Scamp

No - I am disabled But - I believe that perfection is maybe not something I shoudl have - I am amazed at the rest of me and my right leg did shrink by 1/4 inch recently so maybe that is the start of a change after so many years - Who knows. The rest of me is snall now - Maybe that bit just didn't wanna play the game

I spoke to my surgeon about calf lipo and he really wasn't happy to do it - He mentioned massive lymphoedema could be caused by this and it kinda scared me to death. I have tree trunks for legs still - my body is very small now - bar my lower legs. I had an MRI and it IS fat causing it. But I decided to not do anythign about it as the pitfalls could wreck the me I now know as me. To have lost over 120lbs and then wreck everythign I fear it would emotionally cripple me. So I decidd to err on the side of caution and live with fat horrid legs :-( and yes - cankles If only there was another way to get my legs to look nice - I would love that

Ooh Anastasia1 that sounds horrid! I had only heard of a little bit of moving of labia etc beforehand my surgeon said he would err on the underdo side rather than overdo as he didn't want the labia thing to happen and I said YES - Nor did I want those problems!! So maybe him underdoing it is why I didn't see thatmuch of a radical change like with my other operations. Personally I had medial thigh lift in early 2011. This was the most harsh of all the surgeries (TT with inverted T - no muscles touched - arms, breast reduction, butt thigh lift and then finally and outer thigh lift with line right down external outer thigh) The reason the inner thigh lift was the hardest for me is when I first stood up - it was VERY painful. Once I was in compression garments it was a breeze again - I do say to anyone who will listen that for most of my surgeries I remained in compression for 12 (yes 12) weeks. This supported the scars through alot of healing and made me feel protected. I also believe the compression from this garment helped the scars to heal better (I didnt have compression so much in the first two Ops and I wish I had had tighter compression as my inverted T scar is a little bit stretched - nothing major but it is the only scar really that I notice and think about what I could do differently) I also keep paper tape on the scars under the compression for 12 weeks also - another thing to suport the scars etc As for changes - This is the one that for me anyways - Was not the biggest change. It is the only one I would think twice about going through again. Though I have only had a tiny bit of movement from it (and I pray I have no more as reading what you have been through does make you worry - They dont tell you all about THAT pre-surgery - they mention migration but nothing as bad as that) As I said my scars are there - very obvious (one inside of thigh one outside) but - I had lost half of my body weight (127lbs to date) so he told me in our first meeting to have realistic expectations - Then he gave me the world! I am amazed at the woman I am now to the thing I felt I was before. But I still remind myself of the words realistic expectations as this kind of surgery gives you so much emotionally, that you could easily get addicted! I do hope Anastasia1 that you can find a good answer to your problems. Sorry I babbled so much!

To be honest - I don't look upon what I have done as 'cosmetic surgery' (OK maybe the boobs were - I had a reduction, no implants). But - I look upon this as ''RECONSTRUCTIVE surgery''. No nose job or anything - Just reconstructing the normal human form from the mess I had been left in. So - This should not be called cosmetic - It should be re-labeled reconstructive - As that is what 99% of it is. :-)

