Dr. Edwards Consultation
On January 23, 2023, I head down to the mall for my plastic surgery consultation. I truly say that flippantly as I still find this hilarious.
I park at WalMart and head into the mall and wonder if this is like hillbilly surgery…..come on down to “the mall” and we’ll cut ya open…..need some bandages or Tylenol after the procedure we have WalMart and Safeway right here for ya…….
Okay back to the overview here…….first things first, these fuckers could give you some better directions as I have apparently come in at the complete opposite side of the entire ,all so walk from one end to the other before finding it. Sigh.
Once I get to the office I grab an Abdominoplasty brochure in the waiting area and settle in for some reading. I don’t get very far before they call me in.
I sit and wait in one of the medical rooms and in walks Dr. Edwards….. I shall give you his bio now in case you care:
Dr. David Edwards attended medical school at the University of Alberta, graduating in 1983. He then did a Rotating Internship in Ohio at the St. Thomas Hospital Medical Center. Following this, he completed his training in Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery at the University of Alberta, obtaining his Fellowship (FRCSC) in 1988.
Dr. Edwards next undertook a Cosmetic Surgery Fellowship at the Cosmetic Surgery Hospital in Woodbridge Ontario in 1989. He then returned to his hometown of Edmonton, where he began practice in 1989.
He presently practices at the University of Alberta Hospital, the Misericordia Hospital, and the Meadowlark Surgical Centre & Cosmetic Clinic. He is, Associate Clinical Professor in the Department of Surgery at the University of Alberta.
Dr. Edwards is a member of numerous societies, including the Alberta Medical Association, the Canadian Society of Plastic Surgeons, and MANUS (The Canadian Society for Surgery of the Hand), GAM (The Canadian Microsurgery Society), the Canadian Society of Aesthetic Plastic Surgery, the Northwest Society of Plastic Surgeons, and Fellow of the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada.
So first thing I notice is he sits down and asks me what I’m interesting in….what am I looking for…..what are my issues (so to speak) and he seems to genuinely be listening and caring.
When I’m done with all my explanations he asks me to undo my pants so he can take a look at my stomach and says oh yes we can totally get this taken care of for you.
He explains to me what the procedure looks like:
1. They make an incision across your lower abdomen above the pubic hairline.
2. The skin is then “lifted” off the deep muscle layer of the abdomen as far up as the ribs.
3. The belly button remains where it is just kinda dangling and hanging around waiting to be repositioned……..wait…..WHATTTTTT? What do you mean it dangles and will be repositioned?? how is that possible….I mean my belly button seems pretty well ensconced in its place sir. He tries to explain to my feeble mind that he cuts really delicate incisions around my whole belly button essentially cutting it “loose” from the other skin that will be removed and so then it’s just dangling and hanging out for the time being in its same location but it is no longer “attached” to all of the surround skin.
4. The abdominal muscles under the skin that was lifted (mentioned in step 2) are then repaired essentially by stitching them together toward the centre to “tighten” them.
5. The skin is all pulled downward and all the extra fat/skin is removed from the bottom
6. A new little hole is cut into the now flattened leftover skin where my belly button was before/will again be now and the belly button that’s just been hanging out up until this point is kind of “popped through” the newly designed belly button hole.
7. They stitch up around this little belly button hole to get my belly button settled in its new place and then stitch up the top skin and the bottom skin (now pulled together after the excess was removed) down along the lower abdomen under the bikini line.
Link to: Abdominoplasty Procedure Video
My additional questions:
- I ask about the recovery – how long will I be off work? He says typically 3-4 weeks depending on how physical your work is. I said I sit at a desk all day and he says then probably about 3 weeks but of course it will all be dependent on how you’re healing of course and to keep in mind that although I sit at a desk, sitting still, upright for 7.5 hours a day may/will be uncomfortable for a while.
- What about the gym? He says probably about 6 weeks or so.
- I ask about the cost of course and he say “the costs for the Abdominoplasty is $10,000 plus tax. Some doctors are more, some are less, this is just what I charge”…….he said it in a way that made me feel surprisingly comfortable with the cost. Like he’s saying yeah there may totally be people that are cheaper and by all means you can go check them out……but you get what you pay for…….but there are also people that are far more and I am not out to gouge people so…….it is what it is, check things out and you do you lol
After answering all of my questions and having made me feel so comfortable, I leave and the next day I contact his surgical booking person Dale and say okay I’m ready to go…..what do you need from me.......LET'S DO THIS!!!!
Post Consultation
Dale asks when I am interested in having the surgery. I have been thinking this through and there are a few considerations:
- I can’t get ANY time off work between now (January) and the end of April to mid-May as this is our NO time off time because we’re so busy……so no way I can be off for 3-4 weeks.
- We’re going to Disneyworld on September 23rd so I want to be done and healed before that.
- I want to give myself as much time as possible to heal before Disney but also know I can’t take a bunch of time off until at least mid-May I think well let’s push it to the beginning of June……I will have some nice weather to sit in the yard recuperating and then should be healed up by the end of June/beginning of July…..long before Disney.
- I check in with Mom and Sean to see…..If I was to go with Wednesday, June 7th, can the two of them coordinate to take Wednesday to Friday off to assist me for those first few days (help with the dogs, feed me, run me to my appointments)……yep they can…….okay……so I tell Dale we will go with Wednesday, June 7th.
Dale sends me some paperwork:
- Standard agreements
- Deposit info (need to pay $500 with the remainder due 2 weeks before surgery)
- Lab requisition for bloodwork and a ECG that needs to be done prior to surgery
- Medical report my family doctor has to complete and send back prior to surgery
- Pre-operative instructions
- Post-operative instructions
I called Dale with my credit card number for the deposit and then it’s on the books and we are good to go.
Dog Ears
Huh......what the fuck am I talking abut dog ears for in a post for a tummy tuck??? Okay so after my consultation I was talking to my sister about it and she mentioned our friend who had it done ended up with Dog Ears and needed a second surgery to correct that and I should ask whether it's included IF it's needed.
Turns out Dog Ears are a common side effect of tummy tucks and occur when there is excess skin left at the ends of the incision line creating a small fold of skin resembling a dog ear.
They can be particularly noticeable when you are standing or sitting as they tend to bunch up and create a bulge.
I'll have further posts explaining more about how I prepped, things I looked into and found out beforehand, things I bought to make life easier while recuperating etc.
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