Braidy’s Abdominoplasty Tummy Tuck Surgery - Abdominoplasty

Abdominoplasty patient case study

• Cosmetic Surgeon: Mr Se Hwang Liew MB BCh (Hons) MD FRCS (Plast) CCST
• Procedure: Abdominoplasty (tummy tuck)
• Operation duration: Overnight
• Post op consultation at: Week 1, Week 2, 3 months

Braidy’s abdominoplasty journey

37 year old Braidy Maloney from Liverpool recently underwent an abdominoplasty procedure with Mr Se Hwang Liew of MyAesthetics. Braidy was diagnosed with cervical cancer when she was twenty-six and had a radical hysterectomy in order to combat this. After the operation, Braidy was left with a 6-inch vertical scar, which she was particularly self-conscious of.

Not only this, but Braidy also had a large overhang, which no amount of exercise would shift. This was the result of both her cancer surgery and excess weight from her pregnancies with her two children prior to her illness diagnosis. Braidy was deeply unhappy with her body and her self-esteem plummeted. As a result of this, her relationships suffered; she was anxious about accepting social invitations and avoided going out in public.

Nearly ten years after her hysterectomy, Braidy decided she couldn’t live with the constant paranoia and self-consciousness, due to her feelings towards her body. She decided to save up for a tummy tuck. Whilst saving for the procedure, she met up with a friend a few days after they’d had breast augmentation and was amazed at the instant change and how her friend’s confidence had rocketed just a few days after her operation. Braidy’s husband told her that she deserved to feel that happy too and Braidy decided it was time to start booking a first round of consultations.

In October 2016, Braidy attended her first consultation with the cosmetic surgery provider her friend had used. But the company was not right for her. Braidy didn’t like the fact that the first stage of consultations was not with a surgeon, but with a ‘Patient Representative.’ She felt there was a strong sales patter to the experience and that the provider was not receptive to her individual needs.

It was then Braidy’s partner mentioned that one of his clients was MyAesthetics. Braidy was initially surprised at his suggestion. She was aware the company were specialists in breast augmentation, but had not considered the company would be able to cater to other procedures as well. She booked a consultation and prepared herself for another daunting meeting.

Making the right decision

Braidy was astounded at how different her experience was with MyAesthetics. She met with Mr Liew and instantly felt reassured that her first meeting was with the surgeon who would be performing her procedure. Mr Liew explained she would need a full abdominoplasty to meet her requirements and remove the excess skin from her stomach.

This meant her abdomen would be cut from hipbone to hipbone in the procedure. The incision would be low, at about the same level as the pubic area and the surgeon would then manipulate and contour the skin, tissue and muscle as needed. Her belly button would have a new opening, because it was necessary to free the navel from surrounding tissue. Drainage tubes would be placed under her skin and would be removed in a few days, when the surgeon deemed it appropriate.

Speaking about her first consultation Braidy said:

“I pretty much decided straight away that MyAesthetics was the right company for my procedure. I felt completely at ease with my surgeon. Mr Liew explained everything to me in great detail, from the surgical techniques he was going to use, to what the procedure was going to entail and what recovery would be like. He used simple terms and language – no jargon, or complex medical terms I wouldn’t understand.

“I went home and googled him and found a wealth of knowledge available online surrounding his expertise, previous experience and lots of positive testimonials. I’d previously looked up surgeons online and been frightened at how little information was available about them. I was so happy to see so much encouraging evidence to further validate Mr Liew’s expertise.”

Mr Liew advised Braidy to go away and think about the procedure, but after such an optimistic experience, Braidy had already made up her mind – she booked her surgery the next morning and never looked back.

The procedure

In the run up to the procedure Braidy had a few initial concerns in regards to recovery time, as she runs her own business and knew she wouldn’t be able to work for a number of weeks. However, she had a thorough pre-op appointment with her nurse a week before the procedure and felt fully prepared for what was about to take place. She knew she was in the best possible hands. On the day of the surgery, Braidy was taken straight to her room where she had time to relax and prepare for surgery. The whole procedure ran very quickly and smoothly and Braidy’s operation was completed after two hours.

Braidy was instructed to take a minimum of two weeks off work for immediate recovery and any activities in order to recover. In weeks one and two Braidy met with the nurse at her hospital to have her bandages changed and Mr Liew checked how her scars were healing. By week 4 all Braidy’s bandages were removed for good and she was reassured that everything was as it should be.

Recovery and follow-up

Braidy found the recovery to her procedure very challenging, as she did not achieve full mobility until roughly 5 weeks after surgery.

“ I really struggled post-op, because I run my own business and am used to being really busy and leading an active lifestyle. Sitting on the couch for 4 weeks and not being able to do anything for myself was a real struggle. Abdominoplasty is a major procedure, and you need to have someone constantly at your side, to help you change drainage tubes, prepare food – I couldn’t even take a shower on my own! It wasn’t until the 5 week mark, when I started to gain more mobility and get my independence back, that I finally started to see the light at the end of the tunnel.”

The final stages

Once the final bandages were taken off and Braidy was able to move around again on her own, she began to feel better and for the first time, started to like what she saw in the mirror. What was also exciting for Braidy, was that she knew things would only get better. Some swelling still needed to subside, but this meant she would still see positive changes happening to her body shape as the months progressed.

When Braidy started to see the results, she couldn’t believe she’d put off surgery for as long as she had. Her self-esteem continued to grow and she finally realised just how low her own body image had been and how little confidence she’d had prior to surgery. Even small things, like having the self-assurance to wear skirts again were exciting and confirmed she had made one of the best decisions of her life.

“I never thought I would become an advocate for cosmetic surgery, but it has truly changed my life for the better. I feel like a new woman! Not only am I much happier with my body shape, but the scar from my hysterectomy is also completely gone.  I no longer have the constant reminder of my cancer every time I see my stomach.

“My surgery has not just been about physical changes, but emotional changes as well. The care I received at MyAesthetics was truly wonderful. I am so grateful the team there treated me like a person – not a wallet and I would recommend the practice to anyone considering cosmetic surgery. Whilst some operations can be expensive, I fully believe that if everyone went to a consultation with a company like MyAesthetics, they would definitely have the confidence to proceed with surgery.