Hi there,

I had the lift done about 7 years ago, but I'm ready to now get the abdominoplasty, Lipo and fat transfer to my buttocks. Did you have to get a 360 degree cut? Was your surgery done in the hospital?

Start by contacting your insurance company. Call the customer service number on the back of your insurance card and asking for the "coverage guidelines" document for the specific procedure you want done (abdominoplasty, arm lift, etc.). That will tell you if it's completely excluded, or under what criteria it will be covered.

Some insurance companies flat-out do not cover plastics at all, even if they're causing medical issues. Others will consider it a "medical necessity" with appropriate documentation of things like rashes and infections. It is your responsibility to know what your insurance company needs; at that point, you can ask a potential surgeon to submit the necessary documents for insurance approval.

usually insurance won't help with the cost unless you have a paper trail of documented medical issues with it (e.g., chronic rashes that don't respond to other treatments). So if you start having these kinds of problems, see your PCP about them and make sure it's all documented. I don't think the potential of having problems with it the future (even though you don't have problems CURRENTLY) will fly with them, but then, who knows. Maybe your insurance company is different than most.

I'd start with realself.com to look for plastic surgeons in your area. It's a site where people review doctors - all kinds of doctors - but a majority of the doctors reviewed seem to be plastic surgeons. People write about their experiences and many post before & after pictures. I created my short list from there and then had consults with three different plastic surgeons. Make sure you find one who's a board certified plastic surgeon and one who has done a TRUCKLOAD of body contouring for massive weight loss patients (better yet, find one who specializes in this area). It's a challenging subspecialty, so you want someone with a LOT of experience - not one who only does it a handful of times a year.

Buckle up. It's a tough surgery depending on how extensive they go. They went 360 on me. I literally sat on the couch for almost a week it hurt so much to move, especially with all the drains. My arm drains caught on everything. I watched GOT from start to finish (basically a season a day). Don't get me wrong, I absolutely love the end result. But I will admit that I was surprised how immobile I was that first week. Quickly improved by about day 5, but the pain was much greater than the bypass surgery.

Advice. Thankfully my core was super strong so getting out of bed wasn't too bad. I rigged a cable system to help me get up into a seated position from being on my back. I hooked a heavy duty resistance band under the bed on one side and then across on the diagonal to the other leg (hooking two bands). I then would just do a curl and it gave me enough momentum to get upright. When I was leaving the hospital they told my wife to be ready to get up to help me out of bed during the night, etc. With that system, never had to disturb her. The doctor loved the idea and was going to mention to future patients. I would say that was the best thing I did to keep my independence. Other advice, take the pain meds for first few days!!! But recovery was good. They didn't need to nip or tuck anything. I healed cleanly all the way around, a good percentage don't and need minor adjustments. So I was glad that didn't happen.

Good luck. I'll try to find a pix of my pulley system if I still have it.

Sorry about what looks like dirt on the sheet. My wife let one of the dogs upstairs before wiping her off and she wanted to love me with dirty paws that morning. Got most of it off. The handle ended up in a position I could only use it to lay back down. I would just grab the orange section while I was laying down and pull without a handle.

I don't specifically know about this but am interested in the answers you get.

I think I had heard that for it to be covered, it had to be "medically necessary." Maybe the best letter to have written is from your doctor as to his/her medical opinion.

I do agree with the answers above in that you should still try to get it done, even if you have to pay the difference.

Kathy