Motherhood can totally change your body, leaving many women feeling less satisfied with their appearance. Pregnancy and childbirth most often affect your breasts and abdomen and leave you with loose, flabby skin and breasts which appear saggy and deflated. A mommy makeover from Rios Center for Plastic Surgery in Edinburg, TX offers moms in the Rio Grande Valley a transformative procedure to help you reclaim your body.
What’s a Mommy Makeover?
The term “mommy makeover” describes a wide variety of procedure combinations designed to restore and enhance your pre-pregnancy body as much as possible. This typically includes between 1-3 surgeries targeting your midsection and breasts.
Most women incorporate a version of the tummy tuck–which can remove excess skin, tighten abdominal muscles which may have separated during pregnancy, and smooth your silhouette–and a breast lift, which pulls your breasts up on your chest and reverses the effects of pregnancy and breastfeeding, which can cause your breasts to sag and flatten. This procedure can also include additional surgeries, usually a breast augmentation, breast reduction, labiaplasty, or liposuction, depending on your ideal results.
Although this is a safe procedure and is performed on many mothers each year, it is a major surgery with a recovery time which can lengthen with each additional procedure you add. However, the results are life-changing and can offer you a permanent solution to your concerns about your post-pregnancy body as well as a huge boost in confidence.
Customize the Makeover to Meet Your Needs
One of the biggest pros of this procedure is its ability to address the needs of almost every patient. For some women, a less intense procedure is chosen to address mild cosmetic concerns. This could include a mini tummy tuck, a skin-only tuck, or liposuction to remove stubborn fat deposits.
For other women, pregnancy has totally changed their body, and they desire a complete makeover for their abdomen and abdominal muscles, breasts, labia, and other areas.
While each procedure comes with its own risks and recovery time, your doctor can help you determine which procedures will address your unique concerns. They’ll also explain how each procedure works, what to expect during recovery time, and the anticipated final results so that you can feel confident in making an informed decision.
What Are the Benefits?
The main purpose of the makeover procedure is to transform your body into your ideal image. This comes with benefits that, for most patients, outweigh the inconveniences. Firstly, the results of your procedure can be permanent with good planning and a healthy lifestyle. If you wait to pursue a makeover until after you are finished having children, you’ll be able to enjoy your results for the rest of your life if you follow a healthy diet and exercise plan.
In addition, committing to a procedure this extensive is the fastest way to see your body transformed. While there are non-surgical options available to help shape and sculpt your body, many of the effects of pregnancy can only be addressed by surgery, which means that a makeover will save you time and money in the long run.
Finally, your results will leave you looking and feeling like your best self, giving you a healthy dose of self-confidence that will help you enjoy your everyday life as a mom without worrying about your appearance.
How Much Downtime Should I Expect?
The time you should allocate for your recovery will vary depending on the combination of procedures that you and your doctor choose. Most doctors recommend that you plan to take at least 2 weeks off from work. This includes most household chores and some aspects of childcare, such as lifting and holding children.
It’s best if you ask a trusted friend or family member to help you during your recovery period. In total, your initial recovery should take between 4-6 weeks in total, after which point you can return to most aspects of your normal life.
After this point, depending on how many procedures you combined and whether you had them all at once or spread them out, you should continue to follow your doctor’s instructions for your recovery for about 2-4 months to ensure best results. Most patients are completely healed at the 6-month mark.
How Does It Work?
Your mommy makeover experience will be unique to your specific needs, but there is a common order of events that your doctor follows as you choose your mommy makeover procedures, prepare for surgery, and enter your recovery period.
Consultation
The first step in your journey to a new body is a consultation appointment with your doctor. This allows your doctor to evaluate your areas of concern and recommend the best combination of procedures for you. In addition, you’ll be able to ask all your questions about surgery, recovery, and final results.
Your doctor will review your medical and health history, and you should be prepared to disclose any medical conditions and medications you currently take. They’ll also evaluate your lifestyle and future family planning goals to ensure that this makeover is right for you.
During your mommy makeover consultation, your doctor will be able to show you where you can expect any incision scars, which are typically easy to cover and fade over the first year after surgery. They’ll also be able to explain the differences between similar procedures–such as the mini tummy tuck vs. the classic tummy tuck–and what each procedure can offer. It’s common to take a before photo for you and your doctor to reference after surgery is complete.
