sillykitty

@rs My surgeon is pretty easy going about stuff. Boobs will drop from gravity, scars will heal similarly with or without scar treatment etc.. So not surprising there was no dietary rules. I also have not heard or read anything beyond eat high protein and take your supplements. Also, describing your garments, I don’t think you’re a baby at all. I would be crying as well @ms.sss Yay! I love ? a happy ending! Seeing your tummy I’m now impressed your surgeon removed even 0.8 lbs’. Also, that steristrip placement is a work of art!

Flying to meet my Boo out of state, then straight to dinner with friends. He hasn’t seen me since my plastics. Hopefully this will be a good first impression Boobs high and looking fake af (not that most men care). Very swollen belly! Tights and booty panties to help hide my raised incision line (and my granny panty line ?)

My experience is different in that my tolerance did not changed significantly after WLS. Biggest difference is I'm unable to pad my stomach before drinking, so I sometimes need to slow down. But I drank very little during my WL stage. I could not justify adding 100's of liquid calories, except on special occasions.

I also had no restrictions

Agree with all of this! Additionally, success after WLS doesn't require perfection. It just requires mindfulness and commitment

I can make crust, I just can't make it pretty ?

Update, heard back from my surgeon. He said to just continue to monitor my temp, he doesn't want to start antibiotics back up if we don't have to. My crack oozy-ness is unrelated, and it not a common site of infection. Just be even more diligent in keeping it dry (easier said then done ?) Ok, I'm feeling much better now, going to try to get another couple of hours of sleep!

Same, same!

Missed so much, everyone is looking fab for the holidays! But @AngieBear ... love that outside, shows off your curves! (And I have the same belt, in multiple colors ?)

I'm coming from a different perspective because I loved my big boobs and missed them when they disappeared. I'm now 2.5 weeks post op from 450 cc silicone implants. Here are my opinions from tons of reading I've done + multiple consults I am nervous to get implants because of the percentage that need to be swapped out after 10-15 years I'm skeptical on what this real percentage is. I feel like implant manufactures put a life expectancy on them to set low expectations. I think of it like an expiration date on canned vegetables. ? I also have known many women who have had the same implants for 10-20-30 years (I live in LA) Capsular Contraction is the most common cause for explantation and it is now believed it is caused by bacteria entering the pocket from the outside of the body during surgery. So silicone vs. saline has no bearing on that complication I also had a full nipple graft so I am not even sure if they can do another lift or implants??? A lift is generally needed if your nipples point downward vs. forward when standing up. A lift is optional if your nipples point outward, but are lower on the breast than you prefer. The standard is at or below the breast fold and/or if your nipples are more than 21 cm from your sternum notch (this one confused me, won't it be different on tall people vs. short people?). Mine was 22 cm (but nipples pointing outward), and all my consults except the surgeon I went with recommended a lift. My surgeon did not, as long as I was ok with a more mature looking breast, not a 20 year old's. Also some surgeons are better at getting an implant alone to look like a lift than others (Don't ask how many boob pics I have looked at in the last year ?) As far as your nipple goes. For an implant alone, they can go under your breast, in the inframammary fold. This is believed to have the lowest instance of capsular contraction. downside is the scar on the underside of your breast. This might be your best choice since you already have reduction scars and it doesn't affect your nipple. I have Peri-areolar incision. Basically a half moon around the bottom half of my nipples. I'm personally very happy with this. I can already tell my scars are going to end up being nearly completely invisible. I also have full nipple sensation. I don't know if it's related to my incision placement, but I've had almost zero pain from my ba. Trans-axillary: A small incision is made under the armpit. This has fallen out of favor because of a higher rate of capsular contraction. The surgeon also has less control over where they make the pocket and these implants sometimes sit high long term. Transumbilical: An incision is made above the navel and can only be used on saline implants. Not as popular as surgeons again have less control over creating the pocket. As far as gummy bear implants. I originally thought I wanted these in a tear drop shape. But consult after consult told me they just don't end up looking as natural as silicone gel, especially if you have little natural breast tissue. Saline's big downside is rippling and unnatural feel. Rippling is especially apparent when there is little breast tissue. Additionally the shell is still silicone, so it's not as if you won't have silicone in your body if you go with saline. Fat grafting has quite a few downsides as well. The biggest one IMO, is that not all the fat stays, it dies, gets absorbed and migrates away. And there is no control over that process. So you may end up with asymmetry. There you go ... that's my dissertation on all things boob related ?

