31-08-2011, 10:15 AM
I had the free top up treatment on Tuesday 23rd August. Since I was there over xmas they have changed the type of anaesthetic used (still local) and also added adrenalin to it. I had fat removed from the inner thighs and knees this time and was really nervous as they are such soft sensitive areas. I hardly hurt at all! The first knee I could feel him squeezing the fat between his hands, I thought he was deciding where to start when he held up a bit syringe of nastiness and said "this is your knee"! The left inner thigh continued to be similar, a mild squeezing and pulling sensation similar to being kneaded. The right was a little painful but much less than the last time. After lunch he did the breast top up which felt similar to last time. Uncomfortable but not intensely painful, no worse than strong suction. Fantastically I had no nausea at all! I think the sickness I felt after the first round was because I ate bread when I'm pretty sure I'm gluten intolerant. Interestingly someone has mentioned to me that it is possible to be resistant to the dental anaesthetic they use for smartlipo and although I'm very small I always need loads of injections for any dental work so I probably had the first round with pretty much no anaesthesia at all! It was much easier the second time. The first round harvested about 500cc of fat from the outer thighs and managed to put 230 cc into each side, the second round was more like 100cc each side which doesn't sound like much but we'll see when the swelling goes down. I'm 2.5-3 cups up on my starting size but won't be final for maybe 8-12 weeks. The swelling on the lipo areas hasn't been too bad, quite a lot of bruising but that is definitely getting better with the compression garments. I took nearly two weeks off work but it's turned into a holiday as although I'm not allowed to exercise or even use Slendertone for 6 weeks, I was fit to go out after 2-3 days so have been catching up with friends (though walking a little stiff with the knees padded!).
For an easier time on the day I would strongly recommend the following:
* Eat breakfast as you'll need to take tablets when you arrive
* Take a packed lunch, especially if you have food allergies!
* Buy some oil of peppermint tablets, dissolve several in 2 cups of boiling water and take in a thermos flask, this really settles the stomach
* Take milk thistle for a couple of weeks before and after to help your liver process the anaesthetic
* Buy some surgical scrub fluid with chlorhexidine (called Hibiscrub here), use this once a day in the shower, this will keep you surgically clean and will help healing
* Make sure you have good compression garments for the lipo areas, Dr Khan says a surgical compression bra is too strong for fat grafting and will reduce the result so I am wearing a cotton vest with a normal underwired bra in a generous size (maybe one back size and two cups bigger than normal) to provide support without squashing.
Anyone who has the money and the fat for this should get it done immediately! It has been a life changing experience and is so liberating to look in the mirror and be happy with what is there.
I'm having a manual lymphatic drainage massage on Friday to help with swelling and bruising so will hopefully remember to update after that.
For an easier time on the day I would strongly recommend the following:
* Eat breakfast as you'll need to take tablets when you arrive
* Take a packed lunch, especially if you have food allergies!
* Buy some oil of peppermint tablets, dissolve several in 2 cups of boiling water and take in a thermos flask, this really settles the stomach
* Take milk thistle for a couple of weeks before and after to help your liver process the anaesthetic
* Buy some surgical scrub fluid with chlorhexidine (called Hibiscrub here), use this once a day in the shower, this will keep you surgically clean and will help healing
* Make sure you have good compression garments for the lipo areas, Dr Khan says a surgical compression bra is too strong for fat grafting and will reduce the result so I am wearing a cotton vest with a normal underwired bra in a generous size (maybe one back size and two cups bigger than normal) to provide support without squashing.
Anyone who has the money and the fat for this should get it done immediately! It has been a life changing experience and is so liberating to look in the mirror and be happy with what is there.
I'm having a manual lymphatic drainage massage on Friday to help with swelling and bruising so will hopefully remember to update after that.