You’ve eaten the superfoods, you’ve done the target exercises, you’ve cut out sugar and sweets, yet your thighs look no different. Nothing is worse than doing everything right and seeing zero fruits of your labor. This long, seemingly pointless, journey of trying to reach your ideal body drowns all hope.
Sometimes, though, either due to genetics, health issues, or other factors, you store more fat in certain areas and your body holds onto it for dear life (So really, it’s not your fault!). With diet and exercise not holding a candle to these life factors, what are we to do?
Enter: Body Contouring Procedure: Tuscaloosa.
What is body contouring?
The term “body contouring” is used to describe the wide array of treatments available to reduce fat, excess skin, and otherwise sculpt, contour, and shape your body how you want it. At Indian Hills Plastic Surgery, we provide surgical body sculpting procedures to help patients gain back their confidence and increase their quality of life.
Excisional surgery/excess skin removal: body contouring procedure | Tuscaloosa
When performing excess skin removal surgery, a board-certified plastic surgeon––like Dr. Wallace––makes incisions in the designated treatment area and removes the excess, sagging skin.
Loose skin surgery is often performed on people who have lost a significant amount of weight, and have leftover skin as a result. Removing skin from the thighs is referred to as a thigh lift or thighplasty.
Liposuction fat removal: body contouring procedure | Tuscaloosa
Liposuction is another body contouring procedure we have in the Indian Hills toolbox. When performing liposuction, Dr. Wallace makes incisions, then uses a cannula and surgical vacuum to suction fat out of the body.
Liposuction varies from excess skin removal surgery in that it is solely a fat reduction procedure; it doesn’t take care of any excess skin leftover after the fat is removed. The inverse is true for excisional surgery; it removes the extra skin, but not the fat. These two procedures can be combined for optimal contouring results!
Treatment areas: body contouring procedure | Tuscaloosa
Besides thighplasty, body sculpting in Tuscaloosa addresses:
- Arms
- Breasts
- Lower abdomen (abdominoplasty)
- Buttocks
- Upper body (back lift)
- Neck
- Face
Am I a candidate for body contouring?
You are a good candidate for body contouring in Tuscaloosa if you:
- Aren’t looking for a weight loss procedure
- Are in good health
- Have maintained a consistent weight for at least 6 months
- Do not smoke
Treatment time
Both thighplasty and liposuction respectively take between 2 and 3 hours. Other types of body contouring surgeries can take between 2 and 5 hours––this time varies depending on your number and size of treatment areas.
If liposuction and thighplasty are combined in surgery, the treatment duration will be longer.
Recovery
You can expect to feel discomfort, pain, and swelling in your treatment area for the first few weeks. We’ll provide compression garments for your thighs (and other treatment areas if applicable) to speed up the healing process.
Returning to work
After 1 to 2 weeks of healing and taking it easy, you should be able to return to work! You can resume all of your activities after 6 weeks.
Scarring
When it comes to surgical procedures like thighplasty and liposuction, scars can be easily hidden by underwear and swimsuits. For those interested in scar reduction, we offer take-home silicone therapy and Silagen treatments.
For other body contouring procedures, scars may be more visible, but a premier plastic surgeon like Dr. Wallace always has the goal of making scars as minimally visible as possible!
Results
Results for body contouring procedures are generally considered permanent. Once the excess fat and skin are removed, they won’t “grow back.” Full liposuction results can be visible between 1 and 3 months, while full thighplasty results can take up to 6 months to fully take shape.
If you gain weight, you do have more risk of accumulating more fat cells, and in turn, extra skin to compensate for the fat cells.
Cost: body contouring procedure | Tuscaloosa
The average cost of thighplasty is around $8,000, while thigh liposuction can cost between $3,000 and 5,000.
At Indian Hills Plastic Surgery, we value being transparent with our patients about everything we do—this includes pricing.
Before your surgery, you’ll know your costs. In fact, before you even come in for a consultation, you can receive an estimate of your costs:
Will body contouring procedures help me lose weight?
While excess skin removal and fat removal will inherently reduce your weight, they are not weight loss procedures. For these procedures, we require patients to be near their healthy goal weight.
Complementary treatments: body contouring procedure | Tuscaloosa
Whether you decide you want to pair a thighplasty with an arm lift or neck liposuction with a tummy tuck, our team and comprehensive care have you covered! Chat with us about your concerns and we’ll be able to recommend you the best combination treatments.
Arm lift
If you have loose skin on your legs, chances are your arms are affected too. An arm lift––or brachioplasty––removes loose skin in the upper arm. It can also be paired with an arm fat removal treatment via liposuction. Liposuction and excess skin removal are truly a great duo.
Tummy tuck
A tummy tuck is a cosmetic procedure that removes extra skin and loose pockets of fat from the abdomen. Dr. Wallace also tightens the abdominal muscles during this surgery. The thighs and abdomen are a common concern for women; by pairing these treatments, you can have it all tightened and toned in one fell swoop.
The Indian Hills Surgery Process: body contouring procedure | Tuscaloosa
As a woman-owned practice, we want the women who come to us to feel safe and comfortable. We value having a hand in the process of empowering women and improving their quality of life with plastic surgery. Our process for every procedure is in depth and personal to ensure we’re serving you in the absolute best way.
1. Consultation
Before any body contouring procedure in Tuscaloosa, you will have a one-on-one consultation with Dr. Wallace. She’ll ask about your concerns, experiences, and goals for treatment. You’ll have the opportunity to learn everything you need to know about the procedure and ask all your questions.
The consultation helps us determine whether you’re a good fit for a specific body contouring procedure or perhaps a different one. Maybe you initially wanted an arm lift, but we discover that your skin is elastic enough to receive liposuction instead!
Prior to surgery
The appointment in between the consultation and procedure is the pre-operative appointment. You will have the opportunity to ask any last minute questions and we’ll go over instructions for the day of surgery and post-operative care. We also take your “before” pictures at this appointment!
2. The procedure
Once you arrive for your body contouring procedure, you can ask any truly last minute questions. Dr. Wallace will perform markings for the incisions and make sure you’re at ease and ready to begin.
Our anesthesia team will administer the anesthesia and you won’t feel a thing while Dr. Wallace makes the incisions in the treatment area. After she gets the job done and seals everything up with sutures, you’ll be waking up shortly.
Many of our surgeries are outpatient procedures, so you will likely be able to return home, but you will need a driver.
If you’d feel more comfortable staying overnight, we can make arrangements. Either option is available based on your preference and our recommendation based on specific treatment. Note: Patients who live more than 1 hour from Tuscaloosa are required to stay in town on the night of surgery.
3. Post-operative visits
After your procedure, Dr. Wallace will typically want to see you at your 1 week, 1 month, 3 month, and 6 month mark.
These post-op visits are important for us to ensure you’re on the right healing journey! If you have questions or concerns at any time, you’re always welcome to call us.
Start your journey with a body sculpting procedure | Tuscaloosa
Indian Hills Plastic Surgery believes that a patient’s well-being is above all else. What does this look like in practice? It looks like our care team genuinely listening to your concerns, considering your unique concerns and goals, and taking our time to come up with solutions. A one-size-fits-all approach fits no one!
Choose your next step
Phase 1: Get in touch
Questions? Concerns? Clarification?
Phase 2: Schedule a consultation
Allow us to show you how much we value your goals through a consultation.
Looking for a different procedure?
If you’re looking for a different surgical or aesthetic procedure, try our Virtual Consultation Tool. This tool allows you to choose your concern areas on a virtual body and then we’ll send you immediate expert treatment recommendations straight to your inbox.
Phase 3: Keep up with us
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