Breast Reduction: Stories

Hi all,
I can't tell you what a relief it is to find this site! I'm scheduled for surgery on June 1 and I'm so nervous about it. It's so reassuring to read all your stories and see that my feelings are shared by so many of you.

I'm 46, 5'1", 120 lbs and I've been a 30G for the last 15 years. I get by with a 32DDD bra, but my right breast is always leaking out of the cup. People are always shocked to find out how big my breasts are - I guess I hide it well. But I've been thinking about having this surgery since I was 21. My breasts have been large ever since they developed and I was super self-conscious about it as a younger woman. I'm glad I waited until I got past that to have this surgery. Now, I really love and appreciate my breasts and all the fun I've had with them! (visualize all my past lovers raising a glass - here's to N's awesome rack!) But my back, neck and shoulders really take a hit from all the extra weight and I want to have plenty of time in my life to enjoy a lighter load.

I'm very lucky to have the surgery completely covered by my insurance. I've seen three PS's about this over the years, and each one has looked at my chest and said "Oh yeah, you'll be covered."

I'm still really nervous. I've never had major surgery and I'm scared of the pain! I'm also scared my breasts won't be pretty afterward. I'm single, and I'm scared that any new man in my life will be scared off by my scars - I know that's kind of silly, but I'm just puttin' it out there. Oh yeah, and I'm scared of what all those pain meds will do to my digestive system. Let's just say it slows down really easily. Anyone else out there had trouble with that? I already take Miralax every day, so I'm wondering what else you've found worked after surgery.

Mostly, I just am glad to have found this community. Thanks to all of you who took the time to write about your experience and post pics. You gave me the courage to take pics of myself.

I have my pre-op app't with the PS on Wednesday. Any suggestions on things I should ask her that day?

I had my final pre-op app't with the PS today. I like her - she's very no-nonsense but also encouraging. She predicts I'm going to have a great result. She didn't have before and after pics of her own, which seems odd to me. I had hoped we could look at some together and get my expectations aligned with reality. But we talked about how my breasts have gotten sort of flat at the top and she grinned and said, "we're gonna fix that." She's also the Director of Plastic Surgery at a big hospital here in DC and takes insurance, which I really appreciate.

I asked her about taking ibuprofen (my go-to drug for cramps and I'll get my period about a week before the surgery). She said to stop using it the Monday before the surgery (5 days), which seems do-able. We talked about bras, meds for constipation (dulcolax), and the schedule of the day. My dear friend, R, is not only getting up in the middle of the night to bring me to the hospital at 5:30am but planning to stay for the day, which makes me cry it's so lovely.

So here's a question for all you fabulous women: I have one more app't for pre-op tests. What happens there? What do they test for?

thanks and sending warm thoughts to all of you having surgery soon or recovering now.
N

Hi everybody,
Well, two weeks from tomorrow is the big day! Holy cow - I'm nervous and excited. I'm having all sorts of panic about whether I've chosen a good enough PS, have I done enough to prepare (some of you brought PICTURES to your PS! that never occurred to me. DO I need to do that?!). Did any of you freak out along these lines before surgery? She's board certified and does tons of these surgeries, but had no pics to show me at the pre-op :-(

I also just found a super-sweet apartment I'd like to move into but it's available mid-June and I know my PS would say absolutely NO moving house in June. I may be able to figure it all out.

Hey, for all of you who've had the surgery, how long was it before you could switch from shirts that button up the front to ones you could pull over your head? I don't have many button up shirts, so trying to figure out how many to buy. I bought one surgical bra but am wondering if I should also buy some sports bras now or wait til later?

On a more philosophical note, I'm also thinking how I will miss my girls. They've been such a huge (ha ha) part of my identity for so long. And that I might feel disappointed if people don't notice, even though I know they will not.

So glad I have this place to come to for encouragement and support and stories. Can't imagine going through this surgery without all of you!

Hi everbody! Just 9 more days to go. Last night, I had dinner with my friend R who had this surgery herself 12 years ago. We were talking about what it would be like when I woke up from the anesthesia, and all of a sudden, I had this image of looking down at my chest and seeing bandages and tubes and I thought I was going to pass out. I just go this rush of fear about letting someone cut up my breasts. It IS scary. I'm so glad I have this website, because I think if I didn't get this recurring message that it's worth it to have this surgery, that I'm going to feel so much better and life is going to get so much easier, I would chicken out and regret it. So keep the encouragement coming!

