Mommy Makeover
Having children can bring great joy to our lives and can be very difficult on our bodies, including stretched and distorted breasts, protruding stomachs, weight gain on the hips and flabby thighs. A mommy makeover is performed using a combination of plastic surgery procedures designed to counteract the physical effects of childbearing and restore the body. Below are some common mommy makeover combinations:

Abdominoplasty with Liposuction
For most mommy makeovers, a combination of sculpting liposuction and abdominoplasty is used.

Abdominoplasty and Breast Lift
Many women experience drooping breasts after childbearing and breast-feeding. If you are happy with the volume of your breasts but want to do something about the sag, a breast lift in addition to an abdominoplasty may be the answer.

Abdominoplasty and Breast Augmentation
If you lost breast volume but were fortunate to retain good shape and skin of your breasts, a breast augmentation in conjunction with a tummy tuck may be the ideal mommy makeover for you.

Abdominoplasty and Breast Reduction
Some women have always been plagued by large breasts, and this typically is only made worse by childbearing. A breast reduction in addition to a tummy tuck can create the figure you always desired.

Mommy Makeovers are a wonderful way for women to enhance their appearance and self-image, and by having more than one procedure during a single surgery, the recovery time is condensed versus having two or three separate surgeries to produce the same outcome.

A True Tummy Tuck (Abdominoplasty)
Abdominoplasty or a tummy tuck is one of the oldest plastic surgery procedures performed in the United States. The typical patient is a woman who has lost her abdominal contour after pregnancy or a patient who has significant skin laxity after weight loss surgery. Abdominoplasty is primarily a cosmetic procedure and is a common procedure for men and women who have had massive weight loss.

In order for a procedure to be a true tummy tuck and provide maximum results, it must include the following three elements:

  • Removal of all fat and skin between the bellybutton and pubic hairline.
  • Relocation of the belly button to a new location.
  • Suture tightening of top layer of the abdominal wall.

These key elements tighten the abdomen, eliminate the hanging skin and fat (pannus) and bring in the waistline. Often liposuction is added to further slim and contour the abdomen. Any other procedure is not a true abdominoplasty (tummy tuck).

What Exactly is a Tummy Tuck Procedure?

  • A tummy tuck restructures the stomach by removing excess skin and fat and tightens the abdominal wall.
  • An incision is made horizontally along the lower abdomen and is concealed by most underwear or bathing suit bottoms.
  • The procedure takes 2 to 3 hours and is performed in an operating room.
  • After adequate observation in the recovery center, patients are discharged to home the same day.
  • Most patients need 3 weeks off of work, and heavy physical activity is limited for at least the first two to three months post-surgery.

Liposuction Surgery
Do you have certain areas of your body that are out of proportion with the rest of your body and do not go away with diet and exercise? Liposuction may be the answer. Liposuction surgery treats areas of excess fat in the stomach, buttocks, hips, love handles, saddlebags, thighs, calves, ankles, breasts and back.

Liposuction surgery usually improves contours. It is an excellent surgery for patients with good skin tone that do not have much weight to lose, have good skin tone and have “trouble spots” they cannot get rid of in the gym. Since the healing process is gradual, it may take at least several months to get an accurate picture of the results of the surgery. The small incisions used for access of the instrument known as a cannula will fade over a number of months, usually becoming barely visible. The results of liposuction surgery are usually long lasting, but they may be affected by weight gain as well as aging, pregnancy and lifestyle factors.

Arm Lift (Brachioplasty)
If you have lost a significant amount of weight, then you probably have loose excess skin on your upper arm. Also known as brachioplasty, an arm lift reshapes the upper arm, from the underarm region to the elbow. An arm lift can lift and tighten up loose skin in your upper arm and is a common procedure for both men and women.