Hi yes I have had a few Ops to be honest... (I will be paying off the Ops forever - But - That is a small price to pay for the amazing way I feel about myself right now - Could do with a face lift - LOLOL) Op1 = Brachioplasty and Breast reduction Op2 = TummyTuck (no muscle touched) Op3 = Inner Thigh lift Op4 = Outer Thigh/Butt lift Op5 = A rare outer thigh lift as Op4 did not do what I wanted it to all the way I still have tree trunk lower legs though... I did not have a lower body lift in one go - But i kind of did over a couple of different Ops - I am in the Uk by the way. I am also still using an E45 type cream every single day when I get up and just before bed - Even now - This keeps the skin supple and moisturised. I dont massage for hours etc - The tape made doing that not as needed - I just rub it in to keep the scar supple and moisturised. My TT recovery was a breeze as they did not touch the muscles - Was bent forward for maybe 4 or 5 days then all was fine after that - The compression garents I used all came from Eurosurgical, actually made by Design Veronique which is I think a US company. Worth their weight in gold the compression garments were. I lived in them for ages - The moment I was in compression - I had no pain and I knew all was held in place and I felt secure and happy. I was beyond goal weight when I started surgery (At 143lbs i think) - So I am wayyyyy beyond goal now - Even though the Ops only took off about 11lbs in all! I had like no fat left beneath my skin, well, just a little bit... lol - Today I was 124lbs vut I have had alot of worry in this past week so those lost 2lbs of stress shoudl return as mostly I am always 126lbs. If you search my name on here you should be able to find quite a few pics of my arms etc and other Ops. As have plonked them in a few posts. Never before would I ever put half nekkid pics of me anywhere - In my past life I would be in hiding - Now - After Ops - I have shown people more than I ever thought I ever would - I am fannnnntabulously happy! My surgeon told me to remove the tape at about 6weeks or less - But I had read somewhere on this site (after Op2) that the tape gives compression to the scars and that is the best thing to do to flatten and protect them - So from then on I tested on myself. My surgeons first words to me were abotu 'realistic expectations' - So I did not expect too much - Then he gave me the world and more! I found by sticking one type of tape on my left inner thigh and a different one on my right - My scars showed me that the cheaper tapes in stores are NOT as good as Micropore tape! As my left inner thigh scar is not as good and is redder than my right thigh scar at 2yrs post op! Shame I tested that on myself - but - I had no-one else around me whom I could find out information from - The scar still looks good but it very slightly pinker than the right inner thighs white line... This site is a mine of information on plastics and without this site - I don't know if I would have had the courage to go on - And people whom I emailed though this site - Gave me the emotional back up for me to keep going to go from the saggy alien I felt like - who has ZERO confidence to this new woman I am today. Someone on here said to me before Op1 - The words 'Eyes on the prize' and through all this past couple of years I have held those words close to me... And those few simple words served me well! The inner thigh lift was my most testing - That first time I stood up was ouch! But the moment I was in compression garment - All was fine again! No more ouch and all was great. Sorry to write a book - I guess when this journey has become a whole lifetime of it's own - It shows you how your thoughts of the who or the what you think you are - Changes so much in just one small Op - My life changing Op was Op1. I went for just the arms - And at the end I asked 'Oh can you fix my boobs while I am there' the first time I saw the new WONDERFFUL boobies - Ohh My God - I am WOMAN - For the first time in my whole life I felt like a real woman. I have lovely small boobs (I am a 34C - No implants after being a G cup I wanted smaller) OMG These boobs rockkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkk. Also these words I was given mean alot Cosmetic surgery is rarely about vanity, and very often about self-esteem and confidence, and self-love. Those are important

I would say YES - The Inverted T incision was the best thing I ever did! I started this at having lost about 110lbs - I was 42yrs old. Before.. after... 12 weeks 3 days post op... This Op was done in October 2010 (I did not have my muscles touched as had a previous hernia mesh put in) This is my last pic taken last year (Scuse big picture but it is the only way to show the scar well) 21.10.2012 - Which is 2yrs 2 mths approx post op When I discussed with my surgeon this Op - He told me that if I did the normal tummy tuck I would look 'boxy' as this one pulls you in at the sides and you get a far better definition in the waistline. I have never been sorry I did this. My Mum said 'Its not going to hurt any more - And you would not want to feel you needed to go back and do it over again' - No regrets... My scar is a little bit stretched - That annoys me but - I can give you the trick to stop this - You keep the paper tape on your scar for TWELVE WEEKS post Op - Sounds a long time - BUT - It will stop the skin stretching - It does work as I have tried it on further scars from other ops and those scars are fabulous. I only wish I had known that trick before I had this Op! I also stayed in compression for 12 weeks. It sounds drastic and silly - But - When you spend alot of money on somethign - You will do anything in your power to make sure you are 10000% happy with the results. I am very happy with the results - Even with the stretched skin a little bit... Good luck to you - I have never felt so womanly in my whole life - Plastics has given me a gift that I can never ever put into words effectively :-)

