Hi everyone,

I thought that I would start this thread mainly because I have found reading other peoples so helpful, it is so much better to read actual experiances than listen to a surgeon give you their veiws!

I actually looked into having a FTT done before I decided to get the band, I have had 6 kids and have a fairly horrific scar from and apppendectomy that got badly infected when I was a child.

Just before I had my initial appointment I decided to get the band fitted too, as much as anything to break the yo-yo pattern of dieting that I had fallen into for years now. One of my biggest worries was that I would have the TT and lipo and then 2 years later I would have put all the weight back on!

I discussed at length with my surgeon whether or not to leave the plastics until I had reached goal, but I am going to the maldives for 3 weeks for my 40th in September with my DH and I wanted to be looking good for that

I am very lucky in so far as in my surgeons words I have 'strong skin' but my tummy is a bit of a mess with the scar and the baby pouch left from the kids.I have NEVER had a flat tummy, even when I got down to 105lbs in my 20's so this will be a whole new experiances for me.

I am a bit gutted that I havent lost more weight, but I am going to get back into the zone now that Christmas is over and I am hoping to lose more in the next 5/6 weeks.

I have got my final consult and pre op on the 16th of Jan, and then the op is booked for the 11th of feb.

I am having major lipo (he thinks about 7/8 litres) and a FTT this time round, and then 6 months after that I want to have the puppies lifted back to their rightful place and refilled ( breast feeding 6 munchkins has not made the puppies happy) I asked him about doing it all at once but he said that 7 hours in theatre would be needed just for the FTT and lipo and he couldn't do a BL/Aug at the same time.So its just the bottom half of me that is going to get revampped this time. Does anyone know what is the minimum time that I can leave between the 2 ops?

I searched all over the net to find my surgeon, and I am having to go to France to see him, but I was so taken with his methods and te fact that he pioneered some of them ( he uses High Tension Stitching in a kind of quilting pattern under the skin so that you dont need drains, and he never cuts through the lymph system) and the fact that he trains others in this method that I figured I would rather travel.

The other thing that swung me towards him is that he keeps you in his private hospital for a week afterwards,with full access to morphine if you need it!! ;:speechles)

So thats me I will try to get my before pictures out of him when I go over this time so that you can see what he is up against!

Here is his website if anyone is interested, I think he is pretty amazing!

Docteur PASCAL - LYON - FRANCE

Nina x

Ahhh *blush* you are too kind!

When I was in with Pascal he was asking me what final look I was after and eventually he got what I was saying and said (in a very strong French accent) 'Ahhh I see, we are to drive your 'usband wild with desire' and I was like 'yup thats the mission' LOL

I can hardly imagine though and in some ways I am frightened to in case I end up disappointed, you know the secret picture that you have in your head, the one that you know will never be you but none the less you aspire to!

At the moment I am just thinking 'flat tum and waist, flat tum and waist...'

What do you think of when you think about it?

you know, i'll be happy with 'normal'... it doesnt have to be super flat and beautiful. it wont be beautiful cause my entire tummy has stretch marks on it, but right now i'm hoping for normal. to where people dont look at me then look down at my gut.

ideally, i want a flat tum and waist as well.

Hell, both of you are going to look damn good, I think!

I've only been able to find a couple of surgeons that are relatively close to me that have pictures of their work online. This guy particularly impressed me, but he doesn't have a lot of pictures up. This is the other group that I found that seems pretty good, but I'm not sure. I like the idea of having a female surgeon, but I REALLY like the work that Dr. Reath does. Any thoughts on either of those?

lauren,

thanks... i'll look up this guy after work. some plastics pics are a tad too graphic to look at here.

Oh Babes ((((hug)))) I am sorry I didn't mean to open any wounds. For what it is worth I think that you are going to be absolutely thrilled with your PS's work I have read up on him, he is the dogs danglies, I dont think that he would compromise his work by giving you something that is just 'ok' I think he is going to make you look goddam fantastic!! In fact I may even go so far to admit that he may be slightly (only slightly mind) more qualified than my PS.....

As for the stretch marks I actually only have one friend that doesnt have them!! They aren't something that bothers me, if he doesnt get rid of them all I can honestly say I wont be arsed, but I do want it to not stick out!!

Each new picture that you post you look happier and happier, after the surgery I hope that you will start to believe that you are beautiful too!

Consider yourself told off!

Each new picture that you post you look happier and happier, after the surgery I hope that you will start to believe that you are beautiful too!

That is SO true! We can practically see your spirits raising and your confidence increasing.

I'm thinking flat tum and waist too! I'm also having a breast lift, but starting to wonder if I shouldn't augment a little. I have very little tissue on the top. Was a D cup, but I'm not filling it out now. PS said that I would be a little smaller cup size, when the exta skin is taken away. He said they would be perky! I don't know what that means really. Are they going to be little and perky? I'm not sure if I care, I just can't visualize. He said when we do the back side and arms, we could augment, but I think I should decide and do it now. I just don't know what to do. My DH doesn't want be to augment because he says that it's harder to detect breast cancer and he doesn't mind the size they are now. I just want to look good, but I also don't want to feel like I'm settling. Like the PS's who work on bariatric patients and say you should be happy in clothes. I know I'm 53, but I want to look good. It's going to hurt and I'm going to be going through a lot, so I why shouldn't I look good when it's all said and done?

Karey, I read a very moving article the other day from a woman whose breast cancer was discovered quicker because she had augmented her breasts.It meant that her own tissue was pushed forwrads nearer to the front so she felt the lump sooner then she would have.

