1.    Have I exhausted all my options?

Surgery, because of its potential risks, should only be a last resort. Even after the treatment, often doctors advise a strict exercise regimen and control of food intake to prevent the fat from growing back, so it’s a good idea to try these out before the procedure itself. Try specific exercises that target the fat-prone zones of your body, like the thighs, and lifestyle changes, in addition to diet.

2.    Am I a good candidate?

To undergo surgery, you have to be above 18 years of age. The method, being only a body-reshaping one, is not for overweight or obese people. Smoking should be stopped prior to the operation and during recovery. Your health should be fit for anesthesia, which maybe either local or general.

3.    Who is my perfect doctor?

Make sure you choose a doctor who has previous experience in his field. Try to research online, and find a professional who is located near you, so you can be easily transported in case of emergencies. Make sure you clear all your doubts beforehand. Don’t hunt for a cost-effective doctor—it’s your life at stake here, so be don’t pinch every penny.

4.    Will I make it out alive?

Although a minor one, a surgery is a surgery—they are going to cut you up and scrape out your insides (just your fat). Be prepared to undergo some pain (although doc might give you some painkillers). The scars are tiny, but in certain people, they may have a tendency to grow. There are risks associated with liposuction surgery, although the success rate is generally high. These range from small-scale anticipated reactions, such as bruising and temporary skin asymmetry, to more serious complications like scarring and haematomas.

5.    What am I expecting?
Many people look forward to growing slim soon after the surgery. What they have to understand is that the treatment is not a get-slim-quick or magic fix for the body. A realistic weight loss is generally three to five kilograms, and the body will return more shaped up. Don’t expect your mirror to tell you that you are the fairest of them all, because liposuction will NOT guarantee that.

Whether you eventually decide to go for this treatment or not, the choice is entirely up to you. Make sure you research all the options available before going for liposuction surgery and don’t let anyone pressure you into making decisions.

Fat—how is it that this one word, when you grow up, has assumed almost sinister proportions? Yes, I agree, being obese is not all that healthy, but certain people in the normal category, who have tried diets and exercise, are now willing to spend their hard-earned money to get rid of this once-much admired commodity. The keyword, around which most celebrities revolve around, is liposuction.

Liposuction is basically the removal of fat cells with a hollow pen like instrument. It is a cosmetic surgery, and one that 500,000 people in the US alone resort to every single year. As if scraping out your insides with a pen were not gross enough, there’s also the post surgery pain, the bruises, the scars (which could grow in size), and the chance that the fat might return.

Not to mention the cost! Liposuction prices generally vary from doctor to doctor, and from the part of the body that is to be treated. Most people opt to treat many areas of the body at one go, which means the rate would substantially increase. Often, people have unrealistic ideas about the surgery, thinking it can transform them into their dream figure. When that doesn’t happen, they are sorely disappointed, and they book more sessions with the surgeon—that’s even more money going down the drain.

Since the treatment is purely a cosmetic one, the liposuction prices are generally not covered by the insurance companies, which means every penny will have to be burned from your pocket! If you’re like me, you’d want to save every last penny, and often this leads to people choosing unknown doctors, who offer killer rates for liposuction, and then disappear with the cash, leaving a maimed individual behind. Yes, the law might be able to put him behind bars, but who’s going to give you your health back, much less your money?

So in the end, if you do decide that this surgery is a must needed item on your to-do list, there’s no stopping you. However, always remember that the quality is always more important that the liposuction prices, because your health is at stake here. No amount of money spent on your health once it is lost, can bring it back.

Before you stop me to explain that the surgery is just for the rich and famous, because of the liposuction costs involved, let me shock you. More than 500,000 surgeries are performed every year in the US alone, and this makes the treatment the most popular type of cosmetic surgery in the nation.1 Besides, models ought to have a body to die for before they start raking in the big bucks, so it shouldn’t rip a hole in the pockets now, should it?

Liposuction dates back to Charles Dujarier, a French doctor, who hacked off portions of fat manually. Don’t worry; the deadly procedure dead-ended when it resulted in a patient’s death. Back then, liposuction cost a fortune, but today, advanced improvements, led by gynecologist Giorgio Fischer, set the pattern for liposuction, which involves the removal of fat from under the skin with the use of a vacuum-suction cannula (a hollow pen-like instrument). Sometimes, an ultrasonic probe, which breaks up the fat into small pieces, may be used, and that fat is then removed by suction.1 Since one is under local or general anesthesia, there is no feeling of pain.

