LEVEL WITH ME, HOW BAD IS THE POST OP PAIN REALLY?

Hi there all,

Every now and again I show up with a question.  In the end, pain is my biggest worry.  This time is no acception. 

Panniculectomy, I hope I have the term correct (but not likely the spelling).  Has anyone had this done with no interior work (tummy tuck?) whatsoever?  I have seen wonderful results from this surgeon with the identical procedure. 

If I am approved, the excess skin from the navel town will be lopped off and I'll be sewn up along the bikini line.  How painful was it; that is, knowing pain is subjective, what was it like for you?  How long did recovery take?  Any complications?  Any common risk factors I should be aware of? 

As always, thanks plastic forum folks for your ever helpful information. 

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Not sure about just a panni removal but I had an LBL and was pleasantly surprised that the level of pain was very low. I was off pain med w/ the exception of sleeping at 5 or 6 days out (2 were in the hospital).  At times it was more uncomfortable to sit in harder chairs rather than any major pain.

Not sure about Panni either but I was wonderfully surprised at the level of pain with my TT.  Took the big drugs for 2 days then nothing but ES Tylenol.  I had psyched myself up for terrible pain and it simply did not happen. 

You can see in my signature the surgery I had a week ago.  I'm still taking 3 or 4 of my pain pills a day.  But I'm weaning off every day so today will be less.  I am horrible with pain and I geared myself up for the worst.   It's not as bad as I expected, somewhat worse than my two c-sections since my breasts hurt too. 

The good thing for me has been that I can find comfortable sitting and sleeping positions and I do get up and walk as directed.  Those two things, plus the pain pills, make it manageable!   I can already tell you, still in some pain, that it's worth every bit of it!  My mind still doesn't believe what my mirror shows!

I've started itching and that's actually worse than the pain!  I didn't want to scratch the pain but last night I woke myself up trying to scratch a spot - OUCH! 

Good luck to you!!!
Laina

I had LBL , Medial Thigh Lift, BA/BL.  No Pain pills after leaving the Hospital the next day.  I was uncomfortable yes, but mostly exhausted and the most painful was the staples used in the in the groin it was impossible to get comfortable w/o their poking.

Hello there
I can echo the others, I didn't have the Panni, instead I had extended tt with muscle tightening and an arm lift.  I was very sore for sure, but after day 3, I didn't even take a Tylenol.  I was a bit tired but not in any kind of real pain.  On a scale of 1-10, I would say maybe a 5 the first day or two.  I was in Mexico for a total of a week, 3 nights in the hospital, and 4 in a hotel.  We walked alot after day 3, like 10-12 blocks at a time to go eat lunch, etc.  I flew home and due to storms in the Midwest, it was a really long day because I was rerouted several times.  Instead of arriving at 7 pm, it was 3am with a 2 hour drive home.  I rested and slept alot the next day, but after that, I was pretty good.  I drove the next day to the store and ran a few quick errands.  All in all, it really wasn't any big deal (although I did have a complication with my arms)

Eat your protein, walk as much as you can, drink your fluids, and follow your doctor's orders, and you'll be fine!  Good luck!

PS  This is the best advice I have:  start taking either a laxative or stool softeners as soon as you start your pain meds.  Every time you take something for pain, take a softener as well.  When that magic moment happens, you will be SO glad you did.  If not, you will be in a wee bit of hurt. :)

Ugh...Im feeling bad even as I type this to be a downer...since all the other posters seem to be handling their surgery post op pain so well...but the truth is...I had TT with muscle tightening and breast augmentation about 5 weeks ago and I'm still hurting.  No so much where the incision is, because your tummy is numb from the nerves being cut...so,  you don't really feel the incision much,  but my middle abdomen is very sore, I suspect from the muscle tightening.  Maybe you won't have as ruf a time since you aren't doing that part.  Also, the breast aug. is very very sore.  I think anytime you deal with muscle,  you have more pain.  And in addition, I had quite alot of liposuction at the same time, and THAT is really painful.  Leaves horrible bruises and then hard spots that are just now starting to soften up.

All that being said,  your surgeon will make sure you have any pain medication and support you need.  I took the heavy duty pain pills for the first three weeks, week one as often as possible around the clock, then week two and three as needed or for sleeping.  I still take tylenol now when I just can't stand it.  I have a good day, then the next day can be down again, so....my best bit of advice is plan to rest, plan to do as lttle as possible for a minimum of three weeks...maybe longer.  And don't expect your energy level to return for awhile,  mine is just starting to come back slowly.

Also,  not everybody...but I have experienced a bit of depression post op.  I've come to learn that it is fairly common.  A combination of emotions (guilt, fear, disappointment if you've had unrealistic expectaions, etc.) along with the fact that anesthesia and pain medication are "depresents" lack of energy, etc,....I wasn't prepared for how "blue" i've been feeling.  I wish I would have known more about this possibility going into it, so I could be better prepared.  If you are prone to depression, it's more likely to happen.  I guess the stats are that it happens to about 10-20percent of post op patients. 

Good luck.  You'll be fine!  And I hope that this honest post helps!  Pain is subjective as you said, and as you can see from the various responses you've received! 

Thank you for sharing your experience with us.  I have heard that liposuction is the absolutely most painful thing ever, which is scary, since I'm about to have some.  What you say about post-op depression is true of quite a few surgeries, and patients may also experience sleep disturbances such as insomnia (I know I did post-WLS!)

Sorry to scare you.  The operating room nurse that I had warned me before my surgery that Lipo is one of the most painful.  She had some too, and she told me that she had to be honest, it was the hardest part to recover from.....