That apartment I was looking at is already rented so I don't have to make a hard decision - thanks to all of you who pointed out to me what a crazy idea that was.

And thanks for all the reviews you have written. Reading your stories is so reassuring.

I had my physical today - went really well. The PA was lovely, and she told me that my surgeon does great work. I guess she does a lot of reconstructive surgery for women who've had mastectomies and also for people who've had traumatic accidents. The PA said, "she doesn't just care that you look good in your clothes - she cares that you like what you see when you look in the mirror." That made me feel so much better. I think what I'm coming to understand is that how a PS runs their practice might depend on whether they mostly treat private patients or people with insurance. I'm thinking that maybe if most of your patients are private, then you make a bigger effort to have before and after pics, and a nice website. But if most of your patients are having surgeries covered by insurance, you might be a little more "just the facts, ma'am" and minimalist. I think my surgeon is the latter, and now I feel good with that.

On a lighter note - I've noticed that I'm obsessed with other women's racks like I'm a 16 year old boy. I just find myself staring at boobs all the time, wondering "will mine look like those? or maybe more like those?" It's pretty funny - I just hope I'm not offending all those women ;-)

Holy cow, gals. I am having the grumpiest damn day. I'm cleaning the apartment, which I am not enjoying, partly because I slept funny last night and now my shoulder and neck hurts even more than usual. I'm waiting for my period and wishing it would hurry up because I can't take ibuprofen after Monday night, with surgery on Friday morning. I think I need to get the hell out of the house. I'm posting a couple of before pictures. Maybe I'll go to the department store and look at bras and try to get a handle on what a 32C vs a 32B looks like.

Fresh from the lingerie section at Macy's trying to figure what cup size I wanna be. I looked at 32 B, C, and D. Definitely not bigger than a C, I think. Even the B looked kinda nice! Part of what makes this tricky is that I'm really a 30inch band size, maybe even a 28. So I think I really want to be a C cup, but if I end up only finding bras with a 32 Inch band, the C might be too big. Ha ha - all this work and recovery and I may still end paying big bucks to find my size. Still worth it!

Tomorrow is the big day! I'm definitely feeling more nerves, but friends are really stepping up to the plate to offer support and love. One came over last night to do a "glamour photo shoot." We took pics of me in all my prettiest bras in lots of poses, some nudes, too. It was a really great way to celebrate these breasts; I've had wonderful times with them and while I'm ready to be smaller and lighter, I want to also remember all that was good about having big, voluptuous breasts.

My period (or lack of one) has been driving me crazy! It's finally started, almost a week late. I was really concerned I might be pregnant, which would definitely have thrown a wrench in things. I think it was just nerves and stress. Anyone else had BR while menstruating? Did you wear a pad or a tampon?

Also, did anyone else ask their PS or anesthesiologist to say anything particular to them during surgery? I'm using this book called "Prepare for Surgery, Heal Faster" and they recommend having the surgeon or anesth say healing statements while you're going under and as you're coming out of surgery. I like the idea, but wonder if the doctors will...

Hi all! All is well. I'm in my room and feeling pretty good. I'll write more tomorrow.

Hi everybody! I made it. And it was just fine. Thank the universe for that relaxation CD - I listened to it Thursday night before bed and again when I woke up in the wee hours a little early. It really helped calm me down and keep my anxiety at bay. I was better able to communicate what I wanted at the hospital, too. When the doctor was marking me up before surgery, and we were talking about what size I wanted her to be, I actually stopped her and asked her to look at me and I said "I picked ya because I know you're really good at this and I trust your judgement." I said, give me the healthiest, prettiest, most proportionate boobs you can. She was down with that. And I asked her and the anesthetist to say good things to me while I was under, which I think they did because when I came to in the recovery unit, I was smiling.

Probably the most pain I had was right when I came to, and that wasn't so bad. They gave me dilaudid, and then I was pain-free and somewhat loopy. Everyone in the hospital was really lovely and nice to me, but the organization there was bad - I waited over 4 hours to get into my room. But I was comfy in the recovery unit, so that was ok.

When I got into my room, they switched me over to percocet. I was drinking a lot, but not hungry - I think I ended up eating a few grapes and crackers yesterday, nothing more. I was able to pee. Did anyone else notice their pee smelling really weird? (sorry - that's a bit graphic, but I really noticed that). The biggest challenge last night was nausea, so I'm glad I was in the hospital, since they were able to give me Zofran and some other stuff which made that go away. Thanks drugs!

