Seriously I feel so awesome! I woke up with a headache that was just escalating, which was really sucking majorly. But we called the PS & they said I could take Excedrin so I did. then my wonderful lovely TOM started! So it's all TOM's fault, that bugger!
Besides that my surgery pains are VERY minimal so I am cutting back on the pain meds, from 2 Vicodins every 5 - 6 hours to 1 every 4, and I'm probably going to start spacing out them even more so tomorrow (if Hubby will let me that is, he's very protective and not wanting me to be in any pain). I was right when I had said in a previous blog that the first night (after the locals wore off) and the 2nd day in general were the worst pain wise. Everything is very easy to tolerate right now. I can stand straighter, nap less, have more energy and everything.
I can be out around the ids more & DD#2 has learned to be more careful, we've had some cuddle time so everything is just LOADS better! I am so happy words can not express!!
Friday, April 30, 2010
Thursday, April 29, 2010
Each day gets better
I know this is a long process and I'll try my best to keep remembering that. Today has been tons better than yesterday! I had my first shower & saw how I look and things look GREAT even though I am very swollen and my BA is still very high. My TT incision is very low which is what I had hoped, and I hope it stays nice and low like it is now. I didn't inspect it much because I was hurting some and wanted to hurry into my shower. I did take pictures, so if you're interested in seeing them message me (here, FB or whatever) and I'll send you a link. They are a little graphic though.
I have more energy, I am napping less. I think things are going really well. I have an odd oval lump above my belly button along where the muscle repair is, but the nurses said that is normal. My first post-op visit is Monday, May 3rd, so we'll see. I don't really have an appetite, but I HAVE to eat something when I take the vicodin, so since I have to eat in the middle of the night during the days I'm eating:
Omelet & banana
protein shake + fiber
chicken enchilada soup
protein shake + fiber
chicken veggie soup
In the night I'll have a greek yogurt or Ezekiel toast when I take the pain meds.
The worst part so far is staying away from my youngest when I hear her crying her brains out for me. She has pushed on my belly a couple times & I just can't let that happen again! Coughing & laughing are the worse pains imaginable! I have to say I am very grateful that I'm having no problems keeping food down.
I'm keeping up the regimen of Emergen Cs, lemon juice, post-op vitamins, etc. etc. to help me heal the best. I'm resting, napping, not doing anything I don't feel like. My only annoyance is when I'm trying to nap and DH goes outside and starts cutting down trees (which wakes me up). Oh and I'm getting really tired of my bedroom, but that's about it. I'm really happy with how I look and that I am getting better every day. I can stay patient, for now ;)
I have more energy, I am napping less. I think things are going really well. I have an odd oval lump above my belly button along where the muscle repair is, but the nurses said that is normal. My first post-op visit is Monday, May 3rd, so we'll see. I don't really have an appetite, but I HAVE to eat something when I take the vicodin, so since I have to eat in the middle of the night during the days I'm eating:
Omelet & banana
protein shake + fiber
chicken enchilada soup
protein shake + fiber
chicken veggie soup
In the night I'll have a greek yogurt or Ezekiel toast when I take the pain meds.
The worst part so far is staying away from my youngest when I hear her crying her brains out for me. She has pushed on my belly a couple times & I just can't let that happen again! Coughing & laughing are the worse pains imaginable! I have to say I am very grateful that I'm having no problems keeping food down.
I'm keeping up the regimen of Emergen Cs, lemon juice, post-op vitamins, etc. etc. to help me heal the best. I'm resting, napping, not doing anything I don't feel like. My only annoyance is when I'm trying to nap and DH goes outside and starts cutting down trees (which wakes me up). Oh and I'm getting really tired of my bedroom, but that's about it. I'm really happy with how I look and that I am getting better every day. I can stay patient, for now ;)
The day after
Okay this was definitely the hardest day. Sleeping that first night was the hardest, even with all the meds. The pain was worse because all the locals had worn off, but I made myself get up to use the bathroom hourly (because I'm pounding water like I always do). I made myself go out to the other room to get on the computer just to move around a little more every couple hours. Mom-in-law used to be a nurse & was saying how impressed she was with how well I'm doing & moving around. It was the worse pain day, but I made it. The majority of the pain is the tummy tuck! Not the incision itself but along the center of the abs where the diastasis (from pregnancies) was repaired. The Doc said it was quite sizable ,but didn't say how big of a gap it had been, he also didn't mention how much skin was removed. That would be nice to know but I don't mind. Hubby says my belly looks awesome and you can't see almost any of the old stretch marks (I'll get a peek at my first shower today).
