In terms of the cosmetic corrective procedures I’ve had, what didn’t go so well is my tummy tuck. The results were amazing, but the complications were relatively frightening.

I had lost a good deal of weight and the amount of extra skin left over was not going to go away no matter how much more weight I lost or how many sit ups I could do. I decided on a tummy tuck. I did all the prep work, was in good health, and when the surgery was over and I woke up, I found myself in the emergency room. During the surgery too much fluid had built up in my body. As a result, my oxygen levels dropped and my blood levels weren’t recovering. I found myself with oxygen tubes in my nose, IVs in my arms, I had been given pain killers, and I eventually needed a blood transfusion. I was completely shocked and so was the surgeon. What I experienced turned out to be a rare but not unheard-of complication.

I spent four nights in the hospital on an IV drip, oxygen, and antibiotics. It wasn’t pleasant and at a few points downright worrisome. But I’ll never forget the one night when the nurse came in to give me my medications and check on my vital signs and she asked me was it worth it. I remember looking up at her with blurry eyes, barely awake, and still acutely feeling the pain, and asking, “Was what worth it?” She asked, “Would you have the tummy tuck again given everything you’re going through now?” I smiled as I lifted up my hospital robe and showed her my completely flat tummy. I said, “I would rather not have had complications, but I’ve never seen anything so beautiful as my perfectly flat, even, tummy.”

All in all I’ve been happy (actually, really happy) with the results I’ve experienced from the medical corrective procedures I’ve chosen. I do look younger, my tummy is flat (even though I’ve gained some weight since the operation), my face is doing great (no surgery, just Botox, dermal injections, and laser resurfacing), and my breasts have held up pretty well (no pun intended).

The problems I’ve experienced along the way was due to my tummy tuck (pretty major complications) and with the form of dermal injection I chose, Artecoll (also called ArteFill).

Why did I choose Artecoll? Well, I’m pretty high maintenance as it is, given how often I have to get my hair and nails done for media appearances and photo shoots. I already get Botox once every 6 to 7 months. So, anything I can do to spread out appointments, especially those requiring downtime, I’ll do.

I chose Artecoll because it lasts for years. Some would say it lasts “permanently” (but permanent needs qualifying because while Artecoll doesn’t break down the face will still “age” and the younger appearance will diminish).

The first time I had Artecoll injected was in 2000, and though I probably could’ve waited another two or three years at least. At the time, I wanted to get my lower lip done anyway and adding a little more along my upper lip and the fold that runs between the nose and lip made sense. I wanted a fresher, but still natural, appearance.

I know all the risks with dermal fillers. Artecoll shares the same risks with every other filler but Artecoll has an additional twist. Because Artecoll is a “permanent” filler the problem is that when something goes wrong the complication often remains. That was what happened for me. I got small, relatively imperceptible granulomas (little hard bumps) that I could slightly feel around my lips. Those little lumps did eventually go away (at least as far as I could feel). However, even now, if I press too hard on my lips to remove lipstick or once in a while in the middle of an intense kiss, it does ache. Not the best, but damn it does look good!

I’m not one to keep my beauty secrets a secret. Why bother. It just creates a distance between women and clouds reality. If your boobs are fake so what? From any perspective plastic surgery or cosmetic corrective procedures such as Botox, dermal injections, or laser resurfacing, should not be shocking or embarrassing. They are just choices like having sex, going on vacations, or dieting, and how much you do or don’t do is up to you.

For me, because I’m in the public eye more then most, I also don’t want people guessing at what I’ve had done. Sort of like we all do to celebrities, wondering what happened to Meg Ryan’s lips or Melanie Griffin’s face, or Penelope Cruz’s nose, or the fact that no celebrity or model over the age of 40 can raise their eyebrows (that’s Botox). And I surely don’t want to mislead people thinking that my face looks like it does simply because I use my products.

So for the record, I had breast implants in 1984 (I have not had them redone, they are the same ones and still look pretty good), a tummy tuck in 2006 (that looks great but I had serious complications after the surgery was over), dermal injections (twice now since 2000), Botox (every 6 or 7 months for the past several years), Thermage (that was not worth the trouble), IPL (about 4 times, which worked pretty well for brown skin discolorations and red surfaced capillaries), and FRAXEL (which has been very good for smoothing and firming).

As I do more, which I’m sure I will, I’ll let you know how it goes and why I made the choices and decisions I’ve made. Mostly I’m trying to avoid plastic surgery for as long as possible, that step seems truly scary as there are just too many examples of where people just don’t look the same and if anything they look really weird or other-worldly.