I have tried different paper tapes and found that the one made by micropore was the best as the cheaper brands kept falling off :-) And I think compression is the key - Just depends how long you can put up with it - LOL

I don't know if this will help any but.. Here is my pic at 4 weeks post op And at 11 weeks... I will say now that my arm scars are my WORST scars of all my Ops - i so wish I had kept that micropore tape on longer (a tip I read somewhere afterwards) If you can keep the tape on longer it flattens the scar out from the compression of the tape - I did this with other Ops and it is true cos those scars are all fine and flat and the arm ones that are now almost two years old - are not fine and as flat... And have stretched a little bit - My Inverted T abdonimoplasty though great - The scar would have been finer and flatter had I known the tape trick back then... (The tip was to keep the micropore paper tape on for ten weeks, it is a pain in the butt - but well worth it in my opinion in another Op I did the tape trick for 12 weeks and that scar is looking better than the able two year old scar, even though it is only 6mths old) And finally (and I pray these pics show) April 2012 - Almost two years down the line... Well one year 11mths - LOL As I said - These are my worst scars... But they are still alot paler and flatter - Just the elbow ends still feel annoying - Even now I massage twice a day to keep them moist and massaged and my PS said to keep massaging till I feel they are feeling normal to me... (I dunno if things will change after two years but - May as well keep going as they don't annoy me as much as the bingo wings did) Good Luck!

I would say that to have a Medial Thigh Lift and to have it be OK- You might need to lose some more weight The fact of this surgery being that the skin is held with internal stitches to stop scar migration downwards is one of the big parts of it - The less fat you have - The less weight is pulling against the scar. If you have spoken to a surgeon and he says to lose weight - I can kinda understand why. I was 145lbs when I had mine and I do have a tny bit of scar migration on one leg. And I had little fat left under the skin. I know you are comfortable at the weight you are - But you have to be able to see the whole picture and the surgeon needs to know the he can do a good job. It is a working together type of thing - To keep expectations realistic, and to be in the right place weight loss wise for it to be an effective surgery. Good Luck

I worried incessantly about any thing that could go bad. But someone said to me the great words 'Eyes on the prize' And I repeated that to myself the whole way - And the prize is fantastic!

I say... NOT - Although if he is a great man then you could LOL My - Now ex - I took to my first PS visit and wished I hadn't as all he did was talk about man things and I didnt get to ask any of my questions! I had even asked him to wait outside but he didn't. (Shows why he is my ex I guess) Always take a list of your questions, and make sure you ask them. Good luck

Hi, I am sorry I do not have any pics from recently as it is very hard to get the scar to show. Now - half the scar is very very pale (the armpit end) and the elbow end is a pink line. They say it takes 12-18mths for the scar to go but I also have a problem massaging my right arm as I have somethin wrong with my left hand. I did read though that if you keep that paper tape type stuff the surgeon uses on for 8 weeks post op that the scar comes out far flatter and better - I am testing this theory on my latest surgery and it really HAS made the scars look fab - Wish I had known this a year ago. So if you keep taped up for a while with micropore tape - You should heal faster. I read that on this site - The Doc said ''Also, compression works - this is why many people notice that the scars are best in areas that are compressed by bra straps, underwear bands, etc. So, my secret of the day is......tape! Just go and get a roll of the paper white tape that your PS uses. Tape over the scar and keep it on as much as possible. You will notice that this makes the greatest improvement. I have my patients tape for 2 months, starting about 2 weeks after surgery when the incision is healed'' I am VERY happy with my results :-) *EDIT* Found a couple of pics - But it is better than this now... You can see though that the armpit end is much better than the elbow end (My scar goes right through the armpit)

ve been massaghing mine twice a day every day - And mine at 6mths or so post op is starting to go lighter and fade and the arm scars I had done 1yr ago nexct month are half gone and half fading - they were harder to massage due to my having a problem with my hand during it....