Kinda the point of a forum, everyone offering their opinions. Just because you don't agree with it, doesn't mean it's not valid.

The older I get, the more often I take the path of least resistance. I try to be a pragmatist. If I make a deal out of something, what will it accomplish? Will it change someones mind? Or will it just make me look like a difficult person, and make things awkward? This especially comes into play in professional situations. So I would have done the exact same as you did, but I'd have no regrets about it.

#crustenvy

@rs You are a trooper. There is no way I would continue to put on garments that made me cry I'd become a non compliant patient very fast! @ms.sss Holy he!! ... that swelling would have scared the crap out of me. It is surreal! As far as swelling and the mindf*ck, I get it. I was hoping to be able to wear cute, fitted clothes sooner. But between the raised incision and baby pot belly, I feel very ugh. I haven't even tried on any real pants or jeans. I might for today's lunch plans, we'll see how ambitious I get. I didn't take any measurements pre ps, so that was dumb. I didn't expect my waist to change much though as my excess skin, fat was below my waistline and on my lower abdomen. I wish I had my hip and thigh measurements though.

I'm early out, so I can't answer at all about the timing. I'm not sure how long my swelling will last. I will say my swelling is all in my lower abdomen, so I don't think my waist measurements have changed dramatically. But on the other hand you are having a fleur de lis, so that might be different? I don't think you will be tender though. From everything I read once your incisions close, you should be just fine. Mine will just take extra time to flatten out due to the unusual stitch my surgeon uses. I'm sure I was not much help at all

That's because you don't notice fillers when done right. People just look refreshed. Over 2 million people used Hyaluronic Acid Fillers last year, and they're not all walking around looking like freaks, right? (https://www.plasticsurgery.org/documents/News/Statistics/2018/cosmetic-procedure-trends-2018.pdf pg ? I have specific and realistic expectations for all the facial treatments I am going to go though. Botox is for my crows feet, laser resurfacing, peel & hydrodermabrasian are to even skin tone + fine lines, filler is to soften my nasolabial folds. The increased depth of my nasolabial folds after my WL aged my face more than anything else.

Yes, it's on my to do list next week.

Hmmm ... well things may have taken a turn in the last couple of hours. I'm running a very low grade temperature, and i has me worried. I feel "warm", and read between 99-99.8 over the last 4 hours. I typically run in the 98's. Possibly related, my crack area ooze increased on the 25th, and has continued to be more than previously. I wasn't worried because there is no puss, but now with the low grade fever, I'm not, not worried ? I sent an email and pics into my surgeon. Up until the fever issue things were going really well. I'm still taking it easy (hello naps). But was able to do the whole family Christmas thing with no problems. I drove home yesterday. My first time driving, and it was no problem. I worked, I ran errands, all was well. I may have jinxed myself with being overambitious. I planned a lunch today that is a long a$$ drive away. Then even more ambitiously I booked an out of town trip for NYE. I'm very excited about that, and do not want to cancel In other news, an issue I did not anticipate is dressing around hiding my incision. My surgeon's incision is unusual because it is so raised (like a braid). I haven't tried on any real clothes yet, but it is very obvious under leggings. I just ordered a bunch of dresses for NYE that have a bunch of ruching, or flare out at the waist. We'll see ....

All is well, just holidays, then work More to come when I get a chance to breathe!

Have to disagree with you. The majority of RNY patient do not dump, and the vast majority of VSG patients do not dump. Yet most WLS patients are successful ....

Two weeks post op today! Had my check up with the Dr., my last drains were removed. He is very pleased with my progress and foresees no issues going forward. I'm still swollen It's uncomfortable, but apparently normal and nothing to worry about. I also have a rash on my tummy above my incision. It's itchy, and m surgeon said it looks like contact dermatitis. Strange because all that has been touching that area is my 100% cotton granny panties. I'd say I'm looking forward to getting home. But we have a week of rain forecast. Ironic it's actually beautiful out today in NJ ? I'm at the airport now. I ordered a wheelchair. Being pushed through the airport was a surreal experience. Such a different perspective. I could have actually made it through the airport without the wheelchair. But I'd rather be safe than sorry and conserve my energy. It's a long day today already.

