When a woman completes her family and has given birth to her last child, she may begin to think of a rejuvenation surgery for her body. For many females, undergoing pregnancy can take a bodily toll on her abdomen and breasts.
While the numbers may drop on the scale, the excess skin generally remains and cannot return to its natural position. It’s all part of pregnancy.
The great news is that a rejuvenation procedure called a mommy makeover can help restore a woman’s body back to her pre-pregnancy days. While the procedure undoubtedly provides wonderful results including a flatter abdomen, a slimmer waistline, and more youthful looking breasts, the recovery time is indeed something to be mindful about.
Some women try comparing the recovery time of a mommy makeover to a C-section, but this isn’t quite accurate in terms of a tummy tuck, also known as an abdominoplasty.
While each woman recovers at a different rate, at the end of the day, what dictates the recovery time is what type of tummy tuck a surgeon has chosen for their patient.
A breast lift, with or without an implant, will cause some discomfort, but the abdominoplasty along with muscle plication is really the determining factor.
Liposuction is generally utilized during a tummy tuck as it truly sculpts the abdomen, hips and waist. The three types of procedures to choose from are the following:
- Liposuction only: For patients with limited excess skin and small amounts of fat deposits
- Mini-abdominoplasty: For patients who require below the belly button abdominal improvements
- Full abdominoplasty: For patients who require both below and above the belly button abdominal improvements
As mentioned before, the more muscle plication involved, the longer the recovery.
The good news, however, is over the last few years the advent of longer acting anesthetics lasting up to four to five days has modernized healing.
San Diego board certified surgeons are discovering that by utilizing this along with spinal anesthesia during the time of general anesthesia, is providing patients different modalities to enhance their recovery.
In turn, patients are in less discomfort after surgery.
The revolutionary idea that pain management starts in the operating room has broken the proverbial glass ceiling and is making huge strides in the world of not only cosmetic surgery, but all operations.
Some surgeons are calling this movement preempted pain relief so that prior to even starting the surgery, local anesthetic is injected into the surgical field. This very well has proved to minimize a patient’s anesthetic requirements so they awaken more clearly while blocking the pain for a longer period of time.
Patients following this surgical protocol, including mommy makeovers, do much better.
In terms of recovery, while patients may be walking the day of surgery or on the very next day, total recovery takes about four weeks. And if a woman’s profession is not physically laborious, she can return to work sooner.
For the first few days following surgery, assistance will be needed especially if a patient has younger children. In advance, she will need to designate a caregiver, be it a family member or friend. It’s also recommended to have a nurse stay with her the first night or two following surgery to monitor her progress.
Plastic surgery takes patience because it is a journey with amazing results. And mommy makeovers afford ladies a lovely transformation.
