Getting a tummy tuck can be a life-changing procedure for patients who have recently undergone significant weight loss. By removing excess skin and tightening the abdominal muscles, a tummy tuck can reclaim your waist and make your sleeker form all that more appealing. This is the primary goal of a tummy tuck. What you may not realize is that the benefits may go far beyond what you see in the mirror. Let’s look at some unexpected tummy tuck benefits.

Unexpected Tummy Tuck Benefits

These are just a few unexpected, medical benefits of a tummy tuck that may positively affect your life.

Reduced Urinary Incontinence

Tummy tucks are popular among two primary groups: postpartum women and individuals who have undergone rapid weight loss. For postpartum women, urinary incontinence can be a major challenge that regularly interferes with their daily life. A laugh, cough, or sneeze may be all it takes to create an embarrassing incident.

Fortunately, a tummy tuck will likely help with reversing stress urinary incontinence thanks to a minor bladder obstruction created in the soft tissue during the procedure. That may not sound like a positive outcome, but it is one of few tools available to women whose stress urinary incontinence does not respond to typical postpartum care.

Improved Posture

Serious weight gain and pregnancy both have the ability to severely distend the stomach, weakening auxiliary muscles throughout the abdomen. Given that these muscles are difficult to target, many patients struggle to regain strength within the core muscles that rely on these auxiliary muscles for support.

By re-tightening the abdominal muscles, a tummy tuck provides improved support for the muscles you can easily target. This can make it easier to perform abdominally-focused tasks, giving you the stepping stones to rebuilding total core strength. It may also make it easier to maintain proper posture due to the increased spinal support provided by the tightened musculature.

Ventral Hernia Elimination

Weakened abdominal muscles may allow segments of the intestine or abdominal tissue to poke through, forming what we call a hernia. Surprisingly, hernia correction and tummy tucks share a lot of common characteristics.

Still, both procedures are designed to address the weakened abdominal muscles, creating a proper barrier around your internal organs. As a result, patients who struggle with hernias may opt to receive a tummy tuck as part of their treatment.

Reversed Diastasis Recti

Any sort of rapid weight gain has the ability to cause diastasis recti. This is the physical separation or tearing of the abdominal muscles down the middle. Still, somewhere between 50 and 60% of all pregnant women experience this condition.

One part of a conventional tummy tuck procedure involves physically stitching the separated abdominal muscles back together. This process can help to re-shape your waist along its original lines. But you should keep in mind that it will require a fair amount of recovery.

The Truth About the Tummy Tuck

A tummy tuck is a serious medical procedure that requires hours in the operating room and weeks of recovery. However, if you have the time and resources to take the rest needed, a tummy tuck can make a major difference in your life. Not only will it give you back the shape you loved prior to your weight gain or pregnancy. But it can help to correct some of the long-term fallout associated with major weight gain.

To learn more about whether a tummy tuck could be the right choice for you, talk to your local board-certified cosmetic surgeon. Based on your personal medical history, your doctor will provide a more personalized cost-benefit analysis that will help you better understand what a tummy tuck can do for you if you choose to undergo cosmetic surgery in Houston.