This morning the PS was supposed to come around 6:30 but she forgot! We ended up paging her around 10am and she came and was super-apologetic. She took off the big gauze pads and said my breasts were "perfect." I guess there had been lots of discussion of my cup size in the OR, with the other staff insisting that I could not have been a G cup, and her saying "yeah, but her rib cage is so tiny, she needed that big cup." Wish I could have been awake for that!

We got home (thanks for the pillow tip - big help!) and I got settled on the couch. It was so great to eat some good food and be in my own space. I did have some bleeding from my nipples, especially on the right. I paged the doc and she said it was normal - I could apply some pressure and should really take it easy. I can tell that's going to be hard, but the bleeding was scary, so I'm committed.

I wanna take a pic, but I don't want to take off my bra just yet. I'm allowed to shower tomorrow (ain't it funny how different the instructions are from different doctors?). I'll get my friend to take a pic of me then, after I'm all clean.

Just had that first shower. I almost passed out, too! It was a big shock to see my chest, and I wasn't expecting it to be. I think it just didn't hit home completely until that moment that I had actually had a big part of my breasts removed. Funny how the brain works. Now I'm all cleaned up and rebandaged, and feeling better posted a pic. I'm lying down, so the angle is a little odd. My friend assures me that the lopsided look in the picture is because of the angle, not that my boobs are that way. I'm not actually worried about it though - it makes sense to me that there would be different levels of swelling on each side.

Well, I'm having some day 3 blues. Feeling queasier and more shaky than yesterday. I think it's the antibiotics, which I wish I had questioned more when she prescribed them. Now that I've started, I don't think I should stop since I could incur resistance. Oh well. I think I also probably did a little too much yesterday, but today is much quieter, and I'm mostly dozing.

I also have a rash just below my bra band and on my shoulders. I think it's a reaction either to the antibiotics or the pain meds or something else. It's a little itchy, not bad. I talked to a nurse at the PS's office; she said I could take benadryl for the itchiness, but that it wouldn't help the rash. As long as I don't have open sores or bleeding, she's not concerned. I lay down on my bed and unhooked the bra for a few minutes - that felt GREAT. I think the girls could use a little more air. I'll do that again this afternoon when a friend is here.

That's all for now - back to the couch and more sleeps.

Hey all, quick question: what have you found works to reduce swelling - anything? I'm drinking a lemon tea every day. I haven't tried ice yet, since my PS didn't think it would help much. Any other ideas?

Just got back from the PS - I think I have the most minimalist PS in this community! She looked at my breasts and said "they're perfect, keep doing what you're doing." Basically, I can shower every day, use soap and water directly on my breasts, and then I just put this yellow gauze on my incisions. The yellow gauze is called Xeroform, it's impregnated with vaseline and clings to my boobs. Then I put gauze or sanitary pads over that and put the bra on. She likes the Marena I'm wearing a lot and doesn't want me in anything less supportive. She mostly used adhesive to close my incisions, but I have sutures at the T joints where the vertical scars meet the horizontal ones, and in the corners where my drains were. Those come out a week from today if all is well.

I am developing a rash where the band of the bra sits against my skin. She said I could use hydrocortisone cream for that, so I picked some up and a little bottle of spray-on benadryl to give myself two options. I think my skin is just sensitive and I'm getting a little sweaty there. I'm currently wearing the Marena with a two-inch band, so I'm gonna order the one with the one-inch band and see if that is better. I have to wear a bra 24/7 for three weeks and then I can go without at night. I think I might go without just half the night, since I want to ensure I end up with a nice shape, but I also think my skin needs some air!

I'm having some puckering and bulging right in the middle of my chest, right where the two horizontal scars end. She said she didn't want the scar to extend right across my chest, and so left that area uncut. But if the bulge doesn't go down, she can take care of it right in the office (gulp). I'm gonna work at the whole massage thing once my incisions are closed and see if I can get it down myself. I'm also developing some dog-ears right where the drains came out. I almost went back to her office to ask about that, but based on what all of you have said, I knew her answer would be the same - see how the incisions heal and she can address it later if they don't disappear.

Kate, I asked her about using tape on the incisions and she said it wasn't necessary. Once she sees how the scars are healing, she'll recommend microderm or another product if I need it. I may decide to try it, since it won't hurt anything.

One last thing. I asked her about moving my arms over my head and she said don't do it. I told her I woke up this morning and found myself stretching and her eyebrows went right up! Gosh that stretch felt so good, but I have to be careful to keep my arms down now.

