Debra P.
Panniculectomy removes the encompassing bulge of skin and fat from the middle and lower torso. This accumulation is often referred to as a spare tire,don laps disease, you know when your belly done lapped over your belt. Unlike the tummy tuck, panniculectomy removes a drastic amount excess skin that has been stretched out too far or hangs too low.The Panniculectomy Story
Here we are today December 1st 2008, I feel heavy, bloated and very uncomfortable, all because of the panniculectomy I had on March 9th 2006. So watch out when you think you might want a tummy tuck, lipo or anything of this nature, whatever unsightly bulge,roll, donut, tire or pillow of fat you have removed will always come back.You just don't know where the fat cells will begin their invasion. Granted it will not be where they were taken from. When this happens look out, I am haunted daily by fat cells, they attacked my backside,under my arm pitts not to mention my upper torso. I'm whooping 225 lbs, this is a maximum weight gain for me and with this I have developed acid reflux 
, sleep apnea 
, shortness of breath 
OMG! and I am ready for the RNY to correct these medical issues. Let me tell you a little bit about the panniculectomy.
, then I suggest you stop reading now 
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One day I just stopped looking at my reflection in mirrors and store front windows. I stopped trying on clothes when I went shopping. Why bother? nothing looked the way I imagined it would. So for this reason as long as I can remember I have stayed true to wearing oversized, baggy, tummy and butt hiding garments. I chose not to live like this anymore, I just didn't know what I was going to do about it.
I have read articles on people and know people that have had cosmetic plastic surgery done for various reasons breast enlargement, ass enlargement, nose reduction,thigh lift, fuller lips etc. I had a hard time coming to grips with changing my body just because. Let me explain, I was raised to believe that our creator makes no mistakes, we are all beautiful regardless of our skin color,sex, body shape, shoe size, etc. But God helps those who help themselves. It has become so easy to say I want to look like someone else. Oh sure it has passed my mind a time or two "what if I had Beyounce's hips and butt. I could mix it with Halle Berry's smile and skin tone, Janet Jackson's cheek bones and Trya Banks boobies. I would be perfect, smile. Lets be real there is no such thing as perfection. When I was carrying my children all I prayed for was 8 fingers, 2 thumbs, 10 toes and to be healthy. I was blessed each time with that prayer. After the births of my sons, if I could change anything it would have been to not have stretch marks. I hated those marks on my body so much, I felt ugly and covered myself always.
This was my own personal issue. Then one day I thought about it and said I was given the most precious gift in the world (my babies) so what if I had stretch marks. They were the badges of my beautiful sons. I was young and thought everyone whom had children also had stretch marks. I am trying to make a point here by saying if I were the owner of art by Pablo Picasso (Spanish artist) one of the most prolific and influential artists of the 20th century, Rembrandt an influential Dutch artist (1606-1669) or some other rare and priceless work of art. I wouldn't cut it, draw on it or change a thing about it. I believe each and everyone of us are priceless works of art by the Greatest Craftsman, artist, landscaper, sculptor known ( I call Him God). I am not going to get biblical on you, that's not what this dairy is about.
I love me and needed to fix things that I felt were not right. My biological makeup wasn't a change that I needed. I love what I see in the mirror from the neck up..only, smile. I look like my mother ( who is now deceased
) she was lovely. However my self image has never been right. At one point my self esteem was so slow that it would have taking a cherry picker and three ladders just to get me up from the curb. One day I found those ladders and used that cherry picker and so lifted my self esteem 
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One of the main reasons I made this decision to have this panniculectomy was because of a change that was made to me, not by my choosing. At the age of 26 I was told by my poonanknee (pronounce =POOH-NAN-KNEE) specialist that I had multiple problems in that area. Most folks call this doctor their gynecologist, I call them that also but I do call my vagina by the name of poonanknee 
. Anyway back to my story, my doc told me that I had endometriosis and would have to have a hysterectomy. I did not think to get a second opinion on this and had the hysterectomy done Nov 12, 1986. Having a hysterectomy is a traumatic experience for anyone. It seemed to dominate my life.........
damn those ignorant women for passing down old wise tales and myths that they were obviously meant for adult entertainment or daytime drama, what else was there? Besides soap operas and daily gossip nothing but gossip and more gossip.
