Episode #6: 4 Things to Focus On in the First 2 Weeks Post-Tummy Tuck

In this episode, we’re diving into one of the most overwhelming parts of tummy tuck recovery: the first two weeks. Whether you’ve just had surgery or are preparing for it, these early days can feel like a blur — filled with pain, uncertainty, and the question, “What can I actually do right now?”

We’re breaking down the four key things you can focus on during those crucial first weeks to support your recovery both physically and mentally. You don’t have to just lie there feeling helpless — there are safe, meaningful ways to take an active role in your healing, and we’re here to guide you every step of the way.

What you’ll learn in this episode:
✨ Why breathing exercises are so much more than just deep breaths — and how they help prevent complications, improve oxygen flow, and support early core reconnection.
✨ How to approach walking in the early days — even if you’re hunched over or feel like a shuffle is all you’ve got.
✨ Why gentle stretches (yes, even in the first two weeks!) can ease tension and reduce discomfort in your hips, back, and shoulders.
✨ How to support your mindset — with mantras and reminders to keep you grounded when emotions run high and progress feels slow.

Timestamps:

[00:00] Welcome to Tummy Tuck Talk
[03:00] Why the First Two Weeks Feel So Hard
[04:30] What You Can Do Right Away — Not Just What You Can’t
[05:00] Focus #1: Breathing Exercises and Core Reconnection
[12:51] Focus #2: Walking — Why, How, and What to Expect
[22:00] Focus #3: Gentle Stretching and Movement
[31:42] Focus #4: The Mental Game — Supporting Your Mindset
[36:00] Final Thoughts and Practical Encouragement

Recovery is not a passive process — it’s active, even when movement is limited. Starting with these four things will set the tone for a more confident and empowered recovery.

Resources Mentioned:
✨ Tummy Tuck Core Rehab Program — a comprehensive guide to rebuilding strength and movement safely, step by step: https://www.tummytuckrehab.com/tummy-tuck-core-rehab

Thanks for tuning in. These early days are intense, but they’re also the foundation of everything to come. We’re here to support you every step of the way.

— Munira & Lisa

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Transcript

Lisa: 0:00

Welcome to Tummy Tuck Talk! The first two weeks after surgery can be some of the hardest times, and while everyone experiences different levels of discomfort and pain, everyone has pretty much the same instructions from their surgeons on taking it very easy on the activity levels, no matter how they feel. If you are worried about those first two weeks post-op, then this episode is for you. It can feel very overwhelming to think about being so laid up. So we want to empower you in how to deal with that and also what you can do during this time. So tune in as we unpack four things you can do in those first two weeks. By the end of the episode, you'll feel you have a pretty good plan on how to survive those early weeks of recovery, both mentally and physically. Let's get started. Hi, I'm Lisa Ryan, a CrossFit trainer, pregnancy and postpartum athleticism coach, and a former tummy tuck patient.

Munira: 1:05

And I'm Munira Hudani, a physiotherapist with a specialized interest in diastasis rectus 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: 1:27

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: 1:40

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. Whether you're preparing for surgery Or are deep in recovery. We've got you covered.

Lisa: 1:58

This is Tummy Tuck Talk! Welcome to Tummy Tuck Talk! The podcast where aesthetics meet function, and fitness, and we explore how to get the most out of your tummy tuck journey. If this is your first time joining us, we're excited to have you here, and if you've tuned in before, welcome back. I am Lisa Ryan, a CrossFit trainer, a pregnancy and postpartum athleticism coach, and a tummy tuck patient. Back in 2019, I had my surgery and let me tell you, there was so much I didn't know about recovery. 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 confidently.

