Trunkplasty After Weight-Loss Surgery: How it Works
Stephanie Woltering, 57, of Price Hill, is at her “happy” weight: 143 pounds. Her stomach is like a board. "I’ve never had a flat stomach in my life! I like this,” she laughs. Her weight loss journey, however, wasn’t always quite as smooth.
In 2003 her weight peaked at 286 pounds. As someone who ate a generally nutritious diet and stayed active through her hobby, showing dogs, Stephanie was frustrated. She tapped into a couple fad diets and managed to shed about 40 pounds. Then, the scale wouldn’t budge.
Finally, she pursued gastric bypass weight loss surgery with George Kerlakian MD at TriHealth Weight Management in 2003, and lost more than 100 pounds. Stephanie was thrilled as unwanted pounds kept shedding from her frame; but, significant weight loss came with one trade-off, excess skin. The skin was giving her major back problems, making it difficult work her job as a metro bus driver or perform even the simplest of household chores. “Just carrying the groceries in was excruciating,” she recalls.
Finding Success with the Trunkplasty Procedure
Stephanie was fed up. Her orthopedic and pain management doctors knew surgical intervention may help, so they both referred Stephanie to TriHealth Weight Management for a procedure called a trunkplasty. A trunkplasty, also known as corset surgery, is a plastic surgery that removes excess fat and loose skin around a person’s midsection.
Stephanie met with Kevin Tymitz MD for a consultation and his warm personality immediately put her at ease. “He’s just got a personality that makes you very comfortable. He really listens to what you have to say, and to your concerns,” she says. She went in for surgery on May 12, 2013, and just 24 hours later, she was home.
It took Stephanie about a week to get back to normal, but she still gushes about how easy the recovery period was. “I enjoyed the recovery period, and getting to see Dr. Tymitz and his staff. They were all very supportive,” she says. Stephanie met Dr. Tymitz weekly for about two months after surgery and is anxiously awaiting her next follow-up visit so she can show him how much she’s improved since then. “I’ve got to get over there to see them now that the swelling is gone! You can see the contour coming in around my waist, and things are starting to smooth out.”
Stephanie Receives a Long-Awaited Gift: Pain-Free Living
Now, Stephanie’s appreciating a pain-free life, a novelty she’s waited more than a decade to receive. “The day I came home from the hospital, heavy drugs went out the window – literally,” she exclaims. She hasn’t minded the compliments from friends, either. “I feel great and everybody is starting to notice. It’s really improved my life considerably.”
However, she’s most excited about showing her dogs, three shelties, Crystal, Lily and Oscar. “There’s a real connection there," she says, smiling. "Being able to take care of them the way I want to take care of them has been a good thing.”
Related: