Diane B.
My Plastic Surgery Journey
Jul 14, 2009
O.K. Well here I am 1 year and 6 months out from gastric bypass surgery, and I am so proud of my decision to get rid of this weight that I have been hiding behind for most of my life. I remember as each month crept by, and the pounds melted away that feeling of freedom was just incredible. I do many things to ensure that I keep the weight off, like go to weekly www.tops.org meetings, attend my surgeons monthly support group meetings, not only for me, but also to pay it forward. Even though I have lost 117 pounds, the fear that I will gain it back is very real. Failure is not an option anymore. I wear a size 10 comfortably, a M in tops and weigh about 157. Life couldn't get any better, right?
How I presented myself to the outside world was just great, but when I took off those size 10's, and the sagging skin revealed itself, I thought, "Will I ever be free of this trapped feeling? Can I live the rest of my life trying to suck in my belly skin, holding my arms tightly to my sides to avoid my skin from flapping ? My dream has always to be able to wear a mini-skirt, but my thighs even before the weight gain were dimpled and saggy. I still was not comfortable wearing shorts that were any shorter than my knees.
That's when I started reading the plastic surgery message boards on OH. I will admit I lurked for months, but I identified with every person who revealed their stories, triumphs, tragedies and pictures. It was very comforting to know that I was not alone. Some people are lucky enough to be satisfied with themselves with just the weight loss, but I didn't think I could be one of them.
Naturally, since I loved being a patient of Dr. Bell, at Yale I asked him for a referral for plastics. He referred me to their clinic, with Dr. Michael. I originally was seeking a BA (saline) medial thigh lift and a TT. I met with him, and his colleague, and for my 1st consult, it went quite well. He said he would submit the photos and evidence of medications I used to combat the skin rashes, and we would take it from there. I was hopeful of my insurance (tricare standard) paying for the tummy, because they didn't even blink when I requested the RNY procedure. Since Yale is a teaching hospital, I received residents pricing. This and the fact that I had my RNY there. The price I received was $16,000. All in all, I thought that was pretty good compared to what other people have been quoted for this area. That included hospital an anesthesia fees.
On pins and needles I waited. And waited. And waited. And then it came. The denial. Immediate feeling of let down. But not for long. I am a pre-school teacher, so I am off for the summer, and was planning on doing this in July once my son healed from his tonsil surgery. Once I get an idea in my head, I run with it. People told me, don't worry, you can appeal, they did, and won, but it all sounded like a lot of work, and my vacation time was running out. That's when I really started to research medical tourism. I chose Dr. Sauceda in Mexico, because I did not hear one bad comment or complaint about his work.
My all time low was when I had to ask my husband to take pictures of me in panties only, so I could email them to the Doctor. I had come so far with my weight loss, but was still very much ashamed of how I looked without my clothing. I have always heard that if you had a bad marriage to begin with, it would probably fall apart when you lose weight. Well the other day, my husband said to me "do you realize that we hardly ever argue anymore?" So I thought about that for a while, and I realized that maybe it was me. I was not that same old, tired, morbidly obese, cranky and trying to blame everyone else for my situation person that I used to be. Hmmmm, could I have projected how miserable I was into my marriage? Probably. My husband (also overweight) has been so supportive of me, when I was obese, when I was not, when I was still trying to hide who I was in that saggy old body, and when I asked for our saved money and his support with the kids while I went to Mexico for reconstructive surgery. I owe him a lot more credit than I have given him over the years.
Once I contacted Dr. Sauceda, things moved very quickly. We emailed back an forth, set a surgery date, and left the final decision of LBL sm thigh left or not the LBL with the full thigh lift for when he examined me in person.
