Way back when I did my consultation with my surgeon last year (fall 2015), he was very up front when it came to my stomach. It’s big, it contains a lot of fat, and it’s risky business.
Apparently, he really doesn’t like doing liposuction on stomachs because there’s a much greater risk for infection than with all the other body parts that typically get lipo. Of course, hearing this kind of freaked me out because my stomach is HUGE. Now that I’ve seen my thighs and butt get done, and how much fat was taken out of each body part, I’d say that at minimum my stomach has 10 liters of fat to be taken out. Quite possibly 12 or 13 liters.
I was adamant that he couldn’t do the rest of my body and leave this huge fatty growth hanging off the front of me, especially since I was pretty sure (and my sports therapist AND personal trainer was pretty sure) that my stomach was what was causing a lot of back pain. Something has to keep me upright after all and my stomach is it.
So he said that he can’t promise that he’d do my stomach, but he’d make sure I’m taken care of.
The Plan Was to Take Fat Off the Sides of My Stomach
During the pre-op part of my butt liposuction on 24 August (2016), my surgeon talked to me about my stomach. He said that he really didn’t want to do it, but he’d take some off the side to make the area smaller. Then, he’d give me a referral to a plastic surgery clinic in Amstelveen to have my stomach done under general so it could all be taken off at once. He said that he highly recommended that I get an adominalplasty at the same time because there will be a lot of loose skin and weakened muscles from having such a large stomach.
But, that was something to talk more about after the butt liposuction, so off I went for my surgery (you can read about that here).
The Fat Didn’t Come Off the Sides of My Stomach as Planned
Unfortunately, for whatever freak reason, my surgeon wasn’t able to go near the sides of my stomach as planned. He doesn’t know if the local anesthesia just didn’t take there or if the area was so sensitive that the pain was coming through the anesthesia. Whatever the reason, whenever he got close to the area with the cannula, the pain was so great that I was almost hyper ventilating.
Here’s the thing, I have a very, very high pain tolerance. I mean, I’ve been going to the gym with lumbago due to the lipedema putting great stress on my back muscles. I’ve been walking despite knees and ankles screaming. I had a tooth implant put in and didn’t take anything stronger than paracetamol. I have killer period cramps (bad enough that you just want to curl up and die) and still get on with the day because I have to.
However, my surgeon trying to get that fat off the side of the stomach was the straw that broke the camel’s back and I was damn near begging him to stop. After 3 surgeries where I barely whimpered and just took the pain, this one I was acting differently on the table so he knew that it was time to stop.
The Plan Forward for My Stomach
Now that I have my entire lower body done and the swelling is going down after 3 weeks post op on my butt, it’s pretty clear that my stomach is one big fat tumor. It’s huge, it’s heavy, and it has to go. There is absolutely zero question about this and nobody from my surgeon to husband or friends will dispute that fact. I’ll be lighter, happier, and healthier without it.
So here’s the plan forward…
On 27 August (2016), I have a consultation with the surgeon at the Amstelveen clinic. This surgeon specializes in abdominal surgery and I’m supposed to see what he has to say. My surgeon warned me that he’ll probably reject me since my BMI is nowhere near 35 and it won’t get anywhere near 35, even after my arms are done on 5 October (2016). I estimate that after all the swelling is down, I’ll probably be close to 113kg. IF I go on a keto diet, I can lose 2 more kg of water weight. That puts me at 111kg and a BMI of 39.8.
However, I’ve been pretty much at a caloric deficit since I’ve started surgery AND with every one my activity level only goes up (I’m now jogging again after almost 7 years!!), but my weight just doesn’t go down. So the only way I can get down under 35 is through this surgery.
So, I’m to let him reject me. I’ve been instructed to then call my surgeon, discuss the consultation, and then he’ll give the surgeon a call and see if he’s interested in working on me as a project. My surgeon does the lipo and the other surgeon does the tummy tuck.
And While I Trust My Surgeon…
I told my husband that if I don’t get a good vibe from this new surgeon, or if he doesn’t want to work with my current surgeon, then we’ll probably have to look to someone else.
Why?
The stomach contains a lot of lymph nodes, so liposuction or a tummy tuck by someone who doesn’t work on lipedema patients is risky. It looks like my secondary lymphedema is going away now that my lower body is gone and I really don’t want surgery induced lymphedema. There HAS to be a surgeon somewhere in Europe that does both stomach lipo and tummy tucks on lipedema patients and if I’m not comfortable with my current surgeon’s plan, I’m completely prepared to find another option.
I’m probably being too paranoid about this, so far my surgeon has been fantastic and has given me zero reason to doubt his technique, procedure, or plans. However, I just want to be practical and look after my health. I don’t think anyone can blame me for that.
We’ll see how the consultation goes and what the new surgeon has to say, and then I’ll update on the results.
PetraAnn
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