Emotions and Plastic Surgery

I had an extended TT and an arm lift on the 2nd of Dec followed by complications with the TT on the 9th of Dec. I can't believe how my emotions are all over the place. I still can't say that I am happy I did this. I range between being depressed and scared as hell that I will never be normal again. I have an opening at the T lines in my TT that is 1.5 inches by about .5 of an inch. I look at it and it makes me sick.

I am just so frustrated with the fact that I still can't really do anything and I am tired of feeling like a freakin sausage all the time. Oh my goodness, it is feeling better just the put this out here. The VSG for me was a simple procedure and a fast recovery. This on the other hand man oh man I can't believe it.

I can understand how you feel on the emotions.  I had a BA and full TT (extended, not anchor) at the same time, 13 days ago.  Talk about a sucky Christmas!  I think the pain medicine really reacted poorly with me and made me a huge B***h.  I guess I have some of those tendencies anyway, but there was no filter while I was recovering and on pain meds.  So now I'm trying to apologize to my family for the way I behaved and for giving them such a dismal christmas :(  

 

The TT has actually been really easy for me.  Not so for the BA.  I don't know if it's because of my expectations, but even now I'm sleeping with help of pain meds (otherwise I'm off them) and I fear going to sleep because I wake up in such pain.  They feel unnatural to me and I'm really unhappy with my decision.  I want to explant, which makes me sound even whinier and mopier and is driving my family straight-up nuts, but I don't know how not to feel this way.  I cry everytime I pass a mirror, especially when I have to bathe.  People keep telling me to give it time, but I don't want it to just "grow on me"--I want to make up for a horrible mistake!  

I also have a kind of restless leg syndrome type of feeling--wondering if that's from nerves reconnecting?  And I feel smushed as a sausage between my compression garment pinching me up and down and then my compression band pushing down on my boobs!  Right now I definitely have that feeling of "my body wasn't THAT bad before" and thinking I could've saved myself $10k, and a miserable holiday and gashy scars.

 

All I'm hoping to say is that...I think you're normal.  I'm still strongly considering explanting, but time will go on and I think it will be best for us.

Emotions can be tough when recovering from these procedures especially when there is a complication.  Some of it is wanting that immediate improvement.  Depending on the procedure performed, you do see some improvement but it is never what you will get long term.  Some of it is just recovering from the trauma that your body has been through.  But when you have a complication, there is all of the what the hell did I do to myself emotion thrown in.  I had a complication with one of my procedures.  I was fine in the hospital, but when I got home, I was an emotional wreck for about 3 days.  After those 3 days, I started to slowly come out of it.  Hopefully you will start to experience the same soon.

Hang in there...you are early post op. The openings will heal. I had a heck of a time with mine, but finally they are better except for sensitivity and pain in the scars. I am still swelling at night and after exercise but it has improved. I am 6 months post op. My plastics recovery was very slow and frustrating and surprising since my VSG  recovery was like yours pretty easy.

I still am not that happy I did this, but I am hopeful that will change as I continue to improve and once I do feel back to normal. I just did not expect it to take this long, but for some of us it takes awhile.

Thank you so much for your replies. I think I was just feeling alone with this stuff. I to hope that I will be happy with my decision one day. I also did not think it would take this long to recover from this. I also think that I am feeling it because I am used to running 20 to 30K a week and I can't right now and I don't think I will be able to until the opening is healed up, which I think can take a number of weeks to do. I think I am missing the feel good endorphins that running gives me. :-). I hope to get back to the gym soon to at least walk on the treadmill. For now I am walking at home, I have to wrap my head around the fact that I don't have to run when I get on the treadmill. Baby steps will get me there.

I have a good friend who is a Registered Nurse and she stopped by today to look at my opening and she says it is looking good, so that made me feel better to. Thank you guys for your support it means a lot to me. You are all awesome.

Who did your plastic surgery?  I'm just curious because of your signature line.

If you had multiple procedures, you have done a great insult to your body.  IT takes a very long time to get your energy back.  I'm not sure why someone has never told you that.  I know several have posted here and other forums that it can take up to a year to feel back to normal post plastic surgery if you've had multiple procedures.  I know it took me a long time.  I had swelling for months.  After working my 6 - 12 hour shifts in a row, I have gained 10 lbs or more from the swelling.  I lose my waist and all definition in my lower back.  Our bodies become used to having that extra skin and our circulatory systems have to heal.  It does take a very long time.  Just sit back and relax, it will happen.

I had dehiscence and at the t-line I had slough to gangrene.
My ps sent me in to operating room for debridement and packing and I thought I would "die" when theyvremovedcall the packing and then the PS's in Rounds decided I should be on a WoundVac which was for seven weeks and in the hospital as I live too far away and Israel medicine is similar to UK.
If you want to talk, pm me your number and I will gladly call you z I live alone and have more time than others might and my mobile provider gives a great deal so I really don't mind to call.
Mikimi in Israel

I had my surgery done in Canada by Dr A. Islur.

thank you.  I wondered since your signature line had Dr Sauceda's name listed as your plastic surgeon.  Thank you for answering.