After getting a tummy tuck, it’s important to do what your doctor tells you to do and not do. But if you can’t wait to get back to your regular schedule, there are a few things you should remember: You can drink a little bit of alcohol after a tummy tuck, but not too much. Your doctor will probably tell you not to drink while your body is still healing from surgery. However, after six weeks, you can have a glass of wine or beer every now and then. Just keep in mind that alcohol can make you lose water, so make sure to drink a lot of water throughout the day.
After a tummy tuck, you can travel, but only when it’s good for your recovery. At this point, your body is probably still sore around the cut and along the line of staples or stitches. Traveling might not be a good idea until it is fully healed and back to normal. If you want to travel soon after surgery, talk to your doctor ahead of time about what precautions you should take so you don’t put too much stress on areas that are still weak or sensitive.
Read on to learn more about How Long After A Tummy Tuck Can You Drink Alcohol, Tummy Tuck Recovery Tips and How To Improve Sleep After A Tummy Tuck
How Long After A Tummy Tuck Can You Drink Alcohol
A little drink every now and then is fine, but too much alcohol is bound to cause problems. We’re not just talking about your ability to drive or go about your daily life either. Alcohol can have a negative impact on your ability to heal from a cosmetic plastic surgery procedure. It makes side effects worse, and could lead to an increased risk of complications.
This is why Dr. Marcus H. Crawford tells all of his Atlanta and Marietta, GA plastic surgery patients to avoid consuming alcohol in the lead up to their procedure and during the recovery process. Let’s go over some of the reasons why you should’t drink after a cosmetic surgery procedure.
PROBLEMS CAUSED BY ALCOHOL AFTER PLASTIC SURGERY
Drinking alcoholic beverages prior to surgery or during the recovery process can lead to the following post-op complications.
Increased Swelling
Alcohol widens blood vessels, which can increase the amount of swelling patients experience. Too much swelling could result in some serious health issues as you heal.
Post-Surgical Bleeding
Drinking alcoholic beverages will thin out the blood, which can make post-op bleeding a greater issue. If the incision sites cannot clot and heal properly, it could cause problems with healing times and infection.
Dehydration
Having a drink may seem refreshing, but alcohol actually has a negative effect on hydration. It’s important to stay properly hydrated after surgery to aid with the recovery process.
Fatigue
Your body needs energy to function properly. If you drink after surgery, you’re bound to experience higher levels of fatigue. This can result in slower healing times and other issues.
Soreness and Discomfort
While you might expect alcohol to numb the pain after surgery, it can actually make your pain and discomfort worse. Other more serious health problems arise if you mix pain medications with alcohol.
Given all of the potential hazards of drinking, plastic surgery patients are advised to avoid alcohol in the weeks leading up to their procedure. This puts their body in an ideal condition to heal quickly.
During the recovery process, patients should continue to avoid the use of alcoholic beverages. The same is true of tobacco products after plastic surgery. Focus on getting plenty of rest, staying well hydrated, and eating a healthy diet after plastic surgery.
That can vary from patient to patient.
If you’ve had a relatively minor plastic surgery, you can resume drinking after a few weeks. For more involved cosmetic procedures like a tummy tuck (abdominoplasty), you may need to avoid alcohol for several weeks. We will let you know when you can resume various activities during your followup care visits to our practice.
When you do resume having alcoholic beverages, be sure to drink in moderation. You’ll want to take it easy to start before returning to old habits and routines. This will help with the continued healing process, and it can even improve the final results of plastic surgery.
Tummy Tuck Recovery Tips
Undergoing a tummy tuck can be a daunting decision to make. There is both a financial investment as well as a time investment in the recovery process. Above all else, however, there is concern of the unknown. Many of my own Scottsdale patients wonder:
- How much discomfort will I be in?
- How do I sit or sleep?
- How do I walk when I am supposed to be bent over?
- What do I do with the binder?
- How do I go about using the restroom?
- And many more.
Below is my list of ten best tummy tuck recovery tips that I have learned from my own patients that have been through the process and have come up with great solutions to common hurdles. I encourage anyone who reads this list and has advice of their own to comment below. We are always looking for ideas to provide our patients a better tummy tuck experience.
10: Walker/cane:
A tummy tuck naturally puts tension on the horizontal closure. Tightening of the abdominal muscles also creates some discomfort when completely upright; therefore staying slightly bent at the waist is more comfortable during the first week and takes pressure of the incision. Doing so, however, may result in some temporary back strain. A walker or a cane may be helpful for some. Although not 100% necessary, it may help take some of the pressure of the back initially.
9: Spanks:
Compression shorts such a Spanks or Squeem can be worn early after a tummy tuck but a hole needs to be made on the side to let the drain come through. For very curvy women, the abdominal binder may consistently want to ride up no matter how much its pulled down. This is in part because I place my incision very low. In these cases, Spanks or Squeem with a hole cut out on the side for the drain can be very helpful.
