MOMMY MAKEOVER by Guerra Plastic Surgery Center

Most commonly, a mommy makeover is performed in one stage and consists of a tummy tuck (abdominoplasty), and a breast enhancement with breast implants and breast lift (mastopexy). A mommy makeover can also include a tummy tuck with a breast reduction. Some patients chose to split their surgery into two operations. A true mommy makeover, however, occurs when all the surgery is completed in one stage. Each mommy makeover performed at the Guerra Plastic Surgery Center is unique and is tailored to your individual needs.

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Pregnancy, babies and your body.

The reason mommy makeovers are popular is that many women are having children. We all know the changes. The body of a woman who has been through pregnancy is never truly the same. Just about everyone who has given birth develops the same problem areas: the breasts, the tummy, the buttocks and the fat pads. Many women cannot recognize themselves and others feel like their body no longer belongs to them. Unfortunately, the body does not easily snap back into shape. As women attempt to regain their previous lifestyle, they find this to be a significant challenge.

There is no doubt that having a child is one of the most fulfilling experiences a woman can have. Some women, however, feel self-conscious about the effects of pregnancy. Pregnancy takes its toll on a mother’s body, especially the breasts and tummy. Stretching of the stomach muscles and tummy skin is normal with pregnancy and is variable. The breasts are usually affected by increasing elasticity and softness. Areas like the hips, back and thighs may accumulate fat that may not go away completely after pregnancy. The buttocks, may soften up too, become flatter and less round and in some cases begin to sag.

How your tummy changes with pregnancy.

Your tummy area changes the most with pregnancy. The combination of growing uterus and pregnancy-related hormones allows you to stretch and increase the abdominal girth. These changes are normal and serve to allow the abdominal wall muscles to stretch around your tummy allowing your baby to grow comfortably. This phenomenon typically creates a separation of the abdominal muscles, called rectus diastasis, in order to accommodate your baby. The skin of the tummy also stretches and becomes more elastic under the same influences, and may develop stretchmarks. In some women, the abdominal tissues affected return to their pre-pregnancy state, but most do not. Many women have loose, sagging skin, and disfiguring stretch marks, with a bulging abdominal wall to varying degrees post pregnancy. If a C-section was performed, the hanging skin may be quite pronounced. Diet and exercise typically do not help with these changes, which are often permanent, and cannot be reversed without cosmetic plastic surgery.

There are three basic tummy tuck options available after pregnancy. If your tummy only developed minimally saggy skin, we will likely recommend a mini tummy tuck with or without liposuction. If the normal amount of tissue excess developed, then a standard tummy tuck is recommended with or without liposuction. For patients who developed very excessive amounts of hanging skin after pregnancy, an extended tummy tuck with or without liposuction is recommended. Our ultimate recommendation can only be made after a full cosmetic surgery consultation and physical examination of the abdominal area and fat pads by Dr. Aldo Guerra. More information on mommy makeover is available at the Guerra Plastic Surgery Center.

Mommy Makeover at a glance

Avg. Surgery Time

3 - 4 hours

Anesthesia

General

Location

Certified Outpatient Center or Specialty Hospoital

Recovery

Back to work: less than 2 weeks
Full exercise: 6 weeks

Improving the Experience

Overnight Stay

Exparel^® Long Lasting Pain Control

embrace^® #1 Scar Therapy Treatment

Mentor^® Enhanced Warranty

Am I a Good Candidate?

Healthy
Non-smoker
No medical conditions that reduce wound healing
Have excess skin and fat in abdomen
Body Mass Index (BMI) Less than 26 - 32
Unhappy with size and shape of breasts
Realistic goals and expectations

Types of Mommy Makeover offered

Tummy Tuck + Breast Augmentation

The most popular mommy makeover at Guerra Plastic Surgery Center in Scottsdale is the tummy tuck with breast augmentation. Dr. Aldo Guerra specializes in mommy makeovers and he has developed a highly specialized treatment and recovery plan to get our patients back to their normal routine as quickly as possible. Tummy tuck and breast augmentation surgery in Scottsdale help patients to get back to their pre-pregnancy body. If your breast do not sag or are minimally saggy we will likely recommend a breast augmentation with silicone breast implants or saline breast implants.

