How to best recover after a Mommy Makeover

Let’s talk about The Mommy Makeover.

First of all, what is it? In my opinion, it is one of the most well deserved elective surgeries for women who either have had children or for women who have lost a fair amount of weight. (Disclaimer… I am waiting to get myself into the appropriate condition to be a good candidate for a mommy makeover!) You get the best results if you are within 25 lbs of your ideal body
weight before you have the surgery. You can actually lose up to 10 lbs from the liposuction and skin removal!

The surgical procedures commonly included are; Tummy Tuck, Liposuction (360, or several target areas) and either a Breast Lift, Breast Augmentation or Breast Reduction and possibly a Brazilian Butt lift.

You will require a lot of help the first 3-7 days and your activities will be limited as your body requires a lot of rest in this initial phase of healing. Many women will question if this was a good idea in the first few days because they didn’t quite expect to feel so “beat up!” But after a couple
of days those feelings will pass. It is important to have someone whom you feel possesses the skills and the ability to properly care for you. The first few days may feel like a blur to you because of the effects of anesthesia, increased tiredness and the pain medications. Depending
on the procedures selected, you may need assistive devices and some special equipment to help you in the initial stages of recovery. After the first week you will start to feel like you can get back to more normal activities. Some women can return to work if appropriate in a couple of
weeks. In 3-4 weeks some light exercises can start to be added into your schedule. In about 6-9 weeks a more regular exercise routine can be added once you are cleared for that by your surgeon.

It is especially important for the first few weeks that you:

1. Rest, Rest and Rest
2. Stay hydrated especially with water. Sometimes, adding electrolytes to your water is helpful. Note, that it is not advised that you drink caffeinated beverages 2 days before and 2 days after surgery. If you are a coffee or tea drinker, I recommend that you have decaf substitutes. Some of us get grumpy or actually experience caffeine withdrawal.
   Psychologically, having a nice warm cup of decaf coffee or tea can be uplifting and feel pampering when you need it the most!
3. Eat a healthy diet and add good quality protein shakes in order to boost your protein intake. Increase healthy fats, antioxidants and Vit. C rich fruits (your surgeon will likely recommend supplements and other products to increase healing.) If some of your favorite
   foods can be included on the “what to eat list,” then have plenty of those choices because having things you love may encourage you to eat and also help make you feel a little more pampered.
4. Start walking. Walking is really the only exercise recommended after a Tummy Tuck. For the first couple of days, just walk as tolerated and as you rest in bed, perform ankle pumps and gluteal squeezes. You can then add standing toe and standing heel raises while you hold onto a chair (which is also good to help prevent DVT’s.) After the first
   week, increase the walking distance and speed slowly and steadily but pay attention to how you are tolerating the increase. It is not necessary to over do the progression and cause unnecessary fatigue as it takes a lot of your body’s energy to heal from surgery.
5. Wear the compression garments as instructed by the surgeon. Make sure ahead of time that you have ordered or are supplied with the proper size. The garments play a critical role in recovery. Even if you feel that the garments are too tight or it seems to be making it hard to breath or you are worried about cutting off your circulation it is most likely not
   the case. The compression garments will help to flatten out any lumps that can appear but it is important to make sure there are no big creases in the garment when you put it on, as that can lead to problems. The garment acts to keep the healing tissues in the
   proper positions, protect the tissues from excessive tension and helps to compress the spaces created from the liposuction from filling with extra fluid. Some people wear the garments even longer than ordered as it can provide a sense of security. It is important to be prepared to modify various things in your life after surgery. Some common
   things might include:
   1) Adding a couple of pillows under the head of bed to create an incline can be helpful. You may still need a couple of pillows under your head, a pillow to hug and one in-between your knees depending on the required sleeping position. Practice sleeping in the required position for up to a couple of weeks before the surgery, then you can assess any issues that might come up with these new sleeping positions
   2) Add night lights to the room you will be sleeping in and also in the bathroom
   3) It might be helpful to add an attachment to raise the height of the toilet to make it easier to stand up and sit down. A removable shower head will make it easier to shower
   4) Put commonly used products and supplies from your kitchen and bathroom at counter height for maybe the first week (or so depending)
   5) Be prepared to minimize lifting. Split things into smaller containers if necessary.
   6) Make room in your freezer for ice packs. If necessary get a small ice chest for ice and ice packs
   7) Have foods available that are flexible like lower sodium to decrease swelling or higher sodium if your blood pressure is low. 8) Make sure you have someone to help care for your animals, especially in the beginning of recovery and always be extra careful to avoid them getting under your feet so that you don’t trip and fall. Put their food or litter in smaller containers to avoid breaking the lifting restrictions 9) Take care of any errands and other miscellaneous upcoming things in advance if possible

Take this well deserved time to nurture yourself with creative down time activities. Keep stress and anxiety low with calming activities that may include, guided meditations, adult coloring books, binge watch movies or read books etc. Post surgery care is not a luxury; it is a necessity!

