Rest & Recovery after Thigh Lift Surgery

Thu 14th Aug 2025

A Thigh Lift (Thigh Lipectomy) is a surgical procedure typically performed on individuals who have experienced significant weight loss or who have an abundance of skin that has lost its elasticity. They are left with loose, excessive skin folds along the upper inner thigh that can cause various health concerns. During surgery, this excess skin and fatty tissue are removed.

If you’re considering a Thigh Lift, you’ll likely have a lot of questions. In particular, you’re probably keen to know what you might experience immediately after surgery and what the recovery period will involve, so this article explains these details. Plus, we’ll give you a typical six-week timeline that outlines your Thigh Lift recovery.

Your Time in Hospital

A Thigh Lipectomy is performed in a private hospital under general anaesthesia. Dr Dona’s patients can choose to have their surgery at either Westmead Private Hospital or Norwest Private Hospital. Usually, the procedure takes between three and five hours.

Most patients spend at least two nights in hospital before they feel medically fit to return home. However, other patients benefit from staying several more days — even up to a week — before returning home.

Waking up After Your Thigh Lift Procedure

When you wake from surgery, you’ll be lying on your back. Your bed head will be elevated, and a pillow will be placed under your knees to support a relaxed, restful position, ensuring maximum comfort. Typically, you’ll have one plastic tube or drain placed next to your wounds (one on each side).

While you were still unconscious, you would have also been fitted with a compression garment. This garment is like tight sleeves that cover your legs and thighs. It helps control swelling, reduces tension on the wounds and plays a vital role in your healing. This garment also helps your thighs heal in the optimal shape while minimising the appearance of scars. You must wear your compression garments for at least the first six weeks after surgery.

To help prevent DVT, you’ll have special massage devices (calf compressors) on both legs. These help promote blood flow and are designed to minimise the chances of any blood clots developing.

You’ll also have a catheter in your bladder. This will stay in place while you’re in hospital so you don’t have to worry about getting up and going to the toilet. You’ll have at least one drip in place. Your drip will supply you with intravenous fluids, pain control medication and antibiotics.

Your wounds will be covered with waterproof dressings—these will remain in place for about a week after your surgery. Your wounds will have been stitched using several layers of internal dissolving sutures. You might also have some visible sutures; these will be removed at your one-week post-operative appointment.

Your First Couple of Days in Hospital

While we want you to rest following your procedure, we will also be encouraging you to start some gentle mobilisation. This can be as simple as circling your ankles or tapping your toes. You’ll also have a physiotherapist visit you on the first day after your surgery. They’ll help you get out of bed and start gently moving — the sooner we get you out of bed, the better.

You’ll also be allowed to have a shower to freshen up, but you’ll have a nurse or physiotherapist assist you with this.

Typically, your drains, catheter and any other IV leads will come out two days after your procedure, before you leave the hospital. Around this time (two to three days post-op), your dressings will also be removed. Your stitches, though, are dissolvable, so they won’t need to come out. On rare occasions, though, a stitch may get irritated. If this occurs, one of our nurses may have to remove it.

Initially, you may experience some shooting pains or burning in your legs. This is usually to do with your drains and typically goes away over time. Numbness and tingling can also be experienced, and similarly, these symptoms usually go away as time passes. However, occasionally numbness can persist; this can occur with any surgical site.

To help with any pain or discomfort, your specialist anaesthetist will give you plenty of pain medication to take while in hospital and to take home with you. (You’ll also be given blood thinners and antibiotics to take home.) Please take your medication as prescribed.

A Note on Bloating & Constipation…

Bloating and constipation are common side effects after surgery. This is because you’ve been given strong pain medication and have become far less mobile, both of which slow the bowels. To counteract this, you’ll be given a constipation medication called Movical. You’ll start this medication while in hospital, but you may want to continue taking it for the first few days after you return home. Additionally, drink plenty of water and eat fibre-rich foods as this will help you restore your everyday bowel habits.

Your Post-Operative Visits To the Clinic

Typically, once patients have returned home from hospital, they come into the clinic daily for the first four days. During this time, you will commence our HeaLED Post-surgery Care Program. A core component of this program is LED Light Therapy, which reduces pain and inflammation, accelerates wound healing and minimises the appearance of scars.

In addition to Light Therapy, Thigh Lift patients are also given skin needling treatments, which have been proven to encourage healing and scar quality.

During your first post-operative visit, you’ll be given a topical cream to be applied to the surgical area. At Bella Plastic Surgery, we don’t require the use of silicon strips or any other topical products, as our medical-grade topical cream not only provides a natural seal of beeswax (binding ingredients in the product) but also sends nutrients into the second layer of skin where our living cells are. This helps to speed up healing and increase the formation of healthy scar tissue.

IMPORTANT: Your follow-up appointments with Dr Dona and the nursing staff are vital and must not be missed. They enable our team to monitor your healing process, assess the incision sites and ensure there are no signs of complications, such as infection, blood clots or fluid accumulation.