8: Maxi pads/gauze/supplies:
In my practice, I use a “no maintenance” dressing at the completion of the tummy tuck surgery, however, it always helps to have either 4×4 gauze or maxi pads around. Gauze squares are helpful to pad around the drain and sometimes pad between the binder and the pelvic “hip” bones.
7: Adjusting binder:
The abdominal binder is an integral part of the tummy tuck recovery process. Proper placement and management of the abdominal binder can be challenging since a low tummy tuck incision will result in an abdominal binder that sits partly over the top part of the thighs. This results in the abdominal binder wanting to shift up while sitting. Marking where the binder is in terms of tightness is the first recommendation since undoing it to pull it down will require knowing how tight it should be redone. Lowering and tightening the abdominal binder is best done while in the recliner or in bed.
6: Managing nausea:
Each tummy tuck patient handles surgery and anesthesia differently. Most of our patients manage not to have any nausea after surgery. This success is due to a combination of good anesthesia and good surgical technique that can reduce narcotic use. Regardless, our patients are always prescribed anti-nausea medications just in case. Small sips of water and crackers in the first few hours may help curb nausea early.
5: Compression stockings:
Most surgeons will have the patient wear thigh high compression stockings during a tummy tuck to reduce the chance of blood clots. Keeping these on for a few days after the surgery may not be the most comfortable thing in the world but it will keep some of the swelling out of the legs and will continue to reduce the chance of blood clots.
4: Taking a shower:
When to take a shower after a tummy tuck will depend on the surgeon. For my patients I tell them that you are allowed to take a shower at any time but I recommend holding off for a couple of days until the first follow up. Replacing the binder and knowing what to do with the drain tube, etc can be cumbersome. More importantly the binder is key and the more it’s worn the better. Once showers do start, using a lanyard or a cheap necklace to pin the drain to is one piece of advice I have heard. A bathrobe tie tied around the waste is yet another option.
3: Pain meds/managing pain:
This is a two-part tummy tuck recovery advice. The first is Exparel during surgery. Exparel is a numbing medication that is injected into the tummy tuck tissues during surgery. It works for about 3-4 days and brings the pain score down about half. The second part is managing your oral pain medication. Percocet seems to work great as does Valium as a muscle relaxer. Keeping the pain score down to about a 3 or less in the first day or two can be accomplished by staying ahead of the pain. Exparel on occasion will do so on its own but everyone is different and oral pain meds should be used schedules (not when the pain gets too high) in the first day or two and then can be tapered off.
2: Recliner/Sleeping:
Sleeping with waist bent and legs elevated is probably the most helpful and most comfortable position after a tummy tuck. It’s essentially replicating the position that you were in in the operating room while you were being closed back up. A recliner (especially a powered recliner) will be a great place to recuperate the first few weeks after surgery.
1: Toilet seat booster:
Most toilets are fairly low to the ground, probably so that no matter how short you are you can get on there. We don’t really notice how low toilets really are until some part of our legs, pelvis, or core hurts. After a tummy tuck, squatting low onto a low height toilet will seem a daunting task especially when you have to go every few hours if you’re hydrated enough. A toilet seat booster will be of tremendous value.
How To Improve Sleep After A Tummy Tuck
Tummy tucks involve removing a large amount of tissue. The natural reaction of the body is to send inflammatory markers to the site of the operation, which can result in swelling and pain. It can be difficult, therefore, to get quality, restful sleep after a tummy tuck. So what can you do to ensure that you get the rest that you need to recover?
Take Pain Medications
Pain medications can be taken before bed to help ease discomfort as you try to sleep for the first few days after receiving a tummy tuck. Avoid using painkillers which contain stimulants as these may prevent you from sleeping.
Make Getting Into Bed A Ritual
Much of what our brains do is unconscious, including getting ready for sleep. It’s a good idea, therefore, to train your mind to be prepared for rest as soon as you hit the sack. You can do this by turning the process of getting into bed into a ritual. Before you undergo surgery, start sleeping in a recliner, or a reclined position. Train yourself to expect sleep once in this position by turning off the lights and electronic devices.
Talk To Your Surgeon
Your surgeon will likely have a lot of experience helping patients sleep after a tummy tuck. Speak to them about your options and how you can sleep better during the most critical phases of the recovery process.
Tummy Tuck Vs Liposuction
Tummy tucks differ from liposuction. Tummy tucks involve removing skin, while liposuction refers to the removal of fat under the skin.
So, what have we learned? The main takeaway is to sleep in a bent or jackknife position after a Tummy Tuck Near Me, preferably on your back. The best way to achieve this is to use a recliner, although a few extra pillows under your back is a good substitute. To assist your recovery, wear compression clothing, even during sleep, and speak to your medical professional about pain management after the operation.