X-post: 6 months post TT and brachio pix and unsolicited advice

Hi, everyone! Well, it's almost 3 years after my DS bariatric surgery (love, love, love it!!!!) and six months since I had my plastic surgery, so I thought I would do a major "before and after" for any of you considering plastics.

Cliff's Notes version: While I never thought I would EVER get plastics, I highly recommend it for those who want it! It really is the icing on my weight loss cake. Despite some telltale stretch marks (which, actually, probably are very normal given I had two kids) and some scars, some of the unpleasantness of my obese years has been "erased." I am still the same person, but this has helped me on my journey in a BIG way.

(Beware: half-nekkid pix coming. I do this to help others, as others on OH have generously helped me on my journey. So please be kind!)

After losing 200 pounds, I had lots of extra skin and fat in my upper and lower abdomen and some pretty annoying batwings. (As it turned out, all of that extra stuff weighed about 5-6 pounds. I thought it would weigh more, somehow.)

I fought (albeit a small fight because I followed their documentation hassles to the letter) my insurance to get them to cover my extended abdominoplasty (anchor-style, with a high vertical cut as well as the traditional horizontal TT cut) and self-paid $4,000 for my arms, since I already was going under on the insurance company's dime. Man, that was a great decision and money well-spent!

So here comes the parade of pix:

1) Here is a picture of me before my DS, at 344 pounds and a size 30-32. You can see I carried a lot of weight in my mid-section and arms:



2) Here's a relatively recent "after" picture, about 3 weeks after my TT and brachio. I weigh between 145 and 150 at any given time and wear a size 8 or 10:



3) Here's a "before" plastics pic of my torso and bat wings.  It looks like my panni is eating that poor underwear's waistband!!





4) Here's a six-months post-plastics picture:


5) Here's a close-up of one of my batwings, all marked up for surgery:



6) Here's a 6 months post-brachio arm. No more batwings! Scars be damned, I love wearing shortsleeve and sleeveless tops now! (Actually, the scars are not visible from the side or behind.)



7) Here's a pre-plastics picture of my torso, with the plastic surgeon's markings:



8) Here's an "after" in about the same position. Sorry it's blurry, but you get the idea:



Well, as you can see, I've gone through some changes. I honestly can say the plastics were uneventful and exactly as I expected. I expected some pain, some discomfort and got them. But I also got some freedom and major relief in the process. No more sores on my pubic area. No more back aches.

I still wear the same size clothes, but I do not have to wrestle with a 12-pack of muffins on the top of my pants. Not much jiggles when I run after my kids now. Sex is more comfortable and intimate. I feel good in my skin. EXCEPT for this posting, I am hardly ever self-conscious about my body.

My scars are still reddish in places but they are lightening and getting smoother by the day. I rub Bio-Oil on them after every shower. I used silicone sheeting for the first several weeks on them. I have every hope that they will fade well. However, if I stayed this way forever, that would be okay, too.

I DID go in for a small inpatient revision to my bellybutton. I had had a major icky hernia in my bellybutton before my DS and the tissue there stretched and healed strangely--the bellybutton got bigger. My PS did a simple revision a month ago and I like it so much better. This revision was covered by my insurance, as well.

While my thighs are kind of droopy and my breasts are rather deflated, I believe I am done with plastic surgery. I think I look like a 40-year old woman with some well-earned miles on her should look. That's all I ever wanted.

UNSOLICTED ADVICE:

1) If you are considering plastics, please know that plastic surgeons are not magicians. They cannot make us perfect. Have realistic goals, and you will get realistic results. For example, I have a lot of stretch marks. Unless they were in the extracted skin, I STILL have those stretch marks. No biggie, but you should know you may not walk out of this looking like a supermodel.

2) Be sure and find a good plastic surgeon. Ask around. Do online research. Interview them! This is your life--bother to put the work into getting the best you can (as you should have done with the type of bariatric surgery you chose and that particular surgeon). Make sure they have the same philosophy you do. I had a true "artiste" look at me and tell me he could make me look "perfect" in four staged procedures. He was going to remove things I had no idea needed removing! Believe you me, "perfection" sounded good, but not at that emotional and financial cost. I wanted ONE surgery, with the most bang (and least pain) for my buck.