Recovering at Home After Surgery

When you return home from the hospital, you’ll need to rest, but also mentally prepare yourself for the recovery process ahead. Healing from Thigh Lift surgery is quite a structured process with critical steps to optimise your outcomes and minimise the risk of complications. For example, you’ll need to:

• Follow all your post-operative instructions
• Manage bruising and swelling
• Wear your compression garments
• Allow time for your body to restore strength and regain function.

As outlined earlier, during this first week, you would also have commenced your HeaLED Post-surgery Care Program.

 

Your Thigh Lift Surgery Recovery Timeline

WEEK 1

You’ll be seen at the clinic on the first day of discharge from the hospital to start your Depending on your lifestyle and commitments, you might come in daily, every other day or three times a week for your appointments.

When you return home from the hospital, we recommend you gently get up and move around as often as is comfortable. Movement helps to encourage circulation, reduce swelling and prevent any complications. However, don’t expect too much of yourself. Be prepared that your thighs and groin area will feel quite tight and uncomfortable at first.

Regarding sleep, there is no recommended sleeping position, so feel free to sleep in whichever position you’re most comfortable in.

Don’t be surprised if your feet and legs are swollen. After surgery, you can expect a lot of swelling in these areas, but fortunately, a significant amount of this initial swelling will have gone after the first couple of weeks. You may also find that one leg is more swollen than the other; this is entirely normal and nothing to worry about.

Essentially, other than visiting the clinic for your appointments, you’ll spend the week resting and being gentle with yourself.

WEEK 2

During Week 2, we’ll encourage you to continue to stay mobile to promote circulation. Take short, gentle walks around the house but strictly avoid any strenuous activities for the first two weeks. You’ll also need to come to the clinic for your appointments; however, make sure someone drives you. After two weeks, you can consider driving your car, but only if you feel safe and comfortable doing so.

You must not have sexual intercourse for the first six weeks following your procedure for several critical reasons. Firstly, we don’t want to elevate your heart rate. Also, opening your legs will strain your wounds and could cause serious complications. Further, given that your wounds are very close to your vagina, .

Depending on your occupation, you may consider returning to work after two weeks, but this decision is entirely subjective. However, if you have a job that involves heavy lifting or straining, avoid returning to work until after six weeks.

WEEKS 3–5

After three weeks, you’ll be allowed to fully immerse your wounds in water, which means you are now free to take a bath or swim.

WEEKS 6

After six weeks, you can consider returning to your regular gym training routine and other physical activities you enjoy. However, you must understand that your body will be significantly weaker than it was before, so build up your exercise program slowly and listen to your body.

Keep in mind that although you’ll be allowed to resume normal activities at this time, it may take six months before you feel back to your usual self again. Further, although your scars will heal and fade relatively quickly due to the LED Light Therapy,

Your Questions Answered

How long should I take off work after Thigh Lift surgery?

Patients who regularly attend their post-operative LED Light Therapy appointments can often return to work after approximately two weeks following surgery. This is because LED Light Therapy greatly accelerates the healing process. However, keep in mind that only light duties are allowed at this time. Additionally, every individual heals at their own pace, so you must listen to your body. There must be no heavy lifting until six weeks post-surgery.

How can I minimise my Thigh Lift scarring?

It’s natural to be concerned about scarring after your Thigh Lift surgery — or any surgical procedure. Fortunately, there are several activities you can do to help minimise the appearance of your scars, such as:

• Attend all your HeaLED follow-up appointments: these appointments give you the best chance of receiving the most optimal surgical outcomes, accelerating wound healing and minimising the appearance of your scars. A key component of this program is LED light therapy, which offers the following benefits:
• reduces pain and discomfort
• minimises swelling and inflammation
• accelerates wound healing and tissue regeneration
• Optimise scar formation, leading to neater and more refined scars.
• Additionally, attending your appointments will allow us to monitor your healing process, assess the incision sites and ensure there are no signs of complications such as infection, blood clots or fluid accumulation.
• Rejuran Therapy – Rejuran, a polynucleotide-based treatment, contains DNA proportions derived from salmon. It stimulates collagen production, supports cellular repair, improves skin texture and contributes to smoother, less visible scars. 
• Gernetic Synchro Cream – You’ll be given this cream as part of your post-operative care plan. This advanced topical formula supports deep tissue repair by enhancing hydration and oxygenation of your skin. It encourages healthy cellular regeneration and promotes the development of soft, smooth and refined scars.
• Practice proper wound care – This is vital for minimising scarring after Thigh Lift surgery and starts by strictly adhering to our instructions on how to care for your incisions. Importantly, you should adhere to the following points:
• Promote healing:Eat a balanced diet rich in vitamins and minerals, particularly vitamins C and zinc, to aid the healing process. Staying hydrated is also essential.
• Manage pain:Ensure you keep your pain levels under control and take the necessary medications as guided by your specialist anaesthetist.
• Avoid strain:Avoid any activity that could stress the wound site, which may cause it to reopen.
• Wear your compression garment:This garment plays a vital role in your healing, controlling swelling and minimising strain on your wounds.