Many mothers are concerned that breastfeeding will ruin their youthful breasts. Breastfeeding is not the only culprit. Other factors such as weight gain, cup size and smoking can make the breasts sag after pregnancy. Pregnancy, however, always affects the breasts. As the breasts prepare for milk production, the milk glands swell, replacing the natural fatty breast composition. After pregnancy and lactation, this expanded system of ducts can atrophy to varying degrees. If your breasts have lost their volume after pregnancy a breast augmentation with silicone breast implants or saline breast implants can help restore your youthful appearance.

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Tummy Tuck + Breast Lift

Another popular mommy makeover procedure at Guerra Plastic Surgery Center is the tummy tuck with breast lift. Dr. Aldo will help educate and guide you through a customized treatment and recovery plan for your mommy makeover. There are three different options when selecting a breast lift (mastopexy); periareolar breast lift, vertical breast lift and wise pattern breast lift. If your breasts have lost some volume you can also consider a breast augmentation with your breast lift and the option of silicone breast implants or saline breast implants.

After breastfeeding, the three most common changes seen with the breasts are increased elasticity, increased softness and increased sagginess. Some patients can become so elastic they actually sag and require a breast lift (mastopexy) to establish a better breast shape. In addition, women can lose volume, and lose a cup or two after pregnancy. Stretch marks are common for all patients. The changes that affect the breasts are typically permanent and cannot be reversed without plastic surgery.

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Tummy Tuck + Brazilian Butt Lift

Dr. Aldo Guerra also specializes in another mommy makeover procedure, the tummy tuck with brazilian butt lift. He has developed a highly specialized treatment and recovery plan that reduces the size of the tummy area with a tummy tuck and increases the size of buttocks with a Brazilian butt lift.

Your buttocks change after pregnancy.

Having the pregnancy butt, is something women dread. Just because you have it, does not mean you have to keep it. There are two types of pregnancy butts. In the first case, the buttock may enlarge after pregnancy and appears tall and full, but lacks an attractive shape and may be flat. The second type, is a smaller version of the first, with less associated fat pockets, but is also flat and a little saggy. Attributes of an attractive buttock usually include a smooth inward sweep of the lower back area and a slim waistline, a feminine V-shaped cleavage between the buttocks achieving maximum projection in the mid to upper buttocks, a smooth and uniform skin cover separated from the thighs by a crisp, short and well-defined infragluteal crease, demonstrating no droop above this line. The changes that affect the buttocks after pregnancy, are typically permanent, and cannot be reversed without plastic surgery.

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Your body stores more fat after pregnancy.

Guerra Plastic Surgery Center reception area — Guerra Plastic Surgery Center in Scottsdale, Arizona.

Weight gain is an expected outcome of pregnancy. Not all women are able to lose the weight they gained during pregnancy. Some need a little help via liposuction or lipo to erase the evidence of pregnancy. With liposuction many of these fat pads are reduced. Normal hormonal changes that occur during pregnancy create permanent effects on the ability of the body to store localized fatty deposits on the hips, back, tummy, love-handles, buttocks and thighs. Depending on how much weight you gained, you may continue to store sizeable fat pockets in undesirable areas. The result from this weight gain may never go completely away and the fat pads can remain long after the delivery of your child.

Liposuction is recommended for these stubborn fat pockets. Liposuction is the removal of fat from deposits beneath the skin using a hollow tube, called a cannula, with the assistance of a vacuum device. Liposuction can be performed under general, IV sedation, and/or local (tumescent) anesthesia. Dr. Aldo Guerra prefers to use a modified version of tumescent liposuction which combines tumescent anesthesia and add some systemic anesthesia (general or IV sedation), administered by an anesthesiologist, to increase your comfort and make your experience better. The modified tumescent liposuction refers to a technique that uses large volumes of dilute local anesthetic medication and adrenaline, injected into the targeted fat pads until we see the tissue swollen and firm. This technique allows for safe, maximal fat removal with minimal blood loss.