To ask for a tummy tuck whilst ha I h a c-section?

[theowlwatcher]

Just that really! I've got a flabby tummy anyway and I'm sure it'll be worse now after pregnancy, so can I ask for a tummy tuck whilst they're stitching me back up?

er, maybe if you are at a private hospital and are paying for it

Obviously not.

Probably not a good idea since it takes your uterus 6 weeks to go back to its normal size. Also no way would an NHS hospitals do this. If you’re going to a fully private hospital like the Portland (not the private wing of an NHS one where the theatre is shared) then you might be able to get a plastic surgeon to come in after the obstetrician has delivered baby but before they close up but I can’t imagine they’d advise doing it that way because of your massive just had a 8lb baby in there uterus.

Are you having your C-section at a private hospital?

Is your Obstetrician experienced in this surgery?

Alternatively, is this is a piss take?

You would need two different surgeons.
I doubt the NHS could stretch to this.

You want them to perform an operation to flatten your stomach while your uterus is the size of a bin bag and you’re full of fluids, extra blood volume… sure they’ll be delighted to let you see and have your baby on your chest while they sculpt you a new tummy. Might as well get some lipo on your thighs too seeing as they’re going to be putting the compression stockings on anyway.

No

Absolutely not.

Eh, that’s not how it works.

This is so obviously a wind up!

I thought this prechildren but as others have less than politely highlighted its well known you will get very suboptimal results

You can if you have it privately... BUT i would be skeptical of surgeons offering it as

You will get a MUCH better outcome if you have it once you have finished having children. I will probably have one in about 18m /2 yrs (currently pregnant)

Your Obstetrician will be performing your surgery. This involves a full team of theatre staff. Approximate costs are around the £1k an hour mark to run a theatre. You would then need a Plastic surgeon to perform your tummy tuck in addition to a different scrub team and different surgical sets. Unfortunately, whilst it would be nice it isn't possible. Also, please do be aware that a C Section is considered major abdominal surgery despite the swiftness of the procedure.

This is comedy gold !

Yeah, why not ask for some arse implants too, whilst your on the table

Surely this isn't real. For the sake of my faith in humanity I'm going to assume this is a joke post, because if it's not reproduction probably isn't something you should be doing.

No because if its an elective section, as opposed to emergency then the surgeons delivering your baby are specialists in gynae and obstetrics not plastic surgery so the chances of you having the apronectomy is quite remote.

The state of the NHS now a days due to funding cuts and strike action, I suspect the chances of combining 2 surgeries into 1 is remote.

You can ask but don't get your hopes up as I think its not likely. A lot of plastic surgery has been stopped on NHS and priority given to patients who have had accidents or cancer.

When i had my 5th section the consultant I saw at my 36 w appt saw my previous 4 scars and told me he would make sure they cut them and made it into just one scar again as ‘it’s a mess!’ And on the day they said they’d done that plus ‘pulled it all in a little’ it was amazing afterwards I didn’t have the overhang just a totally flat stomach again after a few weeks (but then I had more babies and the surgeons didn’t do the same !!)

It is technically possible and I think a few private hospitals in the US offer it (I’m not sure if it’s even available in the UK and it definitely wouldn’t be an option if you’re having an NHS c-section).

However there are lots of reasons why it’s not a great idea.

• Pregnancy puts you at increased risks of blood clots anyway so adding in additional surgery will increase this risk further. You’re also at increased risk of infection.
• Recovery from a c-section is hard enough when you’re also caring for a newborn baby. A tummy tuck at the same time will make recovery even more difficult. It’ll make it harder to care for your baby (especially breastfeeding, lifting, and cuddling) and may also mean that the results of the tummy tuck are not as good. Your core muscles also aren’t as strong straight after pregnancy/c-section so recovery is even harder.
• The results of the tummy tuck are less likely to be what you want because the muscle/skin etc will be stretched, you’re likely to be retaining fluid and the uterus will still be much bigger than usual. This makes the surgeon’s job much harder and so you are more likely to end up with results that need revision surgery later (either because or not ‘enough’ once you’ve healed and your body goes back to normal postpartum, or because it looks uneven/doesn’t heal properly).
• You’ll also need 2 surgeons. An obstetrician to deliver the baby and a plastic surgeon to do the tummy tuck. Obviously aesthetic plastic surgeons don’t usually do emergency, on-call work. If you have a scheduled c-section then this might be possible to arrange (if you’re in a private hospital). But be aware that even planned c-sections often have to be moved/become emergency c-sections (both my children were planned c-sections at 38 weeks and both times they ended up being unscheduled c-sections at 35-36 weeks because I went into labour early). Your plastic surgeon is unlikely to be able to attend an unscheduled c-section (either because it’s out of hours or because he’s doing his other planned surgeries).

If you want a tummy tuck then I’d probably wait until you’re a year postpartum to see how your body heals and changes after pregnancy. It gives you time to recover, bond with your baby, and also try less invasive options like diet, exercise and potentially physiotherapy. You may change your mind, and if you don’t then you’ll be in a much better position because you’ll have a far greater choice of surgeons (there won’t be many willing/able to do a c-section tummy tuck surgery and those that are may not work at the hospital you deliver at). You’re also at lower risk of complications, are more likely to have the results you want, and your recovery will be easier.

Of course you can.

You can ASK for anything

You won't be the first, they may even have a witty answer for you - BUT you definitely won't get one.

Everyone is right about why this is a bad idea. But to be fair to the OP, she probably got this idea from newsrags and magazines that have said this is what celebrities do. The same malicious rags that call women having caesareans "too posh to push".

You can ask for what you want if you're paying

Summer holidays again…

How many sections have you had?!

Well, I had one 20 years ago. My obstetrician did it. He suggested it. He took a look at my horrendous overhang while pregnant and said, "a decent chap would do something about that!" and he did!! I think he nearly shat himself afterwards though - he even called in from a weekend away to check on me and took the staples out in two goes! He muttered something (so far as I remember) about having done a plastics rotation!!!! It never occurred to me to ask??!

I didn't have a more difficult recovery. I blanche now when I look back and think that I had a c/section, apronectomy and tubal ligation all in one go!!! I ended up with one scar instead of three.

I think looking back he was more than a little maverick and I very much doubt you would find an obs/surgeon now that would take the risk!