I am so excited to finally be posting here! I just got off the phone from scheduling my surgery! I will be having an extended tummy tuck on December 17! I have struggled with this decision..having lots of guilt issues mostly. Spending this kind of money on myself when I have 6 children, it's right before Christmas, etc. But when I look at myself in the mirror I don't feel like a person who has lost 113 pounds because of this big belly still there making me still look like an almost 300 pound person in my head anyway. I've worked so hard and I still have a little more to lose. .hopefully will get very close to goal before my surgery. My bandiversary is a couple weeks away still and I've come so far. I've done a lot of reading here and followed most of your journeys. I so appreciate you sharing your stories and hope mine will be helpful to someone coming along the path behind me. I look forward to everyone's advice and wisdom as my date gets closer!

Susan

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Mom To:

Hannah, Logan

Lance,

Hayden,

and the TWINkies

Mason & Morgan

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Ok, I have a question for all those of you who have had the TT. How close to your goal were you when you had your tt done? What was your weight? I was hoping to have dropped 10-15 pounds before surgery but it just isn't going anywhere! All the weight I have left to lose is in this belly and while I am sure the surgery won't take it all off ..I am upset to be this far over my goal with surgery 9 days away now. I have about 22 pounds to goal total.

Susan

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Mom To:

Hannah, Logan

Lance,

Hayden,

and the TWINkies

Mason & Morgan

=n=n=n=n=n=

Susan: You're going to be fine. You need to concentrate on getting lots of good protien and quality food into your body. You're going to lose some weight with the surgery. Also, you can lose weight after your tummy tuck. I lost an additional 20 pounds and everything still looked good. Godd luck! I'll be thinking of you!

Well ...tomorrow is the big day! I am actually going to the hospital tonight to spend the night with my girlfriend who is having her Lap Band surgery today (with my surgeon and everything!LOL). So I am staying with her tonight so my hubby doesn't have to get all the kids up at the crack of dawn to drive me up there (about 40 minutes away) ...so I'll just get up and go check myself in in the morning! LOL I'm a little anxious knowing I'll be alone for most of the day, it'll be late tomorrow evening before my family can come up to see me...and the nerves hit me yesterday so I am a little jittery now ...but so looking forward to the results that I hope to see from this. I am still disappointed I didn't get to the weight I was hoping to before surgery, in fact I gained a couple of pounds what with all the candy baking I've had to do the past few days! LOL But ..hopefully this surgery will kick start the weight loss again and I'll be at goal in a few weeks. So ..I'll see you all on the other side I guess!

Susan

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Mom To:

Hannah, Logan

Lance,

Hayden,

and the TWINkies

Mason & Morgan

=n=n=n=n=n=

Good Luck on your surgery tommorow. we will be thinking of you and sending healing thoughts your way!!

Best of luck. You'll do great!

Susan: Yeah, you're big day is finally here! Don't let the nerves get you down. I'll be thinking of you tomorrow. May the flatlands be kind to you! Good luck!

Think of you today! Hope all is going well. Sending healing energy your way!

Thanks for the well wishes ..I came through surgery just fine. I've struggled the past few days as I am sure those of you who have been here understand. I knew it was going to hurt but did not expect this kind of pain. I did not tolerate my meds well and have had to go off them altogether but I am doing ok with it. I would feel so much better if my body weren't so tightly wrapped in this saran wrap like stuff ..it's killing me!! I ended up having the full 360 done, my dr was very happy with the results and I know I will be too ...I am just so over feeling like my belly button has been sewn to the back of the chair I am sitting in through my body!! He told me they took off 11 pounds of skin and tissue which far exceeded my expectations! I got on the scale today out of curiosity ..in full clothes, binder and full drains I was 10 pounds down from surgery morning so I expect it to be even better in a couple weeks. I do have 2 drains that are driving me crazy but I am thankful to just have 2 I guess. I go for my post-op on Tuesday morning and if I can't get the drains out yet I just PRAY they take this saran wrap off because I'm going to go crazy if they don't!!! :biggrin:

~Susan

Susan: Glad everything worked out and you're still with us! The first few days are rough. I'd ask for a different pain med if you can't tolerate what you gave them. You need something to take the edge off. Sounds like you're going to have a wonderful result. Don't try and do too much. Only 2 drains? You're lucky. I had 6 with both of my surgeries. Don't get too disappointed if the drains don't come out. My doc wouldn't take them out until the drained less than 16 cc for over 36 hours. How much are your drains collecting? Hope you have some good movies and can try and sleep and relax. Welcome to the flatlands!

