Your Post Pregnancy Tummy
July 2, 2012
Beautiful bouncing babies, the labor of love for pregnant women carrying an extra load for nine months. So worth it! After you’ve lost your “baby weight” you might notice that your tummy didn’t go back to where it was before pregnancy. Maybe you have stretch marks, extra fatty tissue, loose skin, or a scar from cesarean delivery. No matter the problem on the surface, one of the biggest things that occur internally is that the long muscle of the abdomen stretches and separates to accommodate your growing baby. This muscle rarely shrinks back to its pre-pregnancy tautness.
During a tummy tuck surgery (abdominoplasty), our plastic surgeons will not only address the cosmetic concerns that you identified during your consultation, but he will also repair that abdominal muscle. Without this important muscle repair, a flat tummy often cannot be completely accomplished through diet and sit-ups alone after pregnancy for many women.
Many women dedicate themselves to a healthy diet and exercise plan with the intention of getting the flat tummy after pregnancy. Many do a great job if they did not have significant weight gain and were fortunate enough to have a long torso to accommodate the baby. However, the many of us are not as lucky genetically, may have a short torso, gained a lot and/or had a rather large baby or have had multiple pregnancies, thus stretching those rectus muscles to the point of “no return”.
Loose skin can only snap back so much after severe stretching in that last trimester. Stretch marks are actually tears in the skin and the only way of getting rid of them is to surgically remove them. Most stretch marks occur on the lower abdomen below the belly button. Most if not all can be removed. If the stretch marks extend above the belly button, those may not be able to be removed, but will now be lower on the abdomen.
You should only consider a tummy tuck if you are planning no further pregnancies, as you may wind up where you started before surgery. To ensure the safety and comfort of their patients, a board-certified plastic surgeon will explain the procedure in detail and tell you realistically what result you will have after surgery. Board-certified plastic surgeons will have numerous photos of women who have undergone a tummy tuck surgery by the surgeon so you can see the realistic results your plastic surgeon can deliver.
