Most patients considering a mommy makeover at my Toledo, Ohio, practice are primarily concerned about the appearance of their abdomens. To create excellent results that meet the patients’ goals, however, it’s important to take what I call a “global” approach to developing a surgical plan that assesses the torso, breasts, thighs, and arms. This comprehensive, or global, approach allows me to create results that are not only more balanced and natural-looking but also safer and more enduring.
Why a Global Approach Leads to Better, Longer-Lasting Results
A global approach leads to better, longer-lasting results because it addresses multiple related concerns simultaneously, enabling proportional, coordinated improvements that age more naturally over time and reduce the need for future correction.
It may be a bit cliché, but every patient who comes in for a consultation has unique physical concerns and aesthetic goals. My job as a plastic surgeon is to recommend a personalized “master plan” to achieve those goals, and that involves determining which combination of procedures will produce the best overall result.
Creating a Customized Surgical Plan
A patient may come in wanting to eliminate the pouch that hangs over her waistband, for example. But along with the loose skin could be a bit of bulging muscle, excess fat on the “love handles,” and breasts that have lost fullness and are beginning to sag. There may also be excess fat on the flanks or along the bra line.
Addressing these concerns together, rather than in isolation, allows me to create a more cohesive result. In this case, I may recommend a surgical “master plan” that includes a tummy tuck, a breast lift with implants, and liposuction to contour the flanks, hips, and back. Every mommy makeover procedure is customized to that specific patient.
Combining a Tummy Tuck With Liposuction
A tummy tuck alone can achieve some of a patient’s goals, but improving the abdomen’s appearance without taking into account the entire body won’t create the results that most patients want. A tummy tuck removes excess skin and repairs abdominal muscles separated during pregnancy (a condition called diastasis recti) but doesn’t contour the rest of the torso.
In some cases, an extended tummy tuck is needed. Liposuction removes the excess fat that creates unwanted bulges on the flanks and back. Surgical excision of the love handles might also be recommended.
Together, this approach produces results that are more proportional and natural-looking, while also helping ensure those results age more gracefully over time.
Combining Cosmetic Breast Surgery in a Global Approach
When looking at the body as a whole rather than distinct areas, plastic surgeons can achieve more natural-looking results. That’s certainly true when it comes to tummy tuck patients after pregnancy or significant weight loss. Deflated, sagging breasts detract from the appearance of a flatter abdomen, which is why so many women combine a breast lift with or without implants as part of a mommy makeover.
Not all women need a breast lift after having children, especially if they’re younger and their breast skin retains most of its elasticity. But breast augmentation without a lift may accelerate the development of breast ptosis (sagging) because implants add weight. Combining a lift with implants both restores the breasts’ volume and creates a perkier shape that will last for years, as you can see in this gallery of before-and-after photos.
By addressing related concerns at the same time—such as combining a lift with implants when appropriate—I can create results that not only look better initially but are also more stable and longer-lasting.
What About the Arms and Legs?
Many people associate mommy makeover surgery with procedures to improve the appearance of the stomach and breasts because pregnancy takes a physical toll on those specific areas. But patients who seek body contouring surgery after weight loss may also have excess skin on their upper arms, buttocks, or thighs. An arm lift, buttock lift, or thigh lift, for example, may be needed to create the comprehensive results that are part of my global approach to body contouring.
Safety Is First Priority
A global approach isn’t just about aesthetics. It also plays an important role in surgical safety. A patient considering cosmetic surgery combining multiple body contouring procedures must be in good overall health. Not everyone is physically ready to undergo up to 8 hours of surgery, so staging procedures might be the best plan. I may also recommend that patients plan to stay overnight after surgery so nurses can monitor their progress and provide support.
Safety is a team effort at my practice. This involves nurses before, during, and after surgery along with a board-certified anesthesiologist. All team members are familiar with the goals I have for each procedure:
- Safety
- Patient comfort
- No nausea
- Excellent results
These goals are reached with the rapid recovery surgical techniques I use that limit post-operative discomfort while reducing the need for patients to take prescription pain medication. There is also less bleeding and bruising using rapid recovery techniques.
What’s most important to keep in mind is that there isn’t a single “cookie-cutter” approach to performing mommy makeover surgery. It requires an experienced plastic surgeon who understands how combining procedures yields results that are more than the sum of their parts. If you’re interested in getting a mommy makeover or a standalone tummy tuck at my Toledo practice, request a consultation or call us at (419) 534-6551.