STOPS - Swelling with Tummy Tuck 

It’s almost one year for me post-op. At age 66, I was older than most patients. I have some braided scar tissue along much of the incision but it has improved recently. I know it will not go away completely but I hope it will continue to improve. Still have some numbness in the incision area and it feels tight in that area. All in all, this is a big improvement over the flabby skin I lived with for decades. I lost 10 pounds after surgery and have kept it off. I wear a smaller size now and my clothes fit so much better.

Im a RN. That is the BEST explanation for swelling, seromas, 3rd spacing FOR LAY PERSONS. Too bad Plastic Surgeons don't have mannequins like the CPR ones that you could show the 'car hood' effect, etc 1st hand. These girls who want to come get a TT without any drains kill me!! Excellent video. OMG! You're in Greer, SC! Close by.

Very informative, Swealling is normal up to 1yr. I am 3 months post op and began working out at my 2nd month very light. And Ohhh My i love my results Good healthy meals, water and working out.

Thanks for mentioning manual lymphatic drainage! I have excellent results doing MLD on clients after tummy tuck when the clients replace their garment after the treatment!

I am Brazilian and I did a tummy tuck and I am 5 months and I am very swollen felt terrible pain and suffered a lot took a decision injection sites solustan to edema my navel closed and I never had a plausible explanation about swelling as never seen anyone so swollen ep you were the q only person spoke clearly about the swelling to thank clarity.

This is a great, helpful video! Thanks!!

Thank you for this video you are very helpful Dr.

Yes, everyone gets a new body so there will always be some bloating and swelling based on the amount of food you eat and the kinds of food you eat. I am four years Post with an excellent Plastic Surgeon in Orlando. I do have a teenagers body now but its like a Gastric Bypass you must eat small meals and no fried food or high sodium food. Experiment with your body. No gassy foods either. If your stomach muscles were sewn back together in a full tummy tuck you will be sensitive to Sodium even four+ years out!

Surgeons are amazing!

Very helpful & clear. Thank you

Thank you so much for this video. You have helped me. You have put my mind at easy. Thanks again😇

Thank you so much!!

I am 4 months post op and I feel amazing! I am working out and my tummy is flat

OK, Thanks, doc. I'll make an appt to see my surgeon next week. Hopefully it's just as you suspect. I know everyone's different, of course, so healing times vary. And to be totally honest, I am happy with the results so far. It's far better than having all that extra sagging skin!

So helpful!

Thanks so much

You’re so intelligent

I am awaiting abdominoplasty to reduce excess skin after weight loss, and to repair a recurrent parastomal hernia which has already been repaired twice. The area is very loose and unstable, causing problems with stoma management. My colorectal surgeon specialises in complex abdominal reconstruction. I have a load of questions to ask him nearer the time, and meanwhile I am trying to research online as I want to be as prepared as possible, but there is not much information online about abdominoplasty for ileostomates. One thing that I need to know is the feasibility of compression garments with a stoma, and how any swelling will affect stoma management.

This swelling sounds frightening... i want my tummy done but i don't want to have a big belly for two years.. when i wear a compression garment i get compliments about how flat my tummy is. And how small my waist is now... i lost a great deal of weight and have excess skin below my navel thus i wanted a tuck... still willing to try ... just feel i may be a sweller 😨 ... you are an amazing doctor!!!!😍

Hej, thank you for sharing. You answers a lot of questions. But, I still have another one. What if the patient is not satisfied with the surgery. Do you have any opportunities to have a re-operation?

Would not wearing a compression garment for one night cause a pitted edema and high blood pressure? I'm 40 days post TT, lipo bbl

Thank you for the video.. had one on Dec 23 and I still have pain going on

Another great vid!

Dear Dr. Its going on my second week have tubes out. Had 11pds skin removed. Can you sit o do u always have to have legs lifted up. Not much pain just back I try to get up and walk through the day. Can you take anything for back pain

I am only four months out but I have lower abdomen swelling at the end of the day. It is still kind of hard

Doctor, I had a tummy tuck 2 1/2 weeks ago-have some swelling above incision, but also, more worrisome, is that the tissue directly above the mid-section of my incision is rock hard. Why is that? Is it normal?

