Barry N. Silberg, MD, FACS (retired)

Dr. Solberg and his staff were very professional, and informative. They took the time I needed to address all my questions and concerns. Very reassuring and compassionate. I'm really enjoying my great results!

I had a breast reduction on one breast (due to assymetry) and i am very happy with the results. In addition to being ecstatic about the results, I was very pleased with Dr. Silberg and his wonderful staff. In addition to being professional and obviously knowledgeable in his field, Dr. Silberg was friendly and made this first time surgery patient comfortable and less anxious about the surgery and post op care. I highly recommend Dr. Silberg.

I’m a 41 year-old woman and I had a breast reduction (BR) on August 7, 2014. My Back Story Like most people considering a BR, I had tremendous back pain and my life as a younger athlete was a distant, cloudy memory. Neck and shoulder pain along with the deep groves of uncomfortable bras made me feel as if I were ruled by my breasts. Clothes are hard to find that really fit properly and when searching for bras, I generally looked for the ones with the most underwire, widest straps and no lace or frills. Super sexy. I had considered breast reduction since high school. I used to smash them down and try to imagine what they’d look like as C’s or B’s. I was a G. All boobs for while, then all everything. My Fat Story I gained 80 pounds and became morbidly obese according to the BMI charts. I was usually good for about two weeks of exercise per 3-months or so and often rewarded my hard work with pizza, so naturally, I became a giant [RS bleep]. I had read and heard that to be a good candidate for BR surgery that you needed to be at a stable and healthy weight. I am 5’9 and weigh 270 lbs. There’s nothing healthy or stable about that. I went for it anyway because at 270, with 40 G boobs, the world is hard to navigate and I was at the point where it was Now or Never. Forget back discomfort, I needed to get healthy and decided to jump-start the New Me by getting my long hoped for breast reduction. (For those who wonder about insurance, yes mine covered it because of the amount of tissue removed. I had my chiropractor write a letter saying that a BR would be a health benefit and included the letter in my Plastic Surgeon’s (PS) file. That’s the entire insurance story.) Preparing for Surgery Do yourself a favor and do as much strengthening of the core as possible because sister, you’re going to need those abs. Also, I recommend the following: • A recliner- the lounge chair position is really the only position you’re going to know for a while so make life easy and buy one. I picked one up off of Craigslist and will recycle it into the world again on the Free section when I’m done. I spent $50 and it’s already paid for itself in spades. • A bed lounger. You may remember these from college or maybe your kids have one, but buy yourself a back chair thing for your bed. My surgeon recommended 3 pillows for elevation and the bed lounger makes it easy to accommodate that level as well as offers a place to keep your arms posted near your sides, slightly elevated. I’m sure there are a thousand options; I went kind of fancy and bought one off Amazon for $138. • A couple of good surgical bras. Don’t skimp on this. Major surgery requires major equipment. I like the Marena Surgical Bra. • Bendy straws and plastic cups. Everything is heavy and you’ll have limited use of your arms. • Create a little world on your countertop of things you use often and can reach. I have coffee cups, plastic cups, bowls and paper plates on the counter. You can’t reach up, so everything needs to be at eye level or lower, but not too low because you can’t really reach down either. • Prune juice. The pain meds WILL constipate you. I took stool softeners every day but no relief came until I drank a glass of good old fashioned, disgusting but healthy prune juice. It works and you’ll be so grateful it does. • Tylenol. No Advil, Aleve, etc. for two weeks post surgery so make sure you have Tylenol because you don’t want to take Percocet or whatever your PS gives you for more than a week because it’s a good idea not to become a drug addict during your recovery. Day of Surgery I had my surgery at an ambulatory surgery center at 7:30 a.m. I couldn’t eat after midnight (standard) and arrived an hour early to be prepped. My PS came in, discussed again what size I’d like to be, and drew on my breasts, using a sharpie and a measuring tape to make sure everything would be symmetrical. Then the little something to help me sleep, and gone. I woke up in recovery very nauseated and very sore. I barely remember the ride home, but I do recommend taking pillows along for the ride. Also ask whoever drives you to take the smooth way home, if possible. When I got home, even through the fog and nausea of anesthesia, I absolutely noticed a difference in my posture and the relief of having 1200 grams of tissue removed was evident right away. My neck and shoulders felt light and free. My girlfriend and caregiver, Kasey helped me into bed. This is a time to remind you that being taken care of is often as hard as taking care of someone else. Maybe even harder. You must remember that your caregiver is an angel and not a [RS bleep] idiot because she can’t get your pillows right. Patience is everything and it is hard to find when you’re trapped in your own body, unable to do anything for yourself. Be kind and if you can’t find it in yourself to be kind, take a nap and speak later. I was home about 15 minutes before the vomit came. I felt a lot better after