I love my children,
BUT THEY CAME
AT A COST by J. Drew Sanderson, MD | photos courtesy of Flower Mound Plastic surgery & Aesthetics Spa
A
marks last month, I recommend checking
When discussing recovery, I tell patients
that it is a rough first week and then every
day in your second week you will begin to feel increasingly better. Most patients are back driving and running short errands
in their second week after surgery. I try to
get patients to take two weeks off of work simply because most people do not feel
like getting back into the daily grind after only a week. A gradual return to exercise
begins at three weeks with walking. Many
of my patients will begin walking up to five mile distances in the third week following
The best long-lasting results occur when
people get motivated at week six and hit BEFORE
the gym.
I am frequently asked, “How long do I have to wait after giving birth to
changes nearly as much as her abdomen
have a tummy-tuck?” First, you want to
during childbirth. The rapid increase stretches the abdominal skin past its
skin removal.
six, you may resume all typical workouts.
it out. No part of a woman’s anatomy
in size over a nine-month period often
hides below your bikini line following the
the procedure. At postoperative week
s promised, today I am going to review the process of restoring a woman’s body after childbirth.
If you did not read my article on stretch
abdomen. You will have a scar that easily
AFTER
make sure you are done having children. While getting pregnant after having a
elastic ability to return to the original
tummy tuck is not unsafe, it will ruin your
most women a month or two after giving
must wait after birth is six months to
beautiful results. The minimum one
shape. This fact becomes obvious to
birth. However, what may be a little less obvious is the fact that the muscles and
BEFORE
have a tummy tuck. Other factors come into play based on each individual’s
fascia (thick sheet of connective tissue)
circumstances, but six months is
way, likely the destroying the six-pack
Finally, I occasionally get asked,
the minimum.
under your skin gets stretched the same you may have proudly displayed at the
beach in your youth. With the weakened abdominal muscles, the distance from
your belly button to your spine becomes longer. There are certainly differences in
the way each person’s abdomen appears after pregnancy, but some “snap back” more than others.
Should you have excess skin, stretch
marks, or a weakened abdomen after
AFTER pregnancy, there are some great options that can fix this; such as an abdominoplasty (or tummy tuck). During an abdominoplasty surgery, your surgeon will remove all of the excess skin on your lower abdomen and re-tighten your abdominal muscles which can dramatically change the appearance of your lower
“Do I need this?” My answer is always that nobody “needs” what I do, but if
your abdomen bothers you, we can make safely make it better. Many of my patients have said that when they look their best, they feel their best! Please understand, childbirth is a miracle and a beautiful thing; I am humbled by the women I am fortunate enough to work with daily in restoring their bodies.
972.691.7900 | www.liveyoungspa.com www.flowermoundplasticsurgery.com 2931 Long Prairie Rd., Ste. 100 • Flower Mound, TX
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OCTOBER 2020 | 35 WEST | 21