O.K., so on to the actual journey. I flew from Hartford CT to Monterrey Mexico with one stop in Texas. Of course, my flight was delayed due to weather, and I knew before I even got to Texas, that I would not make my connecting flight. Panic starts to set in, so I called my husband and asked him to email Dr. Sauceda to let him know.......well guess what, he already knew. It seems Dr. Sauceda had already called the airport to check on my flight, and let my husband know he would be there for me...and he was. I didn't arrive in Mexico till about 10:30 pm, stood in line for customs and then another for security, and as I scanned the crowd for the Doctor, he was already waving to me. I guess he recognized me from my emailed pictures (even with my clothes on!) The conversation on the drive was about my journey so far, and about his and my perceptions of americans, me being a Yankee, versus folks from the south or mid-west. I was a little nervous, but as soon as I met him, I was completely at ease. I remember being very exhausted, but being more worried about the doctor being well rested, lol. He reminded me that all doctors are trained to work long shifts with little sleep. Why did I not feel better? We headed straight to his office, where he proceeded with his examination and evaluation of weather or not I would have the LBL or the full thigh lift. As he took handfulls of my thigh skin, he showed me what I could expect from the small thigh lift, and then the difference of what he could do with the large thigh lift. I chose the large thigh lift, and not the LBL, as he would not do both at the same time with all my other work. He let me know that there was no room at his clinic (4 rooms) so he would be driving me to the hotel (Hampton Inn) and he would pick me up in the morning, and mark me then, because I would not be able to shower once he marked me. He gave me white t-shirt to put on, and we proceeded to select my size for the augmentation. He uses clear plastic shell-type models of a breast with a nipple. I placed several different sizes under the t-shirt, and used the mirror to try them all out. Once I chose how large I wanted my breasts to look under the t-shirt, he saw how much of my own breast tissue was filling out the clear shell (not much!) he did some sort of mathmatecal equation to decide how many cc's (implant size) he would use. I ended up with a 450 cc silicone gummi implant with a lifetime warrantee for manufacturers defects....not kidding!
Off to the hotel we go, with Dr. S. helping me to schlepp off my luggage to check in and drop me off at my room. He instructed me to shower in the morning, and be waiting for him in the lobby at 7a.m. By this time it was about 1a.m. and I was very grateful just to hop into the comfy bed and pass out. As I drifted off I remember thinking how excited I was, and how comfortable I was going to be recovering at this hotel. The bedding and pillows were fabulous. More on the hotel later. I bought my own alarm clock so I would be sure to be on time. Sometimes the hotel clocks are a pain to figure out.
The following morning after I showered I took one last look at my formerly morbidly obese body, and said goodbye to the person I used to be.
Once again, I schlepped all my luggage down to the lobby to wait for the doctor. On the way to the clinic, (10 minutes) we talked about our families, and he let me know he would call my husband as soon as he took off his gloves to let him know I was out of surgery. We went back to his office where he marked me, after discussing how particular I was with scar placement. He marked me up, and took the time to show me front and back exactly where my scars would be. We also discussed how much my puffy/fatty hanging mons area would be lifted with the TT. That was an added bonus. I never thought that would be able to be addressed with the TT. Another added bonus was that he would add some fat injections to my nasal labial folds, those marionette lines that were very deep around my mouth from my weight loss. I still have them, but they are much less pronounced. The fact that he did not charge me for that, goes to show you how hard he works to ensure your satisfaction. Above and beyond my expectations. Once he walked me to the surgical area, he introduced me to the anesthesiologist (not his wife who usually works with him) a very nice man who also spoke very good english. He and some nurses prepped me for the surgery. I put my clothing in a locker and put on a paper gown, hat and booties. As we walked into the surgical room, I was instructed not to touch a thing with my hands to protect the sterile environment. I took off the gown and stood on a chucks pad for the betadine rubdown from neck to ankle. Yes that stuff is icy cold. Since I couldn't use my hands, I was helped up onto the operating table and the IV was started. I was informed I would have a bladder catheter inserted, but after I was sedated. The last thing I remember was rolling onto my side in the fetal position so they could start the epidural. The next thing I remember was waking up and them telling me to scootch off the o.r. table onto the portable bed to be rolled into recovery room. I remember having severe shoulder pain, which I remember from having my 1st son via c-section, was a result of the epidural. I remember telling them as soon as someone rubbed my shoulders I would be happy to move, but they weren't having any of that. I remember having some slight nausea, and a severely itchy face. I think maybe from the fat injections or just the anesthesia. They kept telling me not to scratch my face because I would bleed a little from the injection site, but I just couldn't help myself. I heard them say it, and said ok, but I scratched anyway! I believe they called the dr. because I did receive a shot of something...maybe benadryl? and the itchies went away.