Enjoy 🙂

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Proper Care After a Facelift Enhances Recovery and Reduces Complications

High quality post surgical care in Denver can help reduce complications after a facelift.

It is vital that you get enough rest in the proper elevated position especially the first week after surgery. This helps reduce facial swelling and bruising to allow you a quicker social recovery. Optimal nutrition with protein supplementation, supplementation with Vitamin C, and eating foods high in antioxidants all help wound healing and improve skin health. Staying hydrated after a face lift is critical for healing of the tissues, and also helpful in stabilizing your blood pressure. Reducing your salt intake, and avoiding alcohol and medications that cause bleeding, helps in recovery. Keeping your blood pressure in a normal, healthy range decreases the chances of recurrent bleeding, and reduces bruising and swelling. Avoiding medication errors is essential.

Having someone with facelift recovery experience by your side is a must to ensure that your needs are met and to provide the medical care that is necessary.  A skilled after care provider will be on the lookout for anything that might signal a possible complication. The first 24-48 hours are the most critical in the recovery process. 

Hematomas are the most common complication after a facelift and can happen in up to 15% of all cases. A hematoma is a focal collection of blood under the skin after a facelift. Some surgeons use drains after facelifts to reduce dead space and fluid collections. Drains don’t prevent hematoma formation. If bleeding occurs after you get home (eg. after throwing up) and a hematoma is not recognized in time, blood flow can be decreased to the skin surrounding the hematoma and this can cause necrosis to those tissues. Hematomas typically occur in the first 10-12 hours and almost always within the first 24 hours.  It’s also important to monitor your blood pressure because hypertension can increase the risk of bleeding and increase the chance of a hematoma developing. 

It is common to have one or both of your ears flip and fold underneath your facelift compression wrap due to swelling. This can become painful and if left folded can again become an issue due to decreased blood flow to the part of the ear that is getting pinched and skin changes can be observed to the ear.

I have noticed that some clients experience a little more anxiety in the first few days after a facelift because they are a little shocked to see so much swelling and bruising on their face. Having someone with experience can help ease some of that anxiety. It can be quite a shock to the psyche to look in the mirror after surgery and feel regret. Not being able to see yourself as you remembered is a cause for the post-facelift blues. Most people get over these feelings after 5-7 days. 

Safe ambulation is always important after every surgery.  It is important to sit for a while before standing and beginning to walk.  It can be disorienting for you as the compression wrap and facial swelling temporarily decrease your field of vision. Having someone help you walk, or at least stand beside you, can help decrease the chance of you bumping your face into something or falling.

As with all surgical procedures, proper care can decrease unnecessary pain, swelling and the incidence of infection. Recovery after a facelift is a great time to slow down, rest, nurture yourself and take a small break from your “regular” life. Having the proper help will allow you to relax and get all the rest you really need. Who wouldn’t want that piece of mind? Post surgery care is not a luxury; it is a necessity!

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Lymphatic Drainage Can Help Create Better Results After Body Contouring

The importance of lymph drainage pre and post  plastic surgery, can not be over emphasized. Our lymphatic system is part of our circulatory system and as such, has vessels that transport the lymphatic fluid aways from the surgical site. These vessels are similar to our veins in that they also contain one way valves. Our lymphatic system has nodes and organs that function like filters and that remove waste products related to healing.  These filters rid our bodies of toxins, bacteria and viruses, and the substances that are present in inflammation, as well as various other things.

This part of our circulatory system is not however, connected to a pump (i.e. the heart.) Therefore, the lymph system heavily relies on our internal muscle contractions and deep breathing to push the fluid through the vessels. However, there are good external interventions that can assist the flow as well. Some of these are manual lymphatic drainage massage (MLD,) dry brushing, specific breathing techniques, and alternating hot and cold exposure either to the specific part of the body or in the form of showers.