My drains were putting out a LOT of fluid which had us & the nurses concerned, but it finally slowed down in the afternoon. Apparently they used lipo fluid to separate the fat from the fascia layers in the belly, well they had used 1000 mls of that so of course I was going to drain a ton (they just didn't tell us that until we had called being concerned about the amount of drainage). So the drainage is slowing down very nicely and starting to lighten in color. I have a little more energy and can move better. I am hunched, but not as bad as I had been (I hunch more later on during the day when I can really feel it pulling).
The staff is seriously wonderful! The Doc called me the first night to check in & we had called him back later which he didn't mind. The nurses kept checking in the day after until we said things were definitely getting better. I honestly feel GREAT! No depression is coming, I seriously feel awesome! No I can't move around much before I get light-headed/dizzy because my body is in overdrive from healing, no I'm not trying to do any housework because I don't have to. I'm eating great (actually I don't want to eat so I'm forcing myself), but overall this is better than I really had thought it'd be. I'm SO happy to find out all my worries.nerves/etc. were unnecessary =)
I'm going to shower this morning (2nd day) & will get my first look with bandages off & everything, so I will be updating sometime later than that.
My drains were putting out a LOT of fluid which had us & the nurses concerned, but it finally slowed down in the afternoon. Apparently they used lipo fluid to separate the fat from the fascia layers in the belly, well they had used 1000 mls of that so of course I was going to drain a ton (they just didn't tell us that until we had called being concerned about the amount of drainage). So the drainage is slowing down very nicely and starting to lighten in color. I have a little more energy and can move better. I am hunched, but not as bad as I had been (I hunch more later on during the day when I can really feel it pulling).
The staff is seriously wonderful! The Doc called me the first night to check in & we had called him back later which he didn't mind. The nurses kept checking in the day after until we said things were definitely getting better. I honestly feel GREAT! No depression is coming, I seriously feel awesome! No I can't move around much before I get light-headed/dizzy because my body is in overdrive from healing, no I'm not trying to do any housework because I don't have to. I'm eating great (actually I don't want to eat so I'm forcing myself), but overall this is better than I really had thought it'd be. I'm SO happy to find out all my worries.nerves/etc. were unnecessary =)
I'm going to shower this morning (2nd day) & will get my first look with bandages off & everything, so I will be updating sometime later than that.
Wednesday, April 28, 2010
Surgery day
I had a hard time sleeping the night before, so we were up at 3:30. I cuddled some, took some before pics, showered & packed up what we needed. The In-laws showed up early at 5:00! DD#2 had a really bad dream though and we had to calm her down (probably because she was scared for Mommy), but we were able to get in the car by 5:30.
We got there at 6:30 (they had awesome valet parking), I signed my consent forms did the pregnancy test & waited. That 20+ minute wait to get called back felt like forever! Hubby couldn't come back with me at first. I did a health questionnaire, got changed into a gown & footies & locked my stuff up. Once in my room I got a shot of a blood thinner to help prevent clots forming, and I got my IV (which happened to be the BEST IV ever cuz she gave me a local for it). The nerves were really hitting!
The anesthesiologist came in, explained everything, added some "happy juice" to my IV then I kissed Hubby & got wheeled into the OR (thankfully for the "happy juice" my nerves didn't escalate, they went down). They put calf compression sleeves on, hooked up EKGs, BP cuff & heart rate & O2 monitor. The anesthesiologist came around & asked "Do you have a good dream pick out?" I said "no." Then he said "well, now would be the time." Then he walked behind me, I blinked and was in my recovery room feeling good! Hubby came in ASAP which made me even happier, I didn't want to wait for him. I wanted to keep sleeping, it was hard to wake up, but I was happy right away! Doc came in & said things went great, they went with the size implants I had picked out (375ccs silicone unders), Doc & the nurse were commenting on how great my attitude was since I was feeling so good & happy. I did have some nausea, but the nurse put something in my IV to help with that and it didn't come back afterwards. I ate a slice of toast (too buttery for my taste, but whatever), had a dose of valium & vicodin before I left.
They wheeled me out the back entrance & had the car waiting. The hardest part was getting in, the drive home was easy (and the sun being out made me happier). I felt great seriously! The amount of pain was almost nothing, until the local that was in my tummy wore off. But it's still tolerable. I move around as much as I can. I REALLY hate my bed now though, it's about impossible to lay down (even on lots of pillows) without tugging at the muscle repair, I can not get into it & out by myself. So my awesome glider (that locks in the recliner position & has an ottoman) is the preferred place for a while.
