Episode 9: Why Am I Not Flat After My Tummy Tuck?

In this episode, we’re unpacking one of the MOST common — and most confusing — concerns after a tummy tuck: “Why am I not flat?” If you’re weeks or even months post-op and wondering why your stomach still looks rounded, bloated, or not as tight as you hoped, you’re absolutely not alone.

Munira and Lisa break down the TOP reasons you may not look or feel flat yet — from normal swelling patterns to deeper issues. This episode will help you understand what’s normal, what’s expected, and what might need more attention.

What you’ll learn in this episode:

✨ The 10 most common reasons your stomach may not look as flat as you expected after a tummy tuck — including weak muscles, bloating, swelling, visceral fat, fascia quality, and more.
✨ Why weak or deconditioned abdominal muscles (and the natural loss of tone after surgery) can contribute to a softer or more relaxed look — and what rebuilding strength actually requires.
✨ How bloating and digestive distension throughout the day can temporarily change your abdominal shape — and why stress, hormones, food choices, and gut health all play a role.
✨ Why unpredictable swelling — even many months post-op — can create a rounder appearance, and how factors like activity, salt intake, travel, and time of day influence it.
✨ The role of visceral fat, what surgery can and cannot remove, and why some roundness may remain even after a technically successful procedure.
✨ How natural variations in fascia quality, skin laxity, aging, and genetics impact your long-term results.
✨ When it might be worth checking in with your surgeon — and what questions to ask if you’re considering revision.

It’s completely normal to feel disappointed or confused when your stomach doesn’t look the way you imagined. 

Resources Mentioned: 

✨ Tummy Tuck Core Rehab Program — build strength, regain mobility, and support flatter abdominal appearance through structured rehab: https://www.tummytuckrehab.com/tummy-tuck-core-rehab 

✨ PDF Resource Guide: Am I Ready for a Tummy Tuck? https://www.tummytuckrehab.com/am-i-ready-for-a-tummy-tuck

✨ PDF Resource Guide: Questions to Ask in Your Consultations to Find the Right Surgeon for You: https://www.tummytuckrehab.com/narrowing-down-surgeons

✨ YouTube Video: What to Ask Your Surgeon During Consults — including expectations around flatness 

✨ Follow @sulinu.nutrition for gut, bloating, and digestion support during recovery

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Transcript

0:00

Welcome to Tummy Tuck Talk. Today's episode is for every woman who's ever looked at her post tummy tuck belly and thought, why doesn't it look flatter? You're not alone, and no, you didn't do anything wrong. Today we are diving into all the reasons why your stomach might not be as flat as you hoped after your surgery. We'll cover things like visceral fat fascia quality, surgical techniques and limitations, genetics, but there are so many factors here. We came up with a list of 10 that we think could be contributing to that non flat appearance, so you'll hear us unpack a lot of these today, in addition to dispelling some myths, we're gonna get honest about what surgery can and can't do, um, but we also wanna offer you some guidance on what's within your control if you find yourself in the situation. So if you're wondering whether you just need more compression or more exercise, or maybe if you should get another surgery, we're gonna cover those as well. Alright, let's get into it.

Lisa: 1:08

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

Munira: 1:15

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: 1:38

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: 1:51

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: 2:09

This is Tummy Tuck Talk!

