herscene - tales of a tummy tuck
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The Courier-Journal 30/06/2015
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The Courier-Journal 30/06/2015
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AFTER LOSING ALMOST ONE HUNDREDPOUNDS AND HAVING TWO CHILDREN,KIMBERLY PERRY HAD LUMPS ANDBUMPS NO AMOUNT OF DIET ANDEXERCISE COULD FIX. SHE TAKESCHRISTINE FELLINGHAM THROUGH THEDECISION, PROCESS AND AFTERMATHOF HER ELECTIVE SURGERY.PHOTO BY ALTON STRUPP
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Like many women who have been through weight loss and
childbirth, Kimberly Perry’s physical self didn’t reflect her ex-
tremely healthy and active lifestyle or her outgoing, exuberant
personality. “I had handfuls of skin that would just hang there
when I bent over,” says the completely blunt twenty-six year old.
“I couldn’t wear pants because my skin would hang over the
waistband; I couldn’t wear tops that weren’t gigantic. I was a
young, athletically fit person and I didn’t like the way I looked in
clothes... or out of clothes.”
A family connection to a respected Louisville cosmetic surgeon
started her thinking about addressing her issues with surgery.
“My aunt had been through breast cancer surgery and recon-
struction with Dr. Joseph Banis and just had such wonderful
things to say about him. I had such trust in him because of her
experience. I decided that I should at least go in for a consultation
and see what he recommended.”
A consultation confirmed what she knew: The skin hanging
around her mid-section would never go away unless it was surgi-
cally removed. Dr. Banis described the surgery in detail, explained
the healing process (about two months) and post-surgical care:
“What I loved about him is that he didn’t sugarcoat it,” she says.
“He was very direct and very matter of fact. I thought about it for
a few months, but I knew, once I talked to him I would move for-
ward with the surgery. I just wanted to get it over with and go on
with my life.”
Eight weeks ago, Kimberly had her tummy tuck and some
ancilliary liposuction on her back “to make her silhouette look
smooth and proportional” and she showed up glowing and ready
to talk about the experience in our studio. Here, Kimberly shares
some straight talk on the procedure so many women consider.
You’re younger than the average patient. What made you decideyou needed surgery?
“I’m a former heavy girl. I’m five foot four and I weighed 212
pounds in high school. But in college, I met my husband and we
got engaged and we both started exercising. I stopped eating when
I wasn’t hungry.... I lost about 89 pounds in ten months. I weighed
126 pounds when we got married. Nine months after we got mar-
ried, I got pregnant. I gained forty pounds and got gestational
diabetes. After I had my son, a lot of my skin was loose. The bot-
tom of my stomach was just loose skin. I continued to exercise.... I
got the weight off, but it didn’t matter. It was frustrating not to
have any results for all my hard work.
TALES OF ATUMMY TUCK
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The Courier-Journal 30/06/2015
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So I would wear shapers, Spanx
which I would wrap with a roll of duct
tape from my bra line to my hips until
the love handles were gone. I’d wrap it
over a tank top just to have a smooth
line without that spare tire in the front.
About two years later, I found out I
was pregnant again. And, after I had my
daughter, who was a c-section, my skin
really wasn’t going anywhere. And it
was even worse. I looked like I had jowls
hanging down on either side of me. Six
months after she was born, I looked at
my husband and said, “When does the
mommy makeover happen?” And I
scheduled the consultation.”
What was the consultation like?“My mom went with me. It’s a weird
experience where you’re sitting in a
room with your clothes off while the
doctor looks at your sagging skin. Still,
it only took about a minute for me to
decide that I’m going to do this. But
that’s partly because I already trusted
Dr. Banis. I am the only woman in my
family over the age of eighteen who
hasn’t had breast cancer. My aunt and
cousins had such positive experiences
with him. I went into the consultation
knowing I trusted him.”
How did you prepare for surgery?“Number one, I wanted to make sure
that I figured out the recovery period
because you’re out of commission for a
good four to six weeks. I knew my hus-
band could take care of me. But I had to
make sure there was someone to take
care of my kids. I made sure my parents
could help. And my in-laws who live five
hours away came and took them for a
while. I literally could not have done
this without the support of my entire
family.”
Describe the recovery.“You’re wrapped tightly in medical
spandex. You can’t go to the bathroom
yourself because you can’t stand up.
You can’t lift anything over ten pounds
for two weeks. I didn’t want to go any-
where because all you can wear are
athletic pants. I had pajamas and a robe
on most of the time. I was wearing these
medical grade Spanx that they put on
you after the surgery. They’re like biker
shorts with shoulder straps that go up
to just underneath your bra line. It’s
heavy duty medical stuff. There’s a
binder over that. The binder goes from
edge of bra line to hip bone and it’s a big
white piece of elastic that wraps around
your stomach. It prevents you from
bending too much and helps support
your muscles. For a few weeks, you can’t
even get jeans on. It’s not like getting
your boobs done.... You can’t wear un-
derwear. You’ve got drains and a pain
pump. The pumps came out early and
TUMMY TUCK[CONTINUED FROM PAGE 48]
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the drain came out at ten days. After four
weeks, the shaper comes off and you start
to feel a little less like a patient.
I had my surgery on a Friday and on
Monday he took the staples out. There
were ten or fifteen microscopic incisions
from when he did lipo on my back and
each one had a staple. On the front, I was
so numb I didn’t even know I had staples.
As for the scar, it isn’t like a C-section
which can bunch up, it’s completely flat
and as time goes on, it will lighten.”
What are some of the weird thingspeople may not expect?
“I did have to prime myself that I
wasn’t going to sleep in my bed for three
weeks. I couldn’t lay down flat because it
stretches out your core. So I slept in a
recliner for three weeks. I just put a pil-
low to the side of my head. I would try to
lie on the couch in little increments;
sometimes it was okay, sometimes it
wasn’t.
Honestly, I would recommend getting a
recliner or a chair with an ottoman if
you’re having this procedure.”
What words of advice do you have? “First, know this is major surgery.
You’re going to have at least two months
of sitting on your butt. And you have to
swallow your pride. All forms of modesty
are out the window. It’s not a cake walk.
But even at two months, I am so happy
and proud of the results. I’m just lifting
up my shirt showing the world. It’s not an
easy way out, believe me. I worked out
more before the surgery than I ever had
in my life to get in optimal shape for this.
It’s not a weight loss treatment. And it’s a
family decision. You have to know that it’s
not just going to affect you. The recovery
is going to affect your entire family.
Whether someone is sitting with you
while you sleep or they’re helping take
care of your kids, it really does take a
village.”
How do you feel about the results?“As soon as I woke up after surgery, I
said, “Oh, it’s gone.” I felt pure relief. And
I knew whatever I had to go through, it
was worth it. I have a scar that goes from
hip to hip but I could put on a bikini if I
ever wanted to and you wouldn’t see it.
Dr. Banis took off six pounds of skin
from the front of my stomach. He also did
liposuction on my back so it would look
proportional since we were taking so
much off the front. So I also have ten or
so incisions up and down my back. But
every day, as the swelling goes down, I
can see more and more of a difference.
My jeans are hanging off of me. Just the
fact that I can button my jeans and don’t
have skin hanging over them is huge. I
can wear a dress or a tight shirt without
worrying about that spare tire.
I just got cleared to work out again and
I can’t wait to get to the gym. I’m starting
to see abs which I’ve never had before. I’m
just excited to have this new body that
reflects who I am.”