
Getting ready for the hourglass tummy tuck
Getting ready for the hourglass tummy tuck
Introduction
Unhappy with the appearance of your tummy? Do you have saggy skin on the abdominal wall that makes it difficult to enjoy summer clothes and swimsuits? Has your tummy lost the firmness and flatness it once had? Do you have a rather square shape of the body that is not overly sexy? Are you dreaming of alluring curves and don’t know how to get them? Well, the good news is that it is now easier than ever to get the curves of your dreams and to correct the imperfections of the abdominal wall.
There is a plastic surgery procedure that can help you achieve all these in one session. The procedure is called the hourglass tummy tuck and can last between two and four hours, depending on the complexity of each case. The procedure aims to improve not only the appearance of your tummy but also the shape of your body. In this article, we will discuss the details of the procedure and how to get ready for it.
The hourglass tummy tuck
It can take up to four hours and even more to undergo an hourglass tummy tuck. The procedure is much more complex than a traditional abdominoplasty. Technically, the traditional tummy tuck only addresses the imperfections of the abdominal wall. When the procedure is performed, the plastic surgeon will make an incision on the lower part of the tummy, above the pubic area and use it to detach the skin and fat tissue from the muscles. If the muscles are affected by diastasis recti and they have a gap between them, the plastic surgeon will use sutures to strengthen them and bring them together on the median line. After the muscles have been corrected, the skin is re-draped on the abdominal wall, the excess is cut and the incision sutured.
As you can see, nothing happens to the excess of fat that can be present on the abdominal wall and flanks. As a result, the patient can be left with a rather square shape of the body after the procedure, and this is one of the most common reason for unsatisfactory results after undergoing the classic tummy tuck.
An experienced plastic surgeon will be able to evaluate the shape of your body and estimate the results that can be achieved with the traditional tummy tuck during the pre-operative consultation and recommend you the procedure that can deliver superior results. The hourglass tummy tuck is to be performed on patients with unwanted adipose tissue on the flanks and the abdominal wall, imperfections of the abdominal wall, and narrow hips.
What actually happens during the hourglass tummy tuck is that the plastic surgeon will use the techniques for traditional abdominoplasty, while also adding liposuction and fat transfer to the hips. This is the reason why the procedure is much more complex and delivers more impressive results. We are not talking about a simple plastic surgery procedure, but a combination of procedures designed to change the appearance of the body and create shapes and curves instead of a square body shape.
So what happens during an hourglass tummy tuck? The patient will receive a general anesthetic to ensure she is safe and comfortable during the procedure. After the anesthetic takes effect, the plastic surgeon will start with a liposuction on the midline. The abdominal wall and the flanks of the body are addressed with liposuction. The fat that is harvested during this procedure is not discharged, but put through a complex purification process that will eliminate the damaged fat cells, blood, and other impurities and result in just pure and healthy fat cells. These fat cells will be used for injection into the hips in the last stage of the procedure. After liposuction, the plastic surgeon will perform the tummy tuck and then fat transfer to the hips. Each stage of the procedure needs to be performed with the highest standards of quality and with a lot of care to ensure satisfactory results.
The results can occur within three months post-op and are considered permanent if the patient avoids ulterior pregnancies and weight fluctuations. Also, the patient should allow for a minimum of six to nine months for the cicatrization process to be completed before assessing the final results.
The final results should be a smaller waist, no saggy skin on the inferior part of the tummy, and more volume for the hips. The silhouette should be an hourglass, with curves in all the right places and very feminine.
Getting ready for the hourglass tummy tuck
The hourglass tummy tuck is not a simple procedure, and while the experience and talent of the plastic surgeon are very important, it is just as important for the patient to be prepared to undergo surgery.
To get ready for the hourglass tummy tuck, the patient needs to avoid certain medications, to prepare the house for the recovery period, and ensure there are no contraindications to the procedure. Any infections, including dental infections and also something as trivial as a simple cold, can determine the need to reschedule the procedure. The main condition to undergo the hourglass tummy tuck is for the patient to be in good health and emotional condition and with realistic expectations.
It is a good idea to adopt a balanced and healthy diet a month before the procedure and avoid natural supplements, anti-inflammatory medication, and birth control pills. Birth control pills can increase the risk of developing a blood clot, anti-inflammatory medication can cause excessive bleeding during and after surgery, and the same effects can be encountered if the patient takes certain natural supplements. A healthy diet should be rich in fresh fruits and vegetables and good quality, lean meats. It is important for the body to get enough calories before the procedure as this can help with a smooth and fast healing. Keeping a strict or restrictive diet before the hourglass tummy tuck in the attempt to lose more weight just before the surgery can result in a long recovery process and even an alteration of the results.
When it comes to the preparation for the hourglass tummy tuck, patients should also pay attention and get their house ready for the recovery period. Patients are discharged from the medical facility within hours after waking up from the effects of the general anesthesia. This means that they need to have someone to drive them home after the procedure as driving by themselves is not possible and can even be dangerous with all the analgesic substances in their system. Moreover, the first few days of the recovery period can be associated with a more intense level of pain and discomfort. Because of this, having someone to help around the house can be beneficial. This person can be a friend or a family member, and they can help you with preparing meals for you, cleaning the room if necessary, and even help you get on and off the bed for the first day until you get used to things.
Another part of the preparation for the hourglass tummy tuck is talking to your friends and family about the recovery period. It is important for them to know that even if you will be home for about two weeks for the recovery period, this doesn’t mean that you can do chores around the house. You need this time to heal and recover after the surgery, so taking things slowly is strongly recommended. Driving might not be possible for at least a week post-op, so make sure you have someone available to drive your kids to and from school, among other things.
For the first few days, you won’t be in the mood for shopping or cooking, so make sure there is enough food in the house, as well as entertainment to keep you occupied for a couple of days.
Conclusion
The hourglass tummy tuck is a complex procedure that can considerably improve the appearance of the body and also fix the imperfections of the abdominal wall such as an excess of saggy skin. The procedure addresses mostly women who have narrow hips and would like to get the most desirable feminine shape: the hourglass body. Keep in mind that it is only an experienced, talented and board-certified plastic surgeon who can perform this procedure and achieve spectacular results while also helping you avoid complications. Because it is such a major procedure, the patient needs to prepare, and in this article, we have discussed how to get ready for the hourglass tummy tuck.