fat graft

[britbert]

I am new.  I was so excited to find your group.  I had AN surgery 2 1/2 years ago and I have felt like I am all alone in "surviving" this.  I have many of the same complaints that I have read from many of you.  However, I haven't read anything about fat grafts.  I had fat taken from my abdomen to fill the place of my tumor.  Now, not only do I have facial paralysis, left-sided deafness, a half of a smile, and tears in only one eye, I also have this horrible, UGLY scar on my stomach.  I hate it! My doctor said that it would flatten out (one of his many untruths) but it hasn't.  It is a huge indentation.  I can't wear any kind of swimming suit without it being noticable. Does anyone else have a similar scar?  I don't know what to do about it. I have told my husband that he had better start saving for platic surgery to repair this.  I am 31.  Any suggestions would be welcome.

Brittany

[Desilu]

Hi Brittany,

Sorry to hear about situation. It is obvious that your doctor did not totally inform you about everything involved with your surgery. I also have a scar from what they called "Fat Harvest" but it is only about an inch and a half long. It does not look bad. It is unfortunate that we can't go back and change the past but we must be positive and look forward to the future. Have you asked your doctor if there is anything that he can do for you? If not, then maybe plastic surgery would solve your problem. Hopefully someone on this website will be able to help you out. Please stay positive and hang in there. Ann

[CoachC]

I have a similar scar.  Mine however creates a huge dent in what was otherwise a perfectly round belly.   ;D  I told my docs to take a little extra while they were in there since I had such great insurance ;D  I look at my scar as a symbol of what happened and feel it is a small price considering the alternative.  My wife likes it!!!!

Rich

[Joef]

me too .. now I'm truly a "fat head" 

its not a bad scar, and If I lost about 20 pounds, the dent I bet would not be noticeable ... but thats NEVER gonna happen 

[Obita]

britbert -

I have 4 harvest sites - I don't care - I am just glad my Drs kept filling till they were sure it was packed well.  Granted, I am 52 so my teeny bikini days are long gone but I look at them as battle scars.  I survived and here is my proof.

Many years ago I had knee surgery and have 2 - 4" scars that I was really self conscious about.  I tried a scar treatment strips and I think it worked (but they could have faded with time).  It can't hurt to try them but if I remember right, they are not cheap. 

Good luck, Kathy

ps:  this has been said before - at least they don't take fat from our butts - I wouldn't want to be called Butt Fat Head!!

[britbert]

I appreciate everyone's sympathy & humor.  And at least now I know that I'm not the only one!  I had a baby (my fourth child) almost two years after my surgery and I thought that being pregnant would help flatten it out, but my scar was still just as deep, no matter what size I was.  I'm fine with having a battle scar on my head, but the one on my stomach seems so un-necessary.  Oh well, sorry to keep ranting... Thanks again for your thoughts.

Brittany

[vcschaub]

I am very fortunate. One can hardly see my scar. It is less than an inch long. It had self absorbing stitches and I kept a transparent cover over it for awhile so it would not get wet. I don't know why some scars heal well and others don't.

[luv2teachsped]

Brittney-  Yes , I have an ugly 3" scar too.  My bikini days were gone a long time ago.  But I know what you mean.  Well, just to make you feel alittle better(things could always be worse) I just had an anterior/posterior lumbar fusion.  That means I have a HUGE scar ffrom my belly button to my c-section scar and beyond!  AND I have a scar about 10" long down my back!!   Now, I know I was never beautiful, but... Being recently divorced, IF I ever do find Mr. Right, he's got a lot to look past!!!  Best wishes!  luv2teachsped

[Gennysmom]

Brittney....I think AN doc's never attended a day in plastic surgery land....luckily for me I got to see someone else's belly scar before I got my own so I knew what I was in for.  He did a great job in stitching my head so no one would notice, but even if I were to wear a bikini (I would not) I think you'd still see the dent.  I'm going to call it a good reminder of the serious event in my life and call myself lucky that I don't have anything bigger to look at.....such as a mastectomy scar or something.  Sometimes it's good to have a visual to remind us that we're mere mortals. 

[RattieLady]

Brittney...... i had a fat graft but it was taken from my leg, on the side just about my knee. They never mentioned to me about it can be taken from the abdomen. The scar don't bother me what does is if you look at it from the front you can see the dent, whisch makes the leg look weird. I dislike it as i wear shorts and skirts often. I would of liked it to be somewhere that i don't show. I have a second AN op to go (no date set yet) and i hope they don't do it on the other leg. I have a 6 inch scar on the top of my right hand it's not a thin scar at the thickest part it's about 1cm wide. My plastic surgeon said he could do some surgeory on it to cover it. But i don't want more surgory ive had 5 ops since January 04. I would like a year without any op's.

[Road Trip Dale]

Mine is a nice  bright red welt from my belly button horizontally to my left side.  Really ugly BUT I'm old and fat anyway and am not prone to wearing a speedo (Lord the thought is a little scary to even me!)  My only regret is "if they were going to take some fat from my belly" the least they could have done is do a complete Lipo-suction at the same time