Pain is tolerable as long as I stay ahead of it with the vicodin & the valium. Basically it feels like I did a million crunches & a thousand push-ups. My boobs feel like they'll explode & I move like a 90 year old woman, but it's alllll good!
I had a glimpse at the belly & it looked really good! He extended the TT because I had extra skin on the love-handle area (DD#2 was transverse until birth so she was all over there). The BA is still too high & swollen to have an idea. I wasn't expecting night sweats & hot flashes, it's pretty bad, but Hubby cools me off well. But I'm doing really good! I feel great & no depression in sight =)
We got there at 6:30 (they had awesome valet parking), I signed my consent forms did the pregnancy test & waited. That 20+ minute wait to get called back felt like forever! Hubby couldn't come back with me at first. I did a health questionnaire, got changed into a gown & footies & locked my stuff up. Once in my room I got a shot of a blood thinner to help prevent clots forming, and I got my IV (which happened to be the BEST IV ever cuz she gave me a local for it). The nerves were really hitting!
The anesthesiologist came in, explained everything, added some "happy juice" to my IV then I kissed Hubby & got wheeled into the OR (thankfully for the "happy juice" my nerves didn't escalate, they went down). They put calf compression sleeves on, hooked up EKGs, BP cuff & heart rate & O2 monitor. The anesthesiologist came around & asked "Do you have a good dream pick out?" I said "no." Then he said "well, now would be the time." Then he walked behind me, I blinked and was in my recovery room feeling good! Hubby came in ASAP which made me even happier, I didn't want to wait for him. I wanted to keep sleeping, it was hard to wake up, but I was happy right away! Doc came in & said things went great, they went with the size implants I had picked out (375ccs silicone unders), Doc & the nurse were commenting on how great my attitude was since I was feeling so good & happy. I did have some nausea, but the nurse put something in my IV to help with that and it didn't come back afterwards. I ate a slice of toast (too buttery for my taste, but whatever), had a dose of valium & vicodin before I left.
They wheeled me out the back entrance & had the car waiting. The hardest part was getting in, the drive home was easy (and the sun being out made me happier). I felt great seriously! The amount of pain was almost nothing, until the local that was in my tummy wore off. But it's still tolerable. I move around as much as I can. I REALLY hate my bed now though, it's about impossible to lay down (even on lots of pillows) without tugging at the muscle repair, I can not get into it & out by myself. So my awesome glider (that locks in the recliner position & has an ottoman) is the preferred place for a while.
Pain is tolerable as long as I stay ahead of it with the vicodin & the valium. Basically it feels like I did a million crunches & a thousand push-ups. My boobs feel like they'll explode & I move like a 90 year old woman, but it's alllll good!
I had a glimpse at the belly & it looked really good! He extended the TT because I had extra skin on the love-handle area (DD#2 was transverse until birth so she was all over there). The BA is still too high & swollen to have an idea. I wasn't expecting night sweats & hot flashes, it's pretty bad, but Hubby cools me off well. But I'm doing really good! I feel great & no depression in sight =)
Sunday, April 25, 2010
One day & a sleep to go!
Today was a little rough being so busy, but it went pretty well! DD #2 remembered the In-laws instantly (thank goodness) so I know she'll be just fine on Tuesday. I stayed so busy I didn't really have time to think too much into anything & I'm really hoping I'll be tired enough to sleep well (even self-medicated with Benadryl or Tylenol PM, hey now I was told I could!).
Liquid diet day 1 wasn't so fun LOL! I want to avoid sugar & bad foods as much as possible though, so it was my own doing I suppose. Lots of protein shakes doesn't make one want to keep drinking them! I missed one of my shakes & had to make my last one bigger just so that I'd be close to a minimum # of calories. I got really cold too with my body forcing me to drink so much water (I think it was to satisfy any hunger, I don't know, it just kept telling me to drink a lot).
Tomorrow I'm really not looking forward to the sodium in the chicken broth, really that is what I look the least forward to and I found the lowest sodium one available, WAY lower then the "reduced sodium" others. I'll easily be able to get in a minimum # of calories though drinking juice, ah well. That's all I can do! I don't feel like Jell-O so yep yep, fun fun.