Munira: 2:42

And I am Munira Hudani, a physiotherapist who helps patients rebuild their strength, function, and confidence after the surgery. Together, Lisa and I are here to empower you with practical advice and clear guidance for every stage of your tummy tuck recovery. So if you are someone who is either worried or wondering about what you should be doing in those first two weeks of recovery, or maybe just wondering what recovery is gonna look like in those first couple of weeks, well, this episode is then for you. Even though many people experience these two weeks very differently, the healing process is quite a journey, and so we wanted to share with you our top four things to focus on from the very beginning, from a sort of rehab recovery perspective. Um, and also we are focusing not just on the physical, but the mental aspects of early recovery as well, so. Just because we know there's so much that goes on on a mental and emotional level. So we wanted to empower you with the tools to manage really one of the most challenging periods of, of your recovery, which is those first two weeks. Now, these aren't just random tips. They are small but powerful things that you can do that'll make a huge difference in your recovery. Uh, we'll cover things like breathing exercises, gentle stretches, um, safe ways of moving around your house to avoid discomfort and, uh, prevent some post-op complications and some strategies to help you stay positive during this time. So by focusing on these four things, you'll be giving yourself the support it needs mentally and physically to heal and also it'll set yourself up for a smoother and more comfortable recovery, like we said. So let's dive into the first major thing that we think you should be focusing on in the first two weeks.

Lisa: 4:34

All right? Yes. So one of the first things to focus on during those two weeks are breathing exercises. And we love this because this is something you can do very early on. Um, why do we say this? Well after surgery, it's common to feel tightness, discomfort, and even hesitation. When it comes to taking a big, deep breath. Your abdominal muscles have been through a major procedure and swelling, soreness and changes in posture can make breathing feel restricted, but also being under general anesthesia can affect your breath, how easily your lungs expand afterwards, creating an ideal scenario for something like pneumonia. Specifically, here are some reasons why doing breathing exercises is so important to post-op. It prevents shallow breathing. So when you're in pain or you're hunched over, it's natural to take shorter shallower breaths. This can lead to reduced oxygen intake, which may slow healing and make you more fatigued. So intentional deep breathing helps improve oxygen flow, which is essential for tissue repair and just overall recovery. It also promotes circulation and reduces risk of complications. Deep breathing stimulates better circulation, which helps prevent issues like blood clots and promotes lymphatic drainage to reduce swelling. And we all know after this surgery there can be a lot of swelling. So, it also helps prevent post-op complications like pneumonia, like we talked about, which can occur when the lungs don't fully expand after surgery. It also aids in relaxation and pain management. Focused breathing has a common effect on your nervous system, helping reduce the stress and ease tension in your body. It can also help with pain control by encouraging relaxation and reducing that guarding response that can make the discomfort feel worse. A lot of times you don't even realize you're doing that right until you do some intentional breathing. It also supports core reconnection. So even though you won't be engaging your abdominal muscles in traditional exercises yet, gentle breathing is an early way to start reestablishing the mind muscle connection with your core. Over time, this will make, transitioning back to movement and strength exercise is easier. There's a lot of disconnection that happens after the surgery with the nerves and the feelings and all of that, that kind of stuff. The earlier you start just gently trying to connect back to that area, the better. So by starting with these breathing exercises, you're giving your body the foundational support it needs in those crucial early days of healing. It's a small but powerful way to take an active role in your recovery while staying within your post-op limitations. We all know it seems that there might not be much to do, especially in those first few days of recovery, but breathing exercises are always appropriate even