Well, I'm 6 days out from a breast lift/augmentation and bilateral medial thigh lift (with the long inner thigh incision). I had abdominplasty, butt lift and bilateral brachioplasty last August. The swelling from the first surgery in August was just starting to go down, and now it's back in full force! I'm up about 15 pounds from my lowest weight, and I have to say, it's the swelling that is miserable! And, the Water weight went directly to my arms and abdomen and hips, as well as the thighs and breasts. Basically, everything that I've worked on is a magnet for Fluid retention. I feel like a stuffed sausage.

However, this second surgery is much easier to recover from that the first - night and day difference! Even with two large drains still in my groin, I'm not feeling too bad!

One of the reasons I decided to do this it to feel "finished". I hate it when I can't complete something I set out to do, and I just felt so incomplete with all the loose skin. While I'll never have a perfect body, that was never my goal. I think my surgeon got me closer than I even hoped. I also believe that it will help me maintain my weight loss. While it's no guarantee, I do think that it might help, but I guess only time will tell.

For anyone considering plastics, there is a lot to think about. I had some open wounds from the first surgery that took nearly 4 months to heal, but I still think it was worth it. I have swelling that I find miserable, but even if it lasts a year, it's temporary, and it's way better than loose skin. And I do have a lot of scars, but they are fading, and will continue to do so. That loose, flabby skin was never going to tighten on it's own. I feel much better in my skin now, even with the swell hell I'm in.

So, while I thought I'd come here to complain about it, I also have to say I don't regret it! Things haven't settled into place yet, but even still, I look way better than before. Even though it's a difficult surgery to recover from, I'd do it again (but thank goodness I don't have to, lol!) Thanks for listening!

Reading these posts are reassuring to me - I'm almost 2 weeks out from my lower body lift, and the swelling is irritating! I'm wearing a shaper as a compression garment, but I feel like my skin is a sausage casing! I want to unzip and just take a break from it! Please tell me this won't last for too long? Thanks!

The swelling will get better! I am 2 months out and still swell. At 2 weeks I could be as much as 6 pounds up at the end of the day. Now I am running about 3. I wear my compression during the day and leave it off while I sleep. Just started that last week. How long does your doctor recommend you wear yours? Be careful about buying clothes too soon. You will continue to go down. Feel better!!

The swelling does get better, but I think it varies from one person to the next on how long it lasts. I was still swollen a little from my LBL and arms that I had in August. Not terrible, but up and down. When I had the thigh lift and breast lift, not only was the new surgical site swollen, including my lower legs, but my back, abdomen and arms swelled back up too! It is getting better, but it is slow going.

Sometimes I feel like my skin is too small. I saw my dr yesterday, and she prescribed a low dose of Lasix for a few days. It's a temporary fix at best, but I'll take it! I'm anxious to see just how much Water weight I'm hanging on to. I'll let you know!

The swelling will get better! I am 2 months out and still swell. At 2 weeks I could be as much as 6 pounds up at the end of the day. Now I am running about 3. I wear my compression during the day and leave it off while I sleep. Just started that last week. How long does your doctor recommend you wear yours? Be careful about buying clothes too soon. You will continue to go down. Feel better!!

Thank you for the feedback! I just like to have an idea of what I can expect. I will ask my doctor about the compression time frame at my appt next week. I'm going to have to get a couple of pairs of pants to get me through, but I won't go crazy!

The swelling does get better, but I think it varies from one person to the next on how long it lasts. I was still swollen a little from my LBL and arms that I had in August. Not terrible, but up and down. When I had the thigh lift and breast lift, not only was the new surgical site swollen, including my lower legs, but my back, abdomen and arms swelled back up too! It is getting better, but it is slow going.

Sometimes I feel like my skin is too small. I saw my dr yesterday, and she prescribed a low dose of Lasix for a few days. It's a temporary fix at best, but I'll take it! I'm anxious to see just how much Water weight I'm hanging on to. I'll let you know!

Yeah, my doctor told me I could schedule my breast lift in a few months, but I think I'm going to need more time than that to recover from this surgery. Good luck with the lasix! I hope it gives you some relief!

Thanks WLS pals.

