I'm starting my plastics journey this week! Creating this thread as a place to gather my thoughts, and gather opinions as well.

My priorities

1&2 - Tummy & Boobs

3 - Thighs

4&5 - Butt & Arms

Specifics for each area

Tummy - low & thin scar, natural looking belly button, and lipo/conturing to narrow my waist as much as possible

Boobs - augmentation & lift, VERY important that my boobs look natural, thinking D cup with tear drop gummy bear implants

Thighs - do not want a full thigh lift with long scars, so only a crescent lift, or as part of a lower body lift

Butt - either a fat transfer (BBL) or buttock lift with a dermal fat flap as part of a lower body lift

Arms - do not want a full arm lift with long scars, so only a crescent lift

I reached out for consultations with 5 surgeons who specialize, or do a fair amount of surgeries on massive weight loss patients. I have #1 & #2 choices, and have consultations scheduled with both on Friday ? Interestingly neither of my top choices charge a consultation fee, but the three others do. I am seriously considering canceling my other consultations to see #1 & 2 first, before I invest up to $750 on consultation fees.

Anyone have opinions if I should just see #1 & #2 first, or is it worth the investment in consultation fees to have more surgeons quotes?

My #1 surgeon does lots of lower body lifts. I hadn't originally considered this because I'd rather not have the circumferential scar. But his results are amazing, and at least in the posted photos the scars are very thin. It may also be the only way I can get most of my wish list accomplished in one surgery. I have seen where he has done a lower body lift & a breast lift & augmentation in one surgery. That would only leave arms to tackle at some point later, if I still wanted them fixed.

Here's an example of the work of my #1 surgeon

Edited August 19, 20197 yr by sillykitty

I am so happy for you!!!! It makes me hopeful. I hate pain meds.... I know I will need them, but I like to get off of them as soon as possible. My Surgery is 5 weeks away! My good news is I have a place to stay for my second week. A friend invited me to stay at her house sit, with the approval of the host. It is so kind of them. I want to have the drains out before going to anyones home.

Can you tell me, when will you have your drains out?

14 minutes ago, catwoman7 said:

I was numb from my navel to my public bone for at least a year. My sensation is now starting to come back. Some people lose it forever. With others it comes back, but it's often permanently numb at the incision line, as I understand. I didn't have that numbness with my brachioplasty or breast lift - or if I did, it didn't last that long. LBL is a different story.

If this level of numbness persists, that will be very strange!

4 minutes ago, ValerieInMexico said:

I am so happy for you!!!! It makes me hopeful. I hate pain meds.... I know I will need them, but I like to get off of them as soon as possible. My Surgery is 5 weeks away! My good news is I have a place to stay for my second week. A friend invited me to stay at her house sit, with the approval of the host. It is so kind of them. I want to have the drains out before going to anyones home.

Can you tell me, when will you have your drains out?

I have 5 drains. I am supposed to get 3 out after a week, and the last 2 out after 2 weeks. But with surgery schedule I will have to go 1.5 weeks to get my first set out. They are annoying, but still collecting a lot of fluid. So I'm glad to have them in and do their job, so I'm less swollen and avoid seromas. They look pretty gross, but they are easy to clean honestly.

Congrats on such a great report!!!! Woooohoooo look at your girlie you did it!!!

The numbness will hopefully diminish with time. Mine did for both of my lower abd. surgeries (alas no TTs involved but huge hip to hip incisions. Awesome news that twins are shakin' out and that you have sensation. That is super duper!!! And wooohooo on dodging the Rosemary's Baby Bad post op poop!!!

@sillykitty glad u are on the mend ❤️

Have the best possible weekend sequestered in the hotel room without jet setting BF. Glad you have embraced your five new fashion accessories... drainage tubes. Oh boy. What a trooper. Sweet and satisfying rewards await you, indeed. I am truly inspired by your courage and fortitude! And, very appreciative of the fact you are sharing the plastics process. Feeling some mixed emotions - my surgery is about five weeks away. She has her own surgery center at office, and if I am to understand correctly - I go home the same day. Comments here have advised otherwise. Pre-op Jan. 6th will be a time to address that. Hubby will take that first week off to navigate with me. I, too, was totally traumatized by a Rosemary's baby (that's the perfect term to describe that ordeal!!!!!!) and have hemorrhoids now. Some silly and cheerful reminders... that this too shall pass. AND, Santa definitely needs to deliver that well deserved sable fur; deed to the diamond mine; and new convertible, too. Keep well meow.

17 minutes ago, Sophie7713 said:

Feeling some mixed emotions - my surgery is about five weeks away. She has her own surgery center at office, and if I am to understand correctly - I go home the same day. Comments here have advised otherwise.

a lot of patients do go home the same day, but I'm really glad I had to stay overnight in the hospital. I think it would have been tough to be home (or in my case, at the hotel). I still felt like crap the next day, but I was definitely more functional.

1 hour ago, sillykitty said:

If this level of numbness persists, that will be very strange!

it does feel weird, but you kinda get used to it after awhile. In fact, when my sensation started coming back about a year later, I thought something was wrong. I kept feeling things like little twitches of pain, pulling, burning, and tingling. I thought maybe I'd pulled some muscle off a staple or something while exercising. I even emailed my surgeon's office (I was overseas at the time, so I couldn't call or make an appt to go in). But they didn't seem very concerned and just said to massage it when it was bothering me. In retrospect, I'm pretty sure it was the nerves starting to regenerate. Since the sensation has gradually gotten stronger. I don't know if it'll ever fully come back because I'm 17 months out now, but at least it's not as "dead" as it was.

