Q. What is the recovery from plastic surgery like? A. Each patient will tolerate pain post-operatively in a different way, and we consider this. While some patients may describe the pain as an ache, others experience greater discomfort. Appropriate pain medications are prescribed for the post-operative patients, and these help minimize discomfort. Operations that require elevation or tightening of the muscles-such as a breast augmentation have discomfort equal to that of a C-section.