I really don't have anything else to do besides do last minute sanitizing in the master bathroom (will do tomorrow morning I think) & getting my box o stuff out of the closet & set out & ready to go. I really like that I'm not staying overnight in a hospital, that way I can just start healing at home. I figure I'll probably be so out of it still that the one hour drive home won't really be remembered. I won't bring much, just some water to drink on the way home probably. Hubby will be the one bored & stressing for hours while I'm sleeping.
As far as how I'm feeling, I'm trying to be as mellow as possible. Not feeling excited or really nervous or anything, I'm just trying to stay as calm and positive as possible.
I'm the morning I'll probably be singing "Twenty twenty twenty twenty-four hours to goooooo, I wanna be sedated!" Hahaha!
Liquid diet day 1 wasn't so fun LOL! I want to avoid sugar & bad foods as much as possible though, so it was my own doing I suppose. Lots of protein shakes doesn't make one want to keep drinking them! I missed one of my shakes & had to make my last one bigger just so that I'd be close to a minimum # of calories. I got really cold too with my body forcing me to drink so much water (I think it was to satisfy any hunger, I don't know, it just kept telling me to drink a lot).
Tomorrow I'm really not looking forward to the sodium in the chicken broth, really that is what I look the least forward to and I found the lowest sodium one available, WAY lower then the "reduced sodium" others. I'll easily be able to get in a minimum # of calories though drinking juice, ah well. That's all I can do! I don't feel like Jell-O so yep yep, fun fun.
I really don't have anything else to do besides do last minute sanitizing in the master bathroom (will do tomorrow morning I think) & getting my box o stuff out of the closet & set out & ready to go. I really like that I'm not staying overnight in a hospital, that way I can just start healing at home. I figure I'll probably be so out of it still that the one hour drive home won't really be remembered. I won't bring much, just some water to drink on the way home probably. Hubby will be the one bored & stressing for hours while I'm sleeping.
As far as how I'm feeling, I'm trying to be as mellow as possible. Not feeling excited or really nervous or anything, I'm just trying to stay as calm and positive as possible.
I'm the morning I'll probably be singing "Twenty twenty twenty twenty-four hours to goooooo, I wanna be sedated!" Hahaha!
Thursday, April 22, 2010
5 days left!
I am feeling great! I prepped italian style meatloaf (made 3) and tossed them in the freezer for easy thawing & baking as needed post-op. I also got everything to do a big ol turkey dinner the day before surgery. Now, I won't be eating it since I'll be drinking clear liquids that day, but it puts my mind at ease about what the in-laws, kids & Hubby will be eating on surgery day & probably the day after that too. The bird is a 12 lber so it should last a couple days at least. Of course now I'm trying to think about what they will all be eating Sunday night (that's the day the In-laws will be here for the first full day), but I have more than enough food around to figure it out, I'm easy I'll be liquid diet.
I'm not so happy about the spice restrictions 2 weeks before surgery, it's making me eat lots and lots of eggs lol (what with no garlic, no cayenne etc.). But that's okay, they are yummy, it just means I'm eating a ton of them.
It's about time to get going on last minute preps around here. I can't wait for Hubby to be off of work! He'll be off starting Friday for his vacation, then we'll definately have everything ready to go. We're doing my youngest's b-day a couple weeks early (before surgery) so it can be more fun for me at least, so we need to get that all done too (not really elaborating on that, trying to keep this blog mostly surgery related ).
I feel like I got past the worst of the nerves/stress/anxiety (a couple days ago) because I really do feel great, ready, happy & lucky to be getting this done!
I'm not so happy about the spice restrictions 2 weeks before surgery, it's making me eat lots and lots of eggs lol (what with no garlic, no cayenne etc.). But that's okay, they are yummy, it just means I'm eating a ton of them.
It's about time to get going on last minute preps around here. I can't wait for Hubby to be off of work! He'll be off starting Friday for his vacation, then we'll definately have everything ready to go. We're doing my youngest's b-day a couple weeks early (before surgery) so it can be more fun for me at least, so we need to get that all done too (not really elaborating on that, trying to keep this blog mostly surgery related ).
I feel like I got past the worst of the nerves/stress/anxiety (a couple days ago) because I really do feel great, ready, happy & lucky to be getting this done!
Tuesday, April 20, 2010
Emotions before
What I'm feeling is hard to describe, it's a big jumbled mess lol. I've wanted it for so long that I can't really fully believe I'm about to get it done! Sure I deserve it, sure I have a company to thank for the money that I worked my butt off to win that paid for it, but still... Part of me feels lucky to be able to be doing this, but there are so many different feelings I really can't concentrate on one for long. I've went through periods where I even doubted if I deserve it and got pretty upset. See it feels a little selfish; Hubby will be doing so much while I recover and the girls won't have their usual mom for a while and it feels a little much to be doing that unnecessarily. Hubby insists that I do deserve it, he wants me to feel better about myself & be happier and this will make me happier about the things I can not change on my own.