and so will you. Anesthesia is wicked strong. The first day Kasey made sure I took a pain pill every 4 hours on the dot, accompanied with saltine crackers and icy 7-UP. This combo is better than steak, lobster and Champagne. Day 2 Back to the PS office to have my bandages removed and to be fitted into my bra. Pretty painless. Also, I weighed myself and lost 7 pounds of boobs! Sweet relief. Changing the Dressings I hate this part. It’s so hard to stand in the same place for the 10 minutes or so it takes to remove the gauze, apply Vaseline to stitches and staples, and be re-wrapped. Also, I find that having nothing on them is painful. Compression really helps. This is also a time to practice that patience and not tell your caregiver that she has to hurry every two seconds. If this is the first time you’re seeing your PS’s work, get ready for Frankenboobs. It’s pretty gruesome. I’m still not totally comfortable looking. Days 2-6 As with most recoveries, these are the tough days. You’ll itch, have razor sharp pains, stomach problems, irritability and drug brain from the pills. I recommend watching 700 episodes of something to take your mind off it. You just gotta get through it. I am reading, writing, watching TV and taking a lot of naps. You aren’t allowed to do much physically, so make sure you go outside at least three times a day. Kasey and I have a nice routine now where at the end of the day, after my sponge bath and re-dress, we have tea on the patio and watch the sunset. I look forward to it and I think she does, too. We’ve been together for 10 years, by the way, so she doesn’t hate me when I am awful, and I’ve been awful. Note to self * DO NOT SPEND IDLE TIME EXAMINING THE FLAWS OF YOUR LOVED ONES. Day 7. That’s today. Right now, it’s 1 pm PST and in three hours I have an appointment to get my stitches and staples removed. I am excited, scared and anxious. I don’t know what to expect! Stay tuned… I had my staples and some of the stitches removed. Make no mistake. It hurt like a SOB. Day 8 I guess it is the trauma of the removal, but I don’t feel so good. Bad day. Updated on 17 Aug 2014: Double digits! I've learned to look for the little milestones in recovery. I'm fortunate that I haven't had any setbacks so far (knocking wood) and am healing well. The most annoying part at this point is not being able to sleep on my side. The swelling on the sides, around the ribcage is pretty severe. I know my body will tell me when it's time to reposition, but it's not today. So I wait. My PS gave me Arinca Montana tabs to dissolve under my tongue. If yours doesn't or didn't, I highly recommend using them. They really do help! There's a lot of down time. You'll want to find little projects that you can participate in and complete. To keep forward progress, I cleaned out my bra drawer and put all my giant bras in a bag to donate to Goodwill. The pain has gone from sharp pains to dull aches. I'm beginning to feel enslaved by the compression bra and I think that when it's all said and done, I may have a bra burning ceremony or maybe just send send it to Fox News, where I imagine it's hot and fiery. Stitches come out on Thursday 8/21, so that's something else to look forward to. I've barely started to think about the future--about a life with normal sized breasts. I don't worry or even wonder yet about what size I'll ultimately be because it feels a long way away. I see posts about women saying things like, "I'm 8 days post op and a 38C..." How would you know that? The swelling is still so significant, I can't imagine determining correct band size. All I know is now that my breasts are smaller, I can really see my gut, which needs some serious shrinkage to match these wonderful breasts. One day...one day... Photos coming soon. Updated on 18 Aug 2014: I am experiencing something akin to Chinese feather torture all over my breasts. I assume this is my nerves rebounding but holy hell it's excruciating and so very annoying. Something between a tickle and an itch is driving me mad I tell you! Updated on 19 Aug 2014: I think I made a mistake by taking too hot a shower today. My nipples are so tender and sad. I think the heat was too much. Showering is still a chore because I have two skin tears that I woke up with after surgery. I din't know anything so small could hurt so much. I am switching to every other day staring now. One more day and then I get my stitches out. I am excited for every little milestone. I'm also really loving being home and having time to think and relax. I'm trying to be good to my body and eat well, drink plenty of good fluids, limit my sugar and sleep a lot. I don't get bored. I like the peace and quiet. :) Updated on 20 Aug 2014: My boobs are uneven. The cleavage line line is markedly different. I mean, it honestly looks like each breast belongs on a different person. I get my sutures out tomorrow and I will discuss these concerns with my PS. I'm tired of headaches, dislike taking pain mess but I'm not ready to be off them yet and I need to see my chiropractor for a degenerating disc but that's not possible. It's a bad day. I guess those are to be expected. Here's a photo of my uneven boobs. I hope it doesn't last too long. Updated on 21 Aug 2014: What a difference! I am back from the PS and am stitch and staple-free. I don't have to go back for three whole months. I am very happy about that part. He wants me to wait until 3 weeks have passed to begin aerobic exercise. I think that's more than reasonable considering the magnitude of the surgery. I had 1200 g removed from each breast, which is significant. I am feeling better every day and being free