Episode #4: When Recovery Doesn’t Go As Expected and What You Can do About it

In this episode, we dive into one of the most challenging parts of tummy tuck recovery: when things don’t go as planned. It’s a tough reality — sometimes the physical or aesthetic results aren’t what you expected, and the road to healing feels longer and harder than you imagined.

We’re here to break the silence on this often-overlooked side of recovery. Whether you’re struggling with prolonged swelling, unexpected belly distention, or feeling emotionally drained by your results, this episode is for you. We’ll not only unpack why these challenges happen but also what you can do to take back control of your recovery.

What you’ll learn in this episode:
✨ Why your belly might not be as flat as you expected — and how the surgery's focus on the midline doesn’t always address all areas of tissue laxity.
✨ How to approach scar revisions and what questions to ask your surgeon about their policies.
✨ Why standing up straight after surgery can take longer than you think — and practical tips to gradually lengthen your torso.
✨ The emotional side of recovery — how to navigate the disappointment, fear, and frustration that can accompany unexpected outcomes.

Timestamps:
[01:10] The Reality of Post-Op Recovery — It’s Not Always a Straight Line
[04:50] Common Aesthetic Concerns: Belly Buttons, Scars, and 'Why Isn't My Stomach Flat?'
[10:00] Understanding Swelling vs. Bloating vs. Distention
[15:30] The Mental Toll of Recovery: Coping with Unexpected Results
[22:40] Scar Revision: What to Know and Ask Your Surgeon
[27:00] Getting Comfortable Standing Up Straight Again — A Step-by-Step Guide
[34:10] Key Takeaways

Your recovery journey is deeply personal, and setbacks don’t mean failure. With the right strategies and support, you can move forward, feel stronger, and regain confidence in your body.

Resources Mentioned:
✨ Our free Post-Op Consultation Checklist — the must-ask questions for your surgeon about recovery, revisions, and more. https://www.tummytuckrehab.com/had-a-tummy-tuck

✨ How to Stand Up Straight After Your Tummy Tuck (Part 1): https://www.instagram.com/p/CbwCOYtr7vl/

✨ How to Stand Up Straight After Your Tummy Tuck (Part 2): https://www.instagram.com/p/CbyXelPpGum/

✨ How to Stand Up Straight After Your Tummy Tuck (Part 3): https://www.instagram.com/p/Cdrk5hkvKg-/

✨ Follow @sulinu.nutrition on Instagram for expert advice on post-op nutrition and managing bloating.

See you next time!
— Munira & Lisa

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Transcript

Munira: 0:00

Welcome to Tummy Tuck Talk. If this is your first time joining us, we are so excited to have you here. And if you've tuned in before, welcome back. My name is Munira Hudani. I'm a physiotherapist who helps patients rebuild strength, function, and confidence back in themselves and their cores after surgery. I know recovery can be overwhelming, but trust me. You don't have to do this on your own and you don't have to figure it all out on your own.

Lisa: 0:28

And I'm Lisa Ryan, a CrossFit trainer and a pregnancy and postpartum athleticism coach and a former tummy tuck patient Back in 2019, I had my own surgery and let me tell you, there was much I didn't know about the recovery process. So now I'm here to share the real deal, what works, what doesn't, and how you can get back to doing the things you love safely and with confidence. Together, we're here to empower you with practical advice and clear guidance for every stage of your tummy tuck journey. Today's episode will resonate if you felt alone in your disappointment over your surgery results or the recovery process. Additionally, if you've had surgery, this will shine a light on the realities of post op experience. So if you're still kind of like debating about surgery, you haven't had it yet. This will help you understand all the different ways that it can go from your body image To how and how you look after surgery To your physical recovery and how you're physically feeling. We're all tackling it all So you have a clear picture of where you can end up on the spectrum and what? You can talk to your surgeons about before going under the knife. So tune in as we unpack why some women aren't happy with how they look after surgery, why others are thrown for a loop on how hard the physical recovery is and why all of these things might happen and what? You can do about it. So let's get started.

Lisa Ryan: 2:08

Hi, I'm Lisa Ryan, a CrossFit trainer, pregnancy and postpartum athleticism coach, and a former tummy tuck patient.

Munira Hudani: 2:16

And I'm Munira Hudani, a physiotherapist with a specialized interest in diastasis reakfast abdominis and post-op recovery. Together we are bringing you the. First podcast specifically on tummy tucks that takes you beyond the surgery table, giving you the real unfiltered truth about tummy tuck, recovery, rehab, and returning to fitness with confidence.

Lisa Ryan: 2:39

Before we dive in, just a quick reminder, this podcast is for informational purposes only and does not replace medical advice. Always consult with your healthcare provider for personalized guidance.

Munira Hudani: 2:52

We are here to break down what no one else is talking about. From navigating the highs and lows of recovery to practical tips for healing, movement, and feeling like yourself again. So whether you are preparing for surgery or are deep in recovery, we've got you covered. This is Tummy Tuck Talk!

Lisa: 3:17

Welcome back to Tummy Tuck Talk. One of our biggest passions in creating this podcast is to educate and empower women like you when it comes to tummy tuck surgery. Too often we hear women who feel disappointed after their surgery. Whether it's not loving their results, struggling in how they feel physically, or finding recovery more challenging than expected.