When I'm leaner I have no boobs at all, literally. I have sad deflated skin, seriously sad. That makes me not want to stay lean in all honesty. After this though that won't be an issue. I'm getting the biggest they'd recommend for my frame (I didn't want to go through it and end up too small, and that I'm borderline needing a lift too I was thinking bigger would help fill out the skin also) which was 375ccs, am going with silicone unders. Maybe I'll actually feel hot or sexy by my 30th birthday for the first time in forever.
Nervous! Everything about this is the unknown for me from going under general anesthesia to recovering from major surgery etc. I know people of all ages go under all the time and are fine, my parents have and so has Hubby's parents, but still. The only major recoveries I've had is from childbirth & there weren't any c-sections there (lasik eye surgery doesn't really count much). The surgeon has over 15 years experience in plastic surgery, his before & afters were great, the whole staff there seemed very nice, but I don't have the personal experience of his work. I'm prone to falling into depression and I'm scared that I will after surgery (since it's so common) I'll try my best not to, but you can't control it!
Excited! There are so many reasons to be excited I can't even list them all. The tummy tuck is easy ~ showing my belly in public and not being upset, not constantly tugging at my shirts, not having to tuck & pull in pics, and so on. The chest is pretty easy too ~ give me a greatly balanced hourglass, finally balanced top & bottom and when my body fat is lower I won't lose them completely which will be very nice!
Throw in some anxiety and hope and you pretty much have it. Hubby says I'm stressing, um how would you expect me not to? He wants me to relax, but that is hard. Yes plastic surgery is pretty common now. I'm young, fit, and healthy so I should have as good a recovery as possible, but still there are those scared/nervous/anxiety back that nagging at the good thoughts. I won't think of complications or even let myself read them on those message boards. At least soon I'll be on the recovering side of all this and hopefully it'll be things I can deal with, right now it's pretty hard to sort it all out.
7 days! No more caffeine starting today. In-laws will be here very soon! I'm thinking a liquid diet 2 days before will be perfect because I'm not sure if I'll really want to eat anyway lol.
When I'm leaner I have no boobs at all, literally. I have sad deflated skin, seriously sad. That makes me not want to stay lean in all honesty. After this though that won't be an issue. I'm getting the biggest they'd recommend for my frame (I didn't want to go through it and end up too small, and that I'm borderline needing a lift too I was thinking bigger would help fill out the skin also) which was 375ccs, am going with silicone unders. Maybe I'll actually feel hot or sexy by my 30th birthday for the first time in forever.
Nervous! Everything about this is the unknown for me from going under general anesthesia to recovering from major surgery etc. I know people of all ages go under all the time and are fine, my parents have and so has Hubby's parents, but still. The only major recoveries I've had is from childbirth & there weren't any c-sections there (lasik eye surgery doesn't really count much). The surgeon has over 15 years experience in plastic surgery, his before & afters were great, the whole staff there seemed very nice, but I don't have the personal experience of his work. I'm prone to falling into depression and I'm scared that I will after surgery (since it's so common) I'll try my best not to, but you can't control it!
Excited! There are so many reasons to be excited I can't even list them all. The tummy tuck is easy ~ showing my belly in public and not being upset, not constantly tugging at my shirts, not having to tuck & pull in pics, and so on. The chest is pretty easy too ~ give me a greatly balanced hourglass, finally balanced top & bottom and when my body fat is lower I won't lose them completely which will be very nice!
Throw in some anxiety and hope and you pretty much have it. Hubby says I'm stressing, um how would you expect me not to? He wants me to relax, but that is hard. Yes plastic surgery is pretty common now. I'm young, fit, and healthy so I should have as good a recovery as possible, but still there are those scared/nervous/anxiety back that nagging at the good thoughts. I won't think of complications or even let myself read them on those message boards. At least soon I'll be on the recovering side of all this and hopefully it'll be things I can deal with, right now it's pretty hard to sort it all out.
7 days! No more caffeine starting today. In-laws will be here very soon! I'm thinking a liquid diet 2 days before will be perfect because I'm not sure if I'll really want to eat anyway lol.
