Five days post op LBL and BL update (with pics)

Hi OH friends,

Thanks for your well wishes and notes of encouragement.  After my LBL and BL last Friday, the weekend was ROUGH.  I was in severe pain and couldn't tell if I had made the right decision.  Luckily Monday I woke up and felt a little more human.  Yesterday was even better - I can use my arms to hoist myself out of bed, make coffee, shower myself, attach my binder.  I even worked most of yesterday (I work in Marketing from home).  Today is even better - I will likely work the whole day (minus my Oxy nap in the afternoon).  I got up and showered and my incisions look good, I think.  Tomorrow is my post-op appointment with my surgeon.  I have no idea if he will take out one of my drains, but they don't bother me much so I will do whatever he says best.  I am still not fully upright but I no longer walk like a gorilla.  To someone on the street, I would look slightly hunched but not freakishly so.

I am posting pics since I know as i was researching these procedures, I was obsessed with reading about how people were doing and seeing how they were looking.  I still have some real pain in my abdomen from the muscle tightening but I am so thrilled with my results even this early out.  My ass even looks kind of awesome.

I am still UP 10 lbs and I forgot to take measurements so I can't tell how many inches I am up or down.  I do know that I LOVE my new shape. And it's only going to get better as time goes by.

I feel so fortunate that I only needed to take 2 or 2.5 days off work - that means I can use more days for vacations throughout the year :)  (clearly my priority ha ha).

My mom is still here until Saturday and having someone to wait on me for the first four days was necessary.  I can't imagine doing this on my own.  I can never repay her.

Oh if anyone has any suggestions - despite drinking Miralax, taking Colace and Senna, I haven't had a BM since surgery.  Should I drink a bottle of prune juice?

Thanks again for your encouragement.  Em

Glad to see you are hanging in there and that you are able to work and rest.  Looking good too!

As for the BM - I drank MOM and took 4 colace each night and had no issues.  Maybe give that a try?  Also proping your feet on a stool (or in my case the bathtub which is right across from the toilet) allows you to be in the right position on the toilet and helps you to not push (or use those painful tummy muscles).  Sounds silly but it's very effective.  Good luck!

Ash

You look great!  Thanks for posting the pictures and the update.  It is encouraging to me, as I prepare for my abdominoplasty.

best wishes,

Carol

I am happy you are doing so well and appreciate the information as I prepare for my own surgery.  

Your doing so great! I added clearly fibre to my bottled water and drank that all day, it helped a lot. 

Oh, MY!  My experience has been very similar to yours, including the constipation.  I'm trying to drink more and today feels like a day when I can eat.  I tried to go off pain pills yesterday and by early evening realized that was not a good decision.   I took a full dose last night and half a dose this morning.

I did not had the great lift, but at the age of 66 and having carried 100 extra pounds most of those years, I'm not sure I want to go through a procedure for fixing the same thing Victoria's Secret can correct,

I start work again tomorrow.  That might not go well.  But I merely have to sit through 3 meetings.

My stomach looks misshapen.  My new belly button sits in the middle of a cleft.  But things look slightly different today than yesterday, so I may be seeing swelling reduction.  And, I'm so looking forward to clothes shopping.  Much of that will be done in my own closet.  When I first lost weight I would buy clothes  that might fit someday.  WE'll as soon as the swelling goes down an the muscles have knitted themselves back together, AND the drains come out, I will shop.  :-)

I know everyone is an individual, but how long did you all have wear the drains??

I'm 5 days out today and feeling pretty good. Not too much of an appetite but working on it. I will probably work from home tomorrow. Yay! Also I had a BM on day 3 but I have added fiber to all my fluids and also take senna and colace with every vicodin. I know you're way beyond this point by now, Dcgirl, but figured I would post for others who might be lurking. :)

Em,

You are my hero! Bless your heart for the post. I know it's been a tough time but you are doing awesome. So happy your mom is there with you. Hard to believe you are working already. Thanks for the pictures too. You're in my prayers. You look amazing. So pretty and thin. All of your hard work has been so worth it. Keep us posted.

Robin