Difficult Decisions

Hey all!

Not quite sure how to start this message as I have had a lot of thoughts running through my mind regarding my surgery options. I am hoping ya'll can provide any insight or advice from your own experiences.

After losing and keeping off over 100 pounds, I was left with a saggy empty skin sack that I so excited to get rid of. The question is, how much of it is worth getting rid of? A huge portion of it is in the upper portion of my abdomen and will remain if I have an extended tummy tuck. I received a letter from insurance saying they will cover a panniculectomy, but not a tummy tuck. My surgeon said he can combine this procedure with a fleur de lis and that is the only way we can use the coverage. I am worried that I will regret such a huge procedure, but my surgeon and even my parents seem to be leaning towards this option. I am 18 and starting my first semester of college. To utilize the insurance coverage, I would have to spend my winter break having the surgery. I wonder if I will have the time to recover. I also wonder if pregnancy 10 years down the road will be even harder with a fleur de lis vs tummy tuck.

I hope this makes some sense as my mind is confused of my options of fleur de lis or extended tummy tuck. I simply wish I could know how big of a difference the fleur de lis will make. Any pictures or stories or anything at all would be greatly appreciated!

Well I can't offer you experience on anything except for how I'm feeling right over 2 weeks out from Tummy Tuck. At 15 days out, I feel really good. Could I go to school, heck yeah. I think after a week or a week and a half you could go back to school. But everyone is different and recovery is different. I would do this again in a heartbeat. The good thing is that you are young now, if you did this now, you would benefit from it in the long run. My only regret is that I didn't do this sooner. Good luck to you.

It's hard to say what can happen without seeing pictures. I know people have posted here about upgrading their panniculectomy to a full tummy tuck (incluiding muscle tightening) so I'm not sure why your surgeon won't do that, without the vertical cut. I thought I would need a fleur-de-lis after losing 200 pounds after the age of 40, but my surgeon is amazing and my abdomen, even my upper abdomen is completely flat.

I do not think you should get a fleur-de-lis at such a young age, especially if you want children later. Get a second opinion with a different surgeon.

Laura

The fluer de lis will leave you with a scar going down your stomach. Is that something you can handle?

Honestly, at 18, I'd do it. I am 29...I started losing at 18, it took me 5 yrs to lose 100 pds. I am just now starting to get into the plastics process (self pay).

I feel like I've wasted my whole 20s with extra weight and skin.

So if I was 18, could get it done for free...I would. You are young, skin heals. Get a tat to cover the scar or whatever.

I agree with getting a second opinion to see if they can lipo the top half and pull it down.

It had something to do with the procedure codes. It didn't make sense to me either of why he couldn't alter the incision of the panni. The fleur de lis would come out to the same price as the tummy tuck with the coverage. But I don't think I would have enough time to get another opinion with school and the coverage ending in February. It just feels so rushed and I want to feel confident in my decision.

What will make you more confident?

I will tell you straight, if insurance was paying for a TT for, i'd do it.

Majority of us are self pays, who spend a grip on surgery costs.

Don't mess around, change insurance providers and end up with a flabby belly on technicalities.

I remember you posting a while back that you were consulting with Dr. LoMonaco. What were his recommendations for you?? He was my surgeon and I think he's the best.

Laura

Dr. L thought I would be a good candidate for an extended tummy tuck. We never did discuss other procedures such as the fleur de lis, but he did talk of leaving room and not being as tight as possible for future pregnancy. Unfortunately, my dad is not too will to take the drive and I have not met with him in person. 

I'm not sure about what happens with future pregnancies, as I am WELL past wanting any of that!

But I had an extended TT and fleur de lis.  I had a panni and a roll above my belly button.  My surgeon waffled on the fleur de lis...and left it up to the end to see if, on the table, he thought he could get things tight enough without the vertical incision.  I was fine with either one - I just didn't want a muffin top!

I have pictures of my before and after TT on my profile if you want to take a peak.  My belly button was pretty wide after surgery - I recently had that revised.  It stretched a lot.  So that isn't very accurate - but you can get the idea on the rolls.

And 2 weeks off before back to school?  You'll be fine as long as you don't have to carry a heavy backpack...

If, as you say, a "huge portion" of the extra skin is above the bellybutton, then your best bet is probably the fleur-de-lis procedure.

I was so against having one, because I didn't want the vertical scar. But I was told by 3 different surgeons that the skin would still be flabby up top if I had a traditional tummy tuck. Take your shirt off and bend over at the waist, at a 90 degree angle. Do you have rolls of skin that hang downwards from your upper stomach? I do. I also have a nice little fat pad that almost looks like abs if you squint (haha, wishful thinking. But it's fat). My doctor explained that that extra skin would get pulled down, but you can't do anything about the horizontal aspect. You can't tighten it around your ribs, and there is laxity in both the up-down direction and the side to side direction.

I thought long and hard about it, and decided that I'm not that hard-set on wearing a teeny tiny bikini any time soon. I'd rather have a svelte little waist, an hourglass figure, than have a stomach that's flat in only one dimension. Also, I already have extensive stretchmarks all over my stomach, so I don't think I'd be wanting to show off my stomach anyway.

I asked my surgeon about childbearing. He said it's absolutely not an issue. He's had patients who have had the surgery and haven't had any problems with pregnancy or their belly. The skin stretch is so gradual that your body has time to adjust. That's not to say that your belly won't be saggy again after you give birth, but even non-tummy-tuck women deal with that.

I'm having my fleur-de-lis tummy tuck on sept 30. I found that, while I was really disappointed with the idea at first, once I made the decision, it got easier and now I'm completely looking forward to it. There are some people on the makemeheal abdominoplasty forums (www.makemeheal.com) who have had it, and their 'after' pics are AMAZING. We're talking 6-pack abs.

Finally, there is skin makeup that you can get to cover up the vertical incision if you do want to bare your belly.

That's just my 2 cents. Don't let anyone pressure you though. You ARE young. You have time. If you don't feel comfortable with your decision, wait. Take the time to consult with another surgeon. I consulted with 4 before even picking one. There are surgeons who will do virtual consultations. You can take pics of your stomach from all angles (including bent over, that's an important one) and ask specifically if they'd recommend the fleur de lis.