Nicky discusses her recent Tummy Tuck procedure with Adrian Richards

Nicky had a Tummy Tuck, or Abdominoplasty, performed by Adrian Richards six weeks ago. She discusses her experiences with us below.

Hi Nicky, now you’’re six and a half weeks post op, could you tell us what was upsetting you about your tummy?

I’’d had a late pregnancy at 42 which was a Caesarean section which left me with quite a bad overhang from my scar tissue. I’d also had two previous pregnancies which had left me with loose tummy muscles and loose skin.

But it was the final pregnancy that made me think ‘ooh’. When I looked in the mirror, it was like ‘I can’’t bear to look at what I’’m seeing’.

Now you actually had the surgery six and a half weeks ago, and it’s a reasonably big operation. How did you feel when you woke up?

When I woke up from the operation, that was the first time I’’d ever had an anaesthetic so it was just a complete surprise to me how I woke up feeling as well as I did.

I’’d been prepared for pain and side effects so initially I think it was just the fact that I’’d survived the operation and what I was pleasantly surprised with was the fantastic care that I received in there and I didn’’t have to worry about the pain at all because it was very well controlled.

You stayed in hospital for two nights – how did you feel coming home?

Coming home was interesting in the car. I was glad when I actually got home and got into bed.

It’’s very difficult to walk to start off with, you do have to walk very bent over. Because you’’re bent, it gives you backache and you are most comfortable if you just follow the instructions and lay in bed with your knees raised.

You really have to do that for at least two weeks, just getting up periodically to move your legs around and go to the loo and freshen yourself up.

That’’s hard in some ways if you’’re not used to it because it’’s so debilitating. That is what I found hard, that it was debilitating, far worse than the pain because as I said, that really is more uncomfortable rather than you can’’t manage.

So it’’s more that your body actually stops you from doing things?

Absolutely and there is no overall improvement from day to day but when you look back to how you felt the previous Monday or the Monday before that, you can think ‘oh I could’n’t do that and I couldn’’t do that’.

I actually went back to work after two weeks but I took it very, very carefully and I didn’’t drive until three weeks after the operation.

Obviously with the recovery, you’’re wearing garments of some sort for the six weeks. Did you find some garments better than others?

Yes, it’’s very much hit and miss because you can’’t actually walk in the shops and try them on and put them back on the shelf.  But once I found one that was good, it was like that was comfortable, you’’ve got to take guidance from the clinic as to what is most suitable and not have to worry about how glamorous they are, it’’s just the support it gives you.

The main thing really is to not try and rush your recovery isn’t it?

Absolutely.

Lots of ladies come into the clinic and actually think they’’re going to be back in their skinny jeans. How did you find the swelling and getting back into normal clothes?

Well funnily enough, I was quite happy that I didn’’t automatically look completely different because it meant that nobody was saying to me ‘my goodness, where have you been and what have you had done?’  It was something I could keep to myself if I chose to.

So the improvement was gradual, this was never to me a weight loss thing, it was always about improving my shape, feeling better about myself and then because you feel so much better, you then feel more like watching your diet and doing your exercise and getting actually how you want to be.

You’’re up to your six weeks now, well six and a half weeks. What advice would you give to anybody who was listening to you today?

It took me quite a while to work up the courage to have this operation and I am so glad that I had it done but you do have to bear in mind that it is major surgery.

You will need help at home, you just can’’t push it, you have to give yourself the six weeks to recover but after that, you feel absolutely great.

That’’s lovely, thank you ever so much Nicky.

You’’re welcome.

A big thank you to Nicky for taking the time to share her experiences with us. If you’’d like any more information about Tummy Tuck surgery or any other form of cosmetic or plastic surgery, please feel free to contact us either via the website or by phoning us directly on 01324 578290.