I had a tummy tuck and breast reduction AMA

[CheeseFiend40]

I’m just over 3 weeks post op, had the following procedures done at the same time:

• Breast reduction from 34GG to 34D
• Tummy tuck with lipo and repair of severe stomach muscle separation

Open to any questions…

Im might need to have a tummy tuck in the future

How do you sleep, on your back?

What did you use for the pain?

Did they need to move your nipples for the reduction and how do they deal with the skin, did you have quite stretch marked skin or was your skin in quite good condition?

Are you wearing any binders or support wear and if so for how long?

Id love a breast reduction.

Does it hurt and do you end up with nipples?

Can I ask how old you are, and how you heard about your surgeon ?

How did you decide when to have it - age of children and so on?

Yes still sleeping on my back, surgeon suggested 2 pillow behind your back, 2 pillows under your legs. This is to make sure there’s no tension on the wound. You can also try foetal position if that’s more comfortable. I’m now able to lay flat, but have one pillow under legs for comfort.

I was prescribed codeine and paracetamol, which I took religiously for first 2 weeks. Now I only take paracetamol occasionally, it’s mostly pain from the muscle repair.

Nipple stays attached but skin and tissue below the nipple is removed and then brought in to make a smaller breast. There’s lots of videos on YouTube explaining the process, which I found really useful.

I had a lot of stretched skin and stretch marks, most of this has been removed with the tummy tuck, and now have an inch or two of stretch marks above the scar line.

Im wearing a binder (hospital gave me two of these) and post op bra (Macom brand). You need to wear these for 6 weeks post op, and sleep in them. They’re uncomfortable to start with, but I’m used to it now.

I’d massively recommend the breast reduction, I just feel in proportion now and looking forward to the summer!

I didn’t really notice much pain from the breast reduction due to the tummy tuck, mostly it was some pulling on the wound as it scabbed and healed. They’re sore if I get too cold (I think it’s just the skin being sensitive) but otherwise fine. Nipples stay attached and tissue below the nipple is removed, then stitched into the new smaller breast. My nipples were also made smaller, as I had very large, flat nipples.

How long will you need off work and what sort of work do you do? When can you do sports again?

How much did it cost & which surgeon/where did you have it done?

I’m very seriously considering having this done but am completely overwhelmed by the process of deciding where/who/when will do it.

I’m 40, I have 3 children aged 5, 2, 1. I hated my stomach after my oldest was born, but each pregnancy made my muscle separation worse and I ended up with over 4 finger gap, which is classed as severe. So because my stomach muscles weren’t supporting my internal organs, they pushed outwards and I looked 6 months pregnant. My back was then left doing all the work, so I have spent years seeing physios and osteopaths, but none of that worked.
I decided after my third was born that I definitely wanted this done. Started looking into surgeons at private hospitals within an hour of where I live. Also looked at reviews on the Realself website (this is also really good for pre and post op questions). My surgeon was the second one I met with and I instantly was happy and comfortable with him. In terms of timing, you need to be at least 6 months after finishing breast feeding for the breast reduction, and he recommended my baby be at least 9 months old, just for an easier recovery period.

Luckily I’m still on maternity leave so that side of things hasn’t been a problem. But they recommend 2 weeks off work, I work in an office and can also work from home so I probably would have given myself an extra week working at home before driving.
My surgeon has said I’m ok for sports after 6 weeks, but I don’t see him again now until I’m 8 weeks post op, so I’m going to ease back in until I’ve seen him and got the ok. The muscle repair side of it makes me more cautious to not overdo it.

I felt exactly the same at the beginning, I just didn’t know where to start!
The joint procedure cost around £17k. Price varies between hospitals and surgeons, but it’s a life changing operation and I would definitely say make your decisions based on the surgeon, not on the price. Paying that amount of money made me sweat, but I can honestly say it’s the most worthwhile amount of money I’ve ever spent!
Im based in the midlands, if you’re in that area let me know and I’ll happily PM you details of my surgeon/hospital 😀
I started by looking on the Realself website for surgeons within an hour of where I life. Looked at reviews, checked out their instagram etc. I met with two different surgeons and went with who I felt most comfortable with and confident in.

@CheeseFiend40 good for you, I had a tummy tuck after my twins (3rd and 4th babies) and I've never regretted it, I was 35, that was 15 years ago and my stomach is still flat and muscles tight. I'm also in the midlands, I wonder if we had the same surgeon. Mine was in Nottingham.

Thanks @CheeseFiend40. My muscle separation is very severe as well, and my symphysis pubis separated during my last birth so I'm basically just unzipped from boobs to fanny. I should have done it years ago but the money is a real issue.

It’s unbelievable what our bodies go through with pregnancy and childbirth! It’s such a huge amount of money to spend, I definitely debated for a long time whether I could justify it, but it was the pain and physical limitations I had, and the effect it was having on my mental health, that swung it. We were extremely fortunate to have the savings, the hospital also offered a loan which I considered.

I definitely feel like it’s the best decision I’ve ever made, and 100% worth the money. I feel like myself again, for the first time in over 5 years!

Thank you @CheeseFiend40 , really helpful thread :)

Ah that’s lovely to hear, thank you 😀
I remember when I was researching it all I was trying to get as much first hand information as I could, so I hope this can help anyone considering having it done.

Had some great questions yesterday. A couple of people were asking about the nipples and I’m not sure I explained it particularly well!

The diagram below is what I had done, this is the usual procedure. Because the nipple stays attached to a blood supply there’s less risk of necrosis, which is where the tissue starts to die due to lack of blood supply or damage to the blood supply.

Hope this helps!

@CheeseFiend40 hi! hope you are well. Conscious this is an old thread but hopefully you and others are still tuned in..

Please can you recommend your surgeon? Where did you find him/her? Which websites are good for checking? The few I saw so far all rate the surgeon with top ratings and all patients reviews seem highly positive. This doesn't give me lots of reassurance as it seems the bad reviews are not publish.

Such a minefield! - Please help.. 🙏

@lifshitzrodda Hello! This is such a funny coincidence! I was sorting through a load of paperwork today which included all my surgery stuff, and said to my DH I can’t believe it’s been two years since the surgery; and now your message popped up this evening!

It is such a minefield, I struggled for about a year trying to figure out if I could really do this, can I justify the cost, will people judge me, which hospital, which surgeon etc.

My surgeon was Mr Nakul Patel, if you’re anywhere near Leicester or Nottingham then I’d highly recommend him. He was such a lovely man.
I’d gone for a consultation with a surgeon closer to home and felt he didn’t care at all, I was in and out in 10 minutes and they immediately wanted to book in my surgery. So I then started researching other hospitals in a hours radius, and looking up the surgeons on Realself.com for reviews, checking out their instagram etc.

After my first consultation with Mr Patel I knew he was the surgeon I wanted. I felt like he really cared about getting me the result I wanted and how it would improve my physical and mental health. He also does at least two consultations before booking anything in, to give you time to make a decision and come back with any questions etc.

So I would probably start with looking into the hospitals near to you that you like the look of, then research the surgeons at those hospitals. Most will have reviews on Realself.com, and will always have their own website and instagram so you can look at their previous work.

Hope that helps! 😊