If you want "perfection," by all means, seek an artist. Just make sure you and your doc talk and agree on what constitutes "success" to you. BTW, for those in the Chicago area, I had in-depth consults with three surgeons and went with Michael Lee at Northwestern (www.michaeljleemd.com). I think he and his office staff are super. 

2) Call your insurance company immediately and ask about any plastics coverage you may have. Use words like "reconstructive surgery" instead of "plastic surgery"--there's a difference. Follow their requirements to the letter. Document the hell out of ANY issues you have as you lose weight! Sores, back aches, depression, body image issues--anything that affects your activities of daily living or mental health.

By "document," I mean get your doc to take pix (or take them yourselfand date them), take notes and prescribe stuff like creams, medicine, etc. You MUST show that the excess skin is affecting you negatively and that you have made every reasonable effort to treat these issues non-surgically. If your current insurance does NOT cover reconstructive surgery, STILL document the hell out of your condition. Maybe your next policy will offer the coverage. Check it out during your next open enrollment.

3) Oh, and if you are a newbie considering weight loss surgery, please consider the duodenal switch (DS). It has the best long-term results and the most "normal" lifestyle in MY opinion. Today, I ate bacon, eggs, cheese, crescent rolls and a Diet Coke for breakfast. For lunch and snacks I grazed on cheese, crackers and doughnut holes. For dinner, I ate a big portion of bleu cheese meatloaf and mashed potatoes and Diet Coke. And I ate three huge Myrtles (chocolate, caramel, pecans) for dessert. No dumping, no foamies, no gas, no stuck food, no anything untoward. In fact, I am about to amble off into the kitchen for some more meatloaf before bedtime. For more info on the DS, visit: www.dsfacts.com  

If you have any questions, feel free to PM me. I will help you if I can.

All the best,

Nicolle

Nicolle,
This is a great post.  I think seeing the pre & post pics really helps pre-ops see what can be done with all our extra skin.   Your arms look great.  Plus, your mid section... mine looks like yours did... well for 18 more days anyway.  I can hardly wait.  Unfortunate for me, I haven't had any skin issues except for under my breasts with little bumps every once in a while.  Kaiser would probably do a lift on them.  But, I only want to go through this once and get the whole shebang and be done.  One healing period and my expectations are not for a model's body, just something that looks normal w/o a huge muffin top and a overhang that slaps if I run to the bathroom w/o tight jeans holding everything in

Research is so very important.

Wow! You are just days away from this! That is awesome!

I wish you well. Just make sure you stay on top of your pain meds, wear whatever compression garments they give you and rest. Oh, and ask them to weigh your excess skin, for giggles. It's fun to know that info!

I cannot wait to see your "after" pics. make sure you take some "befores," to. You will not regret it!

Good luck!

Nicolle

you look awesome!!!  Thanks so much for sharing our pics, they're realy helpful. 
I'm having plastics in just a few weeks breast lift and brachioplasty Jan 18th and sometime in Feb extended abdominoplasty and thigh lipo/lift.  I can not waitttt

Wow! That's coming up soon. Good luck! Be sure and take before pix--you'll never regret it.

Nicolle

Great post!  Thanks for posting the before/after pics - that's worth their weight in gold for someone considering plastics. 

I had my anchor tummy tuck in January of 10, and will be having my BL/BA almost a year to that date.  I would love a LBL, but finances pretty much are nixing that.  I am going to talk to the surgeon about maybe doing some lipo and a small inner thigh lift - to see if that will get me by...  my pre-op appt is this upcoming Wed.

The one thing I had a major issue with was the emotional aspect of the plastic surgery.  I know some people may not have it, but I did - and directly link it to the drains.  They were very difficult for me to deal with. 

BTW - you look great and your surgeon was indeed an artist! 

OMG! The drains were bad for me, too, from about Day 4-6. I actually felt some depression slink in the day before they were removed (on Day 6). I actually cried. The second they were taken out, I felt 1000x better after that!

Be sure and talk to your doc about getting the drains out as soon as is humanly possible this time around, since you were so miserable the last time.

Nicolle

You really look amazing... what splendid  results you've had.

Thanks so much!

Thanks again, Nicolle!!  You look absolutely wonderful!!!!

Thanks!
Joy.