Munira: 3:43

Yes. So that's why in today's episode, we are diving into when recovery doesn't go as expected and what you can do about it. So in this episode, we will be covering some of the most common scenarios post op patients face after this type of surgery. And we're going to offer you tips to help you feel as prepared as possible. If you haven't had your surgery yet, or if you are in recovery mode right now, then hopefully these tips will help you as you were going through this part of your tummy tuck journey. Plus, if you haven't already, don't forget to grab our free PDF checklist for a full list of must ask questions to take to your consultations and post op appointments. So this will cover everything that you need to know to ask at these very important appointments so that you get the most out of them and that you feel like you can trust your surgeon and so that you also feel informed about what's about to happen and what is happening in your recovery. So we're going to link to all of those in the show notes, but for now, let's get into more of today's episode and we hope this will help you take charge of your tummy tuck journey.

Lisa: 4:54

So why recovery sometimes isn't always what you expect. Healing after a tummy tuck can vary widely from person to person. Even if you choose the best surgeon in your whole area or country or wherever you live, there are factors about how your body heals that simply are out of anyone's control. Swelling, scarring, how you feel physically and emotionally post op can all differ dramatically and there's a very wide spectrum. So the most common issues, but not the only issues we see are people upset that their bellies aren't flat all the time. Or, they're upset that they're having a lot of pain and swelling in recovery and it's taking a lot longer than they thought. You know, the swelling's going on past what they thought would happen, or they're having pains just longer than what they thought. So all that being said, it's always very important to find a very good surgeon, of course, that you can communicate very well with. Throughout your recovery, and even before your surgery, too. You can check out our video on that where we cover the six categories of questions to ask during your consultations so you can find a surgeon that you trust. We'll link that in our show notes as well as another free PDF guide that gives you questions in a downloadable format so you can take them with you to your consultation appointments and not forget some of the very important things to ask. It's very easy to get nervous. It's also like You don't know what you don't know. So how do you know what questions to ask if you don't really know any of this stuff? And that's why we're so passionate about talking about it. So common scenarios and challenges post surgery. Let's go over what the different scenarios are, and then we'll go into the details of post surgery. Why they can happen and what you can do about it.

