Had My Inner Thigh Lift....Ouch!

 I had my inner thigh lift done by Dr Joseph Capella yesterday.  This was the last phase of my plastics, having done a LBL, Brachio, and BL/BA with him in the spring.

My thighs are bandaged up and I cant remove them until tomorrow, so I'm dying to see the results.  He removed about 2 pounds of skin from my thighs, which were mostly deflated.  Along with my LBL, that makes a total of 10 pounds of excess skin removed from by body, after losing about 145 pounds.  

I had my thighs done as an out patient and came home last night.  The pain is pretty bad, but controlled by my pain meds.  I told my husband that I actually thought it hurt more than my LBL, but he reminded me I did that as an inpatient and was still in the hospital on a pain control IV at this point.  

I am able to get up and around, just slowly.  Sitting, and lowering myself into a sitting position has been the worst.  Thank God I read about the Freshette here and got one ahead of time.  It makes a huge difference ot be able to pee standing up!

I'll keep you all posted on my progress and results!

Joanne

Joanne,

You are not imagining things! At least in my experience from medial thigh lift on Aug 23, this recovery has been more painful and longer than my lower body lift or bilateral knee replacements.

But today, I sit at my cousin's in St. Louis enjoying time with her after flying from Seattle yesterday. Made the trip fine. I still have some swelling in my lower legs, but my incisions have healed nicely.

I'm delighted that you didn't have to invent your own peeing device like I did. The thing that makes the most difference in my swelling is elevation of my legs above my heart. That means on the bed or couch with at least 4 pillows under my lower legs. My swelling didn't really start until about the 5th day after surgery. I think the location of these incisions is what makes this one so tough. But, that being said, we are tough women, we do what we have to do and believe me the results are so worth it! Also, my nurses said that after about 10 days I could put vasoline along the incision lines to help with the itching. That helped so much. You might ask about it when you have your followup. Best wishes. You're in the home  stretch now!

 Thanks for the tips, I'm propped up in a recliner now but I think I'll try to prop myself on the sofa.  I'm still leaky and oozy so I want to be careful to protect my furniture.  

I heard from others who went through it that recovery isn't easy.  My PS told me it would be easier than the LBL, but I agree with you - the LBL was much easier.  I dont know how some people can get their arms and thighs done at the same time.  There's no way I could get through this without using the strength in my arms.

Oh yes I forgot! I carried around a soft, white old sheet with me everywhere I landed for about 3 weeks. Laid it out on the bed and brought it lightly through my legs at night as I didn't want the bare incisions to touch each other. Washed it daily to keep it sanitary, put it on the recliner or chair. It is very important to elevate your legs above your heart. When in a recliner put pillows on the footrest to get that effect. I still put a clean towel between my legs at night as it's still uncomfortable for the bare skin to touch.

I'm glad to hear you're doing well!  I'm a bit hesitant about getting my thighs done, even though they need it!

 I did thighs and arms at the same time and a revision to my tummy tuck scar. I was a freaking mummy...LOL The arms and tummy were minor in comparison to the thighs. Just a hint that you might notice the swelling will increase in a few days. Elevating and icing was my best friend.