When Is the Best Time for Surgery and Why is it Winter?

Announcer (00:02):
You're listening to Alabama the Beautiful with cosmetic surgeon, Dr. James Koehler and Kirstin Jarvis.

Kirstin (00:10):
Hey, Dr. Koehler and Dr. Gardner.

Dr. Koehler (00:13):
Hey.

Dr. Gardner (00:14):
Hey, Kirstin.

Kirstin (00:15):
Do y'all know what we're talking about today?

Dr. Koehler (00:18):
Please tell us.

Kirstin (00:19):
Well, it's almost Christmas, so we are talking about the best procedures to get in the wintertime.

Dr. Koehler (00:26):
Perfect.

Kirstin (00:27):
My first question is, why might someone not want to get cosmetic surgery in the spring and summer months?

Dr. Koehler (00:35):
Well, I mean, first of all, the winter is a great time to do things because they don't have all their summer plans, like traveling to go to the beach or do all this stuff. So a little more downtime. Holidays, especially over Christmas, a lot of people choose to recover during these kind of breaks like Thanksgiving and Christmas, especially teachers. I find that teachers, the Christmas is like, we're booking those surgeries in January for December of that year because they're like, "I have time off and this is when I want to do it. " So it's not so much of a weather issue, although I mean, but it's really like people want to enjoy the summer and enjoy the weather and it's just easier to do stuff in the wintertime when you're not got all your plans.

Kirstin (01:23):
Yeah. And you don't want those scars exposed to the sun, so less sun in the wintertime, more clothes in the wintertime.

Dr. Koehler (01:31):
Yeah. I mean, if you're wearing garments and things like that, especially here in the south, if you're going to have heavy garments, I mean, it gets hot. And if you're doing that in the summertime, I mean, it's really warm. And I think for things like laser resurfacing, for instance, yeah, you really got to be careful with your skin. So for sure here in the south, doing laser resurfacing in the wintertime is the best time to do it because we don't have the amount of sun exposure and you can protect your skin better and get a better result.

Kirstin (01:59):
And a lot of people kind of save up their PTO or time off till Christmastime or holiday time. So your spouse is maybe a little bit more likely to be at home to help you out or friends or family.

Dr. Koehler (02:11):
Yeah. Which I do think brings up a point. And sorry, I didn't mean to interrupt you, Doctor. But plan this ahead because it's a popular time. Definitely around the holidays is a popular time for people to want to have procedures done. And there's nothing worse than somebody's like, "Oh, it's November." They're like, "I think I'd like to have surgery in December," which is only four weeks away. I'm like, "You don't understand. These people booked this in January, February. So book ahead."

Dr. Gardner (02:36):
It's a great way to avoid your extended family too. Yes.

Dr. Koehler (02:43):
Kristen, you're nodding your head a lot there.

Kirstin (02:45):
Well, as somebody that had a tummy tuck on, I don't know, December 12th or something, I just really don't think it's a bad idea. All right. What are some popular procedures to get during the winter? Well, we kind of talked about CO2. What else?

Dr. Koehler (03:03):
I mean, all of them really. I mean, can you think of something, Dr. Gardner, that's more popular? I think the only thing that's more popular, and the only reason I'd say it's more popular is because I would say I push it to the winter. When people ask me about laser resurfacing, I'm like, "Hey, that's a wintertime procedure. We should continue." So the only reason we probably do more laser in the wintertime is because I've kind of encouraged people that want to have that done, that's a better time to do it. But that's the only procedure that I can really think of where there's a real big advantage to doing it in the wintertime. I think everything else is kind of, we do it all year round anyhow.

Dr. Gardner (03:39):
You're right. I think there's ... Well, we would always see an uptick in surgeries come October, right? Because kids are back in school, there's primarily female patients, but obviously we're getting more and more patients that are entering that cosmetic surgery field. So October was always the, okay, it's going to get really busy. Once COVID hit, it just seemed like that went away and then it was just busy year round. But I will say, yeah, people do slack off a little bit in the summer, mainly because they're on vacation and the last thing you want to be doing is nursing incisions and trying to heal. But I agree, the winter, the cooler weather definitely makes maintenance or taking care of incisions a lot better. Nobody wants to take care of a thigh lift in the middle of the summer.

Kirstin (04:25):
I think wintertime is a really great time to get breast dogs, tummy tucks, mommy makeover type stuff because you're in January, February, you have that six week recovery time. At the end of six weeks, you're feeling really good about yourself, looking really good. And so now it's springtime, you get to shop for bathing suits. And then summertime, you get to wear your new bathing suits.

Dr. Koehler (04:46):
Well, unfortunately it's not interesting. I agree with you. I think that would be the ideal time, but we actually ... Breast augmentation season is in the spring.

Kirstin (04:57):
They're thinking about their new bathing suits.

Dr. Koehler (04:58):
Well, I think they're looking at bathing suits and they start thinking about it. But the only downside of that, and obviously we tend to do a lot more breast augmentation, I feel like, in the springtime, but like you said, being able to get into the water like a pool or the ocean, your incisions have to be fully healed and that might be six weeks before we'll let you really fully submerge your incisions. So if you kind of wait too late into the spring, I mean, you can still enjoy your summer, just you're not going to be getting in the pool.

Kirstin (05:25):
What are some things you should plan to have during these recoveries as far as garments and compression and that type thing?

Dr. Gardner (05:35):
Yeah. So having a faja, depending on where your surgery is, but having adequate compression because we talk about things like seromas and swelling and the treatment for those, number one is compression. Number two is compression. Number three is compression. And so compression is key. And then obviously whatever pain medication you're going to need and then Arnica, things like that to help with bruising. And then obviously your caregiver and just map it all out. You're right. People that come unprepared, I think they're shocked by what they should have done ahead of time.

