Breast Implant Removal: Stories

Hello my name is Jean and this is my first post. I am distressed to say the least. I found out yesterday my left breast implant has leaked out. It is a low profile smooth implant 550cc. I saw my PS yesterday and she seems to think it is pretty much empty. I have no idea how or when this happened. The first I noticed was Saturday that they seemed a little off but thought it was do to a missing underwire in my bra. Then yesterday in the shower was the first big clue. They happened to have a cancellation and got me in the same day.

They are 13 years old almost to the day. My original surgery was Feb 1st 2000. I am of course worried that if I have new implants put in it could happen again and I can't afford a third go around if something went wrong again as this as everyone knows is not cheap. My husbands reaction was "Just get the dam things out!" He was never gung ho about it in the first place but since I wanted them he went along. He says of course he likes the way they look but could live without them. I am 51 years old and going over and over in my head if I should just get them out or have them redone.

I know they will not look the same I get that, they probably will look worse than I started with. At this stage is it really worth the fear it will happen again and I won't be able to a thing about it. I have always kept up on my mammograms but now not knowing for sure how this happened or when I will be even more nervous. I know that with the saline implants you usually can tell right a way if there is a leak but some have said it could have been a slow leak around the valve over a period of months. I tend to think it has been going on awhile because I have had some sensations in that breast for a few months I just thought it was peri-menopausal stuff. Now I am not so sure.

Any thoughts on if my implant is pretty much empty right now, how much different they will look with the implant out? You can tell the left is smaller right now but I still have some breast and I could live with that size since I always thought they were a bit big.

When I got the implants I did not weigh as much as I do now so that will have an impact too. Also the implants are under the muscle.

Thanks for letting me get this off my chest. After writing that sentence it is almost comical. Not really. I have to obviously make a decision soon, I just want to make the right one as you can imagine.

After living with this news for almost a week now I am more sure than before that I will have them removed. Now to have a lift or not is the question. When I see my PS for the official , what am I going to have done, appointment I will explore all my options again and see what she thinks. The first appointment was really to see if the implant had failed. We did talk about options and at first my thought was of course I am getting them redone. Now that time has passed I am getting more used to the idea of just getting them out for good.

I know this sounds crazy but I am thinking of having an explant party! Just my closest girlfriends and have a few drinks and snacks. Maybe throw darts at balloons. Only for the fact that this whole thing came about because of a leak with the implant not to poke fun at implants in general. Let me be clear I LOVED my boobs before this happened and am glad I had them done. The thing is this is my reality right now and always knew the possibility was there so I just have to go with it. I may hate the results, I hope not, I am thinking positive results.

If there was no chance that I would not have another problem of any kind I would for sure get them redone but there is no way you can be sure so I can only do this twice so I will have to live with my results.

here is a picture hopefully more to follow

finally a picture hopefully more to come

It may not be that noticeable in the picture but if you picked up the left bread you could pinch it in the middle and there is not a whole lot left but floppy skin. The right you can't do that you still have a handful to content with. I don't know what they will look like with implant out but hope it is close to this. I can only hope but will deal, of course, with whatever come along! I do have another picture but when I send it from my phone it is not getting to my computer. Hope I am not sending my boobs to all my friends and family!!! That would not be good. :)

I just called my PS office and picked the date! Feb 28th first thing in the morning. I have my final consult or visit before surgery on the 12th to finalize what I will have done. She picked a date that would allow for a lift if I go that way. She will be calling back here in a few with the prices of the different options. I got one for just the explant on my first consult it is for 4900.00 with the lift I am waiting for that one. Now that at least one picture is posted do you think a lift will be best. Mind you I did not have much from the start and have gained weight since 2000 and still not sure how empty the implant is. I could be thinking I may be good to go and decide not to do the lift and then won't be able to handle the results thinking since it was already deflated it would look similar and it didn't.

Just paid the deposit for my Feb 28th explant! I guess there are mixed emotions, excited to get it over with and a bit of sadness to see the girls go. Well one as I have said before one has left the building already so to speak! Just need to clean up her mess and give the other one a fond farewell!