I am still all over the place regarding the puppies, i am very fond of them... I know that if I do have a lift I want then augmanting though cos I told my PS that I didnt just want them perky I wanted fullness at the top and he said the only way that I would get that is with them being augmented too.

Ultimately you have to think about what will make you happy, I have always had BIG puppies and as a consequence my waist has always looked smaller than it is, I dont want to lose that definition, but I have friends that dont like having big bazookas, its horses for courses really.

What do you think will give you the result that you will be thrilled with? I think if you are going to do it go the whole hog

It's going to hurt and I'm going to be going through a lot, so I why shouldn't I look good when it's all said and done?

I couldn't have said it better myself! I mean, I'm 24 and I want to feel comfortable and confident in my body, for once in my life, and not feel like hiding. I look bad because I'm fat right now, and I don't want to look bad in the future because I settled for "good enough" when it comes to plastics. I want "good," not "good enough."

Where are you guys seeing pictures?

Where are you guys seeing pictures?

There are galleries at www.makemeheal.com that you can look at. Many plastic surgeons also put examples of their work online.

I couldn't have said it better myself! I mean, I'm 24 and I want to feel comfortable and confident in my body, for once in my life, and not feel like hiding. I look bad because I'm fat right now, and I don't want to look bad in the future because I settled for "good enough" when it comes to plastics. I want "good," not "good enough."

The thing that really gets me is that most PS's wouldnt dare have that attitude with anyone who was a bmi of 25 so what makes them think that we have any lower an expectation from the surgery? We are going through the same amount of pain, why should we not expect the same results!

I dont just want good, I want it to make me feel fan-friggin-tastic!!!! Everyones perception of where that is is individual, but we should all come away feeling thrilled!

Nina x

Oh Babes ((((hug)))) I am sorry I didn't mean to open any wounds. For what it is worth I think that you are going to be absolutely thrilled with your PS's work I have read up on him, he is the dogs danglies, I dont think that he would compromise his work by giving you something that is just 'ok' I think he is going to make you look goddam fantastic!! In fact I may even go so far to admit that he may be slightly (only slightly mind) more qualified than my PS.....

As for the stretch marks I actually only have one friend that doesnt have them!! They aren't something that bothers me, if he doesnt get rid of them all I can honestly say I wont be arsed, but I do want it to not stick out!!

Each new picture that you post you look happier and happier, after the surgery I hope that you will start to believe that you are beautiful too!

Consider yourself told off!

hmm... maybe i should use more emoticons ... lol. ideally, i want it to be perfect, the flat tum and nice waist, but i just need normal and im ok with normal. i know not everyone (even 'normal' people) have perfect tums and great figures.

That is SO true! We can practically see your spirits raising and your confidence increasing.

thanks guys.... **blush**

It's going to hurt and I'm going to be going through a lot, so I why shouldn't I look good when it's all said and done?

i say go for it! the pain will still be there whether you augment or not... :tongue:

I couldn't have said it better myself! I mean, I'm 24 and I want to feel comfortable and confident in my body, for once in my life, and not feel like hiding.

you took my feelings and put it in your words... perfect Lauren!

The thing that really gets me is that most PS's wouldnt dare have that attitude with anyone who was a bmi of 25 so what makes them think that we have any lower an expectation from the surgery? We are going through the same amount of pain, why should we not expect the same results!

I dont just want good, I want it to make me feel fan-friggin-tastic!!!! Everyones perception of where that is is individual, but we should all come away feeling thrilled!

Nina x

you guys rock so much!!

Ok this is completely off topic, but how on earth do you manage to put quotes from everyone in one post?????

I can quote one person but loads of different ones from different posts:confused::rolleyes2::confused:

Ok newbie question I know, but I have tried eveything I can think of and it drives me mad that I cant do it!

Any help will be gratefully received!

Nina x

Nina thanks for posting this.

I am not beyond going elsewhere for surgery. (flew to Colorado from Florida for my band)

I am planning on breast lift then tummy OVERHAUL. The rest of me isn't so bad even big.

Interesting read about the quilt like stitching.

Losingjusme is using one of the best surgeons in the US for the high tension tummy tuck technique, he also uses quilting stitches to reattach the skin to the fascia ( in fact I think that he pioneered some of the techniques) ask her for his full details.

If I was in the US that is who I would be using!

My PS is wonderful and the aftercare in France is blissful compared to anywhere else, 1 week in hospital and then a nurse coming to you daily to check your dressings and wound, that was what sold it to me in the end - that and the fact that he said he would make sure that I will ' drive my husband wild with desire'......

I would look around, look at examples of their work on the net, see how many before and afters feature people who actually NEED the surgery, I was shocked by how many of them were just operating on people who only needed a little tweak - if that!

I would say have a high lateral tension tummy tuck, it is the rolls royce of TT, read up on it on the net so you understand how it works, I was sold on it immediately!

HTH

Nina x

Today I was in a meeting for a church group and they started talking about an article that came out saying how Utah has the most plastic surgeries of any state, per capita. These ladies were saying, how could people put there lives at risk for an optional procedure. Then they started telling PS horrow stories. It really irrated me. I knew that one of the ladies had had breast augmentation and a tummy tuck! Of course, I didn't tell them about my plans, so it wasn't anything personal, but still. People have more opinions that the drug store has pills! Not what I wanted to hear today!

just super quick resp before bed

multi quote click it on each post u wanna quote then last post hit quote

I'm ok will pm u tomorrow

c