2:15

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 so excited to have you here, and if you've tune in before, welcome back. I'm 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 to get back to doing the things you love safely and confidently. And I'm Munira Hudani, a physiotherapist who helps patients rebuild their strength, function, and confidence after the surgery. Together, Lisa and I here are to empower you with practical advice and clear guidance for every stage of your tummy tuck recovery. Today we're diving into a very sensitive topic. Why isn't my stomach flat post tummy tuck? We have found so many women silently suffering post-surgery, and we want to address all the possible reasons that this can happen. So we will explore many things in detail. But before we dive into those details, let's pause for a moment and acknowledge something important. If you're feeling confused, frustrated, or even just a little disappointed with your post-op results, you're not alone. These are questions so many women carry quietly unsure of whether if what they're experiencing is normal or if something actually went wrong. That's exactly why we're having this conversation to bring clarity, compassion, and real talk to a topic that often gets oversimplified. So let's unpack it together piece by piece. We've come up with 10 reasons why you may not be flat after your tummy tuck, and we'll break down what's in your control and what is not. That way you'll have a clear sense of where you might wanna focus your energy and where to offer yourself some grace. We'll also approach this from a post-op perspective, assuming you're listening to this after you've had surgery, but aren't completely satisfied with those results. However, if you're someone contemplating surgery and haven't done it yet, these will be extremely important things to keep in mind as they will help shape the questions and discussions you have with your surgeon ahead of time. Okay. So with that in mind, let's begin looking at these factors as to why your stomach may not be as flat as you like. And we'll start off by looking at some of the ones that are within your control, and so things that you can possibly do something about and the first reason is weak muscles with a lack of tone. So, this is common but overlooked. Um, and the thing to remember with the surgery, and we've said it many times in other episodes and kind of spread throughout everything we do, but the surgery itself, it does stitch your muscles closer together, the rectus abdominis muscles, but that doesn't mean that they're suddenly strong and functional and suddenly more tone and have more muscle bulk. It's a very important distinction to make of what the surgery can and can't do, and does and doesn't do. Many people go in thinking, okay, they're gonna tighten my muscles. That means I'm gonna be tight everywhere, including the tone of my muscles, and that'll flatten my stomach. Because those muscles have been stretched out and weakened from pregnancy or multiple pregnancies before, if you haven't been strengthening your core with a progressively challenging program, I'm talking about post-op, then they may not have that sufficient amount of tone to really contribute to that flattened appearance. So. This is one reason why people are often disappointed when they look down. They, they feel weak, but they also don't feel, and that they look as flat as they want to. Um, but the truth is tone and core strength are things that are in your control. And you, these things can be rebuilt. They can be rebuilt. We recommend slowly and intentionally and in our opinion, with some guidance as well. But it's within your control. So when it comes to what you can do about this particular factor, well begin strengthening. Obviously that's why we've created our Tummy Tuck Core Rehab program. It's a just to give you a roadmap that you can follow to say, here's where you start. Here's how to know when you're ready to progress. Here's how to challenge yourself and how to do it safely, progressively. We just didn't want people guessing on how to build their muscles back up. We know how important it is, so we took the time to make sure every step is included and nothing is missed along the way. So it is important to mention also that changes aren't gonna happen overnight, and we obviously can't promise what your core is gonna look like through the strengthening process, but just know that a lack of muscle tone can contribute to a relaxed appearance of the abdomen, and it's something that can be addressed through strengthening. Excellent points. Excellent. Okay, so reason number two, bloating or distension from digestion. So the next reason your stomach may not appear as flat as you'd like after surgery, especially later in the day, is just bloating from digestion. This is something that is often misunderstood, but it's incredibly common and in many cases, completely normal. Throughout the day, as you eat, drink, digest, your abdominal cavity expands, and this can cause a temporary protrusion of the belly, which tends to be more noticeable after meals, during certain phases of your hormone cycles. And if you're under stress. What many people don't realize is that this fluctuation in abdominal shape is part of how your body works. It's not necessarily a sign that something's wrong or that your surgery is unsuccessful. People often forget that before pregnancy and surgery, that you still used to wake up flatter in the morning and go to bed a little bit more bloated before you had babies, before you had any sign of a diastasis, no matter how small or big right, um, that still would happen in your pre-baby body. So, if you've been going on a whole day and you're eating and drinking and being upright and all of that, things are gonna change throughout the day and how your belly looks. It's just a normal response to the