Had my surgery on Friday! Feeling pretty good but I am still relying on the drugs! I had an Exparel shot that supposedly lasts 3 days so that should be wearing off and then I will just have the hydrocodon they gave me to take by mouth. I have my first follow up appointment on Tuesday so that will be the first time I get a chance to see anything. I was able to see that my backside is much tighter, no sag!

Quick Thoughts:

1- Drains. Kind of a pain but not as bad as I thought they would be. That doesn't mean I don't want them gone now but they are tolerable

2- Pain. I think it is way to early to say considering the meds

3- Mobility- Toughest part is getting in an out of bed

4- Results- Can't say yet

5- Nausea- I am fortunate, I have had non

6- Eating- Not very hungry but I am just doing Protein shakes and yogurt

7- Restroom- Dreading having to sit for the first time, that is going to be painful

8- Would I do it again?? NO QUESTION!!! Absolutely!!!!!!

Shiver! I can't imagine pulling it out, and I'm not usually a wimp. You impress me so much! Remember to keep your binder tight, it might help keep the fluid moving down. Keep us informed, we're all thinking of you!

LOL…The drain tube was not the freaky part…..it was the clot that took an Iron stomach to yank out!! It was almost as long as the drain tube and at first didn't want to budge. Sorry if that is TMI but someone may read this and need to know!!

Thanks for the tip on the binder, after I read your post I tightened it up a little…

<p>Congratz, I am probably going to need something similar in a few months. Is this the same as a belt lipectomy? From me knees to my neck is a lot of loose skin, would this surgery correct most of that?</p>

I'm at the surgeons office now...I. Even need lipo on my neck just 2 months ago it was just my body. Two different surgeons. One does everything, the one I'm at now is a facial plastic reconstructive . Not sure what I will do.

I had a little lipo on both my hips…..three weeks out they still hurt….and not just a little. It really feels like a hockey player hit me with a stick on both sides. If that is the pain from the lipo, I would NEVER get that done on my neck. I also find it hard to imagine how they do lipo on your neck. I would have thought it would be an extensive facelift to tighten that up. Sounds like you lost a massive amount of weight

<p>I had a little lipo on both my hips…..three weeks out they still hurt….and not just a little. It really feels like a hockey player hit me with a stick on both sides. If that is the pain from the lipo, I would NEVER get that done on my neck. I also find it hard to imagine how they do lipo on your neck. I would have thought it would be an extensive facelift to tighten that up. Sounds like you lost a massive amount of weight</p>

thanks ,I did lose a lot of weight .( I'm very tiny 4'11 )every pound counts. Also I gained the weight so fast. The surgery was the only thing that actually helped. Both (plastic )surgeons said I don't need a facelift since they say I'm so young and it's just my neck that needs it .(well besides my inner thighs arms and stomach )they would make the incision under my chin. I hope you recover soon!

May I ask how long everyone waited to have the extra skin removed or the lipo? The doctor who performed my sleeve thinks I'm jumping the gun a little bit. It will be a year in April.for work reasons I wanted it done this dec. it's a three-part surgery. I just wanted to be able to wear a bikini again.(guess next year)

i think you are early also….i was 51 weeks post op from my VSG but I had been at my goal weight for 3 months and I didn't have another ounce of weight to lose. you could argue that i should be 10-15 pounds heavier than i was the day of my LBL. I did my surgery at this time of year for work reasons as well, i am very slow for about 6-7 weeks so it is perfect timing for me so i get where you are coming from. here is one thing i will tell you…..you DO NOT want to lose weight after you have this surgery…..you don't want to spend the money and then have loose skin again!!!

Been a while since I gave an update and there is a bunch to bring you up to speed on…….

As I posted on the 28th I had to remove my last drain because the suture came loose.

Sunday night I had massive swelling in my legs so I went on Monday afternoon to my surgeons office to be seen. They tried to aspirate in a few places in an effort to relieve some of the swelling pressure. After many needle sticks and much pain they were not able to get anything out at all. The thought at that time was they were just sticking me blind and not able to "see" if they were coming near the Fluid. They did this at my incision, my pubis, and my thighs.

So they tried to get me right in to a radiologist they use for situations like this for an ultrasound and replacement of drains if necessary or another shot at aspiration while using the ultrasound to see what they were doing. Sounded like a great idea to me so I went along. Unfortunately, they were booked solid and couldn't take me till the next day.

Another 2 hour trek to Baltimore from suburban Philadelphia on New Years Eve to get an ultrasound and who knows what else!!

The ultrasound showed the following:

Small pockets of fluid that the Dr said was not big enough to either aspirate of reinsert drains

No worry of blood clots, they used the ultrasound to rule out any DVT

Lots of tissue edema which in their opinion was causing the swelling

No signs of seromas

My surgeon called me later that afternoon and said that REST would be the best thing and see how my legs reacted. Almost as an afterthought he said to wear compression pants if I had a pair like Under Armour. I went right out to a Dicks Sporting Goods and bought a pair that was a size too small and squeezed my thunder thighs in them. NOT EASY

I am happy to report that after a day and a half of laying in bed wearing my sausage casing like pants my swelling seems to be in check. My plan is to continue this process for the next 4 days to really make sure that I have this under control!!