from day one. So let's talk about a little bit about how to do these breathing exercises. So you wanna exhale fully first before attempting to inhale and before I go through any of these steps, and we'll remind you too, none of these exercises, you're not pushing yourself to do anything you don't feel ready to do, right? So you're just gonna kind of see how much you can, you know, inhale and exhale as you're doing these exercises. Just a reminder about that. Okay, so you then, after you fully exhale, first, you're going to inhale and aim for three Mississippis. Now, this often is if you count yourself, you often go a lot faster, right? This goes with any kind of exercise, so. Counting out loud or, or thinking in your head or using like the Mississippi's and going slowly. One Mississippi, two Mississippi, three Mississippi, right? That'll help you from going 1, 2, 3, and going too fast. Um, experiment with where the breath goes. Striving for some breath to reach into the front sides back of lower ribs. You wanna think 360 degrees around your rib cage. And the goal is to do about 10 breaths per hour. So this type of breathing, the point is we are focusing on preventing pneumonia or any complications from anesthesia, getting our lungs to open and expand again. You can do this laying down. Um, you can do it sitting. You can do it really in any position. I mean, it's good to do it definitely while you're sitting at some point throughout the day, but you can still do it if you're laying down. Um, so don't let your position prevent you from working on your breathing. Right. Um, and you wanna keep this up until you're fully mobile and really able to walk around to prevent pneumonia, blood clots, and other complications. Sometimes you get a machine, one of those like breathing machines with a ball in it that you get from your surgeon, and they may have given you specific instructions to use that, definitely do that or you can use some of our parameters to use that as well. Um, so definitely do it. All right. All right, so then the next type of breathing, the focus is on reconnection. So this is a little bit different. So the purpose of this is to really try to reconnect with your core. So while seated first, what I want you to do is place your hands on your upper abdomen and gently breathe in as deeply as you feel comfortable. Again, not pushing into pain or pulling or anything like that. And then softly let the air out. Do that a few times. Then we want you to try doing this on your lower abdomen. This may feel a little more vulnerable, right? Again, don't push it gently. Breathe in as deeply as you feel comfortable not allowing pain or excessive pulling sensations. Then softly let the air out. Do this a few times. This is a great exercise to kind of like focus on once a day, more if you feel inclined, but once a day is a good goal. It helps you begin the process of reintegrating your new abdomen, establishing that, that mind muscle connection, that connection will help you later on. So any of these exercises can feel frustrating and even scary at first. That's normal to feel that way. For me personally, it took me many, many weeks to be able to take a full breath inhale and was able to fill my belly and my, you know, get a 360 degree breath because it felt tight for a really long time, especially in my belly. I'm like, oh my gosh, am I ever going to be able to like relax my belly, fill my belly. It was really hard, so I practiced. It took me a while. You don't wanna force this. You just wanna gently keep working on it. As you learn the ropes of your new stomach, things are in dif a different place. You have intense sensations, so you can expect this to take a lot of time. Again, like I said, it took me weeks and weeks and weeks, I don't know, five weeks, I don't even know a while. Um, things are in a different place. It can feel very intense and just take a lot of time. So don't expect big movements. Be happy with small little ones, okay? Don't expect to get a big, huge breath right away. Um. And you know, just kind of keep on with little steps every day. We understand that the first day of your surgery, you may feel pretty out of it. I want you to know there's no rush to start this. Like if it's day three and you're like, oh no, I haven't tried to connect back to my core, you're good. Right? Make sure you're doing the first set of exercises we talked about, about to prevent that pneumonia, right? But these what we have to think a little bit more to do. It's okay if you're not ready to do it in the first couple days. Once you feel ready, go for it and give it a try.