Munira: 6:43

Sure. Okay. So the first challenge that often happens post op is one where you are feeling fine physically, but you're not happy with the aesthetic outcome. And so let's break this down for you. So you may not be happy with the way things are looking possibly because of a scar that's not healing as nicely as you would like it, or it has been sort of placed in a, in a position that you don't want it to be in. Maybe it's a little more extended than you wish it would be. Um, or maybe there are some issues around the edges of the, the scar. So there's something called dog ears that conform at the very ends of each scar. where there's a little redundant skin that gets pulled into the stitching. So that could be part of the scenario of just not being happy with what, with how your abdomen looks post op. It could also be something along the lines of not liking what your belly button looks like. So the way a belly button turns out post op Is often linked to the technique that the surgeon used inside of the operation. And there are surgical techniques that can make the belly button appear a bit more realistic so that it looks kind of like there is a divot or, um, an indent into the abdomen versus the belly button being flushed with the skin. So there are surgical techniques that can help with that. And it will be, it will be different from surgeon to surgeon. So you definitely always want to look at the gallery, um, within your surgeon's office to see what their belly button skill is like. Um, so beyond the scar, beyond the belly button, a lot of a, a lot of common complaints are around the fact that the abdomen just isn't flat. Okay. So this is what we hear so often that they, that people are expecting after they have a tummy tuck to wake up with a completely flat abdomen, like washboard abs, and we really wish this for you. We really do. And unfortunately, it's just not the reality that a lot of people have after their surgery. So many people do have a flat stomach after the surgery, but many people don't. And this is what people are sort of thrown for a loop for afterwards because they just weren't expecting to, after paying all this money, and after going through such an intense recovery to still be left with an abdomen that doesn't look flat, and that's all they wanted. And that's what their surgeon kind of promised them. And this can happen for a variety of reasons. If you think about it, you. The surgery itself is kind of a combination of two different operations in one. So the first is plicating the linea alba. So it's the diastasis repair, and that's essentially just stitching the linea alba, the ends of the linea alba closer together. From the top all the way down to the bottom. And so, while that is great, you have to just keep in mind, it only accounts for the amount of stretching that happened in the midline. So if your diastasis was, let's say, 5 or 10 centimeters long, that might be a significant amount of tightening of the abdominal tissues just through that one operation, the linea plication. But if your diastasis itself wasn't that wide, then you may not see too much change in that, that area because there's just not that much tissue to work with there. Um, and so. What I like to do is sort of bring in this t shirt example to help kind of to help people sort of see what it what is actually happening in the surgery. So imagine you go to the store and you buy a very, very tightly fitted shirt. Okay, you put it on, and it's really tight. But then over time, this t shirt gets stretched out all the way to get stretched in the front to get stretched on the sides. And it also gets stretched kind of from top to bottom, like from the neck down to the waist, it gets elongated that way too. So now you have a t shirt that used to be really, really tightly fitted, but now it's much looser and has a lot more give in all of the different areas. And in that t shirt, if you just draw a line from, let's say the chest bone all the way down to your pubic bone, and you just account for maybe let's just say five centimeters of stretching that happened in that part, and you just take those five centimeters and you bring them closer together you, you bring it from five centimeters down to less than a centimeter. Yes, that area of the t shirt has now been tightened. But what about the rest of the t shirt, the side there still more stretched out the back is still more stretched out, even from top to bottom. It's still elongated. So the linea alba placation only accounts for whatever stretching happened in the midline. And then now the second part of the operation is what is called the abdominoplasty. So that's removing of any extra or excess skin. So going back to that t shirt, you have it on, but now it's a little bit tighter in the front, just down the midline, still loose and all the other areas. But now you. Take another t shirt and you put it on top and this one is again, very, very formal fitting, very tight on you. You just squeeze into it and it's going on top of the t shirt you already have that has the midline stitched up. And now this second t shirt is holding everything in really tightly. This second t shirt kind of represents the skin layer. So the skin, they're going to remove quite a bit of skin depending on, you know, how much you have. And it's going to create a tight wall to hold in whatever is underneath it, including the linea alba or the diastasis repair. So you have that on top. And so over time, the t shirt that is on top can stretch. And that could be through bloating. It can be through Um, the tissues relaxing and releasing a little bit. So while it used to be a little bit tight, now it's not as tight. And remember the stuff underneath it's, it hasn't all been operated on. It's really just the center piece of it that has been worked on. So the tissues underneath are still in some areas, still quite loose, and they're somewhat relying on that external layer to hold everything in. But that external layer can stretch as well. And hence, after the surgery, there can be some lingering distention issues and having some of this distention often is not because of the surgery failing, which is what a lot of people think that is, is from. It's often just because the, all of the tissues that were stretched just weren't accounted for in the surgery itself. So going in and trying to get your stitches done again in the linea alba, but it may not actually be the solution for you. Um, but we'll talk about some of the things you can do if this is kind of where you're at in your recovery. Um, and so another scenario that can happen, so that was all about aesthetics. You feel good physically, but you're just not happy with how things look, whether it's the belly button or your scar or, um, your stomach just standing out again. So. Another thing that can happen is you're feeling good, generally, but there's just a lot of swelling, and some people are really surprised by how long swelling can last after surgery swelling can last a year or longer, and yes some people swelling actually improves over time and improves rather quickly, maybe within the first few months, and that's great for them, but there are a lot of people who experience prolonged swelling beyond three months, and that's actually normal. And we don't want you to feel like there's something wrong in your body or wrong with you or wrong with what the surgeon did with you. Or for any other reason, it's actually just normal. It's a normal part of healing for many people. And why does swelling occur? Well, sometimes there is no rhyme or reason. It's just how your body responds. It's a tissue healing process. Tissues were operated on and it creates swelling and inflammation, so we just have to let it ride it itself out. Um, swelling could also be due to nutrition and specifically salt intake. So that's something you could look into. Um, and also swelling might be related to how much you're using your muscles in the day. So possibly overusing them and overdoing it and not getting enough rest in between might lead to an increase in swelling. Um, and this can. This can fluctuate over the course of your recovery. So you could have more swelling earlier on in your recovery and then less later on in like months five, six, and seven, but don't be surprised if you experience more swelling than, um, than that. And it also might just be due to the fact that you're still kind of early in your recovery. And so by that, I mean, By three months, still within the first three months, there's still going to be a lot of swelling that can be expected. Again, you can still have it later on, but if you're still early in recovery, then it's expected to have this. But again, not a lot of people are aware of this. They are somewhat, um, under the impression that it's after six weeks, everything's just going to get better because that's sometimes when some people are clear to exercise. So in their minds, they think, well, I'm healed. So why is. all of this still happening. And that's just not the case. Healing from the surgery is at least a year long event. And then another issue that can happen is that people experience bloating after the surgery and likely bloating occurred before the surgery as well. Um, and of course, bloating is kind of directly linked with digestion. But one thing that, Is common is even though bloating was there before surgery. It's just that people are surprised to see it. There's a surprise to see it after the surgery. They just thought that all of this would be gone and vanished after they, they paid for this very extensive operation. But one other thing is that bloating can also show up differently. So a lot of people find that there's a specific area in their abdomen where they bloat more than others. And typically it's in the upper abdomen, kind of right below the rib cage. So that's an area that kind of It looks like it's swelling, but it often is more likely due to bloating. Um, and they'll find that it happens right above in, in the upper abdomen.