digestion and gravity. And it's not a failure or it's not something that's wrong, it's just your body doing its daily jobs. Um. You know, also, like, I know I just mentioned stress, but you know, if you're eating quickly throughout the day and throwing things in your mouth, right? I mean, that's gonna cause more bloating. Right? And we're all very busy people. I. So that being said, there is a spectrum. Some bloating is expected and harmless, but if you're noticing a dramatic change, say in the significant protrusion that happens regularly and doesn't resolve it might be worth digging deeper to other, you know, issues or medical things to, um, you know, really dive into. This is where nutrition plays a large role. So certain foods may trigger more gas production or water retention leading to distension. Food sensitivities and tolerances and balances and gut bacteria can also contribute to this kind of bloating, all things that aren't really, you know, directly connected to getting this tummy tuck surgery, right? If you're in that boat, a good starting point is to keep simple food in a symptom journal. So track what you're eating when the bloating occurs, and you may start to see patterns. Now we're no nutritionists, um, but you should work with someone if it's bothering you and you wanna like, you know, try to make an improvement here. Um, you can bring all of that data that you've collected to a qualified provider, whether it's a dietician, a nutritionist, a naturopath, functional medicine doctor, and then you can say, Hey, here's what's going on, and then go from there. We always recommend seeking guidance from professionals who understand post-surgical context. One of our favorite resources is Kylie from Sulinu who specializes in plastic surgery nutrition. She's fantastic at helping clients optimize their gut health and nutrition intake in a way that supports both healing and long-term body composition goals. So we just wanna emphasize again that it is unrealistic to expect your stomach to stay completely flat 24 7. Even if you have nothing going on with your digestion gut, all of that is healthy. It's still gonna look different at the end of the day, guys. Okay. Our abdomens are dynamic and changes in shape throughout the day are part of our normal physiology. Recognizing this can help take the pressure off and make it easier to distinguish what's typical versus what might need a deeper look. So if bloating is part of your post-op experience, know that it doesn't necessarily mean anything went wrong, but it may be something that you can improve with a little investigation and the right support. Yeah, exactly. Uh, we will link to or add Kylie's, um, Instagram handle mm-hmm. In the show notes. So look for that. Um, and if you're watching this on YouTube, it'll be in the description below. Um, and so yeah, moving along, we've covered two things that are sort of within your control, which are, uh, muscle tone and the weak muscles in addition to digestion, and nutrition, which may contribute to bloating. So next on the list, which is something that is partially in control and not, not completely, but it is somewhat in your control, is swelling. So. It's why I say it's kind of partially not in your control is because it is a natural part of just the healing process. Um, and swelling. The, the presence of it can dramatically affect how flat your stomach appears. And this is particularly in the early stages of recovery, but sometimes that gets kind of masked or disguised because there's also, this is also the time where people are wearing compression as well. And so sometimes, swelling can last beyond the time that you are wearing your compression. And, uh, people are not confused, but surprised that they're, they're swelling even, um, a year later. And so when they, they see swelling, they notice that it's contributing to their abdomen, not looking as flat as they want it to be. So it's not always consistent as well, like you're not gonna have the same amount of swelling every single day. Generally, it will decrease as time goes on. The amount of swelling, the frequency of it will decrease, and how much time it takes for it to reduce and come back to baseline should decrease as well. The further along you are post-op, but. It's not consistent, meaning you again, will wake up probably looking flatter, but then it increases throughout the day, depending on what you've been doing, if you've been on your feet a lot or working out or traveling or eating certain foods. All of these are just part of the body's natural protective response, um, as it continues to heal. And yes, even eight months, nine months down the line. So what can you do about this? Well, first, be patient. You may be jumping to conclusions too soon. If, if you're looking down, not seeing a flat stomach and thinking maybe swelling is part of this, it just might be too early in your post-op journey to make any kind of conclusion as to what's actually happening other than your body's still healing. So. In that phase, however, there are things you can do, including lymphatic massage, which is fairly effective for reducing swelling and managing it. Um, there's also compression garments like we've been mentioning as well, and nutrition does play a role here too. So salt intake can create more swelling in the body, dehydration can also do this'cause it can create some water retention. So focusing on hydration, anti-inflammatory foods and balancing electrolytes. Things that are not really within our scope of practice and really our expertise. But again, we will. Uh, we will link to Kylie, who is excellent and very, very knowledgeable in all of this down below as a resource. And now the thing about swelling is that it can be frustrating because it, it can be a long time before swelling just is no longer part of the equation, but you know, it's just not something you can