Munira: 12:48

Alright, thank you so much for that, Lisa. That was awesome. Okay, so now let's dive into another crucial aspect of recovery in those first two weeks after your tummy tuck, and that is walking. So I would say the breathing and walking are kind of equal in terms of priorities and for what they can do in the those early days and how important they are. But the thing is, for many people taking, even just those first few steps around the house can feel like a major challenge, understandably. But let's talk about why it's important again, um, and why you should still try to do this in your early post-op period. Your surgeon will likely have told you that this is something you have to do, so we'll, uh, let's just explain why they really are emphasizing this important task. Well, one of the reasons why walking is important, similar to breathing, is it promotes circulation and again, it reduces the risk of blood clots. So you're gonna see a, a common theme here with these early first two weeks. Uh, and it's mainly to prevent complications, but also to sort of prevent some unnecessary things that can happen later on. And that can, that can be done just with, uh, the few tips we're offering you today. So again, it promotes circulation, it reduces the risk of blood clots. After the surgery, your body is healing and the blood flow to your extremities may be reduced. So walking is gonna help encourage better circulation throughout the extremities, throughout the body, throughout the core, and this is something that can really help prevent those blood clots, um, and it'll keep your vascular system kind of working in those, in those first two weeks. Walking also prevents stiffness and helps you with just keeping some mobility. After the surgery, your body is likely to start feeling very stiff just from the trauma of the surgery, but also the fact that you're gonna be sitting and resting and lying down a lot. So this lack of movement can create stiffness. And then walking is like the antidote for that. It's one of the most simplest ways you can prevent stiffness and encourage your muscles and joints to kind of stay fluid. When you move, you also re reduce the risk of developing joint stiffness, muscle tightness, and all of that just happens when you stay in one position for too long. Walking is also important because it can potentially speed up your recovery. It may seem counterintuitive to ask you to move right after surgery when you probably just wanna rest and not do anything at all. But gentle walking can help you and your body speed the recovery process up. The reason is because it activates the muscles that may have become weak or stiff just from the, the procedure itself. And as we mentioned in the breathing exercise section, it can also help just therefore move the lymphatic fluid throughout your system and clear out excess fluids. And this accumulation of fluid is a common side effect after tummy tuck surgery. So walking can really help with that. Um, and also, walking just helps with your overall mental wellbeing and mood. So it, you know, the surgery can take a toll, not just on your body, but also on your emotional wellbeing. You'll be cooped up or immobile for an extended period of time, so you could naturally start feeling frustrated, sad or even depressed. But walking, even these short trips around the house or maybe just down the driveway, it can give you a sense of accomplishment. Um, and it gets you out of your bed or your chair. And so it, it helps prevent that mental stagnation that can occur when you are just not moving around enough. And then. Like I said before, it helps reduce the fluid retention. It helps with swelling, but it also, this is kind of a, an important one for us, thinking ahead in the future, walking can set the foundation for future activity. So walking in the first couple of weeks might slow, might be slow and painful, but it sets the foundation for increasing your mobility and activity as the weeks progress. You'll be starting with short walks, and then as you do that you'll gain some confidence that your body can move and some confidence in your body's ability to move and it also helps you reintroduce exercise in a manner that is appropriate for your stage of recovery. And that is in a manner that is safe, in a manner that is manageable and it just prepares you for more activity and movement down the line.

Lisa: 17:41

Yeah, absolutely. Ugh, so great. So. How, so how do we approach walking in those early days? Something as simple as walking around the house could be pretty tough to do within those first two weeks of recovery, right? Uh, but typically you wanna start walking every hour for a few minutes. Um, it means you could go down the hall and back short walk around the main floor. I remember distinctly doing this and feeling like it was the greatest accomplishment ever. But over time, you wanna try to increase the length of time you're walking for a few minutes at a time so that you can comfortably walk for 30 minutes eventually, right? Maybe by the end of the first month you can, you know, try to do that. Um, you can think about getting up to walk more times throughout the day, even if it is just around the house, right? That can be a way that you can kind of like goals you can make. Okay? I'm gonna make myself get up and do just one lap a few more times during the day as you start to feel a little bit better. At first this might just be a shuffle. I get that sometimes you're still hunched over. Totally fine. The goal is just to gently get your body moving for all the reasons that Munira just mentioned. When you start walking, you may notice again, like I said, that you're hunched. Um, it's gonna be natural in some of this early stages. Some of you won't be hunched over. It totally depends on surgeon technique and also just how your body feels. So don't force yourself to stand up straight unless you're advised by your surgeon. I know sometimes they'll say at some point, okay, now you can start working on standing up straight. Um, so make sure you're clear about when you, you're allowed to focus on that from your surgeon and make sure that you're very clear about that. Ask more questions if you need to. Okay. Um, if you are hunched over, you might find using a walker helps to alleviate some of the back pain you can experience walking in those early days, but not everyone will need that. But it can maybe help you go further without as much discomfort, making it easier to build up your tolerance to walk in again. So again, something to kind of play around with. Uh, one tip we also have is for you is that you should try walking in an area where there are options to rest or sit down if you get tired, especially in the very beginning, the first night and the next day, you may be surprised at how little you can do and how winded you can get. So definitely plan for that by choosing the right place to do some walking. Also, try to have someone by your side when you're walking, especially in the first few days. You might need them anyways to get out of bed, but for your own safety, it's best to have someone there with you during your walking times. Now, if you're a go-getter and have that competitive personality, we want to emphasize that it is very important for your recovery to rest in those first two weeks. Apart from the things we're talking about here, the breathing and the walking, we want you to rest. For some people it can be really hard to sit down and be out for so long. So the temptation to overdo it will creep in, especially if you're not feeling too bad, right? So stay patient and we promise that you'll be able to do more soon, but those first two weeks are not the time to think about it, and we don't want it to set you back.

