Liposuction in Indianapolis: What to do and What You Can Expect after Surgery
While liposuction is tremendously effective at removing fat, it does induce swelling, bruising, and discomfort that requires some time after the procedure to resolve. And because liposuction is really a ‘reductive sculpting’ procedure so to speak, it takes time for areas to settle in to see the final shape and form. While the body is primarily responsible for the healing process, there are some things that you can do that can improve the result.
The most well-known post-liposuction aid is compression garments. Squeezing the treated areas by wrapping with garments helps decrease some swelling and encourages the skin to adapt to the newly reshaped fat bed on which it rests. (you never can remove all of the fat…and if you remove too much, your skin will stick down to those areas producing unsightly dimples and depressions) These garments are always provided to you at the time of surgery and you will awake in recovery with them on. The real question is……how long after liposuction surgery should you wear them? There is no real consensus amongst plastic surgeons but most would say several weeks. My approach to liposuction garments is…….keep them on until they feel better off than one. This will vary greatly depending on each patient and the areas that were treated by liposuction. Some will wear the garments for only a week, while others will wear them for several weeks. I don’t believe that compression garments play a critical role in how liposuctioned areas look after several weeks, so there is no sense to endure them beyond a time period when they feel better on than off.
Although most patients don’t do it……either due to cost or lack of access…..post-liposuction massage or lymphatic drainage can be very helpful. Whether it is done by hand, instrument, or machine, the gentle manipulation of the liposuctioned areas promotes swelling and bruising reduction and can help smooth out irregular areas (if done in the first month after surgery) A light sports massage, stone massage, or endermologie treatments can help shape the area while it is still malleable in the first month after surgery. Short of making an incision like a facelift or tummytuck, liposuction is the next best way to loosen the skin from what lies underneath, so skin and deeper tissue manipulations can be very effective. You just don’t want to do them too soon after surgery. I don’t usually try and have my patients start until two weeks after surgery…..and your plastic surgeon needs to talk to the therapist doing the ttreatments so they don’t get too rough and know where to go. A good month of once or twice a week treatments is a good investment to optimize your liposuction results.
Working out again can usually be done in 2 to 3 weeks but only do it if it feels comfortable. Expect swelling of the liposuctioned areas to be cyclical for awhile, which is partially related to activity. At the end of the day, the treated areas will have some swelling that will be gone by the morning. This is typical and this cyclical swelling will go away after several months. This is the body healing its lymphatic channels.
Lastly, be patient. It takes a least a month to see good results and really about three months to achieve the final shape of the liposuctioned areas. It will take that long also to have small areas of residual soreness gone as well.
Dr Barry Eppley
Indianapolis, Indiana