Fran's Liposuction and Tummy Tuck

"It's a whole new me!"

Last September, at age 50, Fran decided she had had enough. A busy single parent with a professional job in a local non-profit organization, Fran felt she had been taking pretty good care of herself inside and out for several years. Yet she still had extra pounds around her midsection and droopy, saggy skin as well. She said, "I just got tired of looking at my stomach when I got out of the shower."

Describing herself as one who "always had a weight problem," Fran can pinpoint the time she decided to start taking better care of her body. It was 16 years ago. Since then, she faithfully worked out, walked often, took vitamins and tried to watch what she ate. Still, she said, "I overindulged sometimes in the eating department." And as an avid Harley rider, Fran also confessed she tended to drink too much beer. "That's what most bikers like to do!"

Fran said she had fat around her torso she just couldn't get rid of, plus that excess skin. "It even kept me from doing sit ups," she said. The extra bulk just wouldn't allow that kind of exercise. Even more troublesome, the excess weight she carried caused other problems. She was plagued by arthritis in the knee and a back that often felt sore.

Fran decided to take action; to push her campaign to get in shape into high gear. While she knew that tummy tuck surgery and liposuction are not considered weight loss treatments, she felt that having the procedures would be just the kickstart she needed.

Fran chose Dr. Lopez in part because she liked the fact that Dr. Lopez did tummy tucks and liposuction right in Fresno. Most important, Fran appreciated the fact that Dr. Lopez is a woman. "I'm more comfortable with a woman doctor," Fran said. "Dr. Lopez knows our female body parts, and she knows how we feel."

Fran had a tummy tuck and liposuction last fall. Dr. Lopez removed about a dozen pounds of excess fat and skin from Fran's abdomen, sides and back. Her bulging tummy, love handles and bra rolls were suddenly gone! During that month, Fran gradually added activities like working and walking long distances back to her life.

The notion of using cosmetic surgery as a catalyst for change worked just as Fran thought it would. Staying true to her plan to get in shape, Fran continued her campaign as she recovered. Today she's lost a total of 65 pounds. "It's a whole new me!" she exclaimed.

She disciplined herself to eat even better than she had been, and she gave up beer completely. Now I go for the occasional glass of merlot instead," she laughed. "I was a size 16, now I'm a size 10," she said proudly. "Sometimes people don't recognize me."

Fran feels she has more energy than she's had for a long time, and her joint and back problems seem to be gone. She said, "I thank God and Dr. Lopez for helping me." Fran described Dr. Lopez as a "compassionate person who takes your interests to heart," and says she has referred her cousin and her hairdresser to the doctor so far.

"I'm over 50 years old now; if I have 20 more years I want to live them to the fullest!"

As her final thoughts, Fran noted, "I never say ‘it's all about me.' I love my friends and family. That's the trouble with women, we always put other people first." About her surgery and her campaign to get in shape, Fran said, "I'm over 50 years old now; if I have 20 more years I want to live them to the fullest! This is not about looking cute. This I did for me."