My Pics/Story (Advice appreciated - thanks in advance)

[silent_minority]

I'm 27 years old, and I know I have it (knots directly underneath both nipples).  I'm 6'-2" and about 185 lbs. - I'm not exactly at top physical condition at the moment - I've been at 170 or so for most of my adult life.

I'm thankful that I've been able to live a fairly normal life despite the condition... but it as always bothered me on some level.  I'm married (wife doesn't mind - in fact we really don't even talk about it) and I finally have the expendable income at this stage in my life where I can consider finding a PS to take care of it.  I'd probably wait until winter to allow for greater ease of hiding the compression garment (yes, I've been lurking around here for a while, and I am familiar with the operation details) and I figured it may give my scars some time to heal before I hit the sun in the following summer.

My questions are:

- How fast can you get back to work after having the operation? (I work a desk job)

- Do most PS prefer to do both lipo and excision (I don't mind the extra fat - I could work that off, but I do want the gland gone) and does this greatly affect the recovery time and cost of the operation?

- How noticable is the compression garment?  Would anybody be able to tell if you were wearing a button-down long sleeve shirt with an undershirt underneath?

- Can anyone recommend a surgeon in the Minneapolis / St. Paul area - I saw a posting once of a guy who had a PS with the last name of Leigh do his procedure - appeared to do a pretty good job.  I haven't seen anyone else on here from this area that has posted before/after photos (I'll definitely help in that situation if I get it done 

[vile]

Honestly I'd rate your gyne 3/10, it's not that bad at all and not noticeable.

If you insist on surgery, I personally didn't need lipo, and after only gland excision I came back to work after 3 days (I had the vest for 2 days, doc removed it, and I came back at the 3rd day.)
I was a security Guard.

If you work physically.. I usually do alot of workout at home, only after 2 weeks I could start running and working out, and doing pushups only after 1 month.

It really differs with everyone. It depends alot if you smoke. If you're a smoker your body heals way slower.

[jackson318]

I took a full week off, mainly because I had the vacation time coming and wanted to.  I also had lipo around my waist, which made it pretty hard to sit up or wear office-appropriate pants for a while.  Chest only, I would say I could have been ok the third day after surgery.  The real thing there is if the doctor uses drains, and when you'd be able to shower.  I can't imagine have even trying to go anywhere with the drains in (that'd be impossible to hide).  So be sure to ask about drains and showering post-op when you talk with docs. 

The compression garment was well-hidden under button up dress shirts.  In fact, I had to stick mainly to those (no knits tops) while in the compression shirt.  Now that the compression shirt is off tho, it's great to be able to wear t-shirts and polo shirts all the time (it's a casual office I work at).

As far as lipo/gland, I'd go with whatever the doctor says.  Just because it's fat doesn't mean it's ever coming off.  There are some pockets of fat people have that just never come off, no matter how fit you are.  IE, I wouldn't forego lipo just because it's "just fat" - I would let the doctor do whatever s/he feels is best for the best end results.

[silent_minority]

Thanks for the advice.  I'll mull it over this summer and start thinking about a possible consultation in the fall.  The drains kind of freak me out. 

The other thing on my mind right now is the issue of insurance coverage / lack thereof.  It would be nice if we could at least use flex spending accounts to pay for the operation, if not have insurance pay for all.  I've considered looking into the flex spending issue, but I think we'd all agree that it's pretty embarrassing to start opening that can of worms, and unfortunately, that's probably why there's a lack of coverage there (nobody asks, so there can't be a real problem, right?).  I figure I'd just pay the thing with cash and avoid the gigantic paper trail and embarassment that would follow a filing.

[MSJ108]

minor minor case man