Mini tummy tuck surgery many be right for you
I think that you may be a regional candidate for a mini tummy tuck surgery or an endoscopic tummy tuck.
You really have very little extra skin and diastasis below your belly button. (Earl Stephenson, Jr., MD, DDS, Atlanta Plastic Surgeon)
Mini tuck or standard tummy tuck surgery
Sounds like you have a great family. This is hard to answer.
Your photos suggest you will get a good result from a mini-tuck – the muscle stretching is clearly below the belly button.
The problem is that in many people, the lower muscle tightening of the mini-tuck can then create a new bulge, above the belly button. See a Board Certified Plastic Surgeon for a complete exam, discussion and plan of the right approach.It may be a mini-tuck – converted to a full muscle repair if needed at the time of surgery. (Elizabeth Morgan, MD, PhD, Atlanta Plastic Surgeon)
Mini tummy tuck surgery with “umbilical float”
If the skin laxity in the upper abdomen is minimal but you need a muscle separation repair, then a variation called an “umbilical float” might be considered. This is done by detaching the belly button from underneath (so there is no external scar there) which allows access to do a full muscle repair. The belly button is re-attached, and may be located downward a centimeter or two if that is helpful. (Richard Baxter, MD, Seattle Plastic Surgeon)
Full or Mini tummy tuck surgery?
It looks like you would get the best results from a full tummy tuck surgery. You will end up having a lot more extra skin once your muscles are tightened and that “gap” (diastasis) is fixed. (Ronald Schuster, MD, Baltimore Plastic Surgeon)