Breast lift + smaller implants: the results are in and still undecided!

hello! i am so, so happy to have found this site! it's been so helpful to read so many reviews & see so many before and after pics while researching breast lift/augmentation. i have a huge question to ask regarding implant size, so here's the short n' sweet version, and for anyone with extra time to read, the verrrrry long version follows below!

i am 5'9" with a deflated 34D-36C cup looking for more volume, nice cleavage, but not too much bigger -if at all. would i be better off with just a lift? or would 200cc moderate profile silicone implants above the muscle do the trick without making me too much bigger? my doctor wanted to go at least 225cc and thought 300cc might be even better, but i think i won't be happy. advice? thanks!!

okidoke...now the more detailed version...

at age 22, i had surgery to reduce my 36DDD breasts to a nice, full 36C. i am now almost 40 years old, and after losing a fair bit of weight by curbing a major cupcake addition, my size now fluctuates between a pretty saggy, deflated, 34D-36C. as you can see from my pics above, they're not happy boobs at all. :(

after months of deliberating as to whether i should leave Thing 1 & Thing 2 to wallow in their unhappiness or perk them up a bit, i decided to go for it and buy them some happy! so, in a fairly short timespan, i am scheduled to have a breast lift & augmentation next wednesday - july 17!! OMG!

so now, after having my pre-op appointment yesterday, the freak-out have started to set in and i need some help & advice to whoever out there might be able to offer it! here's a bit about my body type & if you continue reading on, you'll find my conundrum just below!

ok! so, i am 5'9", 145lbs. i have long legs and fairly broad shoulders, so right now, i feel that my cup size suits me well. i don't look top-heavy at all and i like it that way because i think for me, personally, clothes fit me better this way. but - because my boobs are pretty saggy & deflated, the clothing i choose tends to be more conservative because i don't feel that i have nice cleavage any longer and if i do wear anything that's at all revealing, i spend way too much time fidgeting and adjusting! so, what i'm after is just a fuller C/D with nice cleavage, but really not too much bigger. i've already had super big boobs naturally and i HATED them. (my breast reduction was one of the best decisions i've ever made, but unfortunately, the laws of gravity have proven themselves true, and now here i am about to do the opposite of what i did at 22!)

sooo.... the conundrum! i went into my pre-op thinking i would maybe just have a lift done after my first consultation with another doctor left me feeling that implants were not the right decision for me since he seemed to want to add an incredible amount of volume to what i already have. (he suggested at least 400cc - possible even bigger! i said 'no way, jose'! and split.) my 2nd consult, (the doc who will perform my surgery next week), listened very carefully to my list of boob hopes & dreams and suggested a lift with modest sized implants. ( between 200cc-225cc mod profile silicone, above the muscle). i tried on the sizers and thought the 200's felt the best and figured that would be most appropriate to achieve the look i have in mind.

after having that all squared away, i got dressed and went to the front desk to pay for everything, but then the doctor re-appeared and asked if i would try on a few more implant sizes because he thought that maybe, just maybe, i should consider going a bit larger. (???) so, i got undressed again and he handed me 300cc & 350cc's to try on. ugh. they felt so big & heavy to me, and i'm sure he realized then that there would be no persuading me to a bigger implant. i kept stressing that i want to stay about the same size, just 'better'. i said i wanted to stick with the 200's, he said he thought i should at least consider the 225 or 250's. ugh. i told him if he thought 225cc over the muscle would be better, that i would trust his opinion and i left the office not feeling quite as settled as i did after the first try-on session.

i came home a bit confused and immediately hopped on to RealSelf to do some more research...and now i'm maybe a wee bit more confused after reading about a girl who's my height/weight/build had 200cc silicone implants put in and absolutely hates how big they look on her! from what i've been reading, 200cc is pretty modestly sized, so is it true that i may go up a cup size after i'm already between a C/D? i'm not sure bigger is the way to go for me, but i'm also not sure a lift alone is the right choice either as my doctor thinks just a lift will leave me at a full B, which i think might be too small for me frame. eeeegads!! i'm so sorry for the verrrry long message, but i just need some honest advice/opinions from anyone who might be able to offer either since i'm now just completely, totally, utterly confused about how to proceed! thank you guys, so much, in advance!

i am 5'9" with a deflated 34D-36C cup looking for more volume, nice cleavage, but not too much bigger -if at all. would i be better off with just a lift? or would 200cc moderate profile silicone implants above the muscle do the trick without making me too much bigger? my doctor wanted to go at least 225cc and thought 300cc might be even better, but i think i won't be happy. advice? thanks!!

hello again!

i've added a few more pics of my poor, ol' saggy boobs since i'm stilll on the fence as to whether i should just do a lift - or do a lift + small implants since i'm lacking some serious upper pole volume.

