Brachioplasty pros and cons, and input needed...

southernbelle102 · 01-09-2011, 02:39 AM

So, I think I have decided that I am definitely going to wait on possibly having a tummy tuck and breast lift until I have kids. Who knows, by then I may not care about that stuff that much anymore. I know children definitely can shift your priorities...haha

However, I really think I would like to reward myself with brachioplasty after I am done with my weight-loss. I hate my arms. I have always hated my arms. After looking at before and afters, I realize that I only have moderate to a little worse than that sagging (no bat wings), but I still can't stand what I see when I look in the mirror with my arms out to the sides. I would greatly appreciate any input from anyone who has had this type of surgery. Where did you have it, what were the total costs, how was the recuperation, do you like your results, would you do it again? Thanks so much for the input!!

Meg · 01-09-2011, 06:54 AM

Hi Southern! I moved your two posts about reconstructive surgery to our forum that's dedicated to issues affecting our bodies after weight loss. Here we talk about plastic surgery after a large weight losses and you'll find are many discussions about body changes and excess skin.

I had brachioplasty and would be happy to share my experiences, but have to run to babysit in a few minutes. I'll be back to post in more detail as soon as I can, but in the meantime, check out the sticky at the top of this forum. Weight Loss And Skin FAQs It may answer some of your questions and in the responses, people share some of their experiences with various reconstructive surgeries.

Talk to you soon!

southernbelle102 · 01-09-2011, 04:10 PM

Thanks for moving them! I would love to hear your experience and anyone else's as well. I didn't even know we had a sub-forum like this

Thanks for the input!!

RJS · 01-10-2011, 02:33 PM

I've had a tummy tuck, breast lift and brachioplasty.

It's definitely a good idea to wait until you've had kids to do the first two. For the arms, I'd recommend waiting until you hit whatever weight you decide to maintain before having surgery. You don't want to have the arms needing to be done a second time if you lose more weight.

I had the tummy tuck and arms done at the same time, so recovery was a bit rough. After about 6 weeks, I was able to do pretty much any activity, though I had to ease back into things - especially weightlifting.

I have no regrets and love my results! The scars on the arms are noticeable, but don't bother me at all. You'll definitely want to think about how you feel about scarring, because arm scars can be hard to predict. Make sure the skin bothers you more than a scar would.

By the way, don't feel bad about having extra skin. Genetics plays a very big role in how your skin behaves with weight loss. Even if you do everything else that is supposed to help, sometimes it happens anyway.

makemeheal is a pretty good plastic surgery forum, and they have an arm lift subforum with info that might help.

Meg · 01-10-2011, 03:59 PM

I had my arms done in 2005, along with my inner thighs (I had a lower body lift in 2002 and breast lift in 2003 or so). After five years, my scars have faded to being almost imperceptible. They're a thin white line on the inside of my arm, if you look closely. I'm not at all self-conscious about them.

RJS is absolutely right, all reconstructive surgery is a trade-off between skin and scars -- it's one or the other. As long as you have a realistic idea of what to expect from surgery, you'll be fine. I'm completely happy with my results, despite scarring. And it really does fade with time!

My doctor wanted me to be pretty quiet for the first two weeks of recovery but I was doing cardio by the third week and pretty much back to normal lifting by six weeks. I had phantom nerve pain with the arms that I didn't have with any other surgery (the nerves that were cut would go zing! zing!, especially at night) but none of my surgeries were nearly as painful as I expected from reading on the Internet. Everyone has a different experience!

For any skin removal surgery, you definitely want to wait until you reach your stable goal weight and stay there for at least six months to a year. Major body changes happen with losing the last twenty pounds and it doesn't make sense to do surgery until everything settles down. But you're smart to be thinking about and doing research now so that you know what all your options are when the time comes.

Best of luck to you and this forum is here for all your questions!

xty · 01-12-2011, 02:21 AM

I would strongly, strongly advise you to investigate the irreversible damage to the lymphatic system that happens in procedures like this.

And as a side note from a non-surgery person that lost 100+ lbs.....time and dedication to muscle toning has made a world of difference in my skin issues.

Zoesmama · 01-18-2011, 10:33 AM

If its not bad you may try dry skin brushing(google or check out ttapp.com). I'm going to start it now as I'm losing the weight and see if it helps because I'm very very afraid of surgery. My last surgery(gall bladder removal) hasn't made it all that much less scary. It took me quite a while to wake up. On the one hand I had not slept much before going in. She(the surgeon) also said I got a little red so they were worried about allergic reactions to anesthesia. That is scary because I have had a lot of reactions since having my daughter to different things first nickle and certain laundry soaps meds.

I have friends online that have no profit to gain by saying it but have had some results with firming up skin some with the dry skin brushing every morning before shower. It can take time and even more cuts in dietary fats too before it falls off.

I think I'd opt for the arms over tummy. I don't much care if I ever wear a bikini in public I'm fine with a modest tankini but my arms already are pretty bad from them ballooning up in pregnancy. It was more water retention that went away after birth and left me with horrible arms.