Pos-Partum Plastic Surgery Might Help Improve Mental Well-Being

The post-partum period may have a negative impact on people’s mental well-being—over 50% of people indicate their body dissatisfaction has been triggered by pregnancy. As cosmetic surgeries have been linked to increased self-esteem, women who want to get their body confidence back increasingly opt for a mommy makeover after childbirth.

Dr. Gediminas Samulenas, a plastic and reconstructive surgeon at Nordesthetics Clinic, one of the leading medical tourism clinics in Europe, attributes the rising popularity of post-partum plastic surgeries to the current social interest to look and feel the best version of oneself.

“A while ago, people were less encouraged to undergo plastic surgery because it was like a symbol of vanity, and surgeries were less perfected in general. Now things are changing rapidly—plastic surgery has become more accessible, and women are more self-confident about restoring their body shapes to a pre-pregnancy state. And also seeing more and more of such surgical transformations in the social media reassures mothers that their intentions to claim back the body they had before are more or less global,” the surgeon said.

Rising demand for combination surgeries

At the same time, the number of combined surgeries has been steadily climbing year by year—around 70% of plastic surgeries performed at the Clinic are combined. People choose to undergo several surgeries at once because they have a lower cumulative risk of potential complications if the patient does not have any underlying illnesses, chronic diseases, or other concomitant conditions, and only one anesthesia is required. Also, doing several surgeries in one visit reduces the time off days and travel and recovery expenses.

Currently, the most requested combination at the Clinic is a mommy makeover that combines an abdominal procedure with breast correction, as changes related to pregnancy have a severe impact on breasts and the abdominal wall. The breast correction may involve an augmentation, a lift, or both, and the abdominal surgeries range from the classic tummy tuck to the extended fleur-de-lis abdominoplasties. The surgeon advises scheduling the desired plastic surgery at least six months after stopping breastfeeding.

Esthetic procedure or return to pre-pregnancy self?

Although the post-partum plastic procedure deals with correcting the changes women are not happy with, the surgeon believes they are less about the esthetic appeal and more about alleviating some pent-up psychological issues.

“The main goals of post-pregnancy plastic surgeries are the elimination of the psychological burden, the reversal of pregnancy-related body defects, and the restoration of natural anatomy. Giving birth and raising children is one of our paramount purposes in life. And when the residual body changes can be reversed—why shouldn’t women do that to return to their desired pre-pregnancy body?” Dr. Samulenas added. “Sometimes it’s quite unbelievable how liberated and fabulous women feel about themselves when they heal after these surgeries and see their final results. The majority of them start living differently, become more self-confident.”