Preparation
During preparation, you should eat a healthy, balanced diet and drink plenty of water to keep your body well-nourished and hydrated, which is the foundation for a smooth surgery and recovery experience. Your doctor will provide you with an exact timeline to follow as you prepare for surgery. This includes stopping smoking at least 6 weeks before surgery, as nicotine can have negative effects on your body as it recovers.
Fill your prescriptions and buy some stool softener and bland, easily-digestible foods to have on hand in case your stomach is upset by the anesthesia. In addition, you should plan to avoid blood-thinning medications and substances like ibuprofen, aspirin, some herbal remedies, and alcohol approximately 2-3 weeks before surgery to reduce your risk of excess bleeding and bruising.
Your doctor will ask you to select a friend or family member to drive you home from your surgery and stay with you for at least 24 hours. You should also plan to coordinate childcare, pet care, and help with daily chores and activities for 2 weeks after surgery. Finally, get your house ready by getting out your comfy clothes, pre-cooking meals, and lining up your favorite entertainment options.
Procedure
Make sure to carefully follow your doctor’s instructions on when to stop eating and drinking before your surgery. You should shower and wash your body well and wear loose, comfortable clothing. Before your appointment, you’ll have the chance to ask your doctor any last-minute questions. Once you’re prepared, your doctor will administer general anesthesia, which will keep you asleep for the duration of your surgery.
If you’ve chosen several different procedures, your surgery time will likely last 4 hours or more. Fewer and less extensive procedures normally take between 3-4 hours. Your doctor may recommend that you spread procedures out over 2-3 surgery dates to allow your body to recover between surgeries.
Your doctor will address each section of your body as discussed during your consultation, creating a flat tummy, lifted, enhanced breasts, and any other changes you selected. You’ll be observed for about an hour after your surgery is completed before you’re released to be driven home with your designated companion.
Recovery
Once you arrive home, you’ll want to rest for the first 2-3 days without any activity beyond short walks every couple hours to promote healthy circulation and prevent blood clots. Your doctor will prescribe pain medication, and you should reintroduce food slowly while keeping well-hydrated.
Avoid lifting anything, bending over, or raising your arms. Sleep on your back and keep your incision sites clean and dry until your doctor instructs otherwise. Your doctor will give you compression garments to wear over your dressing as your body heals to achieve best results. You should begin to feel ready to move around more about 3 days after surgery. You can lengthen your regular walks, but avoid exercise, driving, and lifting things until your doctor approves these activities.
Your doctor will typically evaluate your healing 1-2 days after surgery, after which point they’ll give you instructions to follow for the rest of your recovery. You should be able to return to work about 2 weeks after surgery, and most patients are able to resume all normal activities by the 6-week mark, as long as their doctor approves. If you’re unsure about any activity, ask your doctor first.
Results
While results are instant, normal swelling after your surgery means that you probably won’t see your final results until about one month after your procedure. Complete healing typically occurs between 4-6 months after surgery, and your incision scars should fade drastically within the first year.
If you avoid future childbearing–which can re-stretch your skin and affect your results–and keep your body in shape with a healthy diet and exercise, your results can be permanent. Once your incision sites have healed and you’re back in your normal routine, you should feel much more at home in your body and more confident in every situation.
You should have a flatter tummy, perkier breasts, and an overall smoother silhouette. Unless you tell them, no one will have any idea that you had a makeover surgery, but they’ll certainly notice the change in your look and your attitude!
Who Is an Ideal Candidate?
A mommy makeover can be customized to be the perfect procedure for almost every woman. It can address a multitude of cosmetic concerns and delivers fast, long-lasting results. When pursuing a makeover, it’s recommended that you avoid having additional children after surgery to maintain your results.
In addition, it’s important to be at a healthy weight for surgery and address any medical conditions which could interact negatively with surgery before scheduling a makeover. If you have any doubts or questions, you should check with your doctor to determine whether this procedure is right for you.
Conclusion
If you’re ready to say goodbye to your post-pregnancy body and hello to a transformed look and a life spent focusing on the important things instead of your cosmetic concerns, contact the professionals at Rios Center for Plastic Surgery in Edinburg, TX to schedule an initial consultation today! We look forward to serving you.
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