Next: recovery .........to be continued.
6 comments
How I presented myself to the outside world was just great, but when I took off those size 10's, and the sagging skin revealed itself, I thought, "Will I ever be free of this trapped feeling? Can I live the rest of my life trying to suck in my belly skin, holding my arms tightly to my sides to avoid my skin from flapping ? My dream has always to be able to wear a mini-skirt, but my thighs even before the weight gain were dimpled and saggy. I still was not comfortable wearing shorts that were any shorter than my knees.
That's when I started reading the plastic surgery message boards on OH. I will admit I lurked for months, but I identified with every person who revealed their stories, triumphs, tragedies and pictures. It was very comforting to know that I was not alone. Some people are lucky enough to be satisfied with themselves with just the weight loss, but I didn't think I could be one of them.
Naturally, since I loved being a patient of Dr. Bell, at Yale I asked him for a referral for plastics. He referred me to their clinic, with Dr. Michael. I originally was seeking a BA (saline) medial thigh lift and a TT. I met with him, and his colleague, and for my 1st consult, it went quite well. He said he would submit the photos and evidence of medications I used to combat the skin rashes, and we would take it from there. I was hopeful of my insurance (tricare standard) paying for the tummy, because they didn't even blink when I requested the RNY procedure. Since Yale is a teaching hospital, I received residents pricing. This and the fact that I had my RNY there. The price I received was $16,000. All in all, I thought that was pretty good compared to what other people have been quoted for this area. That included hospital an anesthesia fees.
On pins and needles I waited. And waited. And waited. And then it came. The denial. Immediate feeling of let down. But not for long. I am a pre-school teacher, so I am off for the summer, and was planning on doing this in July once my son healed from his tonsil surgery. Once I get an idea in my head, I run with it. People told me, don't worry, you can appeal, they did, and won, but it all sounded like a lot of work, and my vacation time was running out. That's when I really started to research medical tourism. I chose Dr. Sauceda in Mexico, because I did not hear one bad comment or complaint about his work.
My all time low was when I had to ask my husband to take pictures of me in panties only, so I could email them to the Doctor. I had come so far with my weight loss, but was still very much ashamed of how I looked without my clothing. I have always heard that if you had a bad marriage to begin with, it would probably fall apart when you lose weight. Well the other day, my husband said to me "do you realize that we hardly ever argue anymore?" So I thought about that for a while, and I realized that maybe it was me. I was not that same old, tired, morbidly obese, cranky and trying to blame everyone else for my situation person that I used to be. Hmmmm, could I have projected how miserable I was into my marriage? Probably. My husband (also overweight) has been so supportive of me, when I was obese, when I was not, when I was still trying to hide who I was in that saggy old body, and when I asked for our saved money and his support with the kids while I went to Mexico for reconstructive surgery. I owe him a lot more credit than I have given him over the years.
Once I contacted Dr. Sauceda, things moved very quickly. We emailed back an forth, set a surgery date, and left the final decision of LBL sm thigh left or not the LBL with the full thigh lift for when he examined me in person.