Lisa: 18:10

So very good information. Very good information. Um, so now What can we do about this? Right? So we listed all these things that you could, you know, maybe not like or be upset about. Let's talk about what you can control. Okay? So in general, what you can't control is how you heal to an extent. And I know we keep saying this, but it's a very important point. You can have a very good surgeon, but there's still things they cannot control about how your body will respond to surgery. Um, so within that first year, there can be a lot of ups and downs with healing and such. Um, You also have to give it time. So if we're looking at aesthetics, you have to give it some time to heal and settle in and see like what is it really going to look like, you know, after a year, after six months, so you do have to give it time. I know a lot of times the phrase used is the final result. So you need time for the final result. So, you know give it a whole year at least six months, you know, there's no exact time frame but you know, You know, your belly will keep changing as you're healing, um, whether you like how it looks or you don't. It may keep fluctuating for six months to a year, just aesthetically how it's looking, for many of the reasons that Munira talked about. So you do have to give it time, um, to see. And also it takes you a long time to mentally adjust to all this. Even if you like everything and it looks great and you're happy with it, it's still a very intense and emotional journey. Um, and then if there's some things you don't amplify that even more. So you also have to give yourself time to like, be like, Oh, this is my body. It's totally different from before. So there's just a lot psychologically as well. So let's talk about scar revision. If you still aren't happy, with how your scar looks. Something about your scar. Munira mentioned dog ears and all these different things. Then you need to kind of get informed about what the revision policy is if you didn't know that beforehand. So when can you physically get a revision? You'll probably have to wait so long and every surgeon will have a different protocol and what is the revision, revision policy? So are they going to charge you? Are they not going to charge you? Will there be a small fee? Do you have to pay all of it? And find all of that out that may or may not change your decision to get the revision. Um, but if for some reason all of a sudden you like don't like your surgeon anymore or you kind of something about it. You're not liking then you might want to go to a different surgeon for a revision Um that will probably cost more money because I doubt that would be free, right? But it may be worth it So just take your time again, as we always say don't jump into anything. Collect all the data and see what your options are if you were looking for a scar revision. Oh, and also one more thing to consider. You also have to see how your body responds to scarring. So, that may factor into, okay, well, you know, could a revision make it worse? Right? I don't know. It depends on what's going on. If it's a simple dog ears thing, then they repair those all the time. But if it's something else, maybe you don't want to be cut again. So you have to really weigh the pros and cons and really look into it before you make a decision. With the belly button, um, there's like belly button shapers that you can get that can stay in for many months up to a year, all different things. And there may be other tips and tricks. So just make sure you ask. If you're not liking something, ask, communicate, don't be afraid to get the information and ask. Right? And don't wait because you could get that little shaper and get that in there and maybe that'll fix what you were worried about. Who knows? Um, and then with distention, ideally your surgeon lets you know, you know, in the beginning, hey, I can't promise that your stomach's gonna be flat all the time, but If not, then, you know, and you're going through something, what you can do to try to help is strengthen your core. We can never promise that this is going to make your stomach look the way you want. We can never ever promise that because again, everybody's bodies are responding to things differently. But it's definitely not gonna hurt because A, you'll just feel better and feel stronger and B, it will tighten up the muscles. To an extent, something, right? Because you're strengthening all the muscles under there. And like our core rehab program, we really hit all of the muscles, the deep core, the rectus, everything. So you really feel well rounded after that. And so that can help, right? It can help with aesthetics. We just don't know how much. Um, but it is unfortunate because people feel so, so disheartened at the fact that their abdomen still distends after this tummy tuck. And the fact, you know, that it's changing from day to day and meal to meal and maybe hormones and time of month. And, you know, they lay on their side and they see something hanging down and they're just like triggered because they're like, Oh my gosh, I just went through all this pain and all this money and I don't look exactly the way I want to look. And it's super intense and people can just be really upset about it. We always tell people to expect better, not perfect. Not perfect. Because that is the way to go into the surgery with some realistic expectations. Um, and really understand that that is what they're signing up for. Right? You expect better. But not perfect. Not perfect. Um, with swelling, you can only, again, control so much here. Um, but it's good to keep data on, like, when you're swelling, when it's worse, when it's, you know, better. See what your baseline is, in the beginning, again, you'll probably be swelling more. You might always be swollen. And then as time marches on, you may see that it ebbs and flows. So it's good to collect the data. Cause then you can maybe adjust. So is it worse in the morning or the evening? Does it change with activity and rest? Um, does eating affect swelling? Does what you eat affect swelling, the time of day, um, your period, fluctuations and hormones? All of these things, just kind of track it. Sometimes there may be no rhyme or reason, and that's normal too. Coming from someone like me, who wanted a reason for everything, and to track, and to know, it just didn't work out like that. And so you have to know that that's part of it too, that healing isn't linear always, right? But, some things you can do, you can, Reintroduce some light compression if you've gotten out of your like heavy surgery stuff just light compression You may need to adjust your activity level a little bit. But again, we expect swelling doesn't mean you shouldn't move, so you don't want to stop moving either. You can look at the time of day and you can also look into doing some lymphatic drainage. There's a lot of professionals that do that and you can go and um, check that out and that can help a lot. So those are some ideas with that. For bloating, here's the deal guys. It has to do with digestion too. So, Digestion has nothing to do with surgery. That's just your digestion, right? I know for me, Running around like a crazy person, all