I developed an infection, swelled up, and woke up this morning in a pool of my own blood. All of my stiches were ripped out.

Now I have surgery again tomarrow, another month of inactivity, and another $5000 bill.

I can't afford this. I am going crazy and getting fat from not lifting. I can't take the time off work, particularly because I somehow need to pull the cash together...

I am now a cosmetic surgery horror story.

Puc

I too have been depressed lately due to a back injury. However, this is not nearly as bad as what you seem to be going through.

How did your stitches get ripped out? Where you warned that this may be a complication? (I don't remember the doc telling me that this could happen) Make sure the doctor answers ALL of your questions satisfactorily!.....and if you feel that you are not being treated properly - GET ANOTHER DOCTOR!

I know this sounds easy for me to say, but I'm assuming that the second surgery is necessary because of some sort of medical complication - shouldn't insurance cover this?

When I had my breasts "fixed" both of the implants hardened up a bit (it was no biggie and I was fully informed that this might happen) ANYWAY - this would not have been a problem except that one hardened up higher on my chest than the other. So I was, in effect, lopsided. In a brasier it was not noticeable but without a bra it was. One of the reasons I got my breasts fixed was so that I could go (if I so chose to) bra-less. So, I had to have one implant removed and replaced. Because I did have a capsular contracture (scar tissue forming around the implant) it was a medical complication and the insurance did cover the doctor's fee and facility fee for the removal. I did have to pay for a new implant and the facility fee - which after all was said and done cost me less than a couple of hundred bucks....so I would say that it was worthwhile.

I wish you a speedy recovery and arm yourself with information!

Good luck.....I'll be thinking about you.

Hope you recover, and hope to hear what happens.

I hope the drs.take care of you, and make
sure you get all your questions answered.

Anyway, good luck to you. Hope you do okay with the second surgery. We'll all be thinking about you & pulling for you!

There are ALWAYS risks with ANY surgery! Both of my procedures (abdominoplasty and mastopexy & implants) were done by the same surgeon.....who came highly recommended by my OB/GYN, another female doctor who RAVED about her work - what better recommendation?

ALWAYS CHECK YOUR DOCTOR OUT! (Whether elective procedure, check-up, WHATEVER!) Unfortunately, you never really know how good/bad a doctor is until the shit hits the fan.....and then you are usually in so deep that it is extremely difficult to turn things around.

I, myself, had severe gastrointestinal problems before I got pregnant w/my last baby. Initially my probelms seemed to be rectified and then BAM in my seventh month I had stomach pain so severe I was literally starving as a result. Could you imagine the horror?...7 months pregnant and LOSING WEIGHT? I did give birth a couple of weeks early, but THANK GOD, she was and still IS healthy....then I could barely eat enough to nurse her till she was 4 months. I had no milk and the milk I did have was extremely thin......and then my road to hell began. From one doctor to the next, one test after another, take this drug, take that drug, several office visits a month, all the while wasting away.....and the pain! It was unbelievable! I actually became suicidal because I could not imagine continuing to live with the daily pain: either my stomach ached because it was empty or when I did finally bring myself to eat the pain I suffered shortly after eating ANYTHING was just UNIMAGINEABLE. I was actually accused of having an eating disorder and starving on purpose!....FCUKING ASSHOLE BASTARDS! Finally, I decided that I wanted to try to pursue bodybuilding and changed my diet, I lowered my carb intake (my ENTIRE DIET WAS CARBS) increased my fat intake (ZERO FAT) and increased my protein intake (CLOSE TO ZERO PROTEIN).....and guess what? All of the pain disappeared! I simultaneously found a doc who DID NOT have his head up his ass, and he said that if what I was currently doing worked for me - TO KEEP ON DOING IT!

I was 98# starving, in pain, and suicidal when I began bodybuilding. I am now 130# + eating like a horse, ZERO GERD, three competitions and 4 1/2 years later....HAPPY, HEALTHY and pursuing a successful career as a commercial fitness/swimwear model.