from the sutures is liberating beyond belief. It didn't hurt much at all. He told me I can start to use scar treatment products if I wish but didn't think I would really need much. I got a "healing perfectly" diagnosis and am happy to be moving forward in recovery. Oh, I also ordered 2 Fruit of the Loom front opening bras from Wal Mart. They are super soft (and inexpensive!) and are awesome to sleep in. I wear my heavy duty surgical bra during the day still but the FOTL is a nice break and breathes well. I bought more non stick pads yesterday. Do yourself a favor if you're pre-op and just buy a bunch at the start. I also use tegaderm film on my skin tear and it's making a world of positive difference. TOday is a much better day than yesterday. Peaks and valleys! Updated on 22 Aug 2014: I got my sutures out and took that as a hall pass to freedom. I waaaay overdid it today and I am paying a hefty price. I ran errands and went to a movie and I am so so sorry I did. I stopped taking my prescription pain killers yesterday and had moved on to Aleve. Today I tried an experiment--tape on my incisions-- and it was a huge mistake. They were burning after an hour and when I got home, I took Aleve, said screw it and took a Percocet because the pain was intense, not just the annoying or sore it had become. Lesson learned. This is a slow recovery and I have to be patient. It's just so hard. On a brighter note, I am giving the girls a long awaited breather and have spent the past hour compression bra-less and we are all breathing a little easier. Updated on 24 Aug 2014: I found a comfortable way to sort of sleep on my side by using a king pillow as a body pillow. I can only stay in that position for about 10 minutes, but they are 10 wonderful minutes. I bought some vitamin E oil fro my scars but I am not really using it diligently because I am letting my scars form. I've read that it takes scars 6 weeks to fully mature and I really don't want to open any incisions. So I'm taking it easy for one more week before I really return to life as I know it and waiting six before I start worrying too much about scars. I didn't do this to have pretty breasts; I did it to feel better so scars shmars. I'll figure that out in time. The worst part about right now is the tightness, soreness and swelling under my armpits. Ice helps. I'm off pain meds completely and taking Aleve a couple times a day. I am actually a little surprised by how quickly the time is passing. Yay! Updated on 1 Sep 2014: Welp. I'm infected. Great. Updated on 6 Sep 2014: The Bad Itchy Red Sore Tight Still can't go braless for more than 10 minutes or so Scabs on nipples Can't sleep on side yet Chafing Nipple on right breast is gone/missing/hiding I don't know what to put on the incisions if anything. The Good My new boobs look like boobs Side swelling is improving Steri strips are gone Breasts are softening I watched the entire series of Breaking Bad

As a teenager I was barely a 34A and always struggled with low self-esteem because of my small breasts. I just didn't feel "womanly" or attractive. At 21 I finally made the decision to get implants. I got 225/250 (one breast is smaller than the other) submuscular saline implants. This brought me to a 36B. So, not outrageously huge, but just enough to look "normal". For years I was happy with them and finally felt attractive. As time went on, I began realizing things I did not like about them, such as feeling self-conscious when I hugged people and not being able to lay on my stomach. I also felt terrible that I had ruined the body God had given me. I have since had two children and breastfed both of them. I couldn't get any more womanly than that! About a month ago, after several months of vacillating, I finally decided to have them removed. Some of my reasons: - I was going to have them removed eventually, so might as well do it while my skin is more elastic. - My surgeon is still practicing and said he would do it for FREE because it is such a simple quick procedure! - I would finally be me. - My husband is fully supportive and excited about my breasts being all natural. - I will most likely get the feeling back that I lost in my nipples when I had them put in. - I will not feel self-conscious when I hug people, and I can hug my children close without feeling a lump between us. - and more... My reasons not to have them removed were all out of vanity and insecurity. June 25 I finally had them taken out. The surgery was very quick, as my surgeon said, and the recovery was easy. I only had local anesthesia, and needed just a couple doses of Ibuprofen the next day to help with the mild pain. They understandably looked very empty and saggy after the surgery. It has been a week and a half and I am noticing a little bit of filling in. I do think my breasts will be smaller than before I had implants, probably a 34AA, simply because I have had two kids. But, I will be happy with whatever I have. I no longer rely on my breasts for part of my identity. I do not regret my decision to have them removed, but it has been an emotional roller coaster since the surgery. I found that the implants were a temporary fix for a deep emotional problem. Several of my insecurities have resurfaced and I am killing them at the roots this time. It feels great to no longer be living a lie. My close friends actually say I look better now because my small breasts fit perfectly with my small athletic build. I met them after getting implants and they said they have always thought my breasts were too big for my body. I never would have thought that. So, I am pleased with my decision and am becoming a