Done with DDD's - Exeter, NH

Hi Ladies!
My name is Kaci and I am 24 years old. I have a small frame and the extra weight from my breasts causes back/neck/shoulder pain, headaches, and rashes. I am so tired of feeling like this! I have been reading your posts and stories and I have been so encouraged by all of you! I have been dreaming of this surgery since I was 13 years old. I went to the doctors when I was 15 years old and had a consultation regarding breast reduction surgery, she discouraged me due to the possibility that I might not be able to breast feed...I am way past that now! I cannot wait to have this surgery. Currently, I am a 36 DDD and when I am at my thinnest(I am working at getting there again!) I am a 32 DDD.I had my first appointment with my PS today at 8:30 am! It went SO WELL. My PS answered every question I had before I even asked. I feel like the only thing I have left to do is decide between a B or C cup and hope that my insurance covers the procedure!

Hi everyone,
Over much debate with myself, I have decided to put up photos. I am not comfortable with this- however, the photos other women have posted certainly ease my concerns about the procedure. When looking at photos online of before and after breast reductions, I am constantly scanning for breasts that are similar to mine so I will have a good idea what they will look like after the surgery. I hope that this helps someone! This is not easy for me, but I am so thankful other women have the courage to post their photos! I will post upsdates as I go along in this process (still haven't heard back from insurance company- it's only been a week though!) and possibly after photos as well(assuming everything looks alright:).

This is a much anticipated post for me! I'll start by giving a bit of background about the past year, as it has much to do with this final breast reduction descision.

Here it goes:

I have been working as a seamstress for the past few years. As with every girl on here, the neck strain/fatigue/back and shoulder pain/etc. has been wearing on me- especially in my line of work. I recently took the past few months off from this job (for quite a few reasons), the main reason is the pain(hunched over at a desk all day/night-heavy workloads-no sleep etc.) I have been working on getting a job with consistent hours, not seasonal, and something that I can do out side of my home. I just got married in 2012 and moved in with my husband and sewing is not ideal where we are currently residing. Anyway, I made this decision for the surgery at the same time I applied for a temp agency. The woman at the temp agency has been looking for a job for me all while I have been waiting to hear about the date of my surgery. I called my insurance company today--- they approved me! My cost will be $5,000 (I know, not the best coverage, but I am so happy to get this surgery- the cost doesn't even matter at this point). As soon as I heard this I called my Surgeons office immediately to schedule my surgery date (August 7, 2013- Only one month to go!!!)... and no sooner do I hang up with her, I get a call from my temp agency telling me that I have an interview tomorrow, at the same place my husband works! :) it's a great day!

Since I know for sure I am having the procedure, posting before pictures doesn't seem as scary anymore. I can't wait to see the "after" results. I'm very nervous/excited/can't wait to get it over with!

I know I shouldn't until I'm all healed up, but I just couldn't resist! I have been shopping for my hopeful new size (however I have saved all receipts, just in case). I have comparisons to my current size and new size. I am only 14 days away from surgery! Can't wait!

The wait is going by so quickly! Thanking God for allowing this to be possible, I feel like I should have had this done 10 years ago, but I know relief is right around the corner. I have been preparing for the surgery as best as I can, however; I have not heard from them to know the Time of the surgery or what I should be doing until then. I purchased a button up shirt for the day of, since I live in New England the weather has been mostly heat waves and rain, I had a very hard time finding a short sleeve button up shirt for some reason. To throw a nice mix into the next two weeks, I am dog sitting, for my husbands brother. Thankfully, my mom likes the dog and is happy to help after my surgery with him. Anyway, getting along as best as possible until then. Just can't wait until its all over! :)

Just finished unpacking all our (my husband and my) belongings at my parents house to prepare for tomorrow.
I had a wonderful phone call with my aunt (who has had a breast reduction AND is an RN!) yesterday and she really had encouraging things to say. She had her BR about 10 years ago and even though she had a few complications (she is allergic to sutures- very rare- nothing she can do about that!) she said she has zero regrets. She even told me that she wished she had done it sooner, which is the very thing I hope to feel once I leave the hospital tomorrow.
Which leads me to my next thought, i am afraid of this changing who i am. Having a large bust has always been a defining characteristic for me(and I'm sure you too!)- I was never happy about it, quite the contrary; it's given me such low self esteem and a constant reminder of how mean people can be. I remember in middle school hearing boys gawk and giggle when I would walk by and mention the "huge knockers that chick has". (Absolutely horrifying at 12 years old) There was another incident on the school bus where a girl in the row next to me was laughing with her friend about how "it looks like she is always sticking her boobs out"... (I'm sure you all know how difficult it is to stand up straight with a book bag and "huge knockers"!). Of course I am past all of this at the ripe age of 24:), but knowing I will wake up tomorrow and not be that person anymore is slightly frightening to me. I have to keep telling myself: I will be small, I will be able to fit Into things I could only dream about before. And then I get bombarded with these horrible thoughts: what if I can't keep myself in shape, what if I look worse than before, what if my husband doesn't fancy my new chest, what if I hate the scars etc. That I hope this surgery will change all of those thoughts. Breasts are nothing but trouble.

