Preparing for Tummy Tuck Surgery

Liposuction and Tummy Tuck Cosmetic Plastic Surgery for Virginia, West Virginia, Maryland, & Washington DC

Dr. Michael J. Brown’s office will provide specific instructions on how to prepare for tummy tuck surgery, including guidelines on drinking and eating, smoking, certain vitamins, and medications.  If you smoke, please plan to quit two to four weeks before tummy tuck surgery and not to begin again for two weeks after your surgery.  Smoking will increase the risks of potential complications for tummy tucks and should be avoided.  Nicotine patches or gum are also linked with increasing complications and should not be used in preparation for tummy tuck surgery.  Medical problems should be managed before tummy tuck surgery.  Patients are encouraged to visit their primary physician for a general health assessment before tummy tuck surgery.  

The following suggestions are a few of the helpful preparations you can perform to assist in making recovery a little more comfortable for yourself:

• Clean the house - or have it cleaned, a few days before your tummy tuck surgery.
• Stock up on foods like pudding, Jell-O, or anything that can be prepared quickly and easily.
• Have all of your laundry taken care of ahead of time.
• Fill all of your prescriptions and buy some bandage dressings beforehand.
• It is good to have movies, books, magazines or a laptop available.
• If possible, have someone help with your kid(s)/pet(s) for the first few days after tummy tuck surgery.
• A comfortable recliner is a helpful or the bed with extra pillows to keep your upper body elevated and pillows under your knees.
• Place items you may need at mid level so that you do not have to reach or bend down.  Bending over too far is just as bad as trying to stand up straight prematurely.
• Wear comfortable oversized shirts that can be open from the front, as well as some loose elastic or drawstring pants or pajama bottoms. 
• Wash your hair the night before or the morning of your tummy tuck surgery.
• Make arrangements for someone to drive you home from the hospital and to stay home with you for at least 2 days after the tummy tuck surgery.

These steps are not the only preparations to consider when having tummy tuck surgery. Lifestyle preparations that include diet, exercise and health maintenance can be very beneficial.  A regular exercise routine is also helpful preparation.  By building muscle, a patient increases their baseline metabolic rate.  This makes it easier to avoid weight gain, especially in the postoperative period when physical activity is minimal.  Cardiovascular exercise strengthens the heart and promotes a faster recovery from surgery.  If a person has a regular exercise routine, it is much easier to resume these activities after recovering from tummy tuck surgery.  Patients who are active and healthy will have the greatest improvements, fewest complications and fastest recovery from tummy tuck surgery. 

A person’s pro-active involvement in preparing for tummy tuck surgery will help to optimize their results.  Maintaining a healthy, well-balanced diet is fundamental when planning for plastic surgery.  Preferably, patients should be at their ideal weight and on a well balanced and nutritional diet.  Many patients are motivated to diet and exercise more diligently after seeing the postoperative results from a tummy tuck.  Patients who lose additional weight after the tummy tuck procedure will usually see further improvement in their figure.

Make certain that a tummy tuck procedure is right for you.  When you consider any type of surgery, it is important to understand the possible risks and complications associated with that surgery.  We also provide information about the different tummy tuck procedures and how you will feel through your tummy tuck recovery.  You should also read about insurance and financing tummy tuck surgery.