Body Lift

What Is A Body Lift?

If your skin has lost elasticity due to age, pregnancy or weight loss, a body lift might be right for you. That’s because a body lift eliminates excess skin and tightens muscles. Your Cape Fear Valley Health plastic surgeon will discuss three body lift options:

• Lower body lift: This procedure combines a Brazilian Butt Lift and thigh lift to address the hips, buttocks and thighs.
• Mid-body lift: This technique is similar to the lower body lift. Your plastic surgeon will also remove excess fat and skin around the hips, buttocks and thighs.
• Upper body lift: This procedure typically addresses the arms, breasts and back.

Feel like yourself again

Loose, sagging skin prevents you from wearing the clothes you love, hampers your mobility and could affect your self-esteem. You can trust that Cape Fear Valley Health plastic surgeons will listen to your concerns and answer your questions. We’ll evaluate your health needs, cosmetic goals and skin to determine if a body lift is right for you.

Our Approach to Body Lift

At Cape Fear Valley Health, our plastic surgeons stay up-to-date on the latest medical advances and innovations. Enjoy first-class care in the comfort of your hometown.

Understanding Your Goals

Our compassionate, warm and friendly staff will treat you like a friend, not a number. Your Cape Fear Valley Health plastic surgeon will discuss your treatment goals and carefully evaluate your specific areas of concern. Answering your questions and helping you feel informed is what we’re here for.

We Stay Connected

After your body lift, we’ll make sure you understand how to take care of yourself. Recovering from surgery takes time, but we’ll be checking in with you to make sure you’re healing properly. 

Your Care Team

You’ll have a team of experts alongside you from the moment you call our office. They include:

• Plastic surgeons
• Licensed Practical Nurses
• Medical staff

What to Expect With Body Lift

A full body lift can take between four and four hours. The exact length of surgery depends on the specific procedures you’re having done. You won’t feel any pain during surgery because you’ll be under general anesthesia. 

Your plastic surgeon will discuss which option is best for you:

• Lower body lift: This procedure combines a Brazilian Butt Lift and thigh lift to address the hips, buttocks and thighs. Your plastic surgeon will make an incision around your waist, across the lower abdomen and down your inner thighs. Then, your plastic surgeon will remove excess fat and skin, pulling the remaining skin taut for a smoother figure.
• Mid-body lift: This technique is similar to the lower body lift to remove excess fat and skin around the hips, buttocks and thighs. However, a mid-body lift also addresses the abdomen at the same time. The procedure tightens underlying muscles for a flatter stomach and trimmer waistline.
• Upper body lift: With an arm lift, your plastic surgeon will place an incision along the inside of your arm or armpit to remove excess tissue and tighten the skin. Your plastic surgeon can perform a breast lift or breast augmentation at the same time. For the back, your surgeon will place vertical incisions along either side of your body, tightening the skin and removing excess tissue.

Body Lift Consultation

Your Cape Fear Valley Health plastic surgeon will discuss your treatment goals and carefully evaluate your specific areas of concern. Next, they’ll make body contouring recommendations based on your desired results and develop your personalized treatment plan. 

Are You a Candidate for Body Lift?

A body lift is a good option if you have sagging, excess skin in multiple areas of the body. It’s especially effective if you’ve lost a significant amount of weight.

Procedures work best on patients who:

• Are in good overall health.
• Don’t drink alcohol for two weeks before surgery. (Alcohol acts as a blood thinner, which increases the risk of excess bleeding during surgery.)
• Maintain a stable weight at least six months to a year before surgery.
• Quit using nicotine products three to six weeks before surgery and three to six weeks after. (Nicotine increases your risk of surgical complications, like blood clots.)

Body Lift Recovery and Results

Recovery time from a body lift can vary significantly, depending on which treatments you undergo. Here’s a look at the recovery timeline.

• Lower and upper body lifts: About two to three weeks.
• Mid-body lifts: About four to five weeks.
• A full body lift: About six to seven weeks.

While healing, you’ll wear compression garments to support your incision sites and help your body maintain its new contours. You may also have drains to prevent fluid build-up. You’ll come to our office for regular follow-up appointments to make sure you’re healing properly.

You’ll see immediate results after the body lift. However, it takes between a year or two for the final results to fully develop.

Body Lift Risks

Like all surgeries, a body lift involves a certain degree of risk. However, when it’s performed by a qualified and experienced plastic surgeon, serious complications are rare. Minimize other complications by following the instructions and advice of your plastic surgeon.

Some risks and complications could include:

• Deep vein thrombosis, cardiac or pulmonary complications
• Infection
• Pain, swelling or numbness
• Poor wound healing
• Scarring
• Skin discoloration, loose skin or irregularities
• Uneven contours or asymmetry