Hope to post soon:) not sure how sleepy I will be from the drugs they will be giving me but I will try to have photos up ASAP! Praying for all you ladies having the surgery, and I hope it goes swimmingly for you:D

What a crazy couple of days! First let me start by saying, i have had trouble signing into this site since the day if my surgery, i would have posted much sooner if it werent for that. August 7th was my surgery and aside from a couple bumps in the road it has been a good experience. Ill start by describing my surgery day: I got to the hospital at 7 am, my surgery was scheduled for 8:45 am. They took me right away and had me prepped. All the doctors and nurses I met from that point were simply wonderful. They wheeled me into the operating room after giving me a shot in the stomach(blood thinner- did not hurt at all), an IV , and my surgeon marked me all up to make me the perky and small size C I am now. After the surgery I had a bit of trouble waking up, it took me about an hour longer than they expected. The first thing I noticed when I woke up was the intense burning feeling in my throat( from the breathing tube during surgery) and I don't mean to scare anyone getting this surgery, its actually rare for anyone to even have a sore throat from that, let alone as much pain as I had(still have!) from the tube. I was all wrapped up in gauze, a bra, and a really cute binder (which I will take photos of at some point) and they started pumping morphene into my system(thank God! That stuff was great!) I opted to stay the night since they were able to control my pain and I had a really great private room. The surgery only took an hour and a half... And when I got to my room I just kept falling in and out of sleep. I had compression boots on(for circulation and no blood clots) and drains attached to me. I never felt the wounds on my chest the whole time I was there, but the IV site and my throat were the most pain I was in and the morphene didn't help with that at all. I slept very well, and the next morning I got a huge surprise! My sister (who is in school to be a nurse) drove down to see me from NY (4.5 hour drive)- she could only stay for one hour and had to drive all the way back for work, (believe me I never expected her to do something like that!) but I sure was blessed. I got to leave the hospital once they transitioned me from morphene to perkisets and they taught my mom and husband how to bandage me back up and empty the drains. I had an appointment with a physician assistant the following day to removed the drains. They said I looked well and my healing was going every bit the way it should, however; the drains being taken out was absolutely the worst pain I've ever felt in my life. They say that "it shouldn't hurt", "it just feels weird", "it's awkward but painless", but that was not true for me. They had me lay back and they took the tape off around my stitches(which I could barely feel) then they went for the drains. They pulled one out and I thought I died. The worst part about it was knowing that they had a second one to take out and I wasn't able to beg them not to. Hopefully this pain doesn't happen to anyone else, they did tell me that it "shouldn't" hurt. The rest of the day I was feeling strong burning sensation right beneath the skin of my breasts. Thankfully once the drains are out that is the worst pain that has to be endured.
I tried to shower yesterday, i did not have much success- when I saw my wounds in the mirror I instantly became nauseous and dizzy. My mom was helping me, we left the bathroom and I Layed down in bed for a few moments until the feeling passed. I think I just tried too much all at once. I managed to shower, but since I have purchased a waterless soap and shampoo so I don't have to try it again right away!
With all that said, I would still do this surgery again. I feel like I can finally breath! Although I have a weak stomach with the way my wounds are right now, I really love my new breasts! I will post pics as soon as I can:)
I will have my stitches out in two days, very excited about that- but I will be taking extra pain meds prior to, just in case!

So far, so good. I am healing up ahead of schedule according to the doctors. I feel wonderful! Everyday that goes by gets better and better although I do get very tired at certain points during the day. I am more swollen in one breast than the other, and my nipples are slightly different sizes. (which is absolutely fine with me, that's how much better I feel!) It's still much to early to tell what the final result will be in terms of size, but they look about a C or D so far.

I started using palmers scar oil yesterday to massage my incisions and I am curious if any of you have an opinion on Mederma VS. Palmers or Bio Oil? Mederma is so pricey but I want to purchase it if is worth it.