the time, I'm eating really fast. When I actually sit down and have a meal, which I actually did this the other day, because I went out to a holiday meal with my parents, I was alone. I was not in a rush, it was very rare, didn't have the kids, and I ate so slow. And I was like, wow, I feel great. So, you know, I was a lot less bloated. Um, and so something simple like that, it's not always that simple, but I just want you to know that sometimes it is, it's not just your surgery, it's just life. Um, I do know for me, I bloat higher up after surgery. That is the change for me, personally, with surgery. And I know with many women, they do experience that, where it's like this higher up, weird thing, and they're like, what is this? You know? And so, I mean, I don't know, I had a great surgeon, who knows why that is, it's just how your body heals, or sometimes sutures, or how you were repaired, or how your diastasis presented, or genetically, a million things, right? So that part we can't control, but for the nutrition aspect we can. And so we love to, send people who are asking about nutrition over to our friend, and we'll make sure that the, handle is in the show notes, but it is on Instagram. It is at S U L I N U dot nutrition. She has nutrition specifically for cosmetic surgery. It's phenomenal. You guys check it out. All right, next part. So scenario number two is you don't feel good physically. So we're getting away with just how you, how you look and we're going to, how do you feel physically? This is hard. Um, because. When you kind of get past that initial recovery where you expect it to be hard, and then you're still feeling bad, it can be frustrating. One thing that's common is being hunched over for weeks and weeks. Why does this happen? This happens because some surgeons repair you as such. They actually, like, kind of fold you over a little bit and do the repair to make sure that it's tight enough, like Munira was talking about. They're tightening, tightening you up in the surgery. Um, not all surgeons use that method though. So this is where it comes in to ask them, you know, will I be hunched over for how long? And then when can I start straightening up? Even if you're, you know, prepared to be hunched over a little bit, you shouldn't be hunched over still at eight or nine weeks post op. I say this because someone actually found me who was still hunched over at like almost nine weeks. She's like, Oh my gosh, I don't know what to do. Um, and I was able to help her kind of get back on track. And that's where you really just do need some intentional rehab and movement and you need someone to help you feel safe because it's just scary at that point. Um, And as time marches on, you're just like, Oh my gosh, am I ever going to be, feel normal? Right. And then that also just kind of piles on to stress on the body. Right. And there's just so many things going on. So, um, I personally, um, didn't straighten up till five weeks. I was straight for like a little bit of the day, around three and four weeks for me personally. But then by like 10 or 11 AM, I was hunched back over and I was just like, Oh my gosh. Then all of a sudden, one day, miraculously, I woke up, it was sometime in the fifth week. And I just stayed straight all day. Like, it just happened. I'll never forget it, obviously, because I'm thinking about it right now. Um, so, it's not always a quick process. Um, and sometimes you need some help. But, the point is that, um, you know, that can be something where you're like, Wow, I really did not feel like it would be going on for this long. Right? Okay. Pain. This is tricky. Because some types of pain that you're going to be feeling supposedly are normal, right? But those normal feelings of pain are like stabbing and burning, which can come from the nerves being all confused and regenerating and in different spots and all the things going on. Um, you can have muscle aches and cramps just from being in a different position. If you are hunched over or just if you're tense from the surgery, your shoulders, Um, your back, right? You can have incisional pain where the incision was in your actual skin. Uh, pain from the plication inside. Back pain, mid back pain, low back pain, all kinds of back pain, right? If we're kind of in positions we aren't normally in and just feeling tense because you don't feel like yourself. So pain happens. Um, your tissues are healing, swelling, your nerves are moved around, you're inactive, you might be hunched over, you're not moving in your usual ways, you've got tension in your body. So a lot is going on. Swell hell. This is what a lot of people call it. And again, Munira talked about the swelling. Why does the swelling happen? Well, it's inflammation in your body. You're healing. There's going to be inflammation as it's trying to heal. So much of your core muscles and tissues have been moved around. You've been cut open. Your skin's, you know, some of your skin might be taken off. And so the skin that used to be, up higher on your stomach is now lower on your stomach. Um, you've got a huge scar, most likely hip to hip in most surgeries, and there's just a lot of sensitive areas in your abdomen that need to recover. And so that swelling is going to be part of it. And then, um, You know, swelling can be only aesthetic, but sometimes it's really uncomfortable and it becomes a very physically uncomfortable issue as well, depending on how you're swelling or how much or just how it feels. And then, being tight and immobile. So why does this happen? Well, it happens because you haven't moved much in six weeks. Hopefully, maybe you've been able to get some walking in, but that can be hard too. And you know, while you're recovering, um, you're still laying around a lot, right? More than usual. So, You're not moving like you usually do. Um, you're not using your core at all, right? That's the instructions. And you want to try to, I mean, yes, you're getting up from the couch and you're still using your core, right? But you're purposely trying to rest it as much as possible. And, sometimes you're, when you're resting, you're still in that flexed position. So that's going to make you even tighter. And I mean, really guys, The purpose of the surgery is to tighten you up. So it's hard because like Munira said, that will kind of stretch out a little bit over time. So when they do, The surgery, it's gonna feel a little more tight at first because they're looking as well as you like, you know, um, straighten up and just, you know, start to move and live life a little bit that things will loosen a little bit and you'll kind of be hopefully back to a normal feeling as much as possible. But in order to do that, they do the surgery maybe just a teeny bit tighter for that reason. So you're gonna feel tight. Um, one thing to note here, And I know I was very worried about being too tight and not too tight and it, you know, like, all the surgeons have different philosophies on this. There's no right answer. So you need to do your consults, collect your data, talk to different surgeons, and see what feels like the right decision for you and your goals for your body. All right, Munira, so what can we do about all this?