The lymph vessels are just under the skin, so the massage work must be performed with light rhythmic strokes which acts like the pump. It is important to first start the massage at the location of the nodes in order to help clear them and prepare their ability to accept the incoming fluid. Once that is done, then you can start at the furthest part of the affected limb, trunk or face, and start directing the flow of the fluid to the nodes.

Many surgeries disrupt or damage the lymph capillaries and vessels and it takes the body time to heal and repair the damage incurred during the surgery. Liposuction is especially damaging and depending on the surgery it can take up to 6 months to be completely repaired. The surgeon will recommend special garments if necessary to assist with preventing excessive swelling remaining in the areas affected by the surgery.

Pre-op MLD can be beneficial and a few treatments 2-4 days or so prior to surgery can assist in stimulation of the immune system, detoxifying and clearing the tissues of the things that should be filtered out and draining excess fluid. Some note, that this allows your system to tolerate the affects of anesthesia better. Some people fall asleep during a lymph massage because it is so relaxing. Therefore, this could reduce stress levels before the surgery.

Post-op benefits are many and include all the pre-surgery benefits.  But the vessels have been damaged now, so lymph drainage treatments should become part of your healing regiment. This regiment will help to prevent excessive &/or prolonged swelling which increases healing time as the “trash” is not being dumped. Additionally, the swelling increases pain and also can increase the risk of infection. All these factors can have a negative affect on the proper formation of scar tissue and can also lead to increased fibrosis which can affect superficial and deep tissue mobility if left untreated. If the fluid is not flowing properly the white cells necessary to fighting infection may not be circulating in an optimal way and may not be reaching the affected tissues enough to do their job.

Recommended frequency of manual lymphatic drainage depends on the operation and your body’s response to surgery.  More treatments may be required in the first couple of weeks after surgery and can decrease after that. Even if it has been more than a month after surgery MLD treatments can be of benefit.

Some conditions that cause MLD to be contraindicated include heart problems (due to the extra load of the fluid being directed there) and use of blood thinners.  If you have any questions or concerns it is always wise to check with your doctor before starting lymphatic drainage therapies.

There are many videos which demonstrate self manual lymphatic drainage techniques that include self-massage, dry brushing and breathing techniques.  Go check them out and choose the right one for you, and of course there are professionals ready to help. Post surgery care is not a luxury; it is a necessity!

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Safety After Anesthesia is a Team Effort!

Having surgery – elective or not – is always a big deal, and making sure that you are well cared for in the first 24 hours is critical.  People can respond to anesthesia in a variety of ways. Some people seem to recover quite quickly and progress well with stable blood pressure and little nausea.  However, some people have difficulty with lower blood pressure, nausea, and other complications.

Anesthesia affects coordination, judgement, and reaction time for the first 24-48 hours after being surgery. As such, prevention from possible falls, forgetting to take medications, or over-dosing on medications are just a few things that should be considered.  Often, after surgery, patients are supposed to avoid certain positions or motions, and this is an important consideration as well. Surgery after care professionals are essential for many patients, especially when they don’t have reliable help at home.

Having a competent person assist you with things like proper post-operative nutrition, safety supervision, walking you to the bathroom (especially at night), monitoring appropriate ice pack usage (to avoid frostbite and decrease swelling), reminding you to get up and walk around or do ankle pumps to prevent a blood clot are just a few things that are important for patients after surgery.

Before surgery, it is important to assess the room you will be spending most of your time in during the recovery process. Make sure there is a clear path to the bathroom (especially if you will be required to use an assistive device after surgery). This may mean moving throw rugs or other things that can possibly cause you to trip and fall. Proper night lights are necessary.  Disorientation at night is common after surgery so good lighting helps. Pre-surgery nutrition and good water intake is important.

It is common for blood pressure to change when transitioning from laying down, to sitting up, to standing, so taking extra time in between position changes is important.

Many people shallow-breathe or hold their breath when they are in pain. This is known as splinting and can cause lower oxygen levels and can lead to pneumonia. This may also complicate issues of light-headedness which increases fall risk. It is important for you to breathe deeply and expand your lungs for proper pulmonary health. A competent care giver can help you with this by reminding you to do your breathing exercises and coughing.

Eating recommended foods and drinking enough fluids improves recovery and healing. But when you don’t really feel like eating or drinking after surgery, your care giver will help motivate you.

So, whether the surgery is elective or not there are always many things to consider when establishing a good and safe environment in which to optimize your recovery. As the saying goes, “It’s always better to be safe than sorry!”

Post surgery care is not a luxury; it is a necessity!

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