looking for tips! lbl coming nov 7!

So all you experienced ps patients any advice to give for a lower body lift? 

I'm sure others on here will have different types of advice but here's mine.

1 - Take pictures on a weekly basis. When you start staring at yourself every day you think everything is bad. Comparing week by week makes you realize how much better you look from before, and how well you are healing.

2 - I bought tanktops to wear under my compression garment. Once the surgeon took off the bandages it was so itchy to have it right up against my skin.

3- Expect to do nothing the first 1-2 weeks. I made sure my house was clean, laundry done, groceries done, food premade. It was hard to just sit around and do nothing but helped with healing.

4 - Make sure you have a recliner to sleep in the first few nights. It took me 2 days to be able to lay down and even then it took a good 5 minutes to get in and out of bed.

Hope this helps.

This was my list:

1. Toilet riser - Not as helpful as I might have supposed.  I used it a few days.
2. Walker - Used this for a couple of days
3. Shower seat - Very important.  I had blood sugar drop for a while that made me woozy.
4. Protein drinks
5. Juven - Dunno if it helped.  Probably wouldn't do that again.
6. Grabber - Super important
7. Pillows for recliner - Lots of them of different types to stay comfy
8. power station for mini laptop/tablet/phone/remote charger - didn't want to have to bend over to plug anything in
9. weekly drug holder - didn't use
10. Colace - didn't use quickly enough or enough of it.  Control that constipation!
11. Miralax - Same
12. Silicon sheet belt (for later) - Did use this.  Seemed to help (Gelzone from Amazon)
13. Snacks (jerky, nuts) - Yup, ate stuff
14. Sports drink (recommended by doctor - going with zero cal of course).  Yup
15. Tshirt for under compression garb - Used a lot of T-shirts.  Started with wife beaters but my shoulders still got sore from the body suit I was wearing.  Went to full t with v neck and that was better.
16. compression garb (furnished by doctor at time of surgery - 2 sets) - Worked well.  The binder started to roll a bit out though...so it may be good to keep an eye out for additional ones
17. Really tight underwear (recommended for men from my surgeon's office) - didn't get it tight enough.. wished I had.  Nuff said.
18. Helper for my wife for the weekend (Thanks Jen) - Helped her not freak out for the first couple of days
19. Creams for my scars and new belly button antibiotics. - didn't use them for a while.  Aquaphor was my best friend for quite a while.
20. Antibiotic soap. - just the day before and the morning of surgery.

This is great. Thank you!

Thanks to those who posted. I am having a LBL/BL/Arms in December so this is veryuseful info. 

Thanks! This is exactly the type if stuff I was looking for.  Little tricks to help out.  Love the picture thought and the plug in reminder.  I need to set up a whole station in my room!

Alright I am 2.5 weeks post LBL.  It has NOT been fun.  Some tips. 

*Recliner is a must.  I couldn't lay on either side due to drain tubes and you'd be surprised how much you use your tummy in this position.  Couldn't uncurl enough to lay on my back.  Recliner...with lots of pillows to get situated just right.  

* Have someone to help you get up and go to the bathroom (once the catheter is out).  I ended up on the floor twice (gently thanks to hubby).  My tummy was so tight and painful that I forgot to breathe.  So make a conscious effort to BREATHE!

* get the papery type medical tape.  I used it to help reign in my drain tubes ( the last was removed at 2 weeks).  They are super obnoxious and it's painful if they're bumped around so tape!

* put a fitted sheet over your recliner.  You will be leaking in unexpected places.  Makes for easy cleaning.

* a seat for the shower.  Once you're cleared for showering a seat is a life saver.  I would get in there and by the time I was done washing my face I was wiped out.  Don't be ashamed to have someone else wash your hair and armpits.  It took me about a week before I could really get my body to move correctly for this.

* if you're feeling better...feeling better... feeling better.... suddenly desperately tired.  You may have an infection.  Look all around for any redness.  Also, when the Dr asks about fevers that includes chills.  I was freezing, then I'd wake up drenched in sweat and then be freezkng again.  Infection.

* expect pain in unexpected places.  The tops of my thighs, front and put sides.  My hip bones, my tailbone oh god my tailbone

*  have several GEL icepacks.  Must be gel so they're squishy and don't hurt you.  They work wonders for that poor abused tailbone and lower back.

* tanks under binder.  You will be oozing, scabs will be coming off etc.  You don't want to wash your binder constantly.

* juice.  At times I would find myself crashing hard.  Not from pain but from low blood sugar.

* ear plugs.  You will be sleeping weird hours. I have 3 small children.  

* ibuprofen.  I wasn't cleared to use it until week 2 but it made a huge difference.  Don't be afraid to ask for more pain medicine.  Ibuprofen gets me through the day but doesn't cut it at night.  I wake up in so much pain I can barely get out of the recliner still.

* consistent drain check.  Once you're kind of getting into a rhythm a few days in start checking your drains at the same time every night.  They'll want to know 24 hour increments.

* don't be scared to gently massage your abdomen.  It has helped me be able to stand up better.  Also doing light, careful stretches whenever you think of it.  Carefully bend your body around.  It helps lower back and with standing up straighter.

That's all I can think of right now.  Good luck.