There was a lot of info on plastics. I'm scheduled for a TT march 10. Been 8 years and I'm tired of my "extra cat" sitting on my lap(I have 2. That is enough for now )

Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Like compression? Where do you get those. ?And is it like spanx??????

Thank you

I'm using future plastics as a motivator now that I've hit the blah phase of weight loss and this thread was fabulous! @@MichiganChic I'll be 50 or 51 when I have plastics done and we share pretty common pre-op stats so thanks for the inspiration!

Thanks WLS pals.

There was a lot of info on plastics. I'm scheduled for a TT march 10. Been 8 years and I'm tired of my "extra cat" sitting on my lap(I have 2. That is enough for now )

Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Like compression? Where do you get those. ?And is it like spanx??????

Thank you

My surgeon told me to get a cheaper spanx knock-off that was a shorts style and compressed up my entire abdomen to my breasts. He said that would keep the fluid from collecting in my thighs, even though I had no legwork done.

My surgeon told me to get a cheaper spanx knock-off that was a shorts style and compressed up my entire abdomen to my breasts. He said that would keep the fluid from collecting in my thighs, even though I had no legwork done.

Mine told me the same thing. The only problem with the spanx is when you have to pee! Lol. I can't get them down fast and have learned to build time in.

Congrats to you & prayers for a speedy recovery ????

I just had an old fashioned abdominal binder that I wore around the house, and spanx when I went out. I didn't wear anything on my arms. My doc said there is new evidence that for to arms compression isn't helpful and may cause issues. For my thighs, I used spanx, but honestly, there was nothing that that was all the helpful - except diuretics! I'll put some pics up pretty soon. Far from perfect, but much improved!

I just had an old fashioned abdominal binder that I wore around the house, and spanx when I went out. I didn't wear anything on my arms. My doc said there is new evidence that for to arms compression isn't helpful and may cause issues. For my thighs, I used spanx, but honestly, there was nothing that that was all the helpful - except diuretics! I'll put some pics up pretty soon. Far from perfect, but much improved!

What dosage of lasix did your surgeon prescribe?

She gave me Lasix 10 mg for 10 days. I'm down 4 pounds from three days ago, and 15 from when I first posted this. Strangely, or maybe sadly, after all is said and done, she removed about 12 pounds of fat and skin, but my weight is the same as it was before the first surgery, now that most of the swelling is gone. I had a couple of wounds that were slow to heal with the lower body lift, so I had to increase my calories for about 3 months, and then again for about 3 weeks after the December surgery. I can only surmise that I gained 10 pounds somewhere.....but my clothes are looser and really don't see it. I'm anxious to lose that last 10 pounds!

She gave me Lasix 10 mg for 10 days. I'm down 4 pounds from three days ago, and 15 from when I first posted this. Strangely, or maybe sadly, after all is said and done, she removed about 12 pounds of fat and skin, but my weight is the same as it was before the first surgery, now that most of the swelling is gone. I had a couple of wounds that were slow to heal with the lower body lift, so I had to increase my calories for about 3 months, and then again for about 3 weeks after the December surgery. I can only surmise that I gained 10 pounds somewhere.....but my clothes are looser and really don't see it. I'm anxious to lose that last 10 pounds!

I don't know…I think what we see in the mirror and feel in our clothes is more important than what the scale reads. I'm sure you are looking and hopefully feeling great!

So I thought I'd come back here for more "musing", AKA whining, lol! I had a seroma in both legs that wouldn't respond to typical treatment of needle aspiration, and had them excised today. I feel a little like I'm back to ground zero. It was an office procedure, and quite painful. Too bad, too, because those scars on my legs had healed beautifully. I hope the new incisions heal as well!

@@BethinPA you are right about the number on the scale. I'm about over it. Almost. Maybe.

So I thought I'd come back here for more "musing", AKA whining, lol! I had a seroma in both legs that wouldn't respond to typical treatment of needle aspiration, and had them excised today. I feel a little like I'm back to ground zero. It was an office procedure, and quite painful. Too bad, too, because those scars on my legs had healed beautifully. I hope the new incisions heal as well!

@@BethinPA you are right about the number on the scale. I'm about over it. Almost. Maybe.

I'm so sorry that you had to go through that! I am praying that I don't ever develop any complications. Could the seromas have contributed to the prolonged swelling that you experienced?