Liposuction is body contouring. Body contouring is liposuction? That pretty much described how little I knew about liposuction at first. In fact, going in for cosmetic surgery had never even entered my mind until a few years ago. My body used to be like a yo-yo. Diet and exercise would work to some extent but then fail me. It failed to get rid of that extra bit of fat on my body. The final part I'd tried so hard to slim. It wasn't like I wanted to be an anorexic, nor become a paperweight model. It was the outline of my body. The shape around my thighs would always be out of proportion after dieting. Feeling let down, I'd drop my diet and exercise regime. The weight would come back. Things would then get to a point where I found myself back at square one, wanting to give it another try. It was after my last ordeal, and talking for hours with a friend, that she suggested liposuction to me. This wasn't what I wanted to hear. But my friend also knew what it took to drag me out of self-pity mode. A wake up call. The inaugural slap to the face. At the time though, I just walked away and decided to ignore what she'd said. But her words caught me again a few weeks later. I was just about to start a new diet and exercise regime when I came across an ad on TV. It was cheesy to say the least, but it gave me the idea. I looked online and discovered that there was a lot about this procedure that seemed to suit me. I was generally healthy. Not taking any medication. A non-smoker. The inability to lose that remaining stubborn little bit of fat after exercising and dieting for months. It was then that I did some more homework and looked around. There were a lot of scary places. They sounded like bargain basement procedures held in places that even looked like basements. However, with perseverance, I finally did find some decent places. They were honest and answered all the questions I had. Anyway, another few weeks later and I made a decision about where to get it done. They made it clear that this was no alternative to healthy diet and exercise. It was more like that extra push needed to get past that final hurdle. That little extra something to help ensure a figure that was in sync with the rest of my body. They discussed the various methods available. Finally, it was settled on the most common technique done with a local anesthetic. A little while after getting the liposuction done, I called up my friend. I thanked her. She thanked me too because, as it turned out, she had been considering the same thing for herself.