Monday, April 19, 2010
Preps
I had the consult 8-9 weeks before surgery was scheduled, so I had more than enough time to prepare. I'm sure I've done more than necessary, but I'd rather be over prepared for this than under! Everyone in my house is used to my doing just about everything around here for them, so it'll be interesting having Hubby run things for a while.
Anyway, I found this thread to be very helpful for making a list of supplies to get: http://messageboards.makemeheal.com/tummy-tuck/tummy-tuck-recovery-guide-tips-supply-list-t55868.html
I bought multivitamins without Vitamin E (blood thinner, must avoid), started taking Iron 2 weeks before as well. A naturopath (mom of my Bestie on the Westie) told me some things to help my recovery be the best it can, so I'm going to follow that as much as possible. No starches post-op (well I'll listen to that except for the carrots I put in my chicken soup), drink apple cider vinegar and lemon juice daily (UGH, but not so bad when you put it in an Emergen C - oh and Emergen C instead of Airborne because Airborne has Vitamin E in it), lactobacillus can find by pharmacy (active cultures that replace what antibiotics kill off in your intestines), a green drink (she recommended Green Magma so I bought that), 4000-6000 mg Vitamin C a day which I'll get by 3 doses of Emergen C & one or two Vitamin C pills all spread throughout. Also said no caffeine before or after so I've cut back to 1/4 of what I've been taking in before & will cut it out completely tomorrow (one week before surgery). Seems I've avoided headaches by cutting it back instead of going cold turkey.
I made chicken veggie soup (8 servings), chicken enchilada soup (8 servings) and turkey sloppy joes (5 servings), homemade is the way to go to avoid processing & excessive sodium. I did that so I have lunches & dinners for a week and a half post-op. I figure hopefully Hubby can successfully cook me egg whites with ff cheese & toast for breakfast. The bread I have is low sodium Ezekiel (naturopath approved to eat post-op) so keeping my carbs mostly to that bread & fruits & veggies. Snacks will be greek yogurt, almonds, protein shakes & fruit. I'm not sayin' I won't cheat at all, I just want to minimize it & try to stay strong. It's always a battle for me to eat clean so my reward will be a weekly cheat meal ~ food reward, what I always say NOT to do, but I really won't be up to shopping or anything for a while so that's the plan for the first month at least.
I won't be allowed to workout for 6 weeks besides walking, so it'll be food nazi time (well, for the most part). I also figure I won't want to eat much so my planned foods are geared toward that with eggs taking so little space, shakes & yogurt & soups, yep yep. After my prepped foods are gone hopefully I'll be able to cook a little. If not In-laws can or Hubby can operate the grill for some chicken, it'll work out.
I've also been super cleaning my house too & more than keeping up with the regular stuff so that when Hubby is in charge & the standards slip I [hopefully] won't mind too much. I've also prepped a couple family meals & will stock the fridge up with perishables right before surgery so that they won't have to eat mac n cheese & pizzas for very long LOL!
2 days prior to surgery I'll be doing a liquid diet at the suggestion of the surgeon. The first day of that will be protein shakes & meal replacements, the 2nd day clear liquids, so it'll be no salt added chicken broth, juices & water. I even have my post-op prescriptions filled & in my closet with my other stuff, I'm ready!
Anyway, I found this thread to be very helpful for making a list of supplies to get: http://messageboards.makemeheal.com/tummy-tuck/tummy-tuck-recovery-guide-tips-supply-list-t55868.html
I bought multivitamins without Vitamin E (blood thinner, must avoid), started taking Iron 2 weeks before as well. A naturopath (mom of my Bestie on the Westie) told me some things to help my recovery be the best it can, so I'm going to follow that as much as possible. No starches post-op (well I'll listen to that except for the carrots I put in my chicken soup), drink apple cider vinegar and lemon juice daily (UGH, but not so bad when you put it in an Emergen C - oh and Emergen C instead of Airborne because Airborne has Vitamin E in it), lactobacillus can find by pharmacy (active cultures that replace what antibiotics kill off in your intestines), a green drink (she recommended Green Magma so I bought that), 4000-6000 mg Vitamin C a day which I'll get by 3 doses of Emergen C & one or two Vitamin C pills all spread throughout. Also said no caffeine before or after so I've cut back to 1/4 of what I've been taking in before & will cut it out completely tomorrow (one week before surgery). Seems I've avoided headaches by cutting it back instead of going cold turkey.
