Had anyone done multiple surgeries at once/within short period of time? What's your recovery...

Hi All,

I'm 30 and I had my surgery in June 2012. I am currently 160lb and would like to get down to 120. Anyway, I plan on getting a LBL, breast lift, arms, and maybe thigh lift. I will be doing this in Asia and plan on staying there for about 3 weeks after the procedure. Do you think it's doable?

I have a desk job and it does not require much lifting at all. If any of you have done multiple procedures at once, how long did it take you before going back to work? Would you have rather done the surgeries separately?

Thanks,

Amanda

 

Hi

I had a very big surgery last month that combined procedures and lasted 6 hr 20 min of actual surgical time. My first stage of surgery took place April 18th and was a tummy tuck. This recent surgery was an LBL (w/o the tummy tuck), inner thigh lift, and upper body lift (arms, flanks, breasts). I stayed in NJ to be near my surgeon for 2-weeks post op and then flew home.

Recovery has been pretty easy but I have had some minor complications this time around. You can read all about that on my post about brachioplasty complications http://www.obesityhelp.com/forums/plasticsurgery/4657545/My-arm-looks-awful-after-brachioplasty/, And you can read my post about getting the surgery and my results and experience http://www.obesityhelp.com/forums/plasticsurgery/4653714/Surgery-yesterday-body-lift-thigh-lift-arm-lift-flankplasty/

A few surgeons will combine an LBL with arms/upper body lift. I do not know any one who will also do the inner thighs at the same itme. It requires a lot of strength to get up and around.... an abdominoplasty, arm lift, and thigh lift are not complimentary surgeries.

Fly 1st class if you can because you will be uncomfortable sitting for so long. I was quite uncomfortable on my 2-hr flight. That said, I would never go outside the country for surgery. It is too risky as virtually no one in the US will take care of you should complications arise, and if complications arise outside the US your insurance may not cover them. Just my unsolicited advice, here, sorry.

Recovery from my TT was the worst even though I had no complications. This big surgery has been much easier even with the minor complications. I am self employed so I did not have the issue of returning to work. I think that I recall after my TT I felt I would have needed a month to return to my cushy office job. You are 19 yrs younger than me so recovery should be a hell of a lot easier for you.

If I had planned this out from the beginning I likely would have staged my procedures differently. But I did not know if I wanted to get more surgery other than the abdominoplasty. As for the big surgery I just had, I had the option of not doing such a large surgery but decided this would be the best approach for me. I do not regret that decision at all.

Good luck, Amanda! Here is a useful interview article that I did with Dr. Capella, my surgeon, on what to look for when choosing a PS for body contouring after massive weight loss: http://www.healthcentral.com/obesity/c/276918/162591/intervi ew-capella-plastic-1/

I hope this helps!!!

I had an extended anchor tummy tuck, extensive hernia repairs, breast lift and arm lift on October 24. So far I haven't had any complications. If I had not had the hernia repairs, I would have been able to return to work after 2-3 weeks. My PS will not do a thigh lift with a tummy tuck or with an arm lift, either.