Because of the horror stories I'd overheard when I was a child by mean mouthed relatives, neighbors and friends of my mothers came to life. I remember hearing them say things like "girl guess who had to have a HYSTO? that's what they called it. it could be over the phone or just a gossip buddy stopping over to visit with mom before dinner time. I tell you it was awful..keep in mind I was only 12 and had know idea of what they were speaking about. These women would say things like she can't have no mo babies, another would say she ain't no woman if she can't have babies, another would say I feel sorry for her man (cause he gonna fall right to the bottom). Like I said early no one was talkin to me, I am sure I was listening from under the bathroom door, or a hole in the wall.
Well 13 years later I knew exactly what the myth(bottomless pit) and these women were talking about. When I told my mother what the doctor said, she just didn't say much about it. I was in another state and she couldn't be there with me. She did tell me however, once it is done "baby girl whatever you do don't tell your friends or a man you plan on having relations with that you had a HYSTO". The dreaded hysto, I really thought my life was over. I thought and believed with all my heart that I would be a bottomless pit and never have a man in my life again. Ignorant old bats (not you mama)...Shame on them for allowing me to ease drop on their every word, they should've known I was somewhere being nosy, hell that's what I did best. Just when they thought they were all alone. See what happens when you put your ears where they do not belong, you believe things you don't have any knowledge of. Blame it on the gossipers (mama's friend were the orignial Boogy man in ladies clothing).
I was blessed to have my two children early in life. I won't say how early, smile. After the hysto(the removal of my womb). I changed ,my self esteem became very low and I felt worthless. This went on for years. I can't tell you what happened, or how, but I thank God for those ladders and cherry picker, they really got me of the curb. My self esteem couldn't be higher and my self worth,( priceless). It is my self image that I had never seemed able to change. I have never been what I would call fat, but if I were listening from under a door or through a wall I am sure I would have heard someone say damn Debra's fat. Over the years my weight varied from the age of 16-20 (120 lbs), 21-25(118 lbs), 26-30(140 lbs), 31-39(150 lbs).
I was reunited in 1998 with a friend that I have known since the 4th grade, we grew up together, he is a good guy and I had never heard anything bad about him. At 150 lbs he loved me for me and never said one word about my belly, which has always been full of stretch marks from the birth of my children and hung like a empty sack. Well 1998 I also married my friend of many years, he was a big boy, over 245 lbs and this made me feel good, protected and small, smile. Look out this is where the weird love happens, I started doing what he did, which was eat all the time, within 1 year I was at a plump 185lbs. He still never said a word, seemed to like me more, smile. The weight however was distributed very evenly except for the pannus (that empty sack I mentioned earlier in the abdominal area) well it wasn't empty anymore, that sucker was full and hung low enough that if I looked in the mirror, I couldn't see my poonanknee. It just disappeared, and so did I. I stopped my husband from touching me in certain ways, I felt ugly, I covered myself in the biggest night shirts I could find.
I thought if I didn't like looking at myself, hell why would he. I would literally run past a mirror after a shower, I would have to lift my stomach with my left hand to shave with the right. Pretty soon I weighed over 200lbs. This was my highest weight. Family members and friends would say you don't weigh that much no way. Hell how could they tell, my clothes were always oversized to match the world of hip hop and casual comfortable.
After asking many question from health care professionals I found out about a procedure by the name of a panniculectomy. I was referred to a plastic surgeon by my primary care provider after explaining to him that I have suffered for years with skin irritation under the fold of my stomach, sometimes a ordorous smell and no matter how many times a I cleaned or showered I felt moisture in this area. I also let my doctor know that I have exercised and no matter the amount of exercise the gutt always looked like a butt, sometimes I couldn't tell if I was coming or going. I soon found out that I was a perfect candidate to have a panniculectomy, I never thought it would happen so quickly. My research started in November of 2005 and by January 2006 I had made up my mind to do this. The amazing part was it was no cost to me. My insurance through my employer paid for the cost. This too I am very thankful for. There is no way I could have been able to take on such an expense without a second job just to pay for this procedure on a cosmetic level. My pannus removal was a medical need 
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My plastic surgeon went over all the good and the bad during my consultation, I agreed, we set a date and my surgery was done on March 9th, 2006. It was a overnight hospital stay and home the next. At the time of the surgery I weighed in at 206 lbs. There were no complications and a total of 9 lbs of fat and 11 inches of excess skin removed from my body. I have a photo taken one week after the procedure in my profile for viewing, for the first year I loved it. Now I am back to square one on a different level. If my story is familiar to anyone suffering from low self esteem, anxiety or issuesbecause of body image. please pass it along, I hope it helps. Thank you for allowing me to share my experience 
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