We can all relate to desiring washboard abs, and hours at the gym doing crunches are sometimes are not enough. Weight loss and childbirth often make achieving that perfect six-pack impossible. A tummy tuck is a surgical treatment alternative that can help you get a flat stomach. However, a tummy tuck, more officially known as an abdominoplasty, is serious surgery. Recovery from a tummy tuck surgery will take some time and involves some pain and discomfort.
Here is the lowdown on tummy tucks:
After the Procedure
Your stomach will be very swollen and it may throb. You will need to take pain medication about every four hours. It is important to take your meds on time because it stops the pain before it gets too severe.
- You will receive postoperative instructions that tells you how often to change the dressings, whether you can shower or take a sponge bath, and what restrictions you have on your movement or activity. The list should also give you things to watch out for, such as an elevated temperature or bleeding from the incision and information on how to contact the surgeon.
- You will have swelling and bruising, which will begin to fade after the first few days.
- You may experience numbness at the incision site. This is normal because your skin was loosened and rewrapped during the procedure. This, along with the surgical incisions, resulted in some nerves being cut. Sensation will usually come back gradually over the next few months. Usually, the first sensation you will feel in the numb areas is itchiness or tingling.
- The first week or so you will need plenty of bedrest. You should sleep with your head and shoulders elevated. Use two or three good fluffy pillows to keep your head up or perhaps a wedge-shaped pillow.
- Getting up and down from a sitting position or in and out of bed will be difficult and may be painful. It is better to first roll on your side and position yourself close to the edge of the bed. Then let your legs drop over the side of the bed , push your upper body upright with the arm that was underneath you. This spares a great amount of pain.
- About 3 or 4 days after your surgery, you will have a follow-up visit with your surgeon . He or she will check your drains, examine your incision, and check on your recovery.
- Sutures are usually removed about one week after surgery, but may be left in for two weeks or more. Parts of your incision may heal faster than other parts, so your surgeon may take some sutures out and leaves others in a little longer. You should not smoke because it interferes with the healing process. Also avoid alcohol if taking pain medication.
A tummy tuck is an involved procedure, but may well be worth the time and discomfort!
To learn more about these treatment and other cosmetic surgery treatment options, please contact
Buinewicz Plastic Surgery at 215.647.9668. We have two locations: Bucks County, PA and Hunterdon County, NJ.