I made chicken veggie soup (8 servings), chicken enchilada soup (8 servings) and turkey sloppy joes (5 servings), homemade is the way to go to avoid processing & excessive sodium. I did that so I have lunches & dinners for a week and a half post-op. I figure hopefully Hubby can successfully cook me egg whites with ff cheese & toast for breakfast. The bread I have is low sodium Ezekiel (naturopath approved to eat post-op) so keeping my carbs mostly to that bread & fruits & veggies. Snacks will be greek yogurt, almonds, protein shakes & fruit. I'm not sayin' I won't cheat at all, I just want to minimize it & try to stay strong. It's always a battle for me to eat clean so my reward will be a weekly cheat meal ~ food reward, what I always say NOT to do, but I really won't be up to shopping or anything for a while so that's the plan for the first month at least.
I won't be allowed to workout for 6 weeks besides walking, so it'll be food nazi time (well, for the most part). I also figure I won't want to eat much so my planned foods are geared toward that with eggs taking so little space, shakes & yogurt & soups, yep yep. After my prepped foods are gone hopefully I'll be able to cook a little. If not In-laws can or Hubby can operate the grill for some chicken, it'll work out.
I've also been super cleaning my house too & more than keeping up with the regular stuff so that when Hubby is in charge & the standards slip I [hopefully] won't mind too much. I've also prepped a couple family meals & will stock the fridge up with perishables right before surgery so that they won't have to eat mac n cheese & pizzas for very long LOL!
2 days prior to surgery I'll be doing a liquid diet at the suggestion of the surgeon. The first day of that will be protein shakes & meal replacements, the 2nd day clear liquids, so it'll be no salt added chicken broth, juices & water. I even have my post-op prescriptions filled & in my closet with my other stuff, I'm ready!
Sunday, April 18, 2010
Timing
I've wanted this for so long and my younger daughter is about to turn 4. Why did I wait so long? Well, before doing a tummy tuck I had to be 110% sure I was done having kids, youngest had to be mobile & not too dependent and able to voice basic needs (that was what I thought would be best so I deemed it necessary). Both of my pregnancies had complications, the more recent being gestational diabetes. Once having that it's pretty much guaranteed that you'll have it in following pregnancies and your chances for developing type II diabetes later on in life goes up. Well I'll tell ya it's no fun monitoring blood sugars! I don't even want to think about insulin shots for another pregnancy or even the rest of my life. No thank you! Then with the girls being how they are (aka handfuls) we decided we're done. We had wanted a boy, but that didn't happen but we're okay with that. Hubby had a vasectomy almost 2 years ago but I still didn't feel completely sure about no more kids at that time (ssshhh haha), but now I am definitely sure. I don't want to put my body through more pregnancies, my body wasn't made to have lots of babies!
Now my youngest is very big & I've been missing babies & small toddlers a bit, feeling the itch for a baby grow. I figure getting the surgeries done now would help a stop to that, a closure to that part in life with having things fixed as good as can be. My 30th birthday will be about 3 months post-op so it's a good present there being that far along in healing by then & feeling better. Start a new decade better than ever!
Hubby started his job here almost 2 years ago. He had to save up vacation time to be able to take care of me (which he's taking over 3 weeks off after my surgery!!!). In-laws will be travelling from out of state & they won't come in the winter, so spring time it was! We figure the older girl being in school would be easier as well. The in-laws will be a great source of distraction & entertainment for the youngest so that Hubby can give me all the attention/care I need for the first while. They will also take care of her on surgery day.
Surgery day it's scheduled April 27th at 8:00 am EST. We have to be there by 7:00 am with an hour drive, so we plan on leaving at 5:30 (hopefully) to make sure we're early. I was told surgery should be about 4.5 hours, then roughly 2 hours in a recovery room & I'll be released to go home. That will probably be the kids' hardest day, but they'll live :)
I have 2 more blogs ready to go, just trying to limit to 2 a day for now. They will REALLY slow down later!
Now my youngest is very big & I've been missing babies & small toddlers a bit, feeling the itch for a baby grow. I figure getting the surgeries done now would help a stop to that, a closure to that part in life with having things fixed as good as can be. My 30th birthday will be about 3 months post-op so it's a good present there being that far along in healing by then & feeling better. Start a new decade better than ever!
Hubby started his job here almost 2 years ago. He had to save up vacation time to be able to take care of me (which he's taking over 3 weeks off after my surgery!!!). In-laws will be travelling from out of state & they won't come in the winter, so spring time it was! We figure the older girl being in school would be easier as well. The in-laws will be a great source of distraction & entertainment for the youngest so that Hubby can give me all the attention/care I need for the first while. They will also take care of her on surgery day.