I still remember those smug bastard idiot doctors who fucking wrote me off as a head case because THEY couldn't figure out what was physically wrong with me. One of these days I am going to send them a competition photo and tear sheet with a letter telling them how they ALMOST KILLED ME because they were too busy thinking about other things (or whatever) rather than LISTENING to me - how they robbed me of months of my life, all the pain I suffered - could you imagine how lousy a mother I was because I was always about to fall over from starvation?.....AH, it wouldn't matter to them. They didn't listen when I was sitting there, handing them money - I doubt that they would give a shit now.

Moral of the story.....NO ONE PERSON KNOWS EVERYTHING! IF YOU ARE NOT SATISFIED W/THE ANSWERS YOU ARE GETTING - THEN GO SOMEPLACE ELSE. ARM YOURSELF W/KNOWLEDGE. YOU HAVE TO BE RESPONSIBLE FOR YOURSELF. BUT MOST IMPORTANTLY - NEVER DOUBT YOURSELF! LISTEN TO YOUR GUT. YOU KNOW YOUR OWN BODY BETTER THAN ANYBODY ELSE, MD OR NO!

Puc, hang in there, we're all pulling for you.

And what about getting what you paid for? You know, quality service for premium dollar? If you bought a used car and it died a month later do you just chalk it up to ...well I should have known better than to spend 5K$ on a used car...next time I will spend 10K$ on a new one. What was I thinking?

Maybe the car analogy is a bit of a stretch, but I think you can understand what I am trying to say.

Just because you have a cosmetic procedure to try to improve your appearance does not mean that you need to "pay" for your egoism if you happen to come across an incompetent doctor (not saying that is necessarily what happened here). Are you also saying that if someone dies as the result of a botched liposuction....Oh well, that's what you get for fucking with something that wasn't meant to be fucked with? I could never have concieved my children w/out the help of the drug chlomid. Would I have DIED w/out children? No, but I for one am glad that I live in a time when I can use technology to improve the quality of my life.

I had a large mole taken off my face when I was 20..they told me right up front there was achance of scarring. I didnt care..a scar was preferable. There is a small scar, doesnt bother me in the slightest.
However, I know of people who, in the same situation would sue the doctor for same said scar.

My dad was diagnosed with cancer, and had two surgeries, chemo, radiation, you name it, the best doctors we had, and he still died.

I am sending the bill to my insurance company, but I do not believe they will cover it. Only time will tell on this issue.

As far as warning signs and my doctor go. I believe I may have been to blaim for the infection occuring, but my doctor ignored me when I tried to tell him that there was a problem. I mentioned the increased leakage coming from my navel (sick, i know) and the fact that my abdomen filled with air when I bent over. This is a sure sign that some of my stitches were broken. He was in a hurry to leave and told me "everything was normal" Three days later I noticed the odor and swelling. I paged him on a saturday, he put me on antibotics and told me he would see me on monday.
Unfortunately, it wouldn't wait until the appointment. Monday morning I woke up in a pool of blood and ripped off the bandages only to see a hole in my abdomen about 4 square inches in area. Very disgusting. Very scary.

I spent Tuesday in bed and wednesday in the hospital getting antibiotics and IV's. I had surgery again Wednesday afternoon. Slept all day thursday. Had my first post-op appointment today.

four more days of walking hunched over. no lifting. no social life. pretty fucking depressing.

I honestly don't believe having this procedure was worth it for me. Maybe someday I will feel differently, but not now...

I will write up a full report when all is said and done and have some before and after pics for you peeps.

Lift one for me!!!!

Puc

In any case - I wish you a speedy recovery and I am sorry that things worked out this way for you brotha.

PS - were you taken oral antibiotics prophylactically after the surgery? I remember the particular antibiotic I had to take made me ITCH LIKE MAD (in places that made it VERY UNCOMFORTABLE) and broke me out in a freaky rash......but I didn't get an infection so I guess the discomfort was minor given the alternative.

Chin up, let us know how you are doing!