Kirstin (06:15):
And we do surgeries year round, so I know people do it, but I don't want to be wearing a faja or arm garments or thigh garments in South Alabama in August. It is hot. December sounds like a much better time to do that to me.

Dr. Koehler (06:31):
Yeah, I agree.

Kirstin (06:33):
Okay. If I decide to get surgery in the winter, say like December through February, when can I expect to see my final results? Will I be ready to go in the summertime?

Dr. Koehler (06:44):
Well, you'd be ready to go in the summertime, but that's a little bit of a tricky question. Depends what you're having done. Definitely some of these bigger body procedures where maybe we're doing a fair bit of liposuction and maybe like a tummy tuck or a body lift or something like that. I tell people it's three to six months probably to see your final results. So yeah, but you'll still be ... If you're eight weeks, three months out of surgery, you're going to be looking good. You might not be looking as good as you end up looking, but you're still going to be looking good. So I mean, I wouldn't say, "Oh, well, if I'm not going to look good for six months, I'm not going to do it now." I mean, there's always a recovery and there's always a period of time that you're not going to be ... It takes a while to get to the finish line, I guess is what I'm saying.

Dr. Gardner (07:30):
Yeah, I agree. Most of the swelling's going to be gone in two, four, six weeks, but that what I call microscopic swelling is going to take up to six months, especially with lipo.

Kirstin (07:41):
Another thing to talk about is sometimes in the wintertime, there are more indoor activities that you can do to enjoy some things that are more low key versus if you had procedures in the summertime. During the summertime, your family's going to be going out on the boat, going to the beach, going on vacation, but in the wintertime, at least you can stay in and bake cookies, watch Netflix, drink hot chocolate with everything.

Dr. Gardner (08:03):
Well, the fact that it gets dark at 4:30 also precludes the ability to go do any of that. So it probably does make sense. Thanks daylight savings time.

Kirstin (08:11):
Okay. So what should patients keep in mind if they have holiday travel plans post-surgery?

Dr. Koehler (08:20):
My advice, and this is true, if you've got a wedding to go to, a big trip you're planning on taking somewhere, don't do your surgery four weeks before you're planning this big trip that you've got all looking forward to. Yes, maybe you will be fine by then, but we always have to plan for the possibility that you could have a delayed recovery. There could be any sort of things that could delay your healing, and you hate that you've planned a trip that you either have to cancel or not enjoy the way that you would normally enjoy it. So that's why when people go, "Oh, I want to get this facelift done and my son's wedding is in six weeks." I'm like, "Oh, hit the brakes here." Could you possibly look fantastic in six weeks? Yes, you could. But if you aren't looking perfect, I don't want to ruin the fact that this is going to be a wedding that you're going to have to be there. So anyhow, planning is important.

Kirstin (09:14):
Also, even though it's probably about five or six weeks apart, we don't want to be getting a breast dog or tummy tuck during Thanksgiving break and then going to Breckenridge over Christmas. We might be healed, but not ready to ski or anything.

Dr. Koehler (09:28):
Yeah. Well, I mean, it's common sense. I mean, if you've got some big plans and talk to your doctor or our patient coordinators and say, "Hey, is this going to be an adequate amount of time before I plan to do whatever?" And we'll let you know. I mean, if we think it's reasonable, we'll tell you. If you're saying, "Oh, I got to go on a trip in six weeks and I'm getting my upper eyelids done," I'd be like, "You're going to be fine. Go for it. " You'll be healed for sure in six weeks. I mean, I suppose there could be some rare things, but generally speaking, that's fine.

Kirstin (09:56):
What's a cozy winter meal that's helpful for healing?

Dr. Gardner (10:00):
Anything that has high protein in it.

Kirstin (10:03):
A soup with lots of meat in it, anything like that, right?

Dr. Gardner (10:08):
I don't know. I always say stay with bland. Again, depending if you're talking fresh post-op, stay with bland stuff. If for some reason you get nauseated, the last thing you want is a stomach full of something that is not going to be nice coming back up. But we give nausea medications, risk of that's really low. But again, do the Dr. Phil thing. Set yourself up for success. Don't go eat spicy, jalapeno, whatever, post-op day one and then have problems.

Kirstin (10:38):
All right. Do you have a burning question for Dr. Koehler or Dr. Gardner or me? You can leave us a voicemail at our podcast website at alabamathebeautifulpodcast.com. We'd love to hear from you. Thanks, Dr. Koehler and Dr. Gardner.

Dr. Gardner (10:52):
Thanks, Kirstin.

Dr. Koehler (10:52):
Thank you.

Kirstin (10:53):
Go back to making Alabama beautiful.

Dr. Koehler (10:55):
All right.

Announcer (10:58):
Got a question for Dr. Koehler? Leave us a voicemail at alabamathebeautifulpodcast.com. Dr. James Koehler is a cosmetic surgeon practicing in Fair Hope, Alabama. To learn more about Dr. Koehler and Eastern Shore Cosmetic Surgery, go to easternshorecosmeticsurgery.com. The commentary in this podcast represents opinion and does not present medical advice, but general information that does not necessarily relate to the specific conditions of any individual patient. If you enjoyed this episode, please share it and subscribe to Alabama the Beautiful on YouTube, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you like to listen to podcasts. Follow us on Instagram at EasternShoreCosmeticSurgery. Alabama The Beautiful is a production of The Axis, T-H-E-A-X-I-S.io.