Gonna have a perky butt!!!

Saw the plastic surgeon today & decided to forget for now about fixing my thighs. I have read too many horror stories lately & they scared me off. So, instead I am having what my surgeon refers to as "stage 2" of the Lower body lift. He does it in 2 stages so it is easier on the patients both in surgery & during recovery. I had Stage 1 done 3 months ago today, the Abdominoplasty (Tummy Tuck) & it turned out very well. Both of us are thrilled with the results & he raved over my belly button! Says it's one of the nicest ones he has seen. Of course it was his handiwork but I always thought a belly button was a belly button. I feel pretty smug knowing I have a nice BB. My surgery has been scheduled for Aug 22 at Sartori in Cedar Falls. I'll be spending the night there & then for a few days will be lying on my tummy. He will remove skin from the backside, tightening the butt & also the lower back. This will lift & smooth the thighs some & he will be doing some lipo on the outer thigh to get rid of saddlebags. Should be back to normal & able to return to work in 2 weeks. Now I'm getting excited ! Dixie

Did you get your insurance to pay for your TT? I desprately want one but am afraid of the cost and that insurance won't pay. Before I had surgery, I was always having a rash. Now that I want one, do you think I can find one?? Isn't that the way it goes? I'm envious of your soon to be perky butt!

No, we never even tried to get insurance to cover it. Like you, I had the rashes before I lost weight but not once after. I hardly ever sweat anymore, even at the gym, and I am in the pool 4-5 days a week & I think the chlorine probably helps. From what I hear, you really have to have lots of problems with rashes to get it paid for & then they only pay for a panniectomy. That surgey will remove the extra skin but does nothing with the underlying muscles. I have seen gals who have just had a panniectomy. They definately look better but they still have a poochie stomach because the muscles are still all stretched out. Mine are tight as a drum. It's as if I never had a baby. As a matter of fact, I told the surgeon today that I was concerned because I can no longer do situps because it hurts to do it. He just smiled & said I no longer need to do situps or crunches because you do them to try to tighten & strengthen that muscle & he already did it for me. How cool is that? By the way, big flabby butts run in my family. Even when I was small, it wasn't! Dixie

Dixie wow a perky butt I am jealous! Mine saggs and my thighs oh my ! How much is it for step 2 I know what the figures were from step 1 is it about the same price? I am so happy for you! Take care Kim L.

Kim, It's almost the same price. The only difference is that the compression garment will be $10 more because it is longlegged instead of just like a panty girdle. The price has gone up since my TT but since I had surgery there once, I get it at the previous price. I think she said it would have been about $500 more. When the nurse called me back to give me the surgery date she asked if I planned to stay the night at the hospital & I was surprised as it wasn't offered as an option when I was there. Apparently, I could choose to not spend the night but in my opinion, that $173 is well spent. My husband is helpless when it comes to helping out after I come home from the hospital as it is, so I appreciate being able to stay the night where someone who knows what they are doing is only a call button away. The care is different from what we normally expect though. You bring yor own drugs & dispense them yourself. I had to tell them when I took them but otherwise it was up to me. I didn't have an IV when they took me to my room so pain management was just by pills. They did have me wearing the inflatable things on my legs so the nurses had to help me by removing them when I needed to use the bathroom & they helped me get up but that was pretty much the extent of their care & that really was all I needed, a bed, food, and someone knowledgable in case there was a problem. Dixie

Morning Dixie, That farmer of yours isn't going to recognize you! Perky woman you are I'm really excited for you, can't wait to see pics of the new you. I'm still debating on the tummy, tell ya the thighs could use an uplifting that's for sure. Lately I've been getting rashes again can't figure it out since that has been almost non existent. My arms are really sagging bad also, no short sleeves here, I inherited the "saggies" from my grandma, her's did the same. Use an expression of Janet's, my arms sag so bad I can paint a flag on them & wave ole glory! Hugs Carolyn

Ya, he won't recognize it, at least. The doctor did warn me that the results won't be so dramatic as the TT. My bottom was really huge before the weghtloss. I swear I could carry a stack of books on that shelf! It shrunk down but is really saggy & still wide. When I am in the pool doing my water exercise, I can feel it fluttering in the water. That will be stopping, I guess. I have saggy arms also but not as bad as many I have seen. They don't look good but I'll keep them the way they are. A good reminder of where I have been, I guess & maybe it will help keep me where I'm at. I love Janet's expression. Maybe we could give a body painter lots of business this summer. You know, I really should mention how I am paying for this. We aren't wealthy, by any means. As you mentioned, my husband is a farmer and I work so we are doing OK financially but there is no way we could swing this except for my parents. We lost Dad 8 years ago and my dear Mom just 2 years ago last month. They were very careful with their money & my siblings & I received a nice amount (not a great amount) from their estate. I planned to put mine away for our retirement but my sister & brother suggested that I use part of it for something special. Mom was very concerned about how she looked (oh, let me be honest, she was vain!) and she was pleased that I was going to have the WLS, but asked me not to have it until after she died because she didn't want to see me in pain. She didn't realize how long it would take for me to go through the system jumping through all the various hoops so she was gone almost 7 months by the time I had it. She would have been horrified by the extra skin on my tummy & I know would have recommended plastic surgery, probably even offering to loan the money to me to pay for it. I know she is smiling down on me, cheering me on & is glad she was able to help make it all possible. Dad, on the other hand, would have said, "Ditz, (his nickname for me) you look beautiful no matter how much skin you have." And he would have meant it!!!! He would think I was nuts to have the surgery, any surgery not necessary to save my life. When I had my hysterectomy, I woke up & saw him watching me from the foot of the bed, with his arms crossed across his chest & just shaking his head, like he was thinking,"What has she gotten herself into now?" I know it was a hallucination caused by the morphine but I like to think he came to watch over me. He would be happy that I'm happy. So, if when I am old & eating dog food because we didn't invest this money, I'll have a nice flat tummy & a perky butt. Nice trade off. Dixie

"Ditz", you are too funny!!! Can't imagine any part of you will ever reach the ground now with the tight abs and tight a**!!! Your hubby will keep you too busy!!! Congrats - still playing the insurance game here on my end! God bless, Andrea

Hmmm Guess I'll have to get used to being on top, right Andrea? From what I understand, I won't be sleeping on my back for awhile. Here's hoping your insurance comes through & quickly. It's be nice to have it done while you are off this summer. Dixie

Okay ~~ we know she is doing this to get out of doing chores again. Those poor calves will probably starve to death!!!! You know I'm just joking ~~ a tight butt & tummy -- I'm sooo jealous. You are going to look so hot. I think you should reconsider that belly button ring. Al will be so worked up he'll never get his chores done.... Got to give you a bad time ~~ I'm really happy for you. Be sure & let me know if you need anything!!!! (Except for feeding the calves!!) Janie