A soldier, wife and busy mom of four children, Symone Verdusco had always been active. She joined the Army after being  homeschooled and attending Fayetteville Technical Community College, becoming the third generation in her family to serve. Verdusco met her husband at her first duty station. She and Robert were married 2013 and have four children, Javier, age 12; Xander, age 8; Isabella, age 6; and Mia, age 2. She currently serves as a budget analyst for the United States Army Reserves Command.

A consummate soldier with a passion for physical fitness and a daily exercise regimen that starts at 4:30 a.m., Verdusco, 32, seemed an unlikely candidate for plastic surgery, but her pregnancies had taken a toll on her body. “Physical fitness has been a part of my daily life. I felt like I could not hit peak performance in my workouts,” said Verdusco, “I was injuring my back, straining it because I wasn’t able to properly engage my core. I had an above-normal gap in my abdominals.”

Through her service, Verdusco had maintained her weight and had stayed generally fit, which helped her.  She tried physical therapy to get her body through the challenges she was facing before realizing she might need to seek out medical intervention. “It was my physical therapist who suggested surgery. I had bad diastasis recti from my pregnancies. He said we could do physical therapy all day long, but this needed to be repaired,” said Verdusco. “The Army has a requirement for me to stay fit and maintain a certain weight, so I didn’t go in seeking plastic surgery because I was uncomfortable. I had a little pooch, extra skin on my stomach and the elasticity had gotten worse with every pregnancy. My children were average weights, but I’m 4’10.” My small frame has been stretched to the max with every pregnancy.”

When she went looking for plastic surgery options, a friend suggested Leif Nordberg, M.D., at Cape Fear Valley Plastic Surgery.

“When I looked at his before and after photos, I knew that I was going to go with Dr. Nordberg. Confirming my decision, he was very thorough in his consultation. He just knows what he is doing,” said Verdusco.

She ended up having a “mommy makeover,” including her diastasis recti repaired, a tummy tuck, skin and a hernia removed, and her breasts enhanced using a fat transfer from her back. Dr. Nordberg said the  mommy makeover is increasing in popularity in his office. “The mommy makeover is two or more procedures at a time. That can include a breast enhancement, either augmentation or lift with an implant, liposuction, a tummy tuck or any other improvement,” said Dr. Nordberg.

As in Verdusco’s case, an abdominoplasty, or tummy tuck, can help patients who have experienced  diastasis recti from pregnancy, which stretches and separates your abdominal muscles causing a belly to stick out or bulge postpartum. “We help tighten those muscles again and flatten your stomach. The effect of having children can be a lot on a body,” said Dr. Nordberg. Six months after her surgery, Verdusco said she feels more confident and assured she made the right choice. “They called me the day after the surgery,  then I had several appointments over six months to make sure that everything was ok. It’s important to have that constant level of care, just in case you do have an emergency,” said Verdusco. “It far exceeded my expectations. I am in love with the results.”

For initial consultations and appointments, call (910) 829-6588.

Cape Fear Valley Plastic Surgery is located at 1841 Quiet Cove in Fayetteville.