Munira: 20:59

That's right. Yeah. We don't wanna set you back. And there's one thought that came to mind was that when you are just getting up to walk for the first few times, take it very slowly. Mm-hmm. Yeah. In, in the actual getting up. So if you're, you know, if you're lying down, you're gonna have to move slowly anyways, just'cause you'll need that support since you've got restrictions on using your core. Right. But, um. Take a moment just to kind of sit there from, from being lying down to sitting. Just sit there before you actually get up. Yes. Let make sure that you give your body some time to adjust to that position. Um,'cause it's not uncommon to feel lightheaded right in that moment. Yep. Yep. So allow, allow some time for that as well. And once you feel like you're. You're clear again, you're no longer dizzy, then, then you can go ahead and start walking. Yeah. Yeah. Great. All right, so now that we've talked about walking, we've talked about breathing and how to do those safely in the early days. Let's move on to our next main important thing to focus on in the first two weeks post-op, and that is some gentle stretching. I think this in general is overlooked in recovery. And I say this just based off of the people that I've worked with, um, and the instructions that they've been given from their, their surgeon's office about the things to do in, in post-op, never do I hear someone say that their surgeon recommended them to do stretching. Um, and so when I say stretching, I'm not talking about aggressive pulling of muscles and, and, and body parts. I'm we're, I'm just talking more so gentle movement. Um, but with the intention of kind of focusing that movement into certain parts of your body and parts of the body that typically are, uh, prone to becoming stiff and tight in, in this period of time. So these are movements and stretches that you can do in the early, uh, within your post-op limits and it can help prevent your body from stiffening up and make daily movements feel a little easier. So as we've done for breathing and walking, let's just talk about why it's important first, and then we'll go into, um, what stretches you can do, um, or just to keep in your mind and consider for when you were post-op. So like I mentioned, it prevents stiffness and discomfort. You're likely gonna be hunched over post-op, um, not necessarily, but a lot of people are and that can cause tension in certain areas of your body, including your back, your hips, especially your hips, um, and especially your back and legs in general. So some stretching of these areas in a safe manner can help alleviate that tightness. And it can just make you feel more comfortable in your kind of day-to-day tasks. It can also, similar to the other two points, it can also support circulation and healing. And of course naturally stretching parts of your body that are becoming tight, it will help encourage a better posture and, and better movement patterns, um, and it can help you stay mentally and physically engaged. So one of the reasons why we like these tips, and we kind of honed in on these is because we know how important they are not only just from a medical perspective to help your body heal, but just to help you from a mental perspective and how you feel when you're doing things like walking and breathing and, and gentle stretches and movements, again, it gives you a sense that you are accomplishing something and you're not just, uh, letting everything just kind of be up to fate. You have some control over certain things that you can do in your recovery, and sometimes that feels good that you, there, there are things that you can focus on and work on and do, and, uh, it just can take your mind off of the fact that you, you know, that you may be limited in, in mostly everything else that you're doing right now. So it just kind of flips the script and allows you to feel a bit more positive about your, your abilities and what you can do. So what are some of the specific things we are talking about? The stretches that we often do post-op are things like stretching the legs in the in the back, so things like the inner thigh stretch. Now a lot of these are done in a standing position, so if you can stand in front of a counter or stand, um, so you can hold onto the counter or stand behind a chair so you can hold onto the back of the chair. Uh, that's an ideal position for these. A, it gets you standing, but also it's just an easier way to, to work these areas given your limited mobility and allows you to stay supported through either the chair or the counter or something to hold onto. So an inner thigh stretch is really, really helpful because of the fact that you're just gonna be, you know, kind of staying in one position for a lot of your day. So stretching any part of your hip and leg can help you. For inner thigh stretch, just hold onto the back of the chair, step your feet a bit apart. So more