I'll take some more pics tomorrow after I shower and take all the bandages off.

Just had a moment. I'm enjoying my self-appointed 30 mins a day without the surgical bra and went to look in the mirror. It suddenly hit me: holy sh%&, I look AWESOME! Wow.

Added pics from today :-)

With the yellow gauze off, I look a bit rougher, since you can see the incisions and the bruising. I think some of the yellow is actually from the goop on the gauze, and some is bruises.

It's been a tricky couple of days. I think the antibiotics have been messing up my stomach, but I just took the last one at noon so hoping I'll be feeling better - I look kinda gray. Other than that, healing seems to be coming along nicely. Today, I feel like my breasts are too small and I want to cry. I was just at the supermarket and I saw a picture of Selma Hayek bursting out of a pink dress and I almost burst into tears. I'll never do that again! Now I'm just another flat-chested woman, walking down the street - all my specialness is gone. I know this is completely irrational, but I'm letting it rip. My mom will be here in a few hours, and that's comforting in some ways and not in others. She also has big breasts, and was never bothered by them so was always against me having this surgery. She totally came around when she understood how much pain they were causing me. I think she'll be really good about me being sad, I just need to let her in.

Anyway, thanks for being my community of breast reducers! It's a big help to share all these wacky experiences with people who get it.

Just a quick check-in. I'm feeling better today, ate a big dinner and was able to go out some with my mom. My breasts are getting softer as the swelling goes down. I'll shower tomorrow and take some pics if they look different enough to make it worthwhile.

Ugh, ladies, I am having a rough time. Not with my boobs - incisions are healing well, I think. They are a little more sore, but I chalk that up to being completely off the Percocet and using only ibuprofen or tylenol. Last night I even slept in my own bed and was able to sleep on my side with a pillow tucked under my boob. THAT was lovely.

But my stomach is still really queasy, I'm having diarrhea (sorry if that's gross), and my energy level is in the toilet. I read about others who had surgery more recently than me going out to lunch or working half a day and feel despair. I had much more energy last week, but now I just feel exhausted all the time. I'm not sure what's wrong. I know the antibiotics could be the culprit - if they took out too much of my good bacteria that could be affecting my digestion and causing the low energy. I'm eating yogurt and taking probiotics, not sure what else I can do. Thoughts? I see the PS tomorrow.

Ladies, a very big day. I had my stitches out and the PS said I look great. She kept thinking I was further post op than I actually am. Nice. And my energy totally returned today, I felt great. I probably did too much, though - it looks like two spots on my incisions may have opened :( I just sent the pics posted here to the PS and am fervently hoping she writes back and says not to worry. Anyone on here have experience with this?

Went sports bra shopping today and the one I could find that you don't have to pull on over your head (that still feels like more than I'm ready for) is a 32D. Bigger cup size than I expected, but boobs were spilling over the sides in the C cup. So that may or may not be where I end up, but I am feeling so friggin' delighted with this new rack I couldn't care less what letter is attached to them! I did a little clothes shopping, nothing too racy until I can wear a normal bra, but still!!! EVERYTHING fit better. It was just so amazing not to battle with these huge boobs that distort how everything looks and force me to wear clothes that either are too big everywhere else or make me look like a walking ad for "Big Tits" magazine. I am SO glad I did this.

Back to the couch today. Talked to the nurse about the open spots, she was supremely unconcerned. Said they will heal, call her in a week. I'm wiped out though, from all of yesterday's fun, so lay low today. Finally realized that staying home, depressing thought it is, is what I need for now.

Has anyone else noticed any impact on their memory from the anesthesia. I forgot both the password to my blackberry (which I only use for work and turned off the night before surgery) and for my computer at work. Finally decided it was time to log in today and couldn't! Maybe two weeks away would have caused me to forget anyway. Wish I'd had the common sense to write them down!

16 days post-op. Sorry I haven't checked in a few days - I've been mostly hanging out on the couch and sleeping a lot. I'm in the "discouraged" phase of recovery. Wanting to have more energy and be able to do more, worried about my incisions healing properly, worried that my PS didn't use Steri-tape and my scars won't heal as well, etc. Last night I did my healing guided meditation again and realized that all this worry and fretfulness is not where I want my head to be. So my resolve is to do the meditation twice a day and focus on more positive thoughts.

