TURIA PITT: 'I’ve had lots of surgeries since most of my body was burnt. The last one was different.'

It's been almost 15 years since I was trapped by a grassfire during an ultramarathon and received burns to 65 per cent of my body. Part of my recovery has meant having surgeries. Lots of them.

I've had surgeries on my hands to make them more functional.

I've had fat taken from my stomach and placed onto my knee to make it bend more.

I've had a cadaver's rib cartilage placed in my nose to give it more shape…

I've had surgery after surgery after surgery. People have said to me, "Oh, these surgeries are nothing compared to what you've been through!"

Whilst that is true — it's also true that having surgery doesn't inoculate you from the discomfort and the pain and the grogginess of a future surgery. Pain is still pain.

Watch: What happened to Turia Pitt. Post continues after video.

Am I over it? Yep. You need significant energy reserves to go through surgery, and to go through recovery from surgery. Managing that with two small kids, a husband that works away and running a business can be exhausting.

I've learned from being burned out last year that I can't do everything, and that includes doing every single surgery that might be good for me. I've learned a lot through my experience with burnout — about when to say no and when to say yes and when to lean out and when to lean in — though I'm not perfect at any of those things just yet.

Something that's bothered me for ages has been my neck — the skin pulls down, it pulls at my face and my smile, it's tight, it's uncomfortable. I went and saw Dr Andrea Issler Fisher at Scarless in Sydney. I know Issy from my time in the hospital — she's helped me for the past decade or so, and she's recently set up her own practice. She said she could help, and so I booked in for laser surgery with her earlier this year.

What do I mean by "laser surgery"? Well, basically a high-energy beam of carbon dioxide light ablates damaged outer layers of skin. It's kind of like a controlled injury to your skin that helps trigger your body's natural repair process.

I had laser surgery about ten years ago, and the recovery was brutal. Painful, red, weepy, itchy and very, very much noticeable. So, while I trusted Issy (she is nothing short of amazing), I can't say I was looking forward to the surgery. And maybe you might be thinking, well, why did you have it? I don't have a super-straightforward answer to that question.

Sure, it helped my neck feel more comfortable, so that's a win. But, I also wanted to look better. It feels superficial to write that, although I know it's no one's business but my own. So maybe my more succinct answer to that question should have been, because I wanted to.

Recovery after my last round of laser surgery was *almost* pleasant. Yes, I was red, and yes, I was a bit flakey, but the most pain medication I needed was Panadol, and I was back at work after four days, and I went back to the gym the week after. I didn't drain my emotional reserves the way other surgeries have.

Turia Pitt on having skin remodelling surgery. Image: Supplied.

And the result? Well, my skin looks better, which is great. But the tightness in my neck has almost gone, which is incredible. The cost-benefit analysis of laser surgery is pretty bloody good.

I'll head back to Sydney for more laser surgery at some point. Maybe this year, maybe not. I've made peace with not improving as fast as I could. Because while I love progress — I also want to enjoy my life — and though I've had heaps of surgeries, and I'm used to having surgeries, they're not something I enjoy.

This weekend I pushed my sons into waves in the surf. I went for a run. I caught up with a girlfriend over lunch. We took the kids down to the beach and watched them run in wild, joyful circles.

That stuff? That's what keeps me in a good headspace. That's what fills me back up.

So, yes — the laser worked. My neck feels better. My skin looks better. But more importantly, I didn't have to deplete my reserves to get there.

And that, to me, is the real win.

Listen to Turia Pitt on No Filter.

Read more from Turia Pitt:

• TURIA PITT: '4 reasons why mornings are without a doubt, the most important time of your day.'

• Initially, Turia Pitt wrote a love letter to her partner to 'take the piss'. Then she got vulnerable.

• Turia Pitt had surgery to help her breathe. Then she asked her fiancé if she looked 'more beautiful'.

Feature image: Supplied.