth it to me though.

I still have some lingering things from it though like some odd numbness and sensitivity in places. I get annoyed at some waistbands from time to time. I get some weird muscle cramps occasionally as well but nothing too bothersome.

You may not get a lot of people to talk about having this procedure. There are some forums about plastic surgery though. From my experience, I was in the minority of people who were open about having one. Most people lied to friends, coworkers and even family about having it done. I'm not sure why the smoke and mirrors about it.

See a couple doctors for various opinions and good luck if you decide to do it.

I have not personally, but my husband did. Like the BIG one that goes almost completely around. It cost about $14k and insurance did not cover anything. The recovery was brutal. @AgileK9 pretty much covered that. If you ask me, no it was not worth it. But mainly because my husband is still about 70lbs overweight. He lost 100, but is by no means where his BMI should be. He would probably say it was worth it. I would say that if you do plan it, lose as much weight as possible first.

It's been 10 years, but as I recall I was limited to lifting 5 pounds for 6 weeks maybe. I would not count on cycling for probably that much time as well. I did return to mostly normal in about 3 months. I remember doing landscaping in April and I had the surgery mid January. I cinched up my waist support and moved landscape blocks so it isn't forever.

I agree about losing as much weight as you can. I was about at my goal weight when I got my surgery. I've since put on 20 pounds and yo-yo'd it off and on. It's not enough weight to do any damage to the surgery though.

Just to clarify though, I did not have a body lift. I think that's what the one all the way around is called. Mine was solely abdominoplasty.

Geocitiesuser wrote: »

I'm 36 and after 130lbs lost seriously considering it as well... going to give it more time, but as I approach my goal weight I am rapidly turning into a folded wrinkly mess of skin that will forever prevent me from being shirtless in public. This is the price I pay for being fat. Permanent social rejection.

My husband has a crazy huge scar from his that would probably prevent you from going shirtless anyway.

Also: At any age, there's some potential for continued skin shrinkage over an extended time period, as long as the weight stays off, and there's not enough residual subcutaneous fat to help gravity pull the skin into flaps. At age 60+, my loose skin shrank noticeably over the 1st year of maintenance, and I think may be continuing to do so now (2nd year), just really, really slowly.

My sister had one about 6 months ago had several post op complications. She is still seeing the surgeon for some fine tuning. This surgeon is a reputable physician in the community.

GirlPanda03 wrote: »

floridamike99 wrote: »

mom23mangos wrote: »

I have not personally, but my husband did. Like the BIG one that goes almost completely around. It cost about $14k and insurance did not cover anything. The recovery was brutal. @AgileK9 pretty much covered that. If you ask me, no it was not worth it. But mainly because my husband is still about 70lbs overweight. He lost 100, but is by no means where his BMI should be. He would probably say it was worth it. I would say that if you do plan it, lose as much weight as possible first.

Interesting......I'm surprised they would do that surgery on someone who is still obese (which he would be if he was 70 pounds over weight).

In any case, a "brutal" recovery is not something I will sign up for. My case is not so bad and if I have that bad of a recovery, I will be further behind than I am starting.

I sometimes watch that programme My 600lb Life, and the surgeon who does the weight loss surgery looks at doing skin reduction surgery when they are nowhere near their target weight - it's because a lot of excess skin can end up hampering mobility, not to mention skin issues like fungal infections and tearing, so by taking that away it allows the person to stay mobile and keep losing weight. I'm not sure how ideal it would be on someone who isn't that morbidly obese; I guess it depends on how bad the excess skin is and how it's affecting them.

Dr. Now? This really bugs me...when he removes the "skin" and they show it, it's total marbleized fat...that isn't "excess skin," it's a whole lot of fat. Let's be real. When you're removing skin from a person who's say, still 300 or 400 lbs., there is NO reason to believe what's hanging and getting in the way is "just skin."

I get that it flaps around and so on, on these people - and I had a load of excess skin from my first pregnancies even when I weighed 105 lbs...that really WAS skin, and yes, it was a pain and yes, I've always wished I could have it removed. (It's a bit filled out with fat right now but at a normal weight, well under 125, for 17 years between pregnancies it never went away and literally hangs down and flops...it's there forever. You literally can not see my belly button as it is inside of a lot of folds. At 125 or under, and especially at 110 or under, trust me, that's when you know it really is just skin and yeah...I get how devastating it is...I will never feel normal. So I'm not trying to be unsympathetic to having loose stuff flapping around, it's physically and psychologically very bad, I get that.)

But at 350, 400, 450 lbs. when Dr. Now is saying it's "time" for some skin removal? I fully believe removing what it is, can help with their mobility, but let's NOT be stupid, Dr. Now, and say you're removing "excess skin." You're removing a LOT OF fat, along with a skin covering. Do it to increase the mobility and comfort, that's humane and reasonable, but let's not be dumb here.

I don't know why that bothers me. It should't.

GirlPanda03 wrote: »

floridamike99 wrote: »

mom23mangos wrote: »

I have not personally, but my husband did. Like the BIG one that goes almost completely around. It cost about $14k and insurance did not cover anything. The recovery was brutal. @AgileK9 pretty much covered that. If you ask me, no it was not worth it. But mainly because my husband is still about 70lbs overweight. He lost 100, but is by no means where his BMI should be. He would probably say it was worth it. I would say that if you do plan it, lose as much weight as possible first.

Interesting......I'm surprised they would do that surgery on someone who is still obese (which he would be if he was 70 pounds over weight).

In any case, a "brutal" recovery is not something I will sign up for. My case is not so bad and if I have that bad of a recovery, I will be further behind than I am starting.

I sometimes watch that programme My 600lb Life, and the surgeon who does the weight loss surgery looks at doing skin reduction surgery when they are nowhere near their target weight - it's because a lot of excess skin can end up hampering mobility, not to mention skin issues like fungal infections and tearing, so by taking that away it allows the person to stay mobile and keep losing weight. I'm not sure how ideal it would be on someone who isn't that morbidly obese; I guess it depends on how bad the excess skin is and how it's affecting them.

And do you really think a Dr. is going to turn down money? If someone wants it done and is willing to pay for it, you betcha they are going to do it. My husband wanted it done at that weight because he felt that he had reached a point that he was not going to lose any more weight. He lost the weight he did through surgical means (lap band) and had no interest in watching what he eats or exercising. So once he got to a point that he could maintain at and be healthy he was ready for the skin to come off. (He did the lap band because he had life threatening medical issues and the drop in 100lbs was enough to help that. He's perfectly healthy now, even if still overweight.) They did take out a lot of fat too. I think the Dr. said about a 2liter bottle worth. I think it was a total of 14lbs of skin and fat removed. He has managed to stay around the same weight in the 10 years since then.

Edit to say he has recently started exercising a bit and has lost some weight, but the skin is still tight.

Just had mine 10 days ago. I was able to go back to work on Monday (procedure was previous Tuesday) and while there is some 'discomfort' the real pain part was only somewhat bad post days 2 and 3 and I seem to have the same energy levels as before. But mine was mainly just skin with the muscle repair...oh and some thigh lipo. I'll have to wait a bit longer before I decide if its worth it but not going to gym for 2 months is going to be rough on me!