My open spots continue to be open, but don't seem to be getting worse. Like Sammysmomma, I'm still having quite a bit of soreness and pain in my incisions, but I figure that's partly because I'm taking less medication (I've been off the Percocet for a week, and just use ibuprofen or acetaminophen when I remember) and partly because my nerves are healing. At my last visit, the PS said I don't need to wear bandages anymore, but that was before the open spots. So I'm putting bacitracin on the incisions and covering them with telfa pads under the bra, both to keep the bacitracin on and to keep the bra from rubbing the incisions. They are still VERY tender in spots, so massage for me yet.

Oh, that's one more resolve - I'm resisting the temptation to compare my healing progress with you guys! I think it makes me worry more. Eating lots of lean protein and green vegetables, also yogurt, kefir and kim chee to help my gut recover from the antibiotics. I'm still feeling nauseous some of the time, but it's better today.

Hugs to all my cyber-BR buddies! I'll post pics later this week.

Just posted a pic of me in that same t-shirt. I was waiting until I could wear a more flattering bra, and then realized my boobs are so swollen still, I don't really need a bra! So this pic is kind of cheating, not a true "after" but maybe a fun stop on the way.

Either the work or the weird sleep is catching up with me - I'm exhausted! Wasn't remotely tired until 1am, now I'm hoping to stay awake until 9. Hoping this will put me back on a more normal sleep schedule.

Hey, anyone out there used bromelain for scar reduction or minimization?

Forgot to add that today also marks the full-fledged return of my appetite, which was really suppressed by the pain killers and antibiotics. It's kind of fun to be hungry again, but I'm little worried that with the almost no exercise I'm getting, I'm going to gain weight. Meh - who cares! I can lose it again. I figure better to listen to my body and eat when I'm hungry and make sure I'm getting good nutrition while I heal than worry about putting on a few extra pounds. Once I'm past that 6 week mark, I can work on getting the rest of myself in shape.

Here's a long overdue update. Today is day 23 post-op for me. Yesterday, I woke up NOT in any pain for the first time! Yippee! Held again today. It wasn't like I was waking up in terrible pain before that, but I would always wake up a little sore and achey. I went all day today with only one dose of advil. I, too, decided to try the Bali Comfort Revolution (hilarious story - I poked around so much today that I only got to Macy's as it was closing - forgot about early closing hours on Sundays. Doh!). The small fits, but probably not for long once the band stretches out. That's ok, though. It's a relief to have a comfortable AND supportive bra that doesn't rub so much on my incisions.

I'm posting some pics and you can see my incisions are coming along. Still a few dissolvable sutures working their way out, but not too many. Overall, I think progress is good! I see the PS on Wednesday. Here are my questions for her:
1. Any concerns about the junctions? It looks like there are some open spots still - do I need to worry about those?
2. There seems to be more breast tissue under my arms than before surgery - is this swelling or did you need to rearrange a bit to accommodate the nipple pedicle?
3. Do I need to worry about dissolvable sutures where there are also scabs?
4. Can I start scar treatment? What do you recommend?

Those of you who already had your 4 week follow up, can you think of other questions I should ask? I always feel like I forget the obvious ones when I'm in there.

Hugs to all.

Oh, insomnia, why do you torture me so? I even took a percocet (also b/c boobs really hurting after full day at work and too much hanging out in the shoe store afterwards). 1:11am, still no sleeps. Sigh. Will ask PS for some sleeping pills tomorrow.

Post op day 28. TGIF!! Holy cats, I am so glad to be home and done with this first week of work. I overcame insomnia (go Ambien!), saw the PS (more later), and managed to stay upright for close to 40 hours. I read so much about what recovering from surgery would be like, but none of it really prepared me for what it would be like.

I'm definitely feeling better every day. My incisions are healing and my breasts are continuing to "drop and fluff." I'll try to post pics tomorrow.

The PS was really pleased with my progress and I don't have to go back for 4 more weeks. She said I could use scar treatment if I wanted to, but that my incisions are healing well and she's not sure it would make a difference. I bought both Mederma and some Palmer's Cocoa Butter formula with vitamin E. The Mederma made my incisions feel tight and maybe even a little more irritated, but the Palmer's lotion feels wonderful, really soothing and nice. So I'm going to stick with that until the incisions are more healed.

I got my first comment from someone who didn't know about the BR. A colleague saw me today at a meeting and exclaimed "Are you ok? You've lost so much weight!" I blamed it on my surgery and reassured her that my appetite is back in full force. It's interesting to realize that I look different to other people, too.

New pics, 4.5 weeks post-op.