O.K., so on to the actual journey. I flew from Hartford CT to Monterrey Mexico with one stop in Texas. Of course, my flight was delayed due to weather, and I knew before I even got to Texas, that I would not make my connecting flight. Panic starts to set in, so I called my husband and asked him to email Dr. Sauceda to let him know.......well guess what, he already knew. It seems Dr. Sauceda had already called the airport to check on my flight, and let my husband know he would be there for me...and he was. I didn't arrive in Mexico till about 10:30 pm, stood in line for customs and then another for security, and as I scanned the crowd for the Doctor, he was already waving to me. I guess he recognized me from my emailed pictures (even with my clothes on!) The conversation on the drive was about my journey so far, and about his and my perceptions of americans, me being a Yankee, versus folks from the south or mid-west. I was a little nervous, but as soon as I met him, I was completely at ease. I remember being very exhausted, but being more worried about the doctor being well rested, lol. He reminded me that all doctors are trained to work long shifts with little sleep. Why did I not feel better? We headed straight to his office, where he proceeded with his examination and evaluation of weather or not I would have the LBL or the full thigh lift. As he took handfulls of my thigh skin, he showed me what I could expect from the small thigh lift, and then the difference of what he could do with the large thigh lift. I chose the large thigh lift, and not the LBL, as he would not do both at the same time with all my other work. He let me know that there was no room at his clinic (4 rooms) so he would be driving me to the hotel (Hampton Inn) and he would pick me up in the morning, and mark me then, because I would not be able to shower once he marked me. He gave me white t-shirt to put on, and we proceeded to select my size for the augmentation. He uses clear plastic shell-type models of a breast with a nipple. I placed several different sizes under the t-shirt, and used the mirror to try them all out. Once I chose how large I wanted my breasts to look under the t-shirt, he saw how much of my own breast tissue was filling out the clear shell (not much!) he did some sort of mathmatecal equation to decide how many cc's (implant size) he would use. I ended up with a 450 cc silicone gummi implant with a lifetime warrantee for manufacturers defects....not kidding!
Off to the hotel we go, with Dr. S. helping me to schlepp off my luggage to check in and drop me off at my room. He instructed me to shower in the morning, and be waiting for him in the lobby at 7a.m. By this time it was about 1a.m. and I was very grateful just to hop into the comfy bed and pass out. As I drifted off I remember thinking how excited I was, and how comfortable I was going to be recovering at this hotel. The bedding and pillows were fabulous. More on the hotel later. I bought my own alarm clock so I would be sure to be on time. Sometimes the hotel clocks are a pain to figure out.
The following morning after I showered I took one last look at my formerly morbidly obese body, and said goodbye to the person I used to be.
Once again, I schlepped all my luggage down to the lobby to wait for the doctor. On the way to the clinic, (10 minutes) we talked about our families, and he let me know he would call my husband as soon as he took off his gloves to let him know I was out of surgery. We went back to his office where he marked me, after discussing how particular I was with scar placement. He marked me up, and took the time to show me front and back exactly where my scars would be. We also discussed how much my puffy/fatty hanging mons area would be lifted with the TT. That was an added bonus. I never thought that would be able to be addressed with the TT. Another added bonus was that he would add some fat injections to my nasal labial folds, those marionette lines that were very deep around my mouth from my weight loss. I still have them, but they are much less pronounced. The fact that he did not charge me for that, goes to show you how hard he works to ensure your satisfaction. Above and beyond my expectations. Once he walked me to the surgical area, he introduced me to the anesthesiologist (not his wife who usually works with him) a very nice man who also spoke very good english. He and some nurses prepped me for the surgery. I put my clothing in a locker and put on a paper gown, hat and booties. As we walked into the surgical room, I was instructed not to touch a thing with my hands to protect the sterile environment. I took off the gown and stood on a chucks pad for the betadine rubdown from neck to ankle. Yes that stuff is icy cold. Since I couldn't use my hands, I was helped up onto the operating table and the IV was started. I was informed I would have a bladder catheter inserted, but after I was sedated. The last thing I remember was rolling onto my side in the fetal position so they could start the epidural. The next thing I remember was waking up and them telling me to scootch off the o.r. table onto the portable bed to be rolled into recovery room. I remember having severe shoulder pain, which I remember from having my 1st son via c-section, was a result of the epidural. I remember telling them as soon as someone rubbed my shoulders I would be happy to move, but they weren't having any of that. I remember having some slight nausea, and a severely itchy face. I think maybe from the fat injections or just the anesthesia. They kept telling me not to scratch my face because I would bleed a little from the injection site, but I just couldn't help myself. I heard them say it, and said ok, but I scratched anyway! I believe they called the dr. because I did receive a shot of something...maybe benadryl? and the itchies went away.
Next: recovery .........to be continued.
About Me
Seymour, CT
Location
27.0
BMI
Surgery
01/09/2008
Surgery Date
Jul 29, 2007
Member Since