here's a quick re-cap for anyone just joining my conundrum: after a breast reduction at 22 (36DDD down to a full 36C), i'm currently fluctuating between a very deflated 36C-34B after losing a bit of weight. i've had 2 consultations - 1st doctor wanted to see me go with a lift & large-ish implants (somewhere between 300cc-400cc). i thought that was waaay too big for me since i am 5'9", 145 lbs, and have a slender but athletic build and i absolutely do NOT want to appear top-heavy again since i've already gone through that! ;)

my 2nd consult went much better and seemed like the doctor really listened to me. his first option to me was to just go with a lift, but he felt that i might end up just a full B. (i'm not sure if that's too small for me or not - please see my pics! i'd love any feedback!) his second option to me was to do a lift, but also add small implants (200cc-225cc, moderate profile silicone). he said i'd probably go up one cup size, and again, i'm not sure if that will make me look too big! ugh... it's classic Goldilocks.... just a lift might make me too small... lift + small implants might make me too big! eegads! this is not an easy decision to make and i'm scheduled to have surgery next wednesday, july 17!!

if anyone has any thoughts, advice, input, please let me know! i'm so grateful for the advice already given. :) i'm hoping that by adding the additional pics above that i'm giving a better idea of what i look like au naturel and in a variety of bra styles. i like my size & appearance when wearing a bra, but i absolutely do NOT like my appearance without one and i will not let anyone see me naked at this point. i don't even want to see myself naked! ;)

i'm definitely stuck teetering on the fence between lift + implants or just a lift, so please, by all means, hit me with as much honesty & open-ness as you can! thanks oooodles!

after one last visit to my PS before surgery tomorrow, the official decision is.. lift + small implants! (200cc mentor moderate profile silicone above the muscle) i've gone back and forth about just having a lift and completely foregoing implants, but the more ladies i talk to, the more i feel better about the addition of the implants. my doctor seemed to think that because my skin has lost alot of its elasticity & has sooo much laxity, that doing just the lift would only give me mayyyybe 6 months to a year (max) of upper pole volume -and then it would be back to pancake boobs again! :( sooo... my fingers and everything else are tightly crossed that the implants won't increase my size toooo much and the end result will be very natural-looking and not at all over-done. let's hope for the best! *gulp* ;)

I did it! Surgery was 6am yesterday, and other than pre-surgery jitters, all went very smoothly! So smooth in fact, that it's made me question exactly how good the surgeon who performed my breast reduction really was. When i had my reduction at 22, i came out of surgery absolutely missserable - so much pain, so much vomiting -it was horrible. Not to mention, one side of my reduction was performed by residents and i ended up having all sorts of issues -stitches wouldn't stay closed, then when stitches finally needed to be removed, they were completely tangled up inside me and was so excruciating, some stitches 'accidentally' got left behind and i had to pull them out myself 2 months later! eeegads!

so, anyways - back to my lift/augment yesterday! it really was super easy peasy. i woke up happy & smiling and only needed to stay in recovery for about 45 min. i wasn't able to get a peek at them before leaving the hospital, but i could tell all had gone well. i made it home right around noon and didn't need to take any hydrocodone until around 6pm. i was able to eat dippy eggs and toast, and still no nausea! i went to be around midnight and popped one more pill just to be sure i'd be painfree. i did have to sleep in a somewhat upright position, but i wasn't uncomfortable at all. :)

i had my first post-op this morning at 9am and finally got a peek at them after my drains were removed. after only having 200cc implants placed, i still think that they may be just a wee bit larger than i had hoped for, but hopefully after some of the swelling goes down and they start to drop, i'll like them even better. i'm definitely anxious to see how they'll look months from now and am keeping my head screwed on straight about not judging them too much right now - especially during Frankenbooby Stage! ;) (i do wonder about the placement of my nipples/areolas - i think they look a wee bit low, but again, hopefully this will change. i have to keep reminding myself it's only day one!!)

so, far today i've only needed to take tylenol once and my appetite has been good. i don't feel tired at all, just a little uncomfortable sometimes when getting up from the sofa. (i am adamant about not staying in bed today! i want to keep moving around as much as possible, but of course, within reason.) :)

i've posted 2 new pics - one without surgi-bra in all my stitched-up, swollen glory, and the second in a little bralette thingie i found at target. even though i know they'll look better evetually, i still couldn't resist trying on that little bra, because even with my reduction, i was never able to go without underwire! it felt soooo good to put on a bra without any wire! yay!