Just whining. Tomorrow it's 5 weeks, and my breasts are still SORE. Maybe I'm wearing the wrong bra (Bali Comfort Revolution)? I'm ready for less pain. OK, whining over.

Just shy of 6 weeks post op. I'm loving how I look - ain't those new girls cute???!!!! But, wow, I'm still experiencing a lot of soreness. I just woke up with the bottom T-junction on my right boob (which has NOT been an issue for several weeks), feeling really sore and irritated. Looks fine, though. Other spots have also been feeling sore and irritated, especially inside my breasts. A dissolvable suture that was creating a small bump at the inside corner of the horizontal incision under my left breast finally dissolved about a week ago. That was great because the bump went away, but the incision opened a little bit and is having a hard time closing. Every few days, some blood and pus oozes out. Yuck. I think it's time to email the doc.

Posting new pics, sorry for the blurry. Also bought a bathing suit this weekend - wheee! Not quite ready for a bikini, but I got a super cute tankini with teensy shorts for bottoms (because I HATE shaving my bikini line), and a halter top. Are you reading this, Piggles? A HALTER TOP.

Adding pics of the new tankini, as per request ;-)

7 weeks post op. Healing happens! I now can go several hours at a time without thinking about my boobs - what a pleasure. Some days I still have soreness, and most nights I wake up at least once with my incisions sore (probably from sleeping some funky way). I'm definitely not HEALED, but I'm progressing. Near as I can tell, all dissolvable sutures are dissolved or worked their way out. The inner corner of one of my horizontal incisions (leftie) is still closing up - there was a funky stitch there that created a bump. It finally dissolved and then the bump went away but the incision opened up a bit.

I've started massaging with the Palmers Skin Therapy Oil basically because of peer pressure from this site (you know who you are). It does feel nice. I'll post pics in the next few days - incisions are still red on the sides, but the vertical lines from NAC to crease are fading nicely.

All in all, I think I've been incredibly lucky in my feeling and I deeply appreciate that. Thanks to all of you for your great advice. Eat your greens! Drink your lemon drink!

8.5 weeks post op. Saw the PS today. Of course, as soon as I made the app't last week, that last spot closed up. She was shaking my hand and saying "you're all done with me, goodbye forever." I had to call her back into the room to ask about my dog ear. She said if it's bothering me at 6 months, to come back and she'll do the revision in the office. But she did say my incisions are still healing: "anything that's red is still healing." She thinks the scars look great and will substantially fade.

Here's a wee tip from a book I read: ask your PS for a copy of your surgical report. It's handy to have down the line if you ever need another surgery on your breasts for whatever reason, and it makes for interesting reading if you're into that kind of thing.

All in all, things are continuing to improve. I still have soreness, both a kind of hot irritation on the incisions - often in the middle of the night or when I wake up - and inside my boobs when there's a lot of bouncing (running down the escalator in the metro). I notice that sleeping on my back leads to less of that first one, so I think I'm going back to that for a while. What an amazing thing that I was able to learn how to do that! Proof that you can teach an old(er) dog new tricks. I'm massaging twice a day with either lotion or the Palmer's Skin Therapy Oil. Can't tell if one is better than the other - both feel good. It's time for pics - I'll try to get help with that so the pics are better quality.

Sending a shout-out to all of you who are waiting or recovering. It gets better! And to all my RealSelf best buds - Piggles, Kate, Iowa, Sammysmomma, PNW - you know who you are. Thanks for being that.

See new pics!

Got fitted for a bra today! (Drum roll, please)....34D.

It's a shock. I was thinking 32C. Maybe even 32B!. Imagine my horror when the 32DD was too small. I felt downright depressed. But she brought back a 34D and it fit like a charm.

I think what happened is that I've ended up with lots of breast tissue under my arms - it's like the PS built me a minimizer bra out of my skin. So even though when they measure my rib cage, I'm still a 32, when I try on bras, the 34 fits better. And once I can wear underwires, I think I will have some nice choices.

I'll admit it, I'm disappointed. I was hoping for that C cup, I really was. I'd like to be able to walk into VS like all my other Real Self friends and buy a bra off the rack. Tried that last week and it was an epic fail. But
a) my boobs look great
b) my back feels great
c) I can go BRALESS now, so being able to buy the right-sized bra is much less important.

It's so typical - I've been the one on here saying for months that size is just a number and it doesn't matter. Now that I'm the one with boobs bigger than I had hoped for, it feels like it matters! OK, ladies, remind me what is truly important here.