Surgery Completed on 24/06/2013

[EY2012]

Hey man goodluck for tomorrow!!! you'll be fine, dont be nervous. Yes you will be sore for a few days but its worth it in the end. If you need anything, just let me know

[MATE]

All the best for tomorrow, hopefully everything goes well. Just stay patient during the recovery period.

[MATE]

HI Guys,

So its 4 weeks already since I had the surgery. The recovery period is a difficult one and the key is to have patience and give it time to heal. Another thing is the mental state of the person, every patient is different and there is no need to stress about things like swelling and bruising as it all needs time to settle.

As for me I still have some swelling and little lumps and bumps on my chest and sides chest in particular, however it gets better everyday and the swelling is subsiding daily. I can wait till its all good and I can go back to the gym.

The armpit scars are healing nicely, they are not very visible tbh which is good. My range of motion is better, I can put my hand over my head but still cant stretch them out very high because of the remaining swelling.

Generally, Im happy with the way it turned out and dont regret doing this. It feels weird but it takes some time to adjust to the way you look as the change happens in a matter of hours.

will keep you guys updated

[Lemmiwinks21]

Hey guys,

So first day post-op and feeling a bit sore. I can manage to do everything myself, i just have to take my time. I havn't even had a look under the vest and think i'm just going to wait until my appointment on thursday. I'm guessing it's not going to be a pretty sight for at least the next few weeks.

How long did it take for you guys to get some reasonable motion with the arms? The vest is pretty discrete under a jumper but i feel like moving so stiffly makes it harder to hide.

[MATE]

Hi Lemmiwiks,

Congrats on completing the surgery, how did it turn out according to the doctor. After the first week you should gradually get more range of motion but you wont feel as comfortable moving around until the end of week 2. keep us updated on how things are going

[EY2012]

Hey man, congrats with the surgery! It took me a good 5-6 days to get use to everything and feel like I was on top of things.

But as MATE said, it will take a good 2 weeks for you to move arms around and feel comfortable. I'm 2.5 weeks post surgery and I feel pretty good. Still have swelling, bruising and some soreness under arms. I was scared to look for the first few days and when I saw it 3 days after I was a bit shocked. Its just bandaged so it looks fine.

I got abit quezzy when I had my first shower, so make sure you have a stool or something in there with you.

[Lemmiwinks21]

Yeah it's getting better every day, and time seems to go by pretty quick i can't believe it's day 4 tomorrow! I spent the last 3 days in a hotel room watching movies and walking about Randwick all spaced out on the meds, fun times. But now i'm home and getting back into the swing of things.

Doc said everything went really well. From what i've seen i'm really pleased with how it looks, even though it's puffed and bruised it's a massive improvement.

I think i know what you mean with the mental state of the person. For me i never wanted a perfect chest, i just wanted to not even have to look at it, think about it or have it stop me doing things. So i'm going to conciously try to look at it as little as i can over the recovery period, as i can see how your mind can pull tricks on you like that.

[Lemmiwinks21]

So it's been 1 week and i'm feeling good. Still a bit swollen and bruised around the sides but it's constantly feeling better and i'm less restricted with movement each day. Also i'll add that i'm really pleased with how it all looks already. I'm still instinctively looking at my chest in mirrors and reflections and i'm always smiling afterwards

I've recently finished my uni degree and come to live at home again with my parents after living abroad for the last 2 years (which made it the perfect time to get this done). We live on a bit of a farm and there is always something happening and something to do, and sitting around doing nothing usually isn't an option. So the hardest thing for me has definitely been staying still. It would have been ok but i decided not to tell my family other than my mum, so i've been expected to help out with all the usual work and i've been trying to avoid it as much as i can.

I've found I can manage ok with most things and from day 4 or 5 i've been getting wood for the fire, using a wheel-barrow, using a shovel, lifting things etc.. even changed a gear-box today. and i havn't had any pain or swelling or anything. I just take my time with it and don't do anything too uncomfortable.

So i guess if there's any advice to come from this it's that you should think hard about who you want to tell about the surgery. If they don't know you've just had surgery they'll treat you like normal. I should have thought about it more. But if it's a choice between telling them and risking an injury then i'm obviously going to tell them. Also i would highly recommend having the surgery in winter if your worried about people finding out. The velcro straps on the vest are pretty obvious when wearing only a shirt, and the vest would get that much more uncomfortable if you were sweaty and hot. I'm glad i can hide it with a jumper

[Lemmiwinks21]

2 weeks post-op!

I'm really happy now that my movement has opened back up. Can't really go far above my head before it starts to feel tight and uncomfortable but I can do most day-to-day things with no trouble.

I still have some solid swelling around the areola and under the armpit but it seems to be gradually going away. My armpit scars from the lipo are already pretty much invisible and are really well hidden in the natural crease of it anyway. The scars around the incision sights are also already pretty discrete to my eyes, so by the time i'm finished with the silicone pads in about 6 weeks time i think it'll be unnoticable.

Pretty stoked with it all so far. You do get used to the compression vest, but all the same i'm looking forward to getting rid of it.

[EY2012]

Nice man, exactly 4 weeks post op and im wearing the vest during nights now and have the silicone patches on all the time. It's good to get rid of the vest but it feels like im missing that "security" layer now. Bruising has gone and scar under both arms are pretty invisible, there is still swelling but that should be gone soon enough.

[MATE]

Hi Ppl,

So I am now 6.5 weeks out. Its been up and down as the body recovers. My range of motion is about 90% back now. If I over stretch I get a tight feeling in the chest area. however there is some swelling remaining, It seems to be reducing very slowly.

I am planning to hit the gym next week, it will be 7 weeks out, hoping it all goes well. I have a follow up tomorrow with the doctor to see how everything is coming about.