A) I recommend that you find a qualified board certified plastic surgeon on the ASPS website (American Board of Plastic Surgeons) or on the ASAPS Web site (American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery). Each physician needs to have at least six years of experience and training, with three of those years specific to plastic surgery, to be an ASPS member. They also have to be certified by The American Board of Plastic Surgery and follow a strict code of ethics. They are required to take continuing education courses that include techniques on patient safety and they work with you, as your partner, to achieve your desired goals.

A) There are a few reasons why I also encourage my patients to move around and walk after surgery. During surgery, massage boots are used to help blood circulate from the legs. The best way to help blood circulate after surgery is by simply walking because the muscles in your legs contract, sending blood back to your heart. This decreases the chance of blood clots that can break off and go to the lungs. We often encourage our patients to drink clear liquids the night after surgery to get them up and walking to and from the bathroom. The sooner you get back to performing your normal activities, the less sick you will feel.

I encourage my patients to walk for about five minutes, or for as long as they can, every two to three hours the night after surgery. Then the next day, I encourage my patients to get dressed in comfortable clothes and to walk around the house and even outside. It decreases the chance of pneumonia, blood clots, and other symptoms when patients are as active after a tummy tuck as they were before. Most of my patients also do not simply have the time to lie around; they have responsibilities or work that requires their attention. I also recommend that you use as little pain medication as possible due to the associated side effects.

A) There are a few factors that depend on the answer. Liposuction works well on love handles and I prefer VASER liposuction because of the quick recovery time. However, because belly fat is not always superficial, liposuction is not always a good option.

During a tummy tuck, liposuction is used to remove fat along with the surgical removal of extra skin from the lower abdomen and the relocation of the belly button. Because they are often done together, you would not need to have them done separately.

I suggest you schedule a consultation with a local board certified plastic surgeon to be examined; you can find one through the ASPS (American Society of Plastic Surgeons) website. During the consultation, you can get advice on how to achieve the results you are looking for.

Arlene,

Well, that is a great question.  The benefit of waiting to have a tummy tuck until you have decided not to have anymore children is that once you have the tummy tuck, you will not need to have it repeated again.  If you  should get pregnant after the tummy tuck, the worst thing that can happen is the results obtained after the tummy tuck will be gone.

When Dr. Kleinman performs a tummy tuck, he not only reduces the amount of skin (the part of the belly that hangs over pants) he also gives you the waist back that you had prior to pregnancy.

So you unfortunately are going to have to decide and the good news is that whatever your decision is (have the tummy tuck now or wait to have the tummy tuck until you are finished having children) it will be the correct one.

Best of Luck,

Noela