Although a simple procedure to get that elusive body, be warned: liposuction is not a weight loss surgery, but rather, a body-reshaping one, so you can’t expect to thin down with just one session. Usually, people loose about 5kgs of fat, but the good news is, the contours will be improved in the areas suctioned. There are the risks associated with surgery, but since this is a minor one, it’s not a big deal. With a few painkillers, the post-operative pain is mild, and hospitalization is generally not necessary. Remember that liposuction prices may vary.

Check beforehand whether the surgery is covered by your health insurance, as it is a type of cosmetic surgery and is not generally included. The rate generally differs from doctor to doctor, but the average liposuction cost in a body part ranges from $2,000 to $7,000.2 Adding additional body parts may cost more.

However, it’s really a small price to pay for that dream like body, especially after many unsuccessful attempts at removing the fat by diet and exercise. Champagne wishes and caviar dreams3 to that hourglass figure!

I have never understood this fascination of going under the knife to look like those stick-thin models. What’s wrong with plain old exercise and diet? Many people argue that such fad diets don’t work for them. Well, I’m not talking about a crash diet, what I mean is an complete lifestyle change—eating well proportioned meals at the proper times, with regular exercise. Even if this does not seem to be working out, there are many other choices, like plus-size clothing, which, when worn in the right way, tends to play down unsightly areas of the body.

If you are going for this surgery, chances are, you are overweight. Realistically, it is impossible to get that slim new you in just one session, for the most common weight loss after liposuction is reported to be 5 kgs—hardly a flattering figure, excuse the pun. If you want more reduction, you would have to undergo a second session of the hospital, local or general anesthesia, bruises, scars, and post-operative pain. Excessive liposuction can cause problems including dents, lumps, and sagging skin.1 Moreover, this surgery isn’t the magic fix your body needs—you are STILL going to have to watch what you eat following the operation, and more carefully than ever before. Liposuction does not ensure that you won’t recover some fat.

Besides surgery, I would highly recommend, no, not another cosmetic discovery, but rather an internal change—an attitude adjustment. Because of their fat figure, most people complain of low self-confidence and hence opt for this treatment. However, I think there are a whole lot of people on this planet who care for the person you are inside rather than the physical side. It’s true that individuals with bigger bodies have bigger hearts, and therefore more love to go round! At the end of the day, people aren’t actually looking at how much you weighed, or where your fatty-trouble spots lay, but rather the way you made them feel, and your optimistic outlook.

The surgery isn’t worth the risk. So, if you’ve got fat, I’d say stick with it.

But something just doesn’t fit. Would it be your fear of going under the knife, or a general worry of the complications that could arise after surgery? Starting with a doctor who manually cut out sections of fat, it’s been 30 long years since liposuction surgery first arrived on the scene. Today, the common procedure is much less scarier; one is under general anesthesia and the treatment proceeds like a minor surgery. However, for those even afraid to take that small risk, help is not far away.

Laser liposuction— is the doctor’s answer for your cry. Approved for use in the USA by the FDA since 2006, laser liposuction is all becoming the new rage. Although still done under anesthesia, only local sedatives are used to numb the area. The procedure is done in an office or a clinic, where the fatty areas to be dissolved are marked. The technique uses a laser to melt away the fat promptly, which the body drains naturally via its lymphatic system. The proximate skin then becomes tight, reducing flabbiness and giving it a youthful solidity. This procedure can be done almost anywhere in the body.

The great thing about laser liposuction is that each session hardly takes longer than a trip to your local beauty parlor for a pedicure—around 30-45 minutes. Most people resume normal activities within 24 hours, and there is no hospitalization necessary, because of the very short recovery period. Any mild pain can be eased with over-the-counter painkillers. Within two months, the area will have readjusted to the new form, and you will be able to notice the sculptured look. If you are not satisfied, you can go back for another session to reduce additional fat.

However, laser liposuction is not covered by insurance companies, being a cosmetic procedure, and it will generally set you back by at least $2000-$6000.Choose a reputed doctor, who has prior experience in the field, to guarantee better results. Make sure you research all your options well, and don’t compromise on quality just to save a few pennies, because it is your health at stake here.

Laser liposuction promises negligible scarring and blood loss, yet it involves piercing of the skin, although minimally invasive. No surgery is 100% risk-free, yet laser liposuction is one of the safest cosmetic treatments that are available to shed that fat and gain back your confidence.