Non-Surgical Mommy Makeover Options

What is a “Non-surgical mommy makeover”? Although there is no dictionary definition, I define this as methods used to help restore mothers to their pre-child state, using either non-invasive or minimally invasive techniques. Most women, I’d imagine, are expecting this to be done in an office setting, without general anesthesia. It is important to be realistic (your plastic surgeon can guide you on this) in your expectations. Some women can get closer than others to their pre-pregnancy state.

For most women who come in for a consultation with me after having children, their focus is on their abdomen, flanks, bra fat, breasts and thighs. this is going to generally mean decreasing fat and possibly tightening the skin or improving the cellulite.

What are your options?
For starters to reduce fat, the completely non-invasive procedures available are Sculpsure (which is newer technology, faster, more comfortable and I believe more effective) and Coolsculpt (which has been around for more than 6 years). Both techniques are done in the office without any anesthesia, which means you can do the procedure and then return to the office or go out for dinner. Both techniques should be done at least twice for best results. There are no incisions and you can expect some definite improvement in most cases (but people will respond differently). These techniques reduce fat in the treated area and multiple areas can be treated in one session. If you want the maximum improvement, you are going to want to decrease your overall body fat, as well as have specific  sites treated. Diet is even more important than exercise, but ideally both should be focused on. There are a lot of healthy diets which share similar concepts such as eliminating processed foods, all sodas (including diet sodas) and refined sugars. My patients have had very good success with our Paleo Meal Replacement, which emphasizes reducing carbs.

For those willing to have a very small incisions, Smartlipo, which can done in the office with 2-3 mm incisions, for most women, is going to be more aggressive than Sculpsure and certainly more than Coolsculpt. It is also only done once. For most women, I prefer to give some oral sedation which means a driver is required. However, you can return to work the very next day.

For those women with cellulite, there are two generally helpful options: Cellulaze (which I offer) and Cellfina. Certainly there are presently no creams or massages or wraps or fascia blasters that I believe really work. You also get some skin tightening with Cellulaze but neither technique can totally eliminate cellulite. The key is to focus on improvement, not near perfection.

Many women develop hyperpigmentation or melasma on their face after their pregnancy (many women just develop this with natural aging). The Picosure laser with no downtime, has really revolutionized the treatment for this common problem. You should plan 3 treatments, each done one month apart. You can return to work or social activities the same day as your treatment. Facials and skin creams can be helpful after treatment, to prevent the hyperpigmentation from returning. Sunblocks are crucial if you are out in the bright sun. Older techniques such as Fraxel and CO2 lasers can be effective but cause a lot of redness. They can also make the problem worse on those women who are not Caucasian. The Picosure laser is safe on skin types 1-4.

Other changes in the face can include a loss of fat and thinning of the lips and lipstick bleed lines. These can be effectively improved by many of the fillers on the market and in select cases with fat transfers.

If you’d like to discuss non-surgical mommy makeover options, please contact my office at 703-406-2444 to schedule a Consultation with me.