Thanks for the video. It answers a lot of questions. I hope you had a great Christmas. My question is, Is swell hell and abdominal tightness after lower body lift the same thing? I'm 3.5 weeks out from the LBL and tightening of the abdominal wall after weight loss with gastric sleeve. For about the past week, when I sit for any length of time, my abdomen gets very tight. The tightness starts out at the pubic line and works its way up to the top of the abdominal wall, then stretches down toward my thighs, at times pinching the nerves at my thighs. Also, if I strain my abdomen, even as much as a slight stomach crunch strain, I feel a shift that seems like a spasm, which eases fairly quickly. Otherwise, the tightness takes days to ease with massage and if I rest as much as possible and try not to sit or stand much. I do see my doctor again on Monday and see him regularly, but it would be good to know what questions I should ask, as for me, this tightness was unexpected and very worrisome.

Whenever I eat out four years post and experience swelling or bloating I give myself a clockwise Lymphatic massage in the hot tub or in a hot bath and it really helps.

Good afternoon, I am 19 days post op. My swelling has some pain locates under belly button, espically when I touch it. Is this a sign of Seroma with possible infection .

I had a tummy tuck on October 20 eight weeks to the day later I was being wheeled back into the OR to have a membrane like capsule that would not drain removed this surgery was so much more painful and so much more extensive I had a drain in for five weeks until it stops suctioning and they had to take it out that was four days ago I was doing really well today I am extremely swollen after not doing much at all feeling a little worried I pray to god it goes correct this time

I had a full tummy tuck with lipo suction about 1 month ago but I have bad contractions and tightness that in the immediate tummy area. I fell a lot during the day but worse at night. Do you have any suggestions? Zenobia

I had post gastric bypass thiegh skin removal 3wks. ago. What reduces swelling? I am walking 8 blocks distance daily, have my legs up 16" when at home and all night. I'm st a loss. Thanks.

There aren't any videos about seromas occurring after laproscopy. It wasn't plastic surgery in my case it was an emergency surgery. I had a 20cm mass that had to be removed. I had this surgery back in November. Now I'm noticing a few bulges under some of the incision marks. My Question is what is a person that got a laproscopy supposed to do about swelling? There were no drains of any sort nor was I told I needed to wear a compression garment. They literally just sealed the incisions with a liquid bandage that would fall off as a scab on its own and that was it. I've gone back to the surgeon to ask about this but all that was said was to keep an eye on it but that's not solving the issue of my stomach looking more swollen than it did before I got the surgery.

I am 7 weeks post tummy tuck still have my drains in due to a lot drainage. No infection yet. Can I lye on my abdomen to push the two planes together. I did this with my binder on for 10 min and it seemed to help. But is it safe to do so? Next questions is there a softener material used for a binder with larger Velcro. Thank you.

Hello, Thank you for the video. I am struggling with seroma for a year now. I had a gastric bypass and lost 180 lbs. I had an abdominalplasty 1 year ago. I developed large seroma. The interventional radiologist has drained my abdomen for approx. 4-6 liters at a time every 6 weeks. I have now developed a large abcess and became septic. The plastic surgeon removed the abcess and capsule of the seroma. I now have the post surgical drains in place for 4 weeks - with approx. 100 mls of drainage in 24 hrs still. What else can I do to stop this? thank you so much Lorraine

Hi Dr. Suber, I saw your answer you posted a few years ago regarding some issues that may be causing the swelling. I saw another plastic surgeon and he said the same as you did that it can either be (1) scar tissue, or (2) fat necrosis (which basically occurs where the blood supply to the fatty tissue in a given area has been compromised). He suggested I massage the area to see if it can dissolve or I can have him go in and surgically remove it. He feels it may be fat necrosis because I am experiencing pain with the knots I have on my left side. Is there any other solutions or have you seen these taken care with simply massaging the area?

So is it normal for your stomach to feel hard after surgery ?

DR. Suber, after longterm protracted swelling. . Going on 3 months.. do you see your patient at the end of the light getting what the originally had the tummy tuck for.. do you see a flat tummy or is the skin Stretched due to the prolonged swelling? Thank you! !!

I'm six moths post up , swelling for long time now, every visit with my surgeon I asked him about it and he says its nothing. At my last visit about three weeks ago he said I can wear Shapers/spanx to hide it! Im uncomfortable with the constant bloating. any advise would be appreciated.

Can I walk carefully up the steps?

What should you eat after a tummy tuck? Whst kind of diet should you have to maintain your tummy tuck?

i thank you for your video, i have alotof swelling and i want to know if diverticulitious has any thing to do with it? i spoke with my doctor and he just says it's swelling. it's almost a yr. now and i'm still wole,is this normal. i use to go up & down during the day but now it just stays. if i suck in it loooks great but if i dont it looks lik,ei didnt have anything done p;ease help does diverticulitious have anything to do with the swelling?

I had a panni a month ago and I look like an M&M!! My dr. didn't put me in a garment. My swelling went down slightly for a bit the 2d&3rd week, but now it's back. Any suggestions? Am I worrying too early in the game?

I loved my tummy tuck I got in Orlando, Florida in my LATE 40's after having 2 BABIES OVER 10.5 pounds. I journey all my PLASTIC SURGERY PROCEDURES to LOOK AND FEEL YOUNGER. I show how I looked and FELT each day. Check it out! I love Doctors who SHARE ON RU-vid! I love my body thanks to my TALENTED TUMMY TUCK SURGEON. He specializes in TUMMY TUCKS.

I have a lot of swelling, too. I'm 4 months out from my surgery. I had an arm lift, tummy tuck and a hernia repaired. Most of my swelling is above the scar on my belly and it looks like a bulge. Is this normal? When will it go away?

3 wks post op. Still have swelling around incision everything looks really good but I experiencing headaches n fever. I feel good just those things 😔

I’m 3 weeks post op , my Stomach is still hard , is that normal

Good lord! Im scared now. Pray for me yall. Im having surgery in November 2020

I had a tummy tuck I was so swollen and they were draining me off in the office I believe my drains came out a little too soon originally after eight weeks of not getting anywhere I had to go back into the OR and have the tummy tuck all over again it’s been three weeks today since my second tummy tuck in 10 weeks I’m depressed I wish I never did it I’m in a lot of pain still watch RU-vid videos telling me that I should be feeling back to my old self by now I’m nothing is right I’m afraid I’m never going to feel good again

Yes I’ve had surgury I’m 4weeks in I’m fed up I look worse than I was before

I had tummy tuck 3 years ago But i still have swelling and its always hurt if you eat. Abdomen pain!

DOCTOR CAM YOU PLEASE TELL ME THE BEST GARMENT AND THE BEST FAJA BOARD PLASTIC SURGEON'S USE THANKYOU DOCTOR 😄💯😍🤔🤔💯💯

I never got drains, I got cut breast down to crotch and hip to hip and about 3/4 pounds skin cut off no drains what so ever broke out immediately in a rash on my right side of my stomach released from the hospital the rash got worse ended up in the er twice cause I had trouble breathing my bowel had backed up to the heart. My esophagus cut when intubated. Was unable to eat for two weeks. I was only six weeks out from a knee revision but they wouldnt let me wait on this surgery. Said my insurance wouldnt pay if I didnt do it now. Glued me shut when my allergies said I was allergic pulled the glue off when I began to get the rash. Placed me on bactrim ds for five days. The rash keeps coming and going looks like I got chicken pox the way it looks and it always starts on the right side only then goes towards the left. I use benedryl creme because its super itchy and I dont want to scratch it and the er told me to use that but I dont use it on the cuts just beside them. I do wash the area in antibacterial soap so if it is something then it kills whatever it is. But whatever is going on it is affecting my replacement knee causing swelling pain etc. I will see my plastic surgeron for the first time since surgery tomorrow. I had surgery on the 7,of this mth. Im hoping I get some type of relief soon.

Wish I never had a TT. Dog ears are terrible. I had a smooth silhouette before, flat contoured mid section but when I sat down, I had wrinkly skin. I didn't have many stretchmarks or fat...just some thin lose skin. I had a great belly button too. 12 years later I still swell around the scar, a thick ugly scar, I'm still too tight, lost the curve in my lower back. I have no contour, fake looking belly button and a silver dollar sized indentation below my belly button that I think it an adhesion between tissue layers. Just a life changing disaster. He should have done a mini or something, instead I was gutted like a fish,(that's what ir felt like pain-wise). Nowadays, there are sooo many other skin-tightening and stretchmark removal options for less severe cases (laser and all kinds of in office procedures). Beware! TT is major surgery.

im in my 8th week of tummy tuck surgery and I still have swelling in the waist area, swollen and hard areas.how do I get this swelling to go down, I thought I should have a flat stomach by now, I still look like im 2mons. pregnant. I've changed my eating habits. can you give me some hints on what to do.?

Hot Doc

WHAT'S THE BEST FAJA OUT THEIR CAN YOU PLEASE GIVE ME THE NAME THANKOU SO MUCH😄😄😍😍😍

If my tummy feels very hard on one spot after 4 weeks, it can be fluids?

Year after my tummy tuck and still swell and have a lower belly bulge that’s been there since the surgery :(

Thank you so much!!

I had post gastric bypass thiegh skin removal 3wks. ago. What reduces swelling? I am walking 8 blocks distance daily, have my legs up 16" when at home and all night. I'm st a loss. Thanks.