Just got back from my PS pre-op visit. Everything is all paid for, the before pics have been taken and have all my Rx's to be filled. She said that she does not think I will need a lift and the implant is pretty much empty and if I don't mind the look I have now after the healing has taken place I should be pretty similar! Whooo hoooo!

Two days to go not counting today! I have all my meds filled. I am trying to not think about it too much, I am sure tomorrow the nerves will start to kick in. I have to be at the surgery center at 6:30 am on Thurs the surgery is scheduled for 7:30 am. I am pretty confident the implant is empty for sure. My implants were low profile so I think they were spread wider across my chest than outwards, at least that is how it looks to me. Head on it doesn't look a lot different from the side that is still intact the width and upper fullness is for sure gone. The side view is not great but I don't look at myself from that angle much anyway. I have had time to adjust to the deflated one for about a month now, It will probably be somewhat of a shock to see the right one gone all at once. I feel good about my choice not to re-implant.

so far so good, the pain is manageable. more of a stingy sensation and it seems to be from the incision site and not the breasts themselves. I can peek at the tops of them only, they don't look that bad from that angle. Will find out more tomorrow. My appt is at 11:30.

This is the morning after my explant. Had a pretty good nights sleep. Still all of the pain is from the drain site and almost none at all from my breasts themselves. I can peek at the tops of them so I can't tell too much. The bandage is not tight at all, I thought it would be a tighter binding. Maybe that will come today at my appointment this morning. Glad I did it and glad it is over. The doctor gave me some Valium to take the night and morning before so there were no nerves at all which I am very glad for! I do feel lighter in the sence that now I don't have any fake parts in me. For me to really feel lighter they would have had to have been filled to a gazillion cc's Ha! Ha! I asked to have them and I hope they remembered. They said they would have to be sterilized and I could get them today. I didn't know it but my husband asked for them too. He said they gave him a weird look, heck he paid for them and is paying to get them out he sould get something for his money! When they first took me back to get my IV in he stayed in the waiting room he could hear everything he said, I had not idea he had that much sonic hearing. When he finally came back he thought is was all over. I am like "What!" he said I heard you say "I didn't feel a thing till you took it out!" I was talking about how the nurse could not get the IV in the first time and was saying I didn't feel a thing till she took the needle out to try again! He was like dang they just got down to business and pulled those suckers out!!!!! What a nut! I will post after my appointment and let you all know how it went.

oh yea the only other pain or discomfort I have is my throat from where they put a tube down my throat. I keep thinking I am getting a sore throat the them remember duh, it's from the explant surgery!

Just got back from my appointment. It went really well. I got my drains out, whoo hooo!! Got to see them and they don't look that bad at all. I have taken some pictures and will post them soon. They don't look bad at all in my clothes, the bra thing is a bit empty on top as that was expected. There is kind of a shelf type look at the top of my breasts where the fullness in the top part is now gone. I hope that that adjusts in time. With a good bra at the end of the healing I will be happy I am sure. My daughter does not think many people would even know. I doubt that but it makes me feel better none the less. I could be in a much worse condition than I am. It feels great to have th drains out! I have to go back in two weeks to get the stiches out. She said I don't have to be bound at all. She is very pleased at how they look too. I am so glad that this is over. I am now glad that this was pre-empted by a rupture and had to be done because it needed to be done but I would have never just gone ahead and have done if nothing happed.

Tomorrow will be one week post explant! Sure went faster that the week leading up to it! Everything feels great. I do have to be careful when picking up things, mainly my dog! She is not that big but picking her up from the floor and putting her on the couch or bed I am reminded about the incisions.

