tummy tuck anyone?

[Isadora]

Wow, I'm scared lol! It definately looks like a hard core surgery. Your tummy looks fantastic though, it was worth the pain. Do you have any before pics?

Also, I notice you are the same age as me and with two kids. Did you think of what happens if you want another child down the track? I assume once you undergo a tt you dont want any more babies undoing that hard work!! This is whats holding me back

[Glamourcide]

Thanks for the lovely compliments, ladies Full credit to my surgeon, he really did do a fantastic job and knows his stuff - I'd highly recommend him to anybody who's in QLD and considering cosmetic surgery

All the bruising etc you can see is purely due to the liposuction - it isn't necessary in every case so don't panic! I chose it because I felt I needed the contouring it provided, but in a lot of cases they only need to focus on the excess skin in front and while it's sore, it's probably not much worse than a c-sec. It really, truly didn't feel as bad as it looked, everybody was shocked but I barely felt it at all - there was quite a lot of nerve damage done which is still healing, so I occasionally have little twinges or itchy/irritated spots where the nerve endings are growing back so it's an ongoing process, but by no means should it put any of you off - it was pretty hard for about 3 or 4 weeks post-op but it got much, much easier after that

As far as time frames post-bub, there's no 'official' time that you have to wait, but obviously it's best to go for the surgery when your babies are becoming more independent and you can take the time to rest up afterwards. I had mine done about 2 months before DD2's second birthday, but the Dr was quite happy with that because physically I was in good shape after pregnancy/birth and my kids are quite independent - haven't used a pram since DD2 was a little bub and they prefer to walk everywhere. It's a bit like having a c-sec in that you're meant to take it easy, not drive etc etc, but really I just judged everything on a 'how do *I* feel?' basis and acted accordingly. I avoided lifting the kids for a few weeks because my tummy was pretty sore, but we could all happily sit on the couch together so they didn't feel like they were missing out, and once my drain was out we resumed bed-sharing with no problems.

I honestly only ever saw myself having two babies, although I did consider a 3rd because we missed out on having a son - in all honesty though, I'm moving on from that stage of my life now and felt very sure when booking my tummy tuck that I would not be having any more babies. DH and I talk about it sometimes, but it's very unlikely to happen as I'm starting uni next year and don't want to have any more kids until I've at least finished my degree, whereas DH doesn't want to have another baby after we turn 30 so I doubt we'll ever hear the pitter-patter of little feet again! That's probably the most important consideration when thinking about a tummy tuck - like I said, physically there's nothing stopping you from having a safe and healthy pregnancy and birth after a tummy tuck but it is an awful lot of money to 'waste' if you're going to risk that muscle and skin damage all over again. I figure if we do decide to have another baby in the future, I'll wait until I've got my money's worth out of my tight tummy and *then* ruin it hehehe, I always felt jealous of my child-free friends who had taut, toned bodies because I felt like a woman in her early 20's shouldn't be dressing like a middle-aged woman to hide her belly!

I lost almost 3 dress sizes after I had my op, mostly from the removal of the excess skin and fatty deposits, but also from eating a lot less during the recovery - like any surgery, you're not going to feel on top of your game for a few weeks so I ate only when I felt like it, and snacked when I needed food for taking pills at certain times - I went from a 12-14 in some areas, to an 8-10. My Dr was happy with my current BMI and state of health when I had my consultation so it is in your best interests if you're close to your 'goal weight' before booking in, and I now find it a lot easier to maintain my weight and eat right and get enough exercise because I'm no longer chasing a dream, I'm maintaining a reality, itms? The main reason surgeons prefer you to be in good shape is obviously to reduce the chances of complications during and after surgery, I also had to quit smoking 8 weeks prior and not smoke for 8 weeks after (buuut, I kind of didn't... was VERY lucky I didn't have any complications because of that!).

Medicare does entitle you to some rebates - I got about $1000 back, and also some of my consult fee was refunded because I'd gotten a referral from my GP (all you have to do is say you're looking into a tummy tuck because of post-pregnancy issues and that entitles you to a consult rebate), and as I said if you have private hospital cover you may find your fees are less or that you get more in rebates because part or all of your stay in hospital is covered by your health fund (DH and I didn't have that so we paid $4000 just for the room for two nights and didn't get any of it back - that was okay, it was a really nice room! Much better than the public hospy I birthed my babies in lol!). I'm sure most of you would qualify for the surgery rebate as your tummies are damaged from carrying babies - that does fall under medical reasons and therefore you will get some money back.

Hope this has helped some of you who are thinking about your own situations and considering a tummy tuck - I do have some 'before' pics on my closed group on FB, so feel free to add me and I will be happy to join you to that so you can check them out. I'm getting my post-op pics done at the beginning of November and after that, my before and afters will go up on the clinic's website, I will be more than happy to link anyone up to that if they're interested (they took much better 'befores' than I could of myself lol!).

[sahbear]

Thanks for posting "your story" glamourcide, havent had a chance to read but have marked it to read when my house guests leave!

[megs]

Thanks so much for your story, I think I will really consider going down this path in a few years time. I think it will probably take me a good 2 years to lose the weight I need to and plus with 4 children I think I will wait til my baby is at least 3 to get it done. Something to discuss with my health fund though, may as well see if they will pay for some of it.

[HotI]

Has anyone had abdominoplasty more recently?