12 minutes ago, catwoman7 said:

it does feel weird, but you kinda get used to it after awhile. In fact, when my sensation started coming back about a year later, I thought something was wrong. I kept feeling things like little twitches of pain, pulling, burning, and tingling. I thought maybe I'd pulled some muscle off a staple or something while exercising. I even emailed my surgeon's office (I was overseas at the time, so I couldn't call or make an appt to go in). But they didn't seem very concerned and just said to massage it when it was bothering me. In retrospect, I'm pretty sure it was the nerves starting to regenerate. Since the sensation has gradually gotten stronger. I don't know if it'll ever fully come back because I'm 17 months out now, but at least it's not as "dead" as it was.

I had a breast reduction almost 15 years ago. I lost sensation immediately on my nipples and was pretty bummed. About 2-3 years later I too started feeling those little twitches of pain, tingling, but mostly ITCHING. This went on, I think, for about a year or so. Then the itching stopped and I could feel them again, just like before the reduction. Soooo its possible you can get the full feeling back years down the road.

Edited December 14, 20196 yr by ms.sss

2 minutes ago, ms.sss said:

I had a breast reduction almost 15 years ago. I lost sensation immediately on my nipples and was pretty bummed. About 2-3 years later I too started feeling those little twitches of pain, tingling, but mostly ITCHING. This went on, I think, for about a year or so. Then the itching stopped and I could feel them again, just like before the reduction. Soooo its possible you can get the full feeling back years down the road.

oh great! I figured this far out I'd be lucky to get at least *some* sensation back - but your comment gives me some hope! (although like I said above, I'd kinda gotten used to the numbness...)

1 hour ago, ms.sss said:

I had a breast reduction almost 15 years ago. I lost sensation immediately on my nipples and was pretty bummed. About 2-3 years later I too started feeling those little twitches of pain, tingling, but mostly ITCHING. This went on, I think, for about a year or so. Then the itching stopped and I could feel them again, just like before the reduction. Soooo its possible you can get the full feeling back years down the road.

Was your reduction also a lift combo?

8 minutes ago, GreenTealael said:

Was your reduction also a lift combo?

I don't think they called it a lift in anyway, on the procedure listing is was just plain old "breast reduction". It was covered by provincial insurance so I didn't really have a choice. Though looking back I probably should have asked for a different technique. They used the lollipop incision which results in a higher nipple placement yes, but has a bulbous look at the lower part of the boob. Now that I lost a lot of weight, that bulbous look is gone (they just look deflated) but my nipples are still nice and high. So they don't look like regular droopy boobs, but still not the greatest.

Next week I am getting my arm lift and what is listed on the procedure listing as a "breast reduction revision", basically its to remove the excess skin on my side boob, but will also address the under nipple boob sag in the process.

8 hours ago, ms.sss said:

I don't think they called it a lift in anyway, on the procedure listing is was just plain old "breast reduction". It was covered by provincial insurance so I didn't really have a choice. Though looking back I probably should have asked for a different technique. They used the lollipop incision which results in a higher nipple placement yes, but has a bulbous look at the lower part of the boob. Now that I lost a lot of weight, that bulbous look is gone (they just look deflated) but my nipples are still nice and high. So they don't look like regular droopy boobs, but still not the greatest.

Next week I am getting my arm lift and what is listed on the procedure listing as a "breast reduction revision", basically its to remove the excess skin on my side boob, but will also address the under nipple boob sag in the process.

I cannot wait to have the very droopy girls raised up... After weight loss they literally look like missiles with the target being the floor! Went from a DD to C cup. Surgeon will adjust accordingly. I'd like to remain a C, but a B would be fine.

Hoping the lift means perky and no bra around the house. I get a new shallow little belly button, too!

A definite work in progress.

Let us know how the arm lifts goes?

Tomorrow i will be one week post op

Physically this has been much easier than I expected. Practically no pain from my breast augmentation. The sharp LBL pain passed in a few days.

But in someways it has been much harder than expected. I ache and I am sore. My tailbone aches from sitting. My lower back aches no matter if I sit, lay down, stand or walk. I have a near constant headache. I’m not sleeping well because I can’t get comfortable. Tylenol does nothing for me.

Mentally it’s hard to concentrate. Everything is mildly irritating. In everyday life I would have no problem surfing the internet all day or bingeing Netflix. But now it’s all just uninteresting. I had planned to get really caught up on work stuff with all this down time, but I’m just not mentally there.

The way I feel is surprising to me. I’m not very susceptible to dark moods. I’m generally very even keeled emotionally. But I just feel very blah ?

8 minutes ago, sillykitty said:

Tomorrow i will be one week post op

Physically this has been much easier than I expected. Practically no pain from my breast augmentation. The sharp LBL pain passed in a few days.

But in someways it has been much harder than expected. I ache and I am sore. My tailbone aches from sitting. My lower back aches no matter if I sit, lay down, stand or walk. I have a near constant headache. I’m not sleeping well because I can’t get comfortable. Tylenol does nothing for me.

Mentally it’s hard to concentrate. Everything is mildly irritating. In everyday life I would have no problem surfing the internet all day or bingeing Netflix. But now it’s all just uninteresting. I had planned to get really caught up on work stuff with all this down time, but I’m just not mentally there.

The way I feel is surprising to me. I’m not very susceptible to dark moods. I’m generally very even keeled emotionally. But I just feel very blah ?

are you still on painkillers? I get horrible headaches from those.

On 12/15/2019 at 10:02, catwoman7 said:

are you still on painkillers? I get horrible headaches from those.

No, have been off of them for 3 days now. I’m thinking of taking a Percoset this afternoon so I can take a really good nap and escape the aches for a little bit