What three doctors did you consult with for PS

Name of Plastic Surgeon Doctor? Procedure Done? There so many to choice from....I'm overwhelmed....

I've not had surgery yet so can't speak to that aspect.  But, I started first with what hospitals my insurance covered and researched through reviews on this site of those hospitals.  I have a few friends that are in the medical field here in Nashville and they raved about Centennial.  It just seemed as if everything pointed me in the direction of Centennial.  Then I read reviews on the surgeons at Centennial.  I ended up going with Dr. Houston because people say he's a straight shooter and doesn't sugar coat things.  I am like that so I figured I'd like someone like that.  And, of course Centennial's and their surgeons reputations seem to be top notch.  Their after care program was a deciding factor for me too.  And, the seminar they did sealed the deal when they said their fatality rate is far below the national stats. I know it can be overwhelming.  Good luck on your search!

Do you mean for WLS? I know of Dr. Houston and I'm pretty sure he only does WLS...I need to edit my post to say Plastic Surgeons! haha Thanks for your reply though. I have been to his office for a fill when I had the band. Good luck to you!

I consulted with Dr. Delozier. Since I also had a hernia needing repair and my insurance wouldn't cover the hernia unless done at a hospital facility, I moved on. Next consult was with Dr. Lois Wagstrom. I had heard a lot about her from other post WLS patients and I immediately felt very comfortable with her and her staff. I had a belt abdominoplasty (LBL) with midline incision (anchor cut), mons reduction, outer thigh lipo and hernia repair on February 7th. I am now 5 weeks out and feel great! My incisions are healing nicely and swelling is minimal. I am very pleased with my results and the entire experience with Dr. Wagstrom and her entire staff has been great. She does require her LBL patients to spend 1 night in the hospital. I wound up spending 2 due to dizziness and nausea issues. I have had great pain management. Actually, the pain was not as bad as I had tried to prepare myself for. I have really been very comfortable from the beginning.  My advice though is to take your pain meds as prescribed. They give them to you for a reason so don't try to be superwoman and tough it out, take the pain meds.

I consulted with Dr. Patrick Maxwell because someone said he is supposed to be the best in town-with a world-wide reputation...he was ok, but he didn't knock my socks off, and he was around $5000 higher than the other consults I had.  I consulted with Dr. Delozier-loved him immediately!  Had actually made my decision to have him do my LBL/BL/BA, but have run into a problem getting a surgery date...He does all of his procedures in his office OR as outpatients, but I prefer to spend one night in the hospital for peace of mind-he was fine with that, but because he doesn't have regular blocks of time in the OR at Centennial, I've been waiting for over a month to get a date-his scheduler has to call other surgeons that do have time blocked to see if they will "give" him some time to do my surgery-so being the impatient person I am, I decided to go for another consult with someone I'd heard good things about, and that DOES have regular time blocked at Centennial-Dr. Fleming...My consult was last Tuesday, and I really liked him a lot too, thankfully!  I got my quote yesterday, and it is a couple of thousand dollars higher than Dr. Delozier-but I'm probably going to go ahead and have him do it, because I can get in for my surgery in about 3 weeks, but I'm still considering a few different things...the main differences are that I will have 5-6 drains with Dr. Fleming vs. 2-3 drains for the LBL with Dr. Delozier.  Also, according to the quote from Dr. Fleming, it says that revisions aren't covered  (the physician fees), which is different than any of the other ps that I've talked to...anyway, that is my experience so far-good luck! Donna

Thanks Donna for your reply, sometimes I just wonder if no one likes me and doesn't respond. HAHA I know that's not true I just get discouraged to see all these post but hardly anyone has any advice for me. Recap what you told me... Dr. Maxwell-highly recommended, but 5k more than the other PS Dr. Fleming-A little higher price than Delozier but you can get in quicker..but 5-6 drains vs 2-3 with Delozier..AND revisions aren't covered. Dr. Delozier-You really liked him but had a hard time with scheduling with hospital. Are more drains better than fewer? I have seen Flemings and Delozier's name before but not Maxwells. I might consider a doctor that will cover revisions. I think its crazy that you have three doctors in Nashville and their costs are all different...you think it would be more like a 500-1000 dollar difference and not in the thousands. Someone here said they ask for a discount and got one, so hey try it! NEver know! PS...is BA...a butt augmentation? Thanks again, Kashia

yep, your recap is pretty much on the money...I don't know about the number of drains-which is best?!  I plan on mentioning that to Dr. Fleming when I go back to him to see what he says, as well as the issue about revisions...there is a big difference in $$-you'd think they'd be more competitive, but obviously they aren't hurting for business...BA is breast augmentation.  good luck on your search-it can definitely be overwhelming-thankfully we have this board as a resource-I've learned so much! Donna

Literally laughing out loud at myself..BA...I should have known that one, too funny! Good luck and keep me posted

I had 5 drains for my LBL w/anchor cut, 2 for the back, 2 for the front and 1 for the midriff. All of my drains were removed by 3 1/2 weeks. My swelling has been minimal and no issues with healing. I would think a few extra drains would be preferrable to swelling and healing issues.  Does Dr. Fleming's fee also include your post-op compression garments? My fee with Dr. Wagstrom included 2 post-op garments. They are the ones that go from the bra band all the way to the knees with hooks and zippers on the sides. With 2 I always had a clean one to change into after my bath. (Sponge bath that is. I wasn't allowed to take a shower until 24 hours after the last drain was removed. Boy did it feel good!!) A suggestion for you...get some men's cotton undershirts to wear under your garment. That layer of soft cotton between you and the garment will feel wonderful. You want the undershirt to fit close so there are very few if any wrinkles. I had to wear the compression garment 24/7 for the first 3 weeks except during my bath. You don't have to undo or lower the garment to use the toilet so there is no disturbing or irritation of the incisions. Also, I itched like crazy from the anesthesia, dry skin, and pain meds. I found Gold Bond Itch cream everywhere but the incisions helped tremendously. Everytime I took the garment down, clouds of dead, dry skin flew. I looked like Pig Pen from the Charlie Brown cartoons with my little dust cloud of skin flakes.

I'm thinking the same thing-maybe more drains is better?  I'm not sure if I'll be having the anchor cut or not-if it's gonna get me a flatter, better result-I'm willing to deal with the extra scar-the docs I've consulted with all seem to agree that I more than likely don't need it, but we'll see...Dr. Fleming says that he doesn't think the extra incision/scar is worth a little bit of extra flatness-but I'm not so sure about that!  The compression garments are one thing I've not remembered to ask any of the docs about at my consults-thanks for reminding me, and for all the advice-I'm sure when things are finally set, and time is closer, I'll be back on here asking questions and advice..Pig Pen-I love that-now I have a mental picture...funny! Donna