I have decided to create this blog to give information to people wanting to undergo laser liposuction surgery. I didn't have anyone to ask about their experience before I underwent my surgery and so had no idea what to expect - I found that the doctors give you very little information as to what the actual procedure and aftermath will be like, and had I had this information, maybe I would have chosen other options.
So why did I decide to undergo surgery? I'm a 31 year old woman and have always been fit and healthy, and a UK size 10 (US size 6), many people would probably call me thin. However I found no matter how much exercise and how many situps I did, and whatever I ate, there was a pad of fat on my lower abdomen which would never shift. It had bothered me ever since I was 14. I always felt this bit of fat was out of proportion with the rest of my body and it bothered me as I felt it showed a lot in my clothing and definitely on the beach. Whenever I put on weight it went straight to this area and I hated it. Call it vanity or whatever, I just decided finally that it had to go.
So after researching many options I decided to have laser liposuction surgery. Promoted as the easier, faster, minimum downtime option and costing almost half the price of traditional liposuction, I decided to go for it.
So I phoned around and made several trips down London's Harley street to choose a doctor, finally settling on someone I found personable and trustworthy, and very experienced as he was always away speaking at plastic surgery conferences as a leader in his field.
Here is what a typical doctor's appointment is like (I had 3 different ones): They ask you what you would like done and then to show them the area. They pinch it to see how much fat is there and then show you the exact area they will remove (that's if you choose to have 1 area treated.) If you like they will take out a marker and draw on you the area they will treat. None of the doctors I saw told me about any risks or disadvantages or what undergoing the procedure is like - each of them asked if I had any questions, which I didn't have many of as I didn't know what to ask. Here are some I did ask:
What is the advantage of laser liposuction over traditional liposuction?
Laser Lipo (also called Vaser, Smart Lipo) is the "new generation" of liposuction. Instead of the traditional method of physically breaking down the fat with a canula (that's a long metal tube) then sucking it out, they use a laser to do the same thing, then suck it out. The down time (that's how long you need to recover before going back to work) is minimal, 1-2 days. One doctor told me that a client of his ran a marathon the day after her inner thigh laser lipo, that's how minimal the pain/aftereffect is.
What are the risks?
All three doctors told me there were minimal risks. One of them said there is a risk of haematoma (which is like a bloodclot) whereas the others said nothing specific.
What are the scars like?
There will be 2 scars of 3 mm each for each area you have treated. Even if treating only 1 area they need to make 2 incisions to take the fat from two different angles to have the best results.
Price?
The three different surgeons quoted me each £1500, £2000, and £2400. Although I am not in the least bit wealthy and definitely not one of those rich women you see prancing down Harley street with their designer handbags, I decided to go with the surgeon who charged £2400 because I trusted him the most - he gave me the most information, answered my questions the most honestly of the three and seemed the most experienced, and not like he was pushing through as many patients as possible.
So I booked in, paid my deposit and made an appointment for my medical checkup with their nurse. This was relatively straightforward, you answer a lot of questions and they take your blood pressure. You need to stop taking all vitamins especially Vitamin E 1 week before surgery to decrease risk of complications like bleeding, as some supplements thin your blood.
Warning: This is only slightly related but I think important. One of the doctors tried to sell me a procedure called Stem Cell Augmentation as I mentioned I had also thought of having my breasts enhanced at some point. This is a very new procedure where they basically use laser liposuction to take out fat from every possible area of your body, then filter it, mix it with stem cells, and inject it into your breasts to enlarge your breasts by 1-2 cup sizes. This doctor said there were no risks whatsoever and claimed to be experienced although he only had 1 set of a patient's before and after photos to show me after I asked to see what the results are like. Funnily enough this procedure costs 4 times as much as he charged for the lipo alone -£8500 - but he touted it as a great way to save money by getting all over body liposuction and a boob job at the same time.
I asked the next surgeon if he did stem cell augmentation also. He said no he didn't and when I asked why he said it is because there is not enough research done yet to prove its safety, AND it is thought to DOUBLE your risk of breast cancer. This surgeon also told me that I actually wouldn't have enough body fat for them to take out to give me one extra cup size! Funny that the first doctor never mentioned any of this when trying to sell me this expensive procedure. Needless to say I didn't end up using that doctor.
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