even though surgery & all post-op days since have been a total breeze (no nausea, no pain, generally just feeling fantastic!), i am a bit concerned about the shape of my new boobs and also the placement of the nipples. i keep looking through other stories, reviews, pics, etc., and i just can't seem to find anyone with results that look like mine... so i'm really worried! :(

i had very modest sized implants put in (200cc silicone, mentor moderate plus profile, over the muscle), and though i know i am still very, very swollen, i'm noticing that my shape is very boxy, and the low part of my breasts almost seem to 'dip up' where the lower anchor scar meets the vertical scar. they also have a verrrry wide shape to them. it seems like there's excess skin on each side that maybe should have been removed during my lift to help tighten the shape a bit more. i'm also worried that the nipples are pointing too far south. eeegh. anyone else out there have any similar concerns in their post-op days? i would love any feedback you guys might have! i'm feeling a bit down in the dumps because i soooo badly just wanted to feel better about my boobs, and now i'm kinda feeling worse about them -like i'll still want to keep them hidden again. poop. :(

hi, girls! unfortunately, we had a family emergency and i've had to take quite a bit of time away from the computer. my last post left off at 4 days post op, when i was reaaally worried about the boxy appearance of my new boobs! while they're still looking kinda square-ish to me (3 weeks post op now! yay!), i think they're starting to settle in and i feel alot better about them. it really does take time for the swelling to dissipate and i do think that the steri-strips, while excellent for support for stitches, holds up the 'settling-in' period a bit since it seems like once my strips were removed, my shape started to chnage. (and then, of course, my doctor decided to re-tape them this week, so it's back to 'square' one again. ha, ha.) :)

everything has been really smooth sailing for me, although i did develop a very large seroma right around day 6 and it was so large you could hear the fluid 'swishing' around. it was extremely uncomfortable and when my doctor saw it, he nearly flipped! he immediately sent me for an ultrasound-guided needle aspiration., but something really odd happened while i was waiting to have the procedure... i literally could feel my body start to absorb the fluid. it was so strange. by the time i was taken in for the ultrasound, it felt as though almost all the fluid was gone & the swishing just about vanished. none of the doctors could figure out what happened to cause it to disappear so rapidly, but i am so thankful it did because intially, my doctor told me to prepare for the worst case scenario, meaning, the seroma could potentially be an abscess, and if so, it could've meant having to remove the implant if the infection had spread to the surrounding areas. eeeeek! talk about a close call! ;)

so, other than that, everything has been great! i think the size i chose (200cc mod plus silicone overs) is perfect for my frame and i'm so happy i didn't let any of the doctors talk me into the 300-400's they recommended. although i haven't really spent much time out of a compression/sports bra (ughh), i have tried on a few of my old bras, and they still fit -i'm just filling them out alot better now! i'm thinking i'll probably remain a 34-36D, but who knows... i can't tell if i'm 'dropping & fluffing' yet, so maybe i'll end up DD, but i'm quite happy to stay a D. :)

how's everyone else doing? i'm excited to catch up on all that i've missed these past few weeks! :)

i'm 5 weeks post-op now and still feeling really great! i've been walking on the treadmill since week 4, and finally this week, i was able to take my first run outdoors! i took it verrry slow and made sure to double-up on sports bras just to ensure my 'upgrades' stayed where they needed to, and they did! i love well-behaved boobs! :)

i'm still not super happy with the wide, boxy, low-nipple look that they still have, and even though it may not look too apparent in the dimly-lit 5-week pics i posted, they stilllll have that look to them and i'm stilllll hoping it goes away in a few months time. i'm pretty sure a nipple-revision will be fairly easy if need be, but having a revised lift? eeegh. not sure i'm up for that, so i may just have to live with boxy boobies. just call me SpongedropSquareboobs! ;)

today i woke up, looked in the mirror, and just started to cry. how is it possible that my boobs are looking WORSE over time, rather than improving? today they all of the sudden look reaaally saggy and deflated again. i'm agetting close to 2 months post-op, and i know everyone keeps saying 'give it time...your shape hasn't fully developed yet', but OMG! there is no way anyone can tell me that my nipples are magically going to rise into a more elevated position! it seems like my breasts are rapidly drooping and my nipples are headed further south. i am so sad and depressed about what's happening, especially because i did this to feel better about myself -not worse. i feel embarrassed and ashamed of them again, and i feel a bit sick that i just spent $10,000 and they still don't look good. eeeegh. at least when i had my reduction, it was covered by insurance. but this sucks -i actually *paid* money to have a poor result. :( i never like to leave things on a negative note, so i guess to turn this positive, i can still say that my surgery was really a breeze and if anyone reading this is still on the fence about doing it, DO IT! i think the general consensus is that most women who've done it are truly happy with the results! i don't think my outcome is very typical, and if you look back through my diary, i was concerned about my low nipple placement and wide/boxy shape right from day one post-op. my scars aren't too bad, though, so that's another plus, i guess! ;) ok, i'm done being a sad sack -at least until i look in the mirror before bed! :P