Day 13 checking in... Had a small set back yesterday as my lower abdomen started to swell. I emailed my surgeon and he said it was normal after removal of drains and increased activity. (I love that my surgeon emails me back at 10pm on a Saturday night) It was pretty uncomfortable though. It felt very tight, and cause me to hunch over a bit again, which then led to back pain. I'm much less swollen today. If activity causes swelling, then you know what, I'm going to be as lazy af today ? Little concerned about tomorrow. I have a Dr appt, where my last drains should be removed. Then packing, then flying home. I'm afraid I might pop!

You know ... I'm not really sure Out of pocket. I'm not patient enough to go through the process to see if I could get some insurance coverage. This surgery took care of the areas that bothered me the most, tummy, thighs and boobs. I am so grateful that my surgeon could handle all these in one surgery, and without a thigh lift. I originally got a quote for my lower body only because all of my other consultations were 8 hr surgeries for lower body alone (LBL, thigh lift, lipo & fat transfer). When my surgeon came back with LBL only and a 3 hour surgery I asked if I could add on boobs. The way I look at it it was ultimately a cost savings, because a stand alone BA would cost more than than adding it on to my LBL. I think long term I want a arm lift and face/neck lift. I am curious to see you, @ms.sss & @mousecat88's results. Also I want to see how I end up scaring from my LBL. The arm lift scar is the only real deterrent for me. I figure i can push the face/neck lift maybe 10 years down the road? I'm curious to see how the filler, botox & laser resurfacing works. But none of those address my neck though. I also really thought I would want butt implants ASAP. I know it's vain, but I really like the curvy aesthetic, and was bummed at the thought of a pancake butt. But my new post LBL butt is small but perky. So I'm going to roll with it for a while. and see how I feel about it. (along w my booty panties of course ?) Cost is definitely an issue. I'm in a fortunate (financial) position of having no kids. So it is just a matter of economizing in other areas of my life. My budget is my own and I'm not accountable to anyone how I spend my money. Bigger issue for me is down time from traveling. My actual time off is minimal. But to not travel for 4-6 weeks is significant. My boss has been very supportive, but I can't imagine he will be as supportive if I do it next year and the year after, you know?

Hope you don't mind, but commenting here A total of 400g of skin & fat was removed, though he said it was mostly skin Holy crap that's a tiny amount (0.88 lbs for my fellow Americans). For contrast I had 4.5 lbs removed from my LBL. I'm an inch taller and about 15 lbs (pre surgery) heavier than @ms.sss There was only a "little bit" of muscle tightening done on my abdomen I'll have to ask my surgeon how my muscle were. He predicted I had no real need for tightening (I told him to anyway, cause I want a wasp waist please). I wonder if resistance to diastasis recti is genetic? I assumed mine was because I've never had children. But I was talking to my mom, and she performed the "test" my surgeon did for me (basically how much of difference does "sucking in" make), and she doesn't seem to have much if any diastasis recti either despite pregnancy and weight fluctuations. There was minimal lipo on my flanks and pubis, and no lipo on my arms nor stomach So interesting your surgeon did lipo. Mine didn't as I he didn't feel there was much if any benefit. And you are far leaner than I am. He had predicted pre-surgery that I would not need to have the drains in very long due to my size I wasn't aware of the connection, but when I mentioned my lack of swelling to my surgeon he said it is due to my lower BMI. Apparently fat swells more than any other tissue.

Random musings: I'm clearly in a vanity phase right now. There was a good Groupon sale yesterday. I am now the proud owner of certificates for ... Botox, Laser Resurfacing, Filler, Hydrodermabrasion, Chemical Peel, and more ? I'm justifying it that I have a high profile meeting coming up. Shower chairs are really nice ... if it didn't look crazy I'd like one at home I really respect my surgeon. During my in person consultation he mentioned two points on the LBL incision that commonly has delayed healing, at the butt crack due to movement and tension & at the front midpoint due to poor blood supply. Guess the two areas I'm oozing from .... This is going to be a long weekend. Been kept busy with work these last few day. But now, just stuck in a hotel room and freezing temps outside. It also doesn't feel like Christmas at all without all the reminders, like music in stores and decorations.