will away. You just trust the process. Use these tools that we mentioned like massage and compression, look into nutrition and just remember that swelling, especially within that first year. It is temporary. It may feel long, but it's temporary. That was great. So I know with me, I wanted my, I was ready and prepared that my swelling could last a year later. Um, which is really helpful for me managing expectations. But I always wanted there to be a rhyme or a reason. There were days where I would swell more than the days that I was working out. And that made no sense to me.'cause I was like wanting to find a pattern. Okay, I'm working out. I expect more swelling. There'd be days where I wouldn't work out and I would be more swollen. And I'm like, what the heck? So just know there's not always a pattern to it. Obviously you're gonna, you know, be paying attention and, you know, seeing what's what and monitoring things. So swelling can be very unpredictable. I know it was with me and it was frustrating because I was prepared to have the swelling, like I said, but I wanted a rhyme, a reason to it. So it's just good to know that that can be part of it, um, and, you know, be prepared for those ups and downs. So that brings us to the next point and this is one you may or may have not heard about before. So reason number four is the fact that you have visceral fat. So what that means is visceral fat is the type of fat that sits deep within the abdominal cavity surrounding your organs. So unlike subcutaneous fat, which lies just under the skin and can be removed with liposuction, visceral fat cannot be addressed through surgery. This is where things get a little confusing. Some women wake up post-surgery expecting a perfectly flat stomach, but they see some outward protrusion. That's often because of the vi of visceral fat. And the thing is, this isn't always discussed clearly during consultations. I actually had a client whose surgeon was incredibly upfront about this and he said, I can tighten and remove what I can reach, but if there's a significant amount of visceral fat, you'll see some roundness. Hmm. And that honesty I think is so important in setting expectations when women are in consultations with these surgeons. Visceral fat levels vary greatly between individuals and are influenced by many factors, including genetics, hormones, age, stress, and overall health. It is not always about weight. Someone can appear very lean overall, but still have a higher amount of internal fat. That's just how their bodies are genetically wired. Okay, so what can you do about this? Can it be changed? Possibly. I. Through long-term lifestyle, shift, balanced nutrition, regular movement, better sleep, managing stress. Some research supports the use of high intensity interval training or strength training to reduce visceral fat. But results will differ like everything from person to person. So if you haven't had the surgery yet, this is definitely something worth asking your surgeon about. Do you think visceral fat might impact my outcome? Can this be addressed in advance? These questions can help you go into the surgery with your eyes wide open, knowing that you know you may come out of surgery with a little distension, if that's just genetically how your body is, and that way you're fully prepared for that as a possibility. So now Munira's gonna go through a couple things that really are not within our control, and it's just really important to understand. Yeah. So again, keeping with this discussion of factors that could impact how your stomach looks after the surgery. Um, one that is not really in your control is the skin quality and if the skin is very thin, it may not hold up very well after the surgery, even if some of that skin has been removed and when everything else underneath it has been repaired. So unfortunately, this is a genetic factor, so there's no way to fix it, um, through exercise and diet. I mean, possibly there can be some changes there, but we are, we are far from understanding how exactly to do that. So at this point, it's more of a structural limitation which can contribute to your, uh, relaxed abdominal appearance. And it is something also that just doesn't show up right away. Sometimes things are tight right after the surgery, but just as the years progress and just kind of going on with your life later on down the road, you might notice that's when your abdomen is starting to look a little bit more relaxed and not as tight and pulled in. So it could be because the skin itself is stretching a little bit, um, and not holding things in as well. So that's, uh, something to just consider that might be contributing to your abdominal appearance. Um, now if you're someone that hasn't had the surgery yet, so just in case you're listening in and trying to gather all the information you can before the surgery, this is something you can ask your surgeon about during the consultations that you're doing. Hopefully you're doing lots of them, but you surgeons with a lot of experience usually can assess your skin quality during the consultation and then can let you know how it may or may not impact the outcome of the procedure based on the, the skin's elastic elasticity and the texture, et cetera. So yeah, skin quality is one factor, but another factor, so we're actually on to reason number six here, another factor that we need to consider in why your stomach is maybe not as flat as you would have hoped, is the surgical technique, what the surgeon actually did during the procedure. So not all tummy tucks are created equal, and not all surgeons take the same approach and depending on the shape and the appearance of your abdomen beforehand, you might have benefited from maybe a more extensive procedure. So the surgeons are going to assess you. Usually they'll assess you in standing, some may assess you lying down as well, and then