Munira: 33:13

That was amazing, Lisa, that was so informative. And yeah, thanks for going through all of that. Um, and now we're going to talk about what to do about these situations. That you may find yourself in, or there may be the you're in right now. So if you are hunched over for weeks and weeks and weeks, um, there are a lot of things you can do. And this is where tummy tuck rehab kind of is, would be the first and foremost thing to check out, just because there's so much that we could offer you in terms of, in terms of getting you back to standing up right again. But first So you have to get. full clearance, okay? Because some surgeons actually don't want you standing up straight for a couple of weeks. Some, um, are fine with you starting to stand up straight after just a few days and some want you standing up straight right away. They don't want you being hunched over. So like everything else in this surgical space, it varies from surgeon to surgeon. So you do definitely want to get clarity on what your surgeon, um, wants for you. But it's very, this is what we often come across is you just not knowing what your surgeon wants and just assuming that you're not allowed to stand up straight, because you didn't get that clarification early on. So you're staying bent over and If you had just asked your surgeon, they made, they might have, they might have told you to go ahead and start standing up straight and you could be feeling better. But if you are not aware that you could simply ask these things and you, you may not be getting to that point in your recovery sooner and that's what we want. We want you to be feeling better, moving around better, feeling less stiff. And all of that happens as soon as you start walking straight, standing up straight. So for us, this is a very important thing. Um, and we try not to gloss over this in anything we do, cause it's pretty vital for your, for all of your body to be able to walk in a fully upright position. It creates a lot of stiffness and tightness when you are walking in a bent over position and it creates a lot of unnecessary pain as well in areas that don't need to be painful, you're already going to be in pain, we don't want to add more to that and we also don't want to prolong that pain either. Get clarity from your surgeon and hopefully they clear you soon and if not, wait till you are cleared. And then as soon as you are cleared, you can start the process of trying to stand up straight. And here are some ideas of how to do that. So first, you could simply start just at the counter or holding on to a back of a chair. Put your hands on the counter or the chair and just see if you can push through your hands to help you stand up straight from your back and just do that a few times, sort of go up and then release and come back down and then go up again and then just relax back down and just do that a few times just to get the feel of it. See how your body, um, is responding to you attempting to become straight. And if you feel comfortable. Go to as far as you can in your ability to stand straight and then just sort of walk away and see how far you can go in holding that more upright erect posture. But just know that you may not be able to hold that for very long. It might be even more uncomfortable because now you're activating different muscles to get you to do that. So it may not be comfortable and that's completely normal, but the, the purpose here is just to try and just attempt to see where your body is, what is your baseline right now? What, what is it comfortable doing? What are the signals that your body provides you with? So if you are in a lot of pain in just trying to stand up straight, if you have a lot of pulling or tightness, of course, you don't want to push through this. If you are still early in recovery, like in the first two weeks of your recovery, don't push through this, but if you are much later on, as Lisa mentioned, one of her clients was, um, still hunched over at eight weeks post op, you might want to get some professional help in, in getting you to become straight again, because at that point you might just feel so, um, you might be tight. Because you've been in that position for so long, but also either could be a lot of mental blocks and barriers around that too. So working with someone can certainly help you. Um, so beyond the chair or counter, you can also try this at a wall. So just kind of back yourself up to a wall, get your, your back to rest against the wall and your initially your heels and your feet can be a little further away. So you're not fully straight out the wall, but you're just kind of, well, it's only your back and there's a bit of a bend in your hips. And little by little, start inching your heels closer and closer to the wall, and that will get you a little bit straighter and straighter. And again, just do this over time, to get some lengthening through your body. And the wall is kind of a perfect, feedback provider because it, it'll tell you if you're straight or not, because there's so much disconnect in your body post op, you might feel like you are straight. And you, but you may not be, or you might not feel that you are straight, but you are so having a wall there can really tell you what is actually happening in reality. And then there are other tips for this as well, or other strategies. I call this from the top. Or from the bottom method. And this is typically something that you do on your bed. So from the top means you can have several, several pillows underneath your upper body. So you are kind of leaning and resting in an incline position, kind of like on a wedge pillow. But in this case, it's just several pillows, not just one and your. You're starting with your knees bent. And what you can do is you can potentially just start by taking whatever pillow is under your knees, remove it away, or just keep your, or then just straighten out your legs. And then from there, remove one pillow away at a time from underneath the Upper body and slowly you will become flatter and flatter. And this will create some lengthening through the front of your body. And because you are not actively, you're not actively holding yourself up, let's say, like you are at a wall, this is just more of a passive stretch or a passive activity. it's often a lot more comfortable and you. Can kind of rest in that for much longer because there's just not not as much going on in that position. So this is a fabulous way to get some lengthening through your tissues, or the other way of doing this is from the bottom, meaning you can be lying on your back with a lot of pillows underneath your knees. And so now you're flexed from the hips. And then over time, you're just gradually removing one pillow away until your legs are fully flat. So now eventually your whole body will be flat. And so with each removal of a pillow, you could spend some time there and just kind of feel into it. And this process may not happen. In one sitting, it could take several, several attempts of doing this over and over for you to finally feel comfortable being fully flat. Um, and being flat on the bed is basically the same thing as you being fully upright in, when you're standing. So after you've done this, then try to stand up and see how you feel. Likely you will have You, you will feel a lot easier in holding yourself up. Right. But, um, there are just, there's so many tips and strategies that you could use to get yourself to stand up straight. And we cover so many of these as well in our program. And for some of these, we've also created Instagram posts already on it. We will link those specific posts in the show notes as well. Um, but really, this might be a place where you need some help, it may not be if you're, you know, working through this on your own and you feel fine. But if you don't feel safe in doing that, definitely check out our program and the posts that we will link to as well. Now, of course, pain. Pain is something that is somewhat expected in this type of recovery. Um, there is a wide spectrum of how much pain you could feel as we've already talked about in this episode is also in previous episodes, but what can you do about pain, especially if it's now limiting you in your ability to recover smoothly and you know, at a sort of a faster timeline. You obviously want to check in with your doctor to make sure they have, um, they're up to date on what you're feeling in terms of your pain, and they may prescribe you more pain medications. If your pain is due to feeling a lot of tightness, they may prescribe you muscle relaxants, and these can all be adjuncts to you feeling better and moving better. And in you moving better