Congrats Susan. You know, you are the first person to mention the saran wrap. Do you think all doctors use that and people just haven't been mentioning it on the site, or is your doctor doing something special?

Have a happy holiday! What a great present!

Susan: Glad everything worked out and you're still with us! The first few days are rough. I'd ask for a different pain med if you can't tolerate what you gave them. You need something to take the edge off. Sounds like you're going to have a wonderful result. Don't try and do too much. Only 2 drains? You're lucky. I had 6 with both of my surgeries. Don't get too disappointed if the drains don't come out. My doc wouldn't take them out until the drained less than 16 cc for over 36 hours. How much are your drains collecting? Hope you have some good movies and can try and sleep and relax. Welcome to the flatlands!

Yea, I've talked to several people who had 4-6 drains so I am very happy to only have come out with the two. I am feeling better today but I think I've got some swelling going on because I am seriously uncomfortable in this stupid saran wrap again and it has to be that ..the stuff is so tight I can't take a deep breath! I PRAY it come off tomorrow ..if the drains have to stay in I can live with that (although I am praying they come out too! LOL) but this wrap stuff is more than I can take! My drains are not putting out much at all ..I was told to empty them every 4 hours and I might empty them every 14 or so and there has not been more than 30ml in either one of them since yesterday. .I'm hoping that means they'll come out too!

~Susan (too sore to care about my siggy) lol

Congrats Susan. You know, you are the first person to mention the saran wrap. Do you think all doctors use that and people just haven't been mentioning it on the site, or is your doctor doing something special?

Have a happy holiday! What a great present!

I don't know ..and I wouldn't call it special, it's driving me crazy!! lol I was able to peel a little corner of it up today ..I didn't take it off although I was sure tempted! I can tell it isn't going to feel good when it does come off! It's so tight over my belly button there is an air pocket there! lol I know I've swollen alot today because I was more comfortable yesterday and now the stuff is so tight again I can barely stand up. My back is sore from being so hunched over with this stuff ..if not for it, I could stand much more upright. UGH! I go see my dr in the morning ..praying I get rid of as much as possible!

~Susan (too sore to care about my siggy) lol

Susan,

Not sure how I missed this thread. Congrats to you!!!!Hope you get out of the wrap as soon as possible. Hope you're feeling better and not in too much pain. :thumbup: I'm just starting my doctor search myself and saving so I don't have to finance it. Hang in there and Merry Christmas to you!!!! What a great present this is.

Sam

Someone is truly testing me! Not only am I trying to recover from this surgery that has really kicked my butt, but all 6 of my kids and my dh got a stomach bug! The kids were puking every few minutes all around me. I was scared to death it would hit me too, and it did ..only it affected me from the other end if you know what I mean :thumbup:

Anyway ..because everyone was so sick I ended up driving myself to the surgeon yesterday. They took the stinking plastic off finally ..that felt good, I can actually take a deep breath now. He said everything looks great! He wanted to leave the drains in a few more days, which was fine, I was more concerned with the stupid plastic wrap. He did tell me he would come in on Christmas Day if I stopped draining and he'd take them out for me as a present :sad: I don't think that will happen but I have another appt next Tuesday and I'm sure they'll come out then. I do have a little of the "Ken doll" thing going on but it's just swelling and I can live with that.

I was super stupid and decided to stop by the store while I was out yesterday. I can still barely walk, what the heck was I thinking?!? I was in there over an hour and was so exhausted. Carrying my purse hurts right now let alone lifting bags of stuff. I also had the very pleasant experience of the stomach bug hitting me while I was in the store ..and of course I was walking around hunched over the cart so there was no hope of stopping it. ..so I had to hit the shower as soon as I got home and I pretty much collapsed after that.

I am taking it easy and not doing much of anything. I am finally feeling better after a miserable evening yesterday going back and forth to the bathroom all evening. I got on the scale this morning and am down 16 pounds from my surgery one week ago today! (that was fully dressed with full drains ...so I expect it's a little lower than that!) WOOHOO ...at least there is that to be happy about!

~Susan (still too tired to care about my siggy)

Susan: So sorry about the flu stuff! That sucks especially when your tummy is so sore. Glad you got the seran wrap off. I've never heard of that set up before. 16 pounds! That is freakin fantastic! You're doing great. Give yourself and break and a pat on the back! The pain and tiredness gets better every day. Swell hell will pass. Hang in there!