What it changes
The loose skin below the navel is removed — not tightened, removed — and with it, usually, the stretch marks that sit on it. What remains is redraped over an abdomen that is flat because the wall underneath has been repaired.
That repair is the part patients underestimate. The two rectus muscles separate during pregnancy and often do not come back together. No amount of core training closes a true diastasis; it is stitched closed, from the ribs to the pubis, and that is what produces the flat profile rather than merely a smaller one.
It is not a substitute for weight loss and it is not liposuction. It is an operation for skin and muscle.
The scar — said plainly
There is a long scar, low across the lower abdomen, placed to sit inside underwear or a swimming costume. It is permanent. It is pink and firm for months and fades over a year or more, and in darker skin it can stay pink longer.
The navel is repositioned through a new opening, which leaves a small scar around it. Anyone considering this operation should decide about the scar before deciding about the shape — patients who are content with the trade are the ones who are happy afterwards.
How the operation is done
A general anaesthetic, two to three hours. An incision low across the abdomen, the skin lifted to the ribs, the muscle separation closed with a running suture, the excess skin removed and the navel brought out through a new opening.
Drains are usually placed and removed within the first week. One or two nights in hospital is common, and you go home walking slightly bent — which is expected, and straightens over the first fortnight.
Recovery
What actually happens, week by week
Recovery is part of the treatment rather than an afterthought, so it is described here in the same detail as the operation.
Day 0–3
Hospital and drainsWalking bent at the waist. Drains in. Pain is real and is managed.
Week 1–2
Standing straighterDrains out. Short walks hourly. No lifting at all.
Week 3–6
Desk workMost return to office work by three weeks. Binder still worn.
Week 6–12
Exercise returnsCore work last, and only when cleared.
Month 12
Scar maturesThe line flattens and pales. This is a year-long judgement.
Honesty
Risks, and what can go wrong
Every operation has them. They are listed here because a patient who has read them and still wants to proceed is a patient who will be content afterwards.
- A collection of fluid under the skin — a seroma — which is the commonest complication and may need draining in clinic.
- Delayed healing at the centre of the scar, particularly in smokers; nicotine is the single biggest avoidable risk in this operation.
- Numbness of the skin between the scar and the navel, often permanent.
- Blood clots — uncommon, which is why you are walked early and given prophylaxis.
Results
Photographs
Before-and-after photographs for this procedure are published on the main page as they are taken, under the same rules as every other case on this site: the same frame, the same distance, the same light, and no retouching beyond the masking that protects identity.
Nothing is published without the patient’s consent, and consent for one photograph is not treated as consent for all of them.
Take it away
The printed sheet
Everything on this page, on two sides of A4, written for patients and free to take from the clinic. It says what the operation does, what it costs you in time, and what it does not fix.
Abdominoplasty (tummy tuck)
Patient information — PDF, 2 pages
Open the sheet →Questions
What patients ask
How long is the recovery, honestly?
Two weeks before you stand straight and feel human, three to four weeks before desk work is comfortable, six weeks before real exercise, and a year before the scar looks like it will finally look.
Where exactly is the scar?
Low and horizontal across the lower abdomen, positioned to sit inside underwear or a swimming costume. It is permanent, and it is discussed in detail before you commit.
Should I finish having children first?
Yes. A subsequent pregnancy will separate the repaired muscle again. The operation is best done when your family is complete.
Can I have it instead of losing weight?
No. It is done at a stable weight, and results are much better in someone who has already reached theirs. Significant weight loss afterwards will loosen the result.
Is liposuction done at the same time?
Often, on the flanks and waist, to give a better outline than the tummy tuck alone would produce. It is planned as a single operation.