Leg swelling does NOT happen to everyone but apparently the trauma of the surgery can certainly cause it to happen. I mentioned in an earlier post that the recovery from this surgery was as much mental as it is physical and I can't emphasize this enough because on new years eve as I was having the tests done and how swollen I was…..I was really down mentally! It was very depressing!!

Overall and considering what I have had done to myself I am healing well, considering what my routine was prior to surgery I am like a caged animal to get back to it but I know if I were to push it I will swell like the Pillsbury Dough Boy!!!!

Good luck to you all, and please don't hesitate to ask any questions if you are considering this type of surgery. That is why I am taking the time to journal my experience, I hope it helps. And before you ask….."would you do it again?" The answer is………….ABSOLUTELY!!

Thanks for that update. It's true the recovery from abdominaplasty is way more severe that gastric sleeve. And swelling is so common. You're doing all the right things. I hope you feel better very soon.

I can't begin to thank you for this feed! Please keep posting your updates!!! I've lost 200 and need to lose another 60-70 before I can consider a body lift and then move on to arms & breasts and then finally an inner thigh lift. It scares me to death but I'm so sick of feeling like my body is chasing itself when I walk and workout. (LOL but so true!)

<p>Been a while since I gave an update and there is a bunch to bring you up to speed on…….</p> <p> </p> <p>As I posted on the 28th I had to remove my last drain because the suture came loose.</p> <p> </p> <p>Sunday night I had massive swelling in my legs so I went on Monday afternoon to my surgeons office to be seen. They tried to aspirate in a few places in an effort to relieve some of the swelling pressure. After many needle sticks and much pain they were not able to get anything out at all. The thought at that time was they were just sticking me blind and not able to "see" if they were coming near the Fluid. They did this at my incision, my pubis, and my thighs. </p> <p> </p> <p>So they tried to get me right in to a radiologist they use for situations like this for an ultrasound and replacement of drains if necessary or another shot at aspiration while using the ultrasound to see what they were doing. Sounded like a great idea to me so I went along. Unfortunately, they were booked solid and couldn't take me till the next day. </p> <p> </p> <p>Another 2 hour trek to Baltimore from suburban Philadelphia on New Years Eve to get an ultrasound and who knows what else!!</p> <p> </p> <p>The ultrasound showed the following:</p> <p> </p> <p>Small pockets of fluid that the Dr said was not big enough to either aspirate of reinsert drains</p> <p> </p> <p>No worry of blood clots, they used the ultrasound to rule out any DVT</p> <p> </p> <p>Lots of tissue edema which in their opinion was causing the swelling</p> <p> </p> <p>No signs of seromas</p> <p> </p> <p>My surgeon called me later that afternoon and said that REST would be the best thing and see how my legs reacted. Almost as an afterthought he said to wear compression pants if I had a pair like Under Armour. I went right out to a Dicks Sporting Goods and bought a pair that was a size too small and squeezed my thunder thighs in them. NOT EASY</p> <p> </p> <p>I am happy to report that after a day and a half of laying in bed wearing my sausage casing like pants my swelling seems to be in check. My plan is to continue this process for the next 4 days to really make sure that I have this under control!!</p> <p> </p> <p>Leg swelling does NOT happen to everyone but apparently the trauma of the surgery can certainly cause it to happen. I mentioned in an earlier post that the recovery from this surgery was as much mental as it is physical and I can't emphasize this enough because on new years eve as I was having the tests done and how swollen I was…..I was really down mentally! It was very depressing!!</p> <p> </p> <p>Overall and considering what I have had done to myself I am healing well, considering what my routine was prior to surgery I am like a caged animal to get back to it but I know if I were to push it I will swell like the Pillsbury Dough Boy!!!!</p> <p> </p> <p>Good luck to you all, and please don't hesitate to ask any questions if you are considering this type of surgery. That is why I am taking the time to journal my experience, I hope it helps. And before you ask….."would you do it again?" The answer is………….ABSOLUTELY!!</p>

I love reading your updates!

Why do u have to go to philly from Baltimore?

The doctor I selected is in Baltimore…..it was very difficult to find a surgeon that had experience with men let alone one that specialized in male body work. Mine certainly doesn't specialize in just men but he gave me 2 references of men that he did the same operation I was looking for. One was done 3 years ago and the other was done just a month prior to when I spoke with him. Both were very helpful an obviously helped me make my selection. It certainly has been slightly inconvenient for the followup appointments but the decision you make about who is going to do this for you is largely based on trust. I am not saying its easier for women to make a decision on what surgeon to use but it was very hard for me as a man to find someone I didn't think did nothing but facelifts and boob jobs!!! lol!!!

My ps is going to do my husband too, we got banded together. We were going to get a body lift together, but he has an afib, so he has to get clearance from the cardiologist. He used to have a practise in Philly now he has his own office in Rehoboth Beach.

skiddles,

good luck to you and your husband, i hope you get a volume discount!!!

Congrats! !!! Please keep us updated with pictures! !