and you feeling less tight, that is kind of your stepping stone into just feeling overall much better in your recovery. So dealing with pain is really, really important. And for the back pain, which is what a lot of people experience, and some people experience this right away in the first few days, but then some people experience back pain much later on, like in the third or fourth week, and then sometimes it's kind of in between those two timelines. Um, but. That back pain could be just simply because you've been inactive and it's just there's a lot of stiffness in your body for not moving again. So, again, just try to get moving and try to get yourself upright as soon as possible. Try to get yourself walking straight. That's why we have covered a lot of this in detail in this episode because we, we know how important it is in your recovery to get to these things right away. Um, but also simple things like just watching how you're sitting, watching how you're resting during the day, naturally in your recovery, resting is a priority. You want to be resting, you can't overdo it, especially in early recovery, your body has to heal. But we also don't want you resting in kind of a slouched posture all day long. So if you are resting, let's say in a recliner or maybe in your bed with a wedge pillow or some pillows behind you, and you're kind of on an incline, that's fine, but just, potentially place a lumber roll or rolled up towel behind your lumbar back for a little bit more of spinal support in the lower back. Watch what's happening with your neck and shoulders. How many pillows do you have behind your, your head? Are you so far forward in your head because of all the pillows behind you that it's creating a lot of tightness and stiffness in your neck and shoulders and things are just rounding in your upper body for no other reason except for the position that you're in. So a lot of this stuff can just simply be alleviated through how you're resting. Also, try not to rest in the same position for too long. So yes, you want to be resting your body, but that doesn't mean you need to be in your bed all day long. Try to move from your bed to the sofa to a recliner or to a chair. You don't have to be in one room all day long. So moving around is going to help you a lot. And if the pain is due to swelling, then it's as we've mentioned before using some light compression could help but also just speaking with your surgeon about getting manual lymphatic drainage appointments because these, this can really help as well. And then just going back to back pain for a second here. If you haven't had. liposuction done to your back, you might be able to have massage done on your back, which can feel amazing. I know a lot of my patients have had just, they've just used some self massage tools, or they've had their partners massage their backs or have used a heating pad. Um, and this can be such a relief in that period of time where you're just, your body is just accumulating discomfort, pain and stiffness and areas, um, which just make it so much more uncomfortable. So get clearance for all of these things, but if you are cleared, then definitely make use of, of these things as well. And then further to this. topic of pain, nerve pains in general. There are certain things that you can do to help with nerve pain. So we talk about desensitization a lot in our program, and we cover this so thoroughly that you are not going to be confused on how to actually overcome this particular problem, but essentially, I kind of as an overview, it involves you placing your hands on your abdomen, you moving through, through different movements and exercises with your hands, they're being very mindful of what's happening as you're moving very intentional with what you're feeling. So you're using your hands, but you're also just using your body's internal sensations and you're, you're kind of rebuilding a sense of mind body connection, back to the area. Cause again, the nerves have sort of been placed in a different area and some of them have been cut. Um, and so while this may or may not help with pain, part of the reason for this sort of discombobulated feeling in your core is because things are just in a different place. And so this process of having your hands there, having your, your eyes closed with your hands on your abdomen and just kind of feeling what's happening under both of your hands. If one hand is on your upper abdomen, one is on your lower abdomen and you close your eyes, What does you, what do you feel is actually happening? Do you feel like your upper hand is in your, is on your upper abdomen, or do you actually feel like it's lower? Um, so what's happening there, there's going to be a mismatch usually, um, after this kind of surgery. So going through that kind of process can help with just regenerating the sensations through the nerves. but yeah, so sometimes just feeling where the nerve pain is coming from and just being aware of it during movements, is enough to just let your brain kind of calm down any anxiety around that pain, especially if you are feeling safe in the movement. So just going through that process. There is a small word of caution here though, it's if you are feeling a lot of nerve pain, for some people, if you put too much attention to the area, it could exacerbate things. Cause it's kind of like you're turning up the dial into what you're feeling. And if you're turning up that dial, which is a dial that's telling you how much pain you're in and you're putting more attention to it, it actually could make you feel more pain. So if that, if you're going through this reconnection and desensitization process, and you actually feel like you're, you're, in more pain, then obviously you need to stop. So if you are in a lot of pain, um, also, that sort of nerve related, while it's not uncommon to have this, if you're experiencing a lot of it, it's kind of more extreme and it's really interfering with your day to day, there might be something happening, um, with the way your, your body's healing. And you definitely want to go back to your surgeon and see, and just have a discussion with them and, and maybe they can be, they can do something to alleviate that. All right. And so for swelling, if you're experiencing swelling, some of the things you can do, we've actually already talked about. So basically again, monitor your swelling, lymphatic massage, potentially using light compression, but swelling will ebb and flow. It will vary throughout the course of your recovery. Um, and if you have your baseline on what your typical swelling is, you will have a better idea of how to manage that when you are Becoming more and more active. And we typically will always say to people, try to get your swelling to come back down to baseline before resuming any kind of activity or exercise. So always give your body a chance to kind of recover completely from whatever it was that you did. Now, if you are feeling really tight and immobile, um, from. Just the recovery itself and being inactive. Some of the things you can do are just some gentle stretches. And, you know, again, we do cover this thoroughly in our program, but think of exercises like, Or stretches like the hip flexor stretch, or even just sitting in a chair and crossing your arms over your chest and just rotating gently to one side and then rotating over to the other side. So you're thinking of regaining range of motion through your upper body, lower body, your hips, your back, your spine, like kind of everything. Um, or just sitting in a chair, reaching one arm over your head. And then over time reaching that arm, but then leaning your body to the side. So you're getting even more stretching and lengthening on the side. Um, and then that lengthening exercise that I was talking about before, where you're lying down on your bed and you're fully straightened and flat, you can then take that one step further and place your hands over your head. And so there's a lot more ways you can add some lengthening to your. body. Um, again, you have to be fully clear to do some of these things, but there, there is a lot you can do. So overall, just take time to work on gentle movements, work on breathing through those movements, um, and it could be a long process. This isn't going to be a magic overnight solution, but it can happen, it can take time, and with some support and guidance along the way, it'll just help you feel like you, have this and you can do it without all the fear and anxiety. So most likely nothing is wrong with you. It's likely just a hard process that, you know, people just don't talk about. So there's a lot you can do and that's what we're here for.

