Question:
when should i start asking about a tummy tuck?

i am about 5 months post op. i am about 3 lbs away from a 100 lb weight loss. i still need to lose another 75 to 100 lbs. in the mean time i have alot of thick skin hanging now from my abdomen. i know a wls pt. who had 3 tummy tucks all in the sameyear and she looks great. i believe her first was just 3 or so months after wls. i know if i got rid of this STUFF hanging from my body it will make a dramatic differance. all of my clothes ar eway to big . but my pants fit tighter around my tummy and they look funny on me because they are way to big everywhere else. you can even tell i have a butt!! lol and believe me its still there. any suggestions and info are welcome ! thanks all!    — teresa C. (posted on November 26, 2001)

November 27, 2001
I had a tummy tuck November 1, which was at 16 months post-op and ten pounds from goal. I've lost six pounds since then. I don't want to worry you about this, but the tummy tuck was NOT fun. I was much more uncomfortable after the tummy tuck than I was after the rny, and the recovery seems to be slower. I went home from the hospital with two JP drains and a catheter which I had to carry around with me for a week. Torture. After the drains were removed, I still had to go in to the surgeon's office twice a week to have fluid extracted from my tummty. This involves a very large hypodermic needle. I truly cannot understand why your friend would want to put herself through this three times in one year! Are you sure she didn't just have a panniculatomy and not an abdominoplasty? My advice to you would be to wait as long as you possibly can to do it...and then get the best surgeon you possibly can to do it once and do it right. I'm thrilled with the new me, please don't get me wrong. My surgeon did a fabulous job on my tummy, the bonus that I didn't expect was the incredible way that he also sculpted my hips, removing all the little lumps that I fought for so many years. The pain of the tummy tuck was worth it for me to be so svelt and gorgeous now, but I don't know if he could have achieved such fabulous results if I had not been down to my very low weight. By the way, I was a size eight in "relaxed fit" (read baggy thigh) jeans before TT and a size 6 in tight straight leg jeans now.
   — Anne G.

November 27, 2001
I am like you, I have lost 100+ pounds, but still have 70-90 to go. I talked to my PCP and got a referral to a plastic surgeon that I saw Yesterday. She said I should wait a year, but when she looked at me naked, she said that I could have it done in about 30-40 more pounds. It really depends on your body. I am an exact hourglass and dont have a huge apron or anything. Just a lot of skin that I have to pull for you to notice. I hope i get approved! I think a really apple shaped person should wait until goal, but it depends on your shape. Some people get tummy tucks with wls, so it depends. I would get a referral to a surgeon and let her tell you to be sure.
   — Courtney W.