I had brought my best friend with me to my first appointment with my PS when I suspected that my left implants had ruptured for moral support of course.
We had both gotten our implants within weeks of each other. I went first then she did hers with a lift and some minor face and eye stuff done too. We had done all this together and bonded even more through all of it. Mine surgery went great and the healing process was easy peasy compaired to hers. She had to go into a second surgery the evening of her procedure because she would not stop bleeding, during all that the implant ruptured and had to be replaced. Her surgery going in was more involved than mine due to her having a lift. When my implant ruptured last month in my mind I am thinking she had got to be saying thank goodness it is her (me) and not her! When I decided not to get new implants I thought I would always look at her and be envious of her still full breasts. I am wonderfully pleased to report that I think I am the lucky one these days to not have those implants in anymore and won't be seeing that green eyed monster of envy! I don't have to worry about the things that can and do go wrong with them even if it isn't right away. I thought I was in the clear, how foolish of me, that since nothing had happened yet (13 years) that I was in the clear. I wasn't playing football or anything that would cause trauma to them. Sheez I could have been taking a nap when the darn thing ruptured it didn't matter and in reality the older they are the more likely they are to become a problem. The one thing I am grateful for is that since it did rupture that it was saline. At the time I got mine in silicone was not what was being used. I also think that the shape of my implants has played a role in my being happy with my explant results. Even though mine were big cc wise, they were 550cc in each, they were low profile and were spread wider across my chest and not as much of an outward projection.

Sorry to ramble on today, just posting my thoughts on how I thought I would always look at my friend and wish I still had mine and am glad so far I don't think that will be the case. She still has to worry about all those issues and I know she has not kept up on her mammo's and that right there is not a good thing!

I tried on some bras at the store yesterday. Argh! Probably shouldn't have done it. I need to be properly fitted. It was not that I was too small in the cup part it was depressing the band size. Granted the bras I have at home have all been wore and washed and most as weird as it sounds still fit. The top volume is of course less but can still work. My really nice Victoria Secrets bra that had no padding at all I can't wear it is too empty at the top and is wrinkly. Used to have about five of them and they were so comfy. Everything I tried was toooooooooo tight around the band. What I didn't have in the front poked out the sides I had four boobs. Yuck. It was too soon anyway, don't know what I was thinking. I still have stitches and had no business even trying.
Breats are lookiing fine though and glad I didn't get new implants for sure. I still have to remind myself I am implant freeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!

two weeks two days post explant! Feeling great and now that the stiches are out even better! The scar looks good and looks better than the old scar did after 13 years! I guess my PS perfected her technique in the last 13 years whoo hoo!!
Last night we had a cold night here in Florida and my brother and sister in law were in town so we went out and I wore a new bra for the first time. Not padded but the fabric was stiffer than I used to wear. The pre-explant bras I word had NO padding or stiff material I did not need any extra help from a bra other that underwire. The new size is a 40 C the old ones were 38 D The older ones were of course worn and washed so to be as gentle with the band area I went with the 40 C. The cup is fill up nicely not a lot puffed up fullness, this is not a push up bra. Maybe sometime down the line after more healing I will get one just to have. My hubby's eyes lit up so that was a good sign. :) I have let him touch them a little bit as it feels good ( not in any sexual way) but like when you first get the implants and you have to massage them, and it feels good, that they way I mean. I don't think he has missed them for a minute except in his bank account, but even then he didn't miss a beat about saying to get rid of the things. My brother and sister in law, not that my brother would really look anyway, didn't seem to notice a big difference. My two nieces and my own daughter are very small chested as I was pre-implant. I of course have aged and gained weight so now I actually do have more breast tissue. Hurray! Only my daughter is still wanting implants. the other two have both had children and have breastfed and are older and wiser than my daughter. Like I have said before she won't be getting any anytime soon. If ever! Tonight we are all going to a street party for St. Patricks day and it will be my first time seeing my best friend who got implants the same time as me. Compared to be she is going to look huge! And round! I better stop! Her day will come at some point I guess. Any of you girls that have had a lift when they got the implants put in and now have had an explant did you have to have another lift or was it okay just getting the explant? Just wondering because she had a lift with the implants and I was wondering how that would work out getting them out. Still happy with my decision not to re-implant!