[dsmith]

I would like to have a tummy tuck or body contour to remove the "slab" and tighten things up. But I still have 50 lbs to lose to get to my goal. Since I am 5 years out from surgery, it seems like I'll never get there! Should I be consulting now, or wait until I get the 50 lbs off (hopefully). And does anyone know the difference between a TT and body contour and do they include liposuction?

Since I have had the slab for so many years, and with weight gain and age it hangs even more than it used to, it really affects my being able to buy clothing and even look decent in it. I hate it so much!

Anybody have any advice, thoughts, info?

Thanks!

Donna

[not quite Barbie]

I just had a tummy tuck 2 months ago: http://www.renewedreflections.com/fo...n-5-hours.html

There are several methods that the surgeons do. The simplist is a panni removal where they just cut off the hanging slab, nothing else. This MAY be covered by your insurance. Some companies will cover it if you can prove that you have constant rashes underneath the hanging skin.

THere's a mini tummy tuck, which is what I had (not what I wanted though), where they do a cut just above the pubic mound and remove a section below the belly button. They may tighten stomach muscles if they are separated.

The full tummy tuck they loosen the skin up to your breastbone and pull it down as far as they can. That usually displaces your belly button so they cut it loose and poke it up through a new hole that they make. Again, stomach tightening if needed and the cut is usually from hip to hip and just above the pubic bone.

An extended tummy tuck will go past the hip bones toward the back to help get rid of the muffin top.

Then there's the anchor cut, where you get the full tummy tuck but they also do a vertical cut too. This allows them to pull your sides in better and will give you a much smaller waistline.

And finally there's the lower body lift (LBL) where they go all the way around and pull up the backside as well as pulling down the front.

As for "body contouring", I dunno. I would guess they're talking about doing some lipo suction with the tuck.

They usually want you to be at a stable weight for 6 months so they know you are done losing. Since you are 5 years out I would think you've been stable. Yes, go for it! You will feel so much better about yourself, and depending on how big a panni you have, you just might lose 20 pounds of skin! And it might be inspiration enough to get back to basics and lose more. Good Luck!

[ragdolldude]

I attend 3 support meetings a month. A common topic is tummy tucks. From those that have had it done, they say they tend to lose a little more wt after the surgery. With the tummy muscles tightened up, they state they feel like they are wearing a binder (even after the surgery binder is removed a few weeks later), and they are unable to eat as much. This may help your last 50 pounds. You'll lose some in the surgery process too. DAVE

[DocSanae]

Have you checked out The Plastic Surgery Channel for info?