My surgery is April 9th. I'm extremely excited, but i do have an odd question to ask. Is it okay to go to the tanning bed when your incisions heal? I'm 18 and I tan quite frequently. I also use tingle lotion. Would that hurt anything? I'm just making sure. Also, I didn't want to ask my doctor because he would discourage it all together.

Thanks everyone! This app is so encouraging!

...I am glad you posted this. I am nearly a month out from my surgery. I started tanning last week - I didn't even think about the incisions...I did put a towel over them & didn't use lotion on my stomach...uh-oh...hope I haven't hurt myself..

If your doing this to get healthy why would you risk the health of your skin? I'm known as "the pale one" now because it was no fun to have cancerous spots removed from my face in my mid twenties! That tan on my face faded, but I'll have the scars for life.

I feel like it should be fine once they are completely healed and you get exercise clearance.. But it's the lotion that worries me a little. And I didn't think about a towel! That's a good idea!

CJ - I have my 1 month follow - up tomorrow. I am kinda new to this site; I will try to find this thread & tell you what she says. If I can't, I will start a thread called Tanning & Surgery...so you will know what my dr says, but I am sure different drs will say different things.. I am sure it is fine, too, if your incisions are healed. I have 3 spots - they are healing very nicely, and when I get my tan on, they will be barely noticeable.

I used to use tanning beds... then I just moved to Hawaii! I know tanning isn't the best for us, but I'm not going to lecture.

I would think that exposing the incisions to tanning rays (in a bed or outside) would increase scarring, but idk for sure that's true. omg I used to LOVE the tingle lotion! But my experience from what I used to use, I would say NO WAY would I put that anywhere near an incision!! Sounds kinda painful.

The biggest reason that comes to my mind for me though about tanning right after surgery is this....the beds typically make you sweat (even with a fan on) , and since you're going to be having to work EXTRA hard to stay hydrated in the days after surgery, I think that's kinda dangerous. I've read over and over on VST that it happens to our friends even when they're not tanning, just recovering from the surgery. Getting dehydrated lands people in the hospital. Maybe best to take a little break -- why risk it? Give yourself every possible chance to have a smooth recovery. The tanning bed will wait for you, and you'll have plenty time to catch up before summer time

Thank you luckys! I'm new to this site as well! I will look for the thread (:

& omg you're practically in heaven! Lol I love tingle, it's my fav! I know won't be good a few months after surgery.. I also know it dehydrates you more than regular. (I believe it even says so on the back of my snooki bottle!) but I did completely forget about the whole dehydration thing! I was just worried about the incisions ): I will probably wait until the end of may to start tanning again.. I also lay out in the sun with motor oil... But that won't be going near my stomach!!! Lol

Take it from those among you with a few more miles, you will regret the tanning. It is going to make you age faster. You will spend a lot of money trying to undo this. There will be no undoing it. There, lecture over.

I dont think I'm an intense tanner.. I tan extremely fast. 20mins in a bed I have my base tan. I only tan a couple times a week the few months coming into spring/summer.. Then I'm outside all summer long. Then I stop... Until the next April/may. I know it isn't good for your skin, my mother never fails to remind me. Lol thanks for all the replies!! (:

I started tanning about 2 weeks after my surgery and I had no issues. I covered and still do cover my incisions, but I've gone 2x a week for 5 weeks now.

There was a girl at my support group who's surgery got postponed because she got sunburned and her surgeon was worried about the increased chance of infection. As for the post surgery people, the sun darkens scar tissue and will make them more noticeable later. I'm pale and burn no matter what so luckily I don't have that problem. = )

Tanning will affect your scars. I was always told to put sunblock on scars for at least a year to protect them so they heal. What about vitamin e? Put it on the incisions to promote healing. I would at least try to cover the incision sites during your tanning sessions.

When I had my breast reduction he told me not to tan my scars for the first nine months following surgery, because they are more sensitive to the sun during this period and may tan darker than the surrounding skin. This darkness, if allowed to occur, may be permanent. Generally, it's safe to start using sunscreen on your incisions three weeks after surgery. Even if you are wearing a bathing suit, you should still cover your incisions with sunscreen during this early period of nine to twelve months. Tanning beds can be particularly injurious to your incisions, and this activity should be avoided completely during the first three months after surgery and always use sunscreen and cover your scars

CJ - I asked my dr today...she said to cover them for a couple of months...I could tell she isn't a tanning/tanning bed fan. She said I wasn't hurting my sleeve or anything, just my skin, of course. I tanned today!

I dont think I'm an intense tanner.. I tan extremely fast. 20mins in a bed I have my base tan. I only tan a couple times a week the few months coming into spring/summer.. Then I'm outside all summer long. Then I stop... Until the next April/may. I know it isn't good for your skin' date=' my mother never fails to remind me. Lol thanks for all the replies!! (:[/quote']

I wasn't an intense tanner either... Just before vacations or summer. I thought I felt better... Until I was diagnosed with melanoma, on my abdomen! The tanning beds intensify around your midsection and that is where my melanoma was! I was 25 at the time- I started occasionally using tanning beds around age 18. It doesn't take long to hurt you! Healthy is the goal, please stop tanning. Look up melanoma the odds of living past 5 years aren't too good! Try spray on tans....