'Liposculpture'

Gail is a 51-year-old operating theatre nurse with two small children. She decided some time ago that she was unhappy with the overall appearance of her face. After careful reflection and much research she went to see Sydney plastic surgeon Dr Kourosh Tavakoli.

‘I’d been thinking about getting something done for some time,’ says Gail. ‘I didn’t get married until I was 40 years old and so had my first child at 40 and my second at 43. Even though people used to tell me that I looked quite young for my age, I still felt that time had taken its toll. There were a few things about my face that I just didn’t like, especially around the mouth – the jowls were sagging a bit – and I’ve always hated my nose,’ she explains.

Many patients opt to undergo one procedure at a time but as a veteran theatre nurse Gail was experienced enough to know how to do her research and confident enough to undergo all the procedures she wanted at once.

‘I thought, if I’m having an operation on my face I might as well have everything I want done at the same time,’ she says.

Gail began her search for the right doctor by asking her colleagues for advice. ‘I knew a few doctors and I asked around for their recommendations,’ she says.

‘Then I looked up each doctor’s website and narrowed it down to just two, then saw both for a consultation. I chose Dr Tavakoli because he has a very good reputation.’

Nine months after her initial consultation, she returned to Dr Tavakoli and booked herself in for the surgery.
Dr Tavakoli perfomed a six-hour operation to rejuvenate her face and refine her nose, comprising a short scar facelift, upper and lower blephroplasty, rhinoplasty, lip augmentation and finishing with Botox injections in her forehead.

Gail says she was very bruised immediately after the procedures but her profession had prepared her to expect this as a first result.

It’s now been five months since her surgery. She says an operation of this scope was bound to take some time to recover from and, though the recovery process has been a gradual one, it was well worth it.

‘When I look at myself now I’m really pleased with the result,’ she says.

However, it wasn’t until she saw Dr Tavakoli’s final set of ‘after’ photos that she realised the full extent of the dramatic changes to her appearance.

‘People I haven’t seen in a long time know there’s something different but can’t quite put their finger on what’s changed. That’s a good thing! I didn’t want to look like someone else – I still wanted to look like me but maybe better, or younger and healthier,’ Gail says.

‘Dr Tavakoli’s work on my nose was very subtle, but I really like the result. I have no regrets, I’d do it all over again!’

Sydney plastic surgeon Dr Kourosh Tavakoli outlines the options available to get your pre-pregnancy body back. Francis Herron reports.

For many women, having a baby takes a toll on their body and the shape they are left with post-pregnancy can be a cause of concern, affecting self-esteem and confidence levels. In a study by United Kingdom Mother & Baby magazine, 86 percent of women surveyed said they felt less attractive post-pregnancy, while a similar number were unhappy with their weight and shocked by the changes to their body after having a baby.

“Yummy mummy” celebrities such as Katie Holmes, Heidi Klum and Jennifer Garner seem to regain their postbaby figures in double-quick time, and now it appears that here in Australia women are equally determined to take steps to restore both their pre-baby body and confidence. In fact a large number are choosing cosmetic surgery to help restore their shape and are taking the opportunity to correct long-standing problem areas, which may have become more prominent during pregnancy.

Sydney plastic surgeon Dr Kourosh Tavakoli estimates up to 30 percent of his female patients have come to see him because they want to improve their bodies after childbirth. All of these women, he says, have a specific goal in mind and, somewhat surprisingly, it is not one that involves an idealised ‘new’ body or perfect physique. Their aim is restoration, not transformation. ‘These women are not wanting to create something new, they want to restore what they had previously,’ Dr Tavakoli explains. ‘They have 50 or 60 years ahead of them and want to keep looking their best.’

There are numerous options available to women who want to tackle post-pregnancy problems such as excess fat and skin around the abdomen and drooping, sagging breasts. Troublesome areas that have caused some concern before pregnancy, such as love handles, can be exacerbated after giving birth. However, these issues can be addressed with surgery, and according to Dr Tavakoli,

the top three procedures requested by mothers who come to see him are breast enhancement, abdominoplasty and
liposculpture.

Breast enhancement

The degree of change experienced in the breasts depends on whether patients have breastfed and, if so, for how long. ‘The more a woman has breastfed, the more dramatic the changes that occur in her breasts usually are,’ says Dr Tavakoli. Most women opt for a breast augmentation procedure but if there is no change to the volume of the breast, a breast lift might be enough to achieve the result they want. However other woman may require both a breast reduction and lift procedure to obtain their desired shape, he says.

Abdominoplasty

According to Dr Tavakoli, the abdomen is the area most affected by pregnancy as the abdominal wall becomes lax due to stretching. An abdominoplasty procedure, also known as a tummy tuck, can restore a woman’s post pregnancy tummy and the procedure can be combined with liposculpture to offer an even better result. ‘Abdominoplasty, when combined with liposculpture, can remove excess skin and fat from the abdomen, repair any underlying damage to the abdominal muscles and reposition the umbilicus,’ says Dr Tavakoli.

Liposculpture

As well as being effective when combined with abdomnioplasty, liposculpture can be used alone to treat common problem areas such as love handles and inner and outer thighs. As Dr Tavakoli explains, ‘These could be areas that troubled the patient prior to pregnancy but they may have become more prominent postpregnancy.’ The most important thing, according to him, is that the treated area remains in proportion with the rest of the patient’s body.

While these procedures can offer great results for women who want to restore their pre-pregnancy body, Dr Tavakoli stresses that those who undergo an abdominoplasty or liposculpture procedure need to commit to a healthy lifestyle, involving a sensible diet and exercise regime, to maintain the results.

He screens prospective patients to ensure they are not suffering from post-natal depression and has a policy of not operating on recently pregnant women until the mother’s last child is at least 18 months old. ‘I usually advise patients to complete all their pregnancies before commencing surgery,’ he says. ‘As long as the expectations are realistic I find the overall satisfaction rate in this group of patients is very high.’

It’s clear that for some women who are unhappy with their post-pregnancy appearance, a cosmetic surgery procedure could offer the ideal way to restore their figure and confidence levels.