What is a Mommy Makeover?
Becoming a mom changes you in a myriad of different ways, many of them incomprehensible until they happen to you. Many of the changes are emotional and psychological, but there are also physical changes to take into account. It will almost certainly not be your immediate priority, but the way that becoming a mom has altered your body will almost certainly affect you at some point in the following few years.
While body changes are an entirely normal and expected part of pregnancy and childbirth, many of us give little thought to how we will look in the weeks, months and even years following the arrival of our children. All too often, our bodies don’t ‘spring back’ into our pre-pregnancy shape, and we need to commit to a strict diet and exercise regime to even come close to returning to the size and shape that we once were. And for many women, the prospect of restoring their pre-baby body seems impossible, thanks to stubborn fat, stretched skin and stretch marks. This can lead to low self-esteem, anxiety and even depression. Studies have found post-natal depression is more commonly diagnosed in women who struggle to accept their post-baby figures.
Fortunately, there is nothing wrong with having a little helping hand in restoring your former shape, and thanks to cosmetic surgery, it is now easier than ever to find your confidence in your body once more. There are a variety of different procedures that can reverse the effects that motherhood has on your body, many of which can be combined into a popular solution known as a Mommy Makeover.
What’s a Mommy Makeover?
A Mommy Makeover is the name used to describe a combination of different cosmetic procedures that are carried out in one, single surgical appointment. Exactly which procedures you have will depend on the areas of your body that you are most interested in addressing, but there are three surgeries that are more common than others.
Breast Lift (with or without augmentation)
During pregnancy and nursing, the breasts almost always increase in size. This is often due to a combination of milk coming in, and weight gain during this time. This may be great while it lasts, but when you stop breastfeeding, you will likely find that your breasts shrink back to their original size. When this happens, the loss of volume can lead to sagging and excess skin that can see your breasts sitting flat and low, causing you to feel self-conscious or embarrassed about their appearance.
As its name suggests, breast lift surgery is designed to raise the breasts so that they sit high on the wall of the chest. Not only is this position more attractive, but it can boost the volume of your breasts a little, helping them to look fuller, perkier and more youthful. Many women seek to increase the overall size of their breasts artificially and choose to combine their lift procedure with augmentation. This is where implants are used to boost the volume of the breasts so that they also appear larger.
Abdominoplasty
Better known as tummy tuck surgery, this is arguably the most common procedure in any Mommy Makeover. This is because, unsurprisingly, the abdomen undergoes the biggest changes during pregnancy, swelling to multiple times its usual size to accommodate your growing baby. This growth causes the skin to stretch beyond its usual capabilities, often damaging it so significantly that it cannot spring back to how it was before. Even if you lose your ‘baby weight’ and exercise, the vast majority of women find that the abdominal area is laxer than before. In some cases, the abdominal muscles are so badly damaged that surgical repair is necessary before an abdominoplasty can be performed.
A tummy tuck is a major surgical procedure that involves separating the skin from the underlying muscles so that the muscles can be repaired and tightened. The overlying skin is then pulled back firmly across the abdomen so that it contours to the muscles. Any excess is cut away and it is secured using sutures. If you have had a great deal of excess fat and skin removed, it may be necessary to relocate your belly button to a more natural position. When complete, patients can enjoy a smoother, tighter, flatter and more youthful abdominal shape.
Liposuction
There aren’t many ways in which you can remove stubborn pockets of fat that don’t respond to diet and exercise, but liposuction remains the most effective. There are some parts of the body that don’t seem to alter in appearance no matter how hard you try and change them through diet and exercise. In these instances, liposuction is the best way to help you to address them. Liposuction is minimally invasive and uses a cannula attached to a vacuum which quite literally sucks the fat from your body through a series of small, round incisions. Liposuction can be performed on virtually any area of the body, from the tummy, hips, and thighs to the upper arms and chin. Your cosmetic surgeon will be able to advise you if liposuction is a viable treatment for you.
A Mommy Makeover is the best way to quickly transform your body, combining all of the procedures that you need into a single surgical appointment. This means that instead of taking months, with multiple recovery periods, you will need to just schedule one surgery and one recovery into your busy schedule. To find out more about Mommy Makeovers, or to schedule a consultation, please contact our discreet and understanding cosmetic surgery team.