than hip distance apart. Um, and this just kind of sway from one side to the other, swaying your body weight over towards your left leg, and then alternate that with the other side until you feel gentle pulling in your inner thigh. Um, we're not talking about aggressive pulling, aggressive stretching, like I mentioned. This is gentle. So you're, you're just in essence moving for the, for the goal of mobility, blood flow and just preventing stiffness. So inner thigh stretching. There's also hamstring stretching, so you could, again, hold onto something and if, whether it's a chair or a counter, have it beside you. And so that way you can put your foot up on a stool. Your heel can be the, the point of contact on the stool. Straighten out that leg and just kinda lean down towards your, your leg, and you'll feel that stretch in your hamstrings. Uh, and if you just pull your foot back a bit towards you, you'll get some calf stretching as well. So this is really great just to open up the, the back of the leg and help it just kind of feel a little less tight. There's also something that you can do call the modified cat cow. So again, standing behind a chair, holding onto it. You're just gently doing something. If you're familiar with the cat cow, it's a movement that we do in yoga, and you're just arching your back ever so slightly followed by then rounding your back slightly in, you know, a proper yoga pose, you would be extending fully and you would be flexing and arching your back. I mean, uh, rounding your back fully as well. Mm-hmm. We're not doing that right now. You won't be able to, you won't want to, but this is something that you can do in, in just a very gentle manner, is just. It's basically just rocking your pelvis back and forth, right? Yeah. And this is very, very helpful for that low back and mid back discomfort that will definitely creep in, if not early in the first few, few days. It may show up later on. So this is something you can do right away. Um, and you can do it in a manner that's very. Gentle. Mm-hmm. You're, you're not pushing it when you're thinking of a full cat cow movement or the range that you can produce in that, in this stage of your recovery, you're probably doing like five to 10% of what you're probably capable of doing. So that's how small we're talking here. And then, um, you can do things like standing knee bends. So you could grab the back of if, again, with support, holding onto something, grabbing the back of your one leg and just, um, stretching out the front of your thigh. So your quad muscle, and then of course, because you're gonna be hunched over, you'll get some rounding through your neck and shoulders and upper back, so bringing your shoulder blades back. So we just call them shoulder blade squeezes, so squeezing the shoulder blades back and down and doing that 10 times. You know, at least once a day. If you can do more, that's great. Um, and just being aware of your neck position. So doing stretches for your neck, moving your neck side to side, or even just looking and rotating your neck. Looking over one shoulder, looking over the other shoulder. Um, and these are all wonderful things you can do just to keep yourself from stiffening up from head to toe. Um, like I said, these are kind of skipped over in most post-op protocols, so I think it's really important to include them here because they're easily doable and can really help you feel much more comfortable in this period of time. Um, for the stretches, these are things that you. Can kind of play around with in terms of how long you're holding for. But what I tend to do is offer, um, the, the breath, the breath count versus the, the clock count. Meaning why don't you try holding it for six breaths? Um, this gives you a chance to kind of focus on two things at once. So look, focusing on your breathing and connection and, and again, those, those medical reasons for breathing. But also you can stretch at the same time, so you're kind of getting two things done together. Um, otherwise just using a clock is fine and holding for 30 to to 60 seconds would be fine as well. Um, naturally if you're experiencing pain, you're not gonna push into it. You wanna back off right away. These are things that should be fine for you to do, but I always still recommend getting clearance to do these from your surgeon. Um, and they, 99% of the time, they're, they're happy for you to do these because they kind of fall in the same category as walking. They're gentle and they promote, um, they promote good, a good recovery. Yeah. That's great. It's great just to have a couple things. You feel like you can do a little bit of a plan, you know, um, it just makes a huge difference. And on that same note, our last, um, our last thing on the list is mind matters, right? So we've talked about the physical things you can do, but now we're gonna talk about how we can support our mind during this recovery. Um.

