Which procedure did you find the most difficult to recover from?

I had a lower body lift and breast lift w reduction and my dr out in a pain "ball" that released meds for the first 2-3 days it was amazing!!! I then went on to do breast aug and thigh lift, the thigh lift was the worst ever! And since then I've gained weight and now have a Pear shape since all the weight goes to my hips and butt. I will need a revision to probably everything After RnY. Yes I did it backwards! Lost weight, maintained, plastic surgery then a 75 lb gain :-/

If I have learned anything about these recoveries it's this:  BABY YOURSELF.  Rely on people for help (not easy for me).  But the last thing you want to do is extend yourself and cause a wound separation.  It's not worth it to carry your own groceries 2 weeks ahead of schedule.  I have been blown away for the amount of kindness extended to me when I have asked people to reach for things on store shelves for me.  People are genuinely happy to do it.  So take the stress of yourself (and your incisions) and take the proper time to heal. 

Thank you for the heads up! Anything helps. I live at home but I am completely independent and even do my own grocery shopping usually. Luckily my family is extremely helpful and more importantly supportive of my craziness. It will be hard because we host Christmas Eve and it will only be 3 weeks from my arm lift so I will just have to not do too much with cleaning and cooking. Cooking may be easier but cleaning I doubt I will do. which is fine - they'll pitch in more. Thanks for all the advice!! It truly helps me. I am not a patient person and being so independent I need to be aware!

LBL wins, hands down. It's the muscle repair. The incision was no big deal. 

The easiest was the facelift, then the breast/arms, then the long thigh lift. I was back at work two weeks later for each of these. I think I went back at4⃣ weeks for the LBL, I didn't make it the full week. 

Thank you for sharing your experience. I am having a LBL with muscle repair on December 9. (I had an arm lift in July and will have an upper body lift and augmentation sometime next year.) My biggest concerns are pain upon awaking post op and the first several days after. I had 10/10 after an open hysterectomy 12 years ago so I'm thinking this will be much worse. I've already addressed this with my PS and I will again on the day of surgery.

My other concern is about recovery...infection, wound care, assistance needed, ect. I'm 57, in good health, but age does make a difference in how we recover. I'm going to rent an electric chair lift recliner. My concern is sitting/laying on the incisions on the back. Do you have any tips that helped you the first 2 weeks post op?

Does anyone know of a Facebook group or forum just for LBL?

Thanks for your feedback!

If you are concerned about pain upon opening your eyes, discuss with your surgeon and anesthesiologist the following 1) having the surgeon inject a numbing agent into your suture line, 2) receiving pain meds IV in the recovery room, 3) using a PCA (patient controlled pump) but many surgeons do not like them because the nurses will let you use it on your own and they tend not to check back on you as frequently.  So you have a couple options if you are worried about pain.  Definitely rent the lift recliner.  It was always a godsend to me for recovery.  As for the suture line in the back (and I am dealing with this now) i alternated among putting a pillow behind by back, sitting on a pillow, and just laying with nothing back there.  That suture line is SO STRONG that you won't split it.  Trust me.  It will be challenging to get comfortable.  Most surgeons recommend laying in a "lawn chair " position with your back slightly elevated with a pillow under your knees for comfort and to manage sweeping.  Honestly, do what feels comfortable to you.  And get yourself a raised toilet seat!  It will help tremendously.  Be prepared to be hunched out for about 7-10 days.  I always found that to be most challenging because it puts strain on your back and the suture line.  But just remember...and I remember another OH member telling me this... KEEP YOUR EYE ON THE PRIZE.  It is only temporary.  Read uplifting books and stories and stay positive.  Good luck and let me know how you do!

I've been on my own for my recoveries and managed. And I'm in my mid fifties. Recliner, yes. Don't worry about the incisions. They're numb and the pressure is not painful. I had the same concern prior to Surgery and it was the least of my concerns during recovery. I did dressing changes twice a day. Just very slowly. ☺

Thank you ChaChaCha and emelar. You are both very reassuring!! :)

It is interesting to see everyones perspective.  I started out with a prophylactic bilateral mastectomy with reconstruction from my abdomen - i am brca1 positive - so this gave me new boobs along with a tummy tuck.  This was my first plastics procedure with incisions both on each breast and my abdomen.  First few days were a little rough but I really wasn't in much pain.  Discomfort I would say.  Spent 4 nights in the hospital but came home and slept in my bed from the first night.  Next I had my thighs done - had a complication with this one - but again more discomfort than pain and a little tough figuring out how to move around those first few days.  Next was my arms - this was a piece of cake.  Only real issue here was I did it in August and the compression garment was horrible in the heat.  Washed my hair in sink the first two times but after that I was able to get my arms up high enough to do it in the shower.  The last thing that I did was the facelift.  I actually thought that this was the worst of the bunch.  Again not really pain but very uncomfortable.  I had a co2 laser treatment as well so I had to keep aquaphor on my face until the peel happened.  I was not a happy camper here - couldn't put my contacts in due to the surgery around the eyes and could wear my glasses because they would not stay on my face.  Things got better around day 5 when the peel happened and I could get rid of the aquaphor.  I also had to sleep sitting up for the first week and a half with the face lift so that wasn't too comfortable.  All in all, not really much pain with any of these surgeries.  I took pain meds mostly to sleep at night but during the day I was able to function mostly without them.

Thanks for sharing your experience. I think the effect of butt lift surgery is very difficult to bear as you cannot sit properly during the recovery period and this is bound to lead to discomfort and irritation.