My PS also told me to wean myself off it - Then he followed by 'some people seem to wear it for three months' So I decided that I would be one of the some people and I wore mine for 3mths :-) I felt protected with it on and I also noticed when I took it off I swelled up by two inches at first - Then after three months it settled at one inch bigger than my compressed size - I wasn't hapy about that... But I got used to it. LOL

That's weird - We are tgold in UK to wear the Compression garment for 6 weeks, which helps with swelling and healing etc...

I also lost alot - 131lbs (I was 262lbs) and my TT didn't change my waist size much - if at all - As all the skin I had taken off was empty as I was at goal when I started. I am exactly half my starting weight now Though I can wear smaller clothes cos I don't hafta have space for the skin.... Pics.... Before..... And after... Good Luck to you

Take it easy and look after yourself. Rest up!! Can't wait to see your pics

You have the same fear as I do - I hate hate hate the thought of being 'put to sleep' like if I don't wake up and I could - I would be slapping myself for allowing this to happen (Maybe I am OCD lol - Ok I am) When I went down for my first surgery last April I - For the first time ever - Was completely calm. After all the worrying and sorting out my will and everything - Was more calm than I had ever been in my life! I was even joking with the anaesthetist. (About Marillion LOL) I don't know if it was because this time - It was something that I HAD to do - For me, for the first time - This was 100% for me, but I knew I had to do this because living feeling like a freak was a painful thing to always have to cover up because of the skin (Even tho my first surgery was arms and boobs, I guess I saw it as a journey and I saw a photo of my arm by my friends and it broke my heart) When I went in for my TT it was the same - I was scared stiff of waking up in agony, but I knew that this was something I just HAD to do - To be able to ine the 'me' from the journey and get that one step further towards completion of the new 'Me' I don't think there is any trick that will stop the nerves, having a great surgeon you can talk to - Even joke with is a good thing - I have complete faith in my surgeon who is a complete artist. The gift he has given me in my Arms/Boobs/TummyTuck is something that I cannot even put into words how thankful I am to him and his skill. I am a different woman to the first one he met about a year ago. I am a different person in so many ways, not that I have suddenly become vain or anything - But I think for the first time in my entire life - I am happy in my own skin (Bar a few things I still have yet to 'fix') And I am actually feeling less like an alien and more like a human now... Good luck to you - I know you will be fine <3

Thanks Lellow - It looks fantastic! I don't think this new site look emails you when there has been replies - So lucky I came to see what had been happening

Lellow - How much did your tattoo cost and how many times did you hafta go there to get that work of art done? (You are now a walking work of art)

I am 42 - And I have to say I have NEVER in my life had a figure like this one I now have - I could wear a bikini (or one of those tankini things that have a line of material down the middle) If I wanted to - Though I need my thighs done first LOL I love this new me! But yes - It depends how much skin you have. I am 14 weeks post op today.

I think it depends what you are looking for out of your TT. I had an Inverted T in August - Right now it is a red line - But the Brachioplasty scars from my last April Op are starting to look real good - And becoming practically invisible (More on one end than the other at this time) I am far far happier with the scar - Than I ever was with all that skin! Lellow has also had a big scar and she covered it with an amazing and beautiful tattoo.... So I guess it depends what you want - skin or scar? Good luck to you :-)

My PS told me - Even though I would be fine to drive at 1wk post op - My Insurance wouldn't have covered me shoudl anything happen - He said at 2weeks I was OK - But my TT did not involve the muscles as previous Ops I have had in the past made that impossible

Your pics look brilliant!!!

Nope - No numbness and no tightness now - But - while the scar is still new - the scar can feel a bit like a bit of tight string along it - But I am now at 7mths and everything is fine - The scar is placed well and to show it in pics I hafta kinda rotate my arm so the Camera can even see the scar - LOL - It is along the back or my arm but you cannot see it if you are standing behind me unless my arm is slightly rotated...