31:56

And this is the thing that often catches people off guard. The mental and emotional challenges, like I don't think anyone thinks it's gonna be like a walk in the park, but it's often just mentally so much harder. And that's what Munira and I have both heard from many of our clients and different people that we've worked with, either together or individually. But it's something we hear a lot. Um, the first two weeks you have a lot of physical change challenges. Right, as we've talked about already. Uh, but it's also so important to address the mental ones. Um, this is often the time that many women will regret having the surgery done. They will question if they were ever feel normal again. It becomes hard for them to do their daily physical tasks around the house for, and that goes on for a while and. If you're a mother, you feel like you can't be a mother, and that's really hard. You know, you have to like stay away from your kids. You can't do anything. All of this stuff, right? So having a strong mindset and simple strategies to support your mental wellbeing is just as crucial as the physical recovery. We like to kind of try to provide some mantras or things that. Uh, you can be ready to focus on during these low times. Um, yes, some of your time needs to be reading, watching tv, and just totally zoning out and relaxing, of course, right? But keeping these things in mind throughout the day is also very important. So here are some ideas we came up with. You can write them down. Um, make a list on your phone, use them in a journal, whatever works best for you. Um, but here we go. So the first mantra is slow is fast. This one I've been saying, um, for a long time in general, but being really, really slow and intentional and resting when you need to in the beginning will allow you to move faster. When you get farther down the road and it will pay off later and you will have less setbacks. So slow is fast. That's a good little short one. You can always remind yourself of when things seem to be going way too slow. Letting my body heal now will pay off in the end game and allow me to reach my post-surgery athletic goals. Letting my brain and body rest is my job right now. That is your job. You have no other jobs. Resting now will pay off dividends later. Lean into and enjoy the rest from the hustle and bustle of your usual schedules. I will have immense gratitude for simple movement along with intense exercise after this period of being so limited. I can attest to this. It's the most glorious, amazing thing in the world, and I cry when I talk about it half the time. So keep that in mind. I surrender to my body's own ability to heal. It will heal itself all the way. That's not my job. My job is to rest, to move gently to promote circulation, to breathe, to promote oxygenation, to nourish yourself with water and nutrition.

Munira: 35:29

This will support my body to heal itself. I have trust in my body's intelligence. I thank it. Appreciate it, love it. Support it. I trust the process. I trust my body. I let my body heal, and my body will heal all the way. Our final note is that sometimes the anesthesia and medications can also mess with your mind in some scary ways. It is important to know that this can happen and have a caretaker watching after you. Uh, one of my personal clients noted to me that she actually had some suicidal thoughts. Which this has never happened before in her life. And the nurse noted that this is actually pretty common and can happen temporarily post-surgery due to the anesthesia and the different medications. So that was a very scary feeling for her because she's never experienced that before. So it's just a note to maybe ask your doctors and you know, what you're taking, what the possible side effects are, and just be aware that that can happen as that's pretty scary and intense. Yeah, that is definitely scary. Um, you know, overall, I hope that in talking about the four things you can focus on today, um, gives you a a bit more clarity on, you know, the things that you can actually do which you may not have been told to do or to kind of focus on by your surgeon's office. So, um, and if you were, we hope that we were able to provide you more detail around those things and the importance as to why you're doing it. Some times if you're just doing something and going through the motion, you're, you kind of don't look forward to it. You may, you may dread doing these things, but when you know the why behind it and how important they are, it motivates you to do them. So we have covered a lot. We cover things like breathing exercises, walking gentle stretches and movements, and, um, ways to help you stay more positive. And so we're talking about the mental side of recovery and all of these things work together to help you feel more in control and supported in these early weeks. So to wrap things up, you might feel progress is slow at times, but starting with these things in the first couple of weeks will help you move in a forward and positive direction. Stay patient, stay consistent, and trust the process. Beautiful. Thanks for joining us today, everybody, and as always, thanks for letting us be a part of your journey. Bye for now. Thanks for tuning in to Tummy Tuck Talk! Alright, that's a wrap for today's episode. We hope these four things to focus on give you a solid game plan for navigating those first tough two weeks after surgery. Remember, small and intentional actions like breathing exercises, gentle stretches, and mindful movement can make a world of difference both physically and mentally. Absolutely, and don't forget to give yourself grace during this time. Healing is not just about what you do, but it's about allowing your body the time and space to recover. So trust the process and just know that progress, even when it feels very slow, is still progress. If today's episode helped you feel a little more prepared for your recovery, be sure to subscribe so you never miss out on future tips and guidance. And if you know someone who's getting ready for their tummy tuck, share this episode with them. Thanks again for spending your time with us, and as always, thanks for letting us be a part of your journey. Bye for now.