they'll determine what you will need during the surgery. But. There are a lot of technical variations within what they can do and these variations can really account for the laxity in the whole abdominal wall, not just the line alba. So there are things they can do to address that if they notice that there is quite a bit of protrusion. You know, there are different presentations of diastasis and depending again on what your abdomen looked like before the surgery, the surgeon is gonna choose certain techniques to address what they see. Um, and again, some techniques address more of a protruding belly, and then the standard plication itself will really only addresses widening that happens in the Linea alba. So. If you're wondering, what are some of those techniques that surgeons can do to address, uh, protrusion and distension of the abdomen? Well, there are techniques that they can, where they can actually suture or plicate within the rectus fascia. So typically the standard plication is just down the midline, vertically down the midline. If you move off to the side where the rectus muscles are, on top of them is the rectus fascia, and there are lots of different things surgeons can do within that fascia to pull in uh, the, the fascia so that it, it accounts for the, the laxity happening along the sides and, and in sort of the overall roundedness of the abdomen. So sometimes just the standard plication is just not enough. Now there are also other techniques that they can choose to do that are even more off to the side, more laterally into the obliques, and they can, they're, they're called plications of the external oblique fascia. Um, and then there's even more advanced techniques there as well where they can separate the external oblique from the internal oblique, which is underneath it, and then pull that muscle forwards just a little bit. So it gives you a bit more of a waistline off to the sides. Sometimes they pull that muscle right to the midline, which then it sits on top of the rectus abdominis. So it's a bit more extreme in what they're doing there. But, you know, there are, there are things that surgeons have available to them, uh, to minimize a bulge that can appear afterwards in the lower abdomen or in the upper abdomen after surgery. But it's important to know that while these are available, the surgeon may not be trained in, these may not be familiar with these, um, or possibly they wanted to do some of these additional extensive procedures, but when they got in and saw the, the fascia quality that they were working with, they realized it just, it would, you would not be a good candidate for some of these things. So they may have taken more of a conservative approach based on what they saw on the inside. So maybe you would've benefited from some of these things, but the surgeon just didn't do them for, you know, the reasons we just mentioned. So this is something that's important to remember. Um, if you're listening to this and you haven't had the surgery, you really want to take time to ask your surgeon in your consultations about their specific technique. Are they going to be addressing the whole abdomen? If they need to, or are they only going to look at and focus on the linea alba? Will they incorporate some of these additional plication techniques that are off to the side? Or do they just do a one size fits all for all of their patients? The more you, you know, the more you have to work with to choose a surgeon that's gonna fit your goals. But do keep in mind that, yeah, not all surgeons are well versed in all of these techniques. So some of them might brush you off and say, oh no, we have found that these things are not necessary in the standard tummy tuck is usually something that achieves excellent results and we don't usually have to do anything more than that. So kind of see where they're at, um, and definitely get more than one opinion. And so moving on to reason number seven is failure of the actual diastasis repair. So yes, this is something that people typically jump to right away in their minds as to the reason why their stomach isn't flat. They think it's because their surgery failed. Um, and when you think of what that means, they're sort of implying that the sutures that were used down the midline in the linea alba have been pulled through the fascia or have come undone and, while this can happen, it's actually quite rare. Failure rates for the diastasis repair are quite low, um, especially when you're using permanent sutures. So again, yes it can happen, but most of the time the repair itself is still intact and it's more due to the reasons that we've been talking about in this whole episode versus a failure of the actual surgery. Very, very good. Very good information because there's a lot of panic about a failed surgery and for good reason. Like that's a scary feeling. So really understanding the reasons why you may, you know, look that way after surgery ahead of time can help you navigate all of that post-surgery and hopefully. Help some people avoid that panic of thinking that this repair has totally failed, right? Mm-hmm. Um, because I know that can be really scary. So that takes us to reason eight, which is the fascia quality. All right? So the failure of the repair and reason number six, surgical technique is reason number eight. So the quality of your fascia, the connective tissue that supports and holds your core together. If your fascia is thin, weak, or damaged, it can limit how effective the surgical repair can be or what options the surgeon has on the actual operating table once they open you up. So surgeons sometimes go into a procedure planning one approach, but once they see the condition of your fascia in real time, they may need to make adjustments. If the tissue can't hold a strong suture without risk of tearing or pull through, they may opt for a less aggressive