Seattle Plastic Surgeon answers Plastic Surgery FAQ: I’m a total wreck. Where should I start?
I often see patients who are interested in several different procedures. They have a laundry list of things they would like to change. A recent example was a middle aged lady who wanted hip liposuction, a face lift, a tummy tuck, a breast lift and an otoplasty to pin back her protruding ears. Geeze, it would be unsafe and impractical to do all of those procedures in one mega 12 hour case. It would be unsafe because that is a long, long time to be under anesthesia, multiple areas of the body would need to be exposed and that increases the risk of hypothermia, although any one operation has very little blood loss, all those procedures combined could significantly lower her blood count, and she would be sore from head to toe making her post operative recovery miserable. It would be impractical because I really can’t stay at my best in the OR for 12 straight hours. I just can’t. And my nurses and techs and anesthesiologists don’t want to work a 12 hour case and we would finish the case well after dinner time.
My advice to this patient is to start with the area that bothers her the most. In her case, it was her abdomen. So we made the decision to do her hip liposuction and her breast lift at the same time as her abdomen. By grouping these procedures, she saves some money and it saves her a lot of recovery time. And – this is really important- I won’t be fatigued when I am putting in those last few stitches and the anesthesiologist will still be awake!
So if you are contemplating several procedures, try to decide which procedure you want the very most. We can usually group procedures and still keep it safe and practical.
Oh, one more thing. Sometimes the place to start is not the operating room. It may be smoking cessation, getting into better shape or even a serious medical skin care program. Sometimes surgery is the last stop on the line to improving appearance.
Thanks for reading! Dr. Lisa Lynn Sowder
If you think you are a total wreck and don’t know where to start, give my office a call to schedule a consultation, (206) 467-1101.
I would be honored if you followed me on Instagram @sowdermd and @breastimplantsantity. See you there!
@lisalynnsowder