Lisa: 51:14

Absolutely. So, you know, you can feel, you can feel bad physically and also be unhappy with how it looks, like really having a tough time. Or you can be happy with everything. You can feel pretty good after, you know, a few months. You are happy with how you look. So we're not here to spread like doom and gloom and be all negative about surgery because many people are happy. We are absolutely committed and so passionate about educating you about everything, everything, all the ways this can go. So, any combination of these scenarios are possible. Our goal today was for you to get a sense of this wide spectrum of results. Even if you choose one of the top surgeons in your area, he or she can only control so much about how you heal. And for this reason, this is another reminder into not rushing into choosing your surgeon. It is a very important and very big decision. Obviously, you want the surgery to go well, but this is also someone that you need to feel comfortable communicating with throughout your recovery after surgery. In case you need to go back for any kind of revisions or issues or if you're just nervous or feel like something's wrong, there could be any number of reasons. So you want to make sure that you feel comfortable communicating with that surgeon throughout your whole recovery because there could be any number of reasons you need to communicate with them. You could be nervous about some pains or sensations. You could be inquiring about a revision or something like that. But when you're choosing this surgeon, you're choosing a surgeon, not just for the day of surgery, but someone you feel comfortable communicating with throughout your recovery and beyond.

Munira: 53:09

Okay. So I know this can sound overwhelming and possibly very negative, but we are just so passionate about empowering you with knowledge about the surgery. And it's just so often that we hear from women that say, I wish I knew this before. So we want to bring you. All the information, the good, the bad, and that is so that you can be fully informed.

Lisa: 53:33

Yes. Um, so please share this episode with anyone that's considering tummy tuck surgery so you can help us help more women. And if you haven't already hit the subscribe button so you don't miss the next episode of tummy tuck talk. So thanks for joining us today. And as always, thanks for letting us be a part of your journey. Bye for now. So that's a wrap for today's episode of Tummy Talk Talk. We hope this conversation has helped you feel more informed and empowered about the realities of tummy tuck recovery. Remember that the journey is different for everyone, whether it's managing physical discomfort, navigated unexpected aesthetic challenges, or balancing both. It's all part of the process and you can land anywhere on that spectrum. So if you're facing any of these scenarios, don't forget. Take notes and track your symptoms to uncover patterns, but also know sometimes there aren't patterns at all as healing isn't always linear. Ask questions and lots of them. Consult with your surgeon, physical therapist, or us about revisions, recovery timelines, next steps. If anything doesn't feel right, build your team to help you rather than only relying on your surgeon. And as always give yourself grace, healing takes time, is unique.