Surgery day it's scheduled April 27th at 8:00 am EST. We have to be there by 7:00 am with an hour drive, so we plan on leaving at 5:30 (hopefully) to make sure we're early. I was told surgery should be about 4.5 hours, then roughly 2 hours in a recovery room & I'll be released to go home. That will probably be the kids' hardest day, but they'll live :)
I have 2 more blogs ready to go, just trying to limit to 2 a day for now. They will REALLY slow down later!
A lil intro
Hello bloggers/readers! I decided to do a blog about my mommy makeover journey. See I've wanted a tummy tuck since I had my first daughter but it wasn't so bad until I had my second. Also the fact that when I'm really lean I have NO boobs at all, so I figured we'd do a breast augmentation while I'm under the knife. We know we are done having children so it's time for this, finally!
The thing is I love my girls, I love my husband and being a mom. My tummy skin constantly bothers me! I'm constantly tugging at shirts to make sure it's covered, I can't wear tight shirts even because the extra skin is obvious there too, I can't stand the skin being exposed for anyone to see and so on. It's rough. I know other people don't notice it so much and I know hubby doesn't mind so much, but it bothers me day in and day out. I've researched this for years and I know it's for me. I'm pretty sure not all my stretch marks will be removed but they don't really bother me like the skin does in general anyway and I can accept a scar in place of the skin. I can't wait for the time when I don't have to worry about my shirt scooting up a tiny bit or what I wear working out or in public or in bed etc. Heck, I'd love to be able to jog outside in a sports bra & shorts!
From what I'm seeing it's a long emotional journey this long healing process of the tummy tuck. You swell off & on for a year at least. Later months (once the surgery swelling is done) you swell from being active, so it'll be a battle but I will have before pictures to look at and remember how the skin made me feel. I'd rather deal with healing & swelling for a year than this skin for the rest of my life!
I'm not at my leanest by any means right now, the justification is that I'm now sure how much I'll be able to eat, want to eat, or even be able to keep down after surgery. So in my thinking, it wouldn't be so horrible to have a little comfort layer that my body can use to pull reserves from during the healing process. My eating will be kept in check and I will not gain fat after surgery.
I'm VERY excited and a wee bit nervous. The BA I'm really excited for because they will really perfectly balance out my larger hips and I'll get back what my girls took from me. The TT, well that's pretty easy to see why I'm excited to get rid of that skin.
9 days until surgery! I will post more later with preparations I've done/will do. I want to mention that www.makemeheal.com is amazing! Especially the message boards there, you can read about so many people's different experiences, it is where I've learned the most and everyone there is so supportive. It has already helped me immensely and I'm sure it will continue to do so.
The thing is I love my girls, I love my husband and being a mom. My tummy skin constantly bothers me! I'm constantly tugging at shirts to make sure it's covered, I can't wear tight shirts even because the extra skin is obvious there too, I can't stand the skin being exposed for anyone to see and so on. It's rough. I know other people don't notice it so much and I know hubby doesn't mind so much, but it bothers me day in and day out. I've researched this for years and I know it's for me. I'm pretty sure not all my stretch marks will be removed but they don't really bother me like the skin does in general anyway and I can accept a scar in place of the skin. I can't wait for the time when I don't have to worry about my shirt scooting up a tiny bit or what I wear working out or in public or in bed etc. Heck, I'd love to be able to jog outside in a sports bra & shorts!
From what I'm seeing it's a long emotional journey this long healing process of the tummy tuck. You swell off & on for a year at least. Later months (once the surgery swelling is done) you swell from being active, so it'll be a battle but I will have before pictures to look at and remember how the skin made me feel. I'd rather deal with healing & swelling for a year than this skin for the rest of my life!
I'm not at my leanest by any means right now, the justification is that I'm now sure how much I'll be able to eat, want to eat, or even be able to keep down after surgery. So in my thinking, it wouldn't be so horrible to have a little comfort layer that my body can use to pull reserves from during the healing process. My eating will be kept in check and I will not gain fat after surgery.
I'm VERY excited and a wee bit nervous. The BA I'm really excited for because they will really perfectly balance out my larger hips and I'll get back what my girls took from me. The TT, well that's pretty easy to see why I'm excited to get rid of that skin.
9 days until surgery! I will post more later with preparations I've done/will do. I want to mention that www.makemeheal.com is amazing! Especially the message boards there, you can read about so many people's different experiences, it is where I've learned the most and everyone there is so supportive. It has already helped me immensely and I'm sure it will continue to do so.
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