technique. So it's possible that your abdomen would've benefited from one technique, a technique that the surgeon would've wanted to do, but then they opted to do another one based on the tissue quality. Again, this is something hard to know for sure until they're in there doing the surgery, right? So again, unfortunately, this is another thing that can't be predicted totally on a full spectrum before the actual surgery. So if you're listening to this and you're just in the research phase of your journey and learning all that you can do about the procedure and learn about it, here are some things to consider when choosing a surgeon. Okay? You wanna talk to these surgeons about this in the consultation, right? You want to talk to them about this within the consultation. Don't be afraid to ask very specific questions. So you can ask the surgeon during consultations, how they handle situations where fascia quality is poor. So that way you already have an understanding of a what if scenario. Mm-hmm. What techniques do they use? Would they adjust their plan? Mid surgery? It's all about setting expectations and making sure you're both on the same page. Now, there's some parts of fascia that you may not be able to strengthen, right? That are just kind of unresponsive. But other parts of your fascia, if you strengthen before surgery, you can get that stronger. Right? So that's something we all, you know, we're always talking about getting stronger, right? But that's something that also think about pre-surgery is really strengthen, strengthening your core, whether you have a diastasis or not. Right. Strengthening all, um, before you go into that surgery so you can have as strong of muscles and fascia and all of that as you can going in. Yes. That's really, really good. Okay, so moving on to number nine. Um, the ninth reason why your stomach may not be flat after your tummy tuck is, uh, a tough one to swallow, honestly, but it is important that we mention this, and it's just that the stomach looks the way it does simply because of how your body healed. Uh, it's not really something people wanna hear, and, and we know that because the thing is, you could do everything right. Your surgeon could have done everything right too, and the results still might be different than you imagined. The thing is your results depend on your unique combination of skin quality, fascia quality, muscle status, fat, whether that's subcutaneous fat, visceral fat, how your body healed itself. And all of this is so individual and it's unpredictable as well as to what will happen in the end and how it will ultimately play out and, and look afterwards. Um, and healing is just influenced by so many factors. Now, on the other hand, this can be a good thing to hear because at least you know you didn't do anything. It, it wasn't you. It's not that you didn't exercise or that you exercised too much, or that you didn't watch what you were eating or you were eating the wrong things, or that you, it wasn't something that you actually had control over, and this is also why it's all, it's frustrating at the same time, because that you expected to look a certain way after the surgery. You don't look that way. Um, and you are recalling those before and after images that you saw in your surgeon's office, and you don't look like that again. Your body's unique. Um, and if your outcome wasn't what you hoped for, it doesn't mean that it failed, that you failed, or that the surgery feel failed. It just means that you're human. Um, one thing to note about these before and after pictures that you might have just kept in the back of your mind, um, as your desired result, is just that they are just a snapshot in time for these people who are, you know, that you're looking at. And these are often pictures taken earlier on in the post-op period, so in the first couple of months. And that's usually when the stomach is flatter. And so we don't necessarily know how these individuals looked a year, two years, three years afterwards. So you're not gonna have the full picture here. You're just gonna see snapshots in time. And usually it's a snapshot of what it looks like early post-op, before you know, life kind of happens down the line. And this is something, you know, if you haven't had the surgery yet, it, it's something for you to keep in mind again, that it's important that you look at these pictures because, you know, surgery, this surgery specifically, it's an art and we want you to pick a doctor where you like their work, but just know that these are not promises and do be wary if a surgeon promises that you'll have a flat stomach afterwards. A motto that we always say is to expect better not perfect. Yes. Uh, so important. Those last couple points just so important. Um, so let's talk about what we can do with these last couple, you know, reasons five through nine that are pretty much out of your control. So one thing you can do is you can consult with another surgeon and ask them if getting another surgery will help. But it's important to think this through very, very, very well. As many times you go through so much trauma healing your body, the result isn't very different, and you do not wanna go through all of that, right? So we've heard this story over and over again. It doesn't mean no one should ever go in and get another surgery or a revised surgery. However, we also find many women don't have the whole picture going into the second surgery, and so we wanna be very clear that you don't just jump into that when having another surgery might not be the answer. Okay. And then if you do that, you've got more healing time, more scar tissue, more stress to your body that's already very stressed out from healing from the first surgery. So then you were left with doubly the things to deal with, and maybe a stomach that still doesn't look the exact way that you had pictured. So it's worth asking if you're considering this, what are they going to do differently? Um, if they've done revisions and corrections of other surgeons work before, if they include techniques like horizontal or obliquely orientated, plications of the rectus fascia, um, you know. You know, it's important that you go back to your own surgeon and go get other surgeon opinions. So you wanna really take your time if this is something you're considering, because we just wanna warn you that it might not fix whatever you're upset about. It may, but it also may not. So, really take your time and, and, um. Look into it, and also, I mean, this is very, very, very hard you guys, but at some point you're going to have to lean into the acceptance of this is what your belly is going to be, right? This is very hard, um, whether you get help from, you know, talking to a therapist, talking to different people that have been through it, allowing yourself to feel your feelings. Um, it's hard when you're holding all of this inside and you're hiding it from everybody. Okay.'cause it's something we often don't talk about. It's not a surgery that like we're just talking about sometimes. So, um, finding other people that may understand can be huge, but really making sure you're getting help with your, with just your mind. Okay. Just not, not just your body. Like have support for your mental health because this is really, really intense. Um. My own belly. So it's been six years since surgery now. I can't even believe that. And I think about how my belly has changed. So, you know, when I first had surgery, I, for the first year, I was swollen back and forth a lot. Right? And then as I started to heal and get back to working out, I, I do, um, I do CrossFit. I used to be a competitive CrossFitter. Um, I don't necessarily really compete that much anymore really, but I lift very heavy and wanna do a lot of high level gymnastics and things like that um, just in my regular training for fun and, um, looking at how my belly has changed through gaining muscle, um, from, you know, from surgery and then getting stronger, right? And then the swelling finally going away, mine lasted almost 11 months, really, really long time. Off and on. Um. And looking even at old pictures there. And now I'm 43 and I've got some perimenopause symptoms, right? Different things. And so looking at my hormones, which are acting differently, um. And just all of it, like my belly is still continuing to change. So I always had the bloating. That was a little higher up after surgery, I noticed, oh, I bloat higher up than ever before in my life. So that was something that's always been weird, right? I. But I've even noticed now, like just with my hormone fluctuations and things and bloating and some things can be more intense and less intense and just things, and guys, it's still changing because my whole body is still changing. Mm-hmm. So it's just, we're human, right. We don't like that. It's not. Fun. We wanna have control over everything, especially me, with my body and my muscles and, you know, I wanna just, you know, do the things and look the way and dah, dah, dah, dah. But it just doesn't always work out like that. So I just say that because, you know, this is six years down the road. Um, and if I was only focused on having a flat belly all day long, versus focusing on how do I feel? Do I feel strong? Do I feel good? Then I would not be as happy as I am. I mean, just point blank, I don't think my stomach looks bad by any means. Six years later, I'm happy with it. Um, but I have noticed just with different hormonal stuff that sometimes I'm just like, Ugh, I just feel gross on certain days. Other days I feel great, right? And so it's just life. And so I say that just as a reminder to all of us. Um, you know how that can go. I've also noticed my, my weight doesn't fluctuate that much, but I have noticed, well, once I gained all my muscle back, right when I got, you know, a couple years post-op. Um, my weight doesn't fluctuate that much, but I have noticed if I gain like a couple pounds, it is in a different spot than it was before. Is that perimenopause? Is that because I had this surgery? Who the heck knows? But I'm, again, I'm throwing that out there because these are things that just will be normal to deal with in your life. Um, so my, my thing I always say is, you know. Do whatever you need to do to appreciate your body and love your body in a way that isn't connected with how it looks all the time. We all wanna look good, so I'm not telling you to throw that out the window guys, but have something else there, right? A feeling of strength or feeling of that you can do something, um, because it will help keep you sane through. The fluctuations of a post tummy tuck surgery belly. That is so good. And yeah, your personal account of like what's happened over these past six years, I think so many people are gonna be able to relate to that. Um. But yeah. And just, you know, that was one additional point that we didn't mention, but, you know, just hormones and hormones can impact your body in so many different ways. Right. And yeah, no, thank you so much for sharing all that. Moving on to reason number 10. This is the final one why your stomach may not be flat, is because, you know, unfortunately, maybe you've had a botched surgery. Mm-hmm. So, yeah, we do have to mention this because it is a possibility, but it's, it's rare. Okay. These are rare occurrences. Um, it's sometimes the procedure just wasn't performed well. On you. Yeah. It's not, it's not as common if you have been working with a board certified plastic surgeon, but it, it can happen. So we're talking more about the, like just a more obvious disfigurement, maybe of, of the abdomen. Like we're talking about significant asymmetry, poorly placed scars, um, and just results that just don't look professional. Mm-hmm. They fall short of that professional standard, so. If it really is a botched surgery, and that's kind of what you're going through right now. First of all, we are so sorry that you've had that experience. Um, and I we're assuming you're probably looking for another surgeon to, we're, you're probably looking to do another surgery to fix it and we just want to kind of lay it out there that it should be fixed by obviously a different surgeon and it'll probably cost more money, but, um that's probably something that is the only option at that point. Mm-hmm. If you really are just unhappy with, you know, what happened there. So if you are, if you haven't had the surgery, this is why we preach so much about the consults. We don't really want you shopping around for a deal. You know, we want you to go in, um, and really make an informed choice. Mm-hmm. And one that's not only based on price, so. That comes with having more information to base your decision off of. We do have a full PDF guide on questions you can be asking your, the surgeons while you're consulting with them. And um, we also have a YouTube video that covers all of this in more detail, so we'll put those in the show notes. Yeah, absolutely. I know my surgeon told me of a couple of botch cases that he has fixed himself, which made me feel, you know, good that he was the guy people were going to, to get their things fixed. Um, but yeah, it definitely can happen. So it's very important to talk about. Yep. Um, and just a note, for those who haven't had surgery yet, you know, find out ahead of time what the surgeon policies are on revisions and corrections. Sometimes it's not a fully botched surgery, but maybe there's a correction and you wanna know, are you paying for it or is it, are they not charging you? Are they charging you like. What's going on? Just make sure you're very, very clear from the start. Um, because sometimes they'll fix it. No charge. Sometimes maybe you don't want them to fix it. No charge, right? But know what the options are, depending on the situation and what the issue is. Um, post-surgery. So, um, we wanted to bring all of this to light because so many people feel like it's their fault that their stomach doesn't look the way they want it to. For example, one person reached out to us on Instagram and sent us a picture. She was not overweight by any means, but not happy with the results. And you know, someone replied on there, a surgeon said, well, let's start doing 10 K steps a day, eat a healthy diet and exercise regularly. So we just wanted to address that a little bit because there's a couple issues. One is, what is a healthy diet? Right? Very subjective on the person and what they can tolerate eating, also where they live. Where you live, different diets are considered healthy, um, depending on where you live in the world. Okay, so that's very subjective. Second part. What about people who are already, I'll say quotes healthy in their eating habits and lifestyles, but still have a bulge? It just often isn't that simple. Uh, plus we've seen women who carry more weight in their whole body, but have a completely flat stomach, right? So this could be. Pre-surgery or post tummy tuck surgery, right? We see all kinds of things just genetically where you carry, carry your fat, or how your belly recovered from surgery, how it healed from surgery, like Munira said. Nobody has control of how your body's going to heal from that surgery. Right? So who knows? So will losing weight helps? Sure. Maybe. But sometimes it comes down to more of the genetics where you're holding fat. Um, because you know, some people, I don't care how lean you are, if you're holding fat in that visceral fat area inside, right? I mean, what are you gonna do? If you're already really lean, and that's just where your fat is in your body, um, and then again, how your body heals from the surgery. So if you're wondering why your stomach isn't as flat as you'd hoped after surgery, you're not alone from visceral fat to fascia quality, muscle strength, skin laxity, and even the natural aging process. There are so many factors that play a role in your outcome, many of which are not within your control. That doesn't mean you failed or your surgeon did something wrong. It means your body is human and healing is never one size fits all. If you are truly unhappy with your results and you wanna do another surgery, definitely ask the surgeon what they plan on doing differently, and we hope that information from today's episode gives you some food for thought on what else you can ask them. We also hope today's conversation gave you not just answers, but also perspective and reminded you that your journey is valid no matter what your stomach looks like. And that is a wrap for today's episode of Tummy Tuck Talk! Thank you so much for hanging out with us today. We know this topic can stir up a lot of emotions, especially if your results don't match your expectations. And we just wanna remind you again that you're not alone and it's completely okay and normal to feel this way. If this episode gave you some clarity, maybe a little relief or even just that new perspective, um, we're so happy that it did that for you. If you feel like someone is going through this that you know of who've had the surgery, then you can hopefully share this with them and, um, hopefully it'll help them as well. And, uh, we do wanna remind you that if in case you're not aware already, we do have a free PDF guide called How to Know If You're Ready for a Tummy Tuck. That's available on our website and this is packed with some honest questions and insights that can help you feel empowered and make informed decisions about undergoing this operation. So you can grab it at www.tummytuckrehab.com. Alright. Thanks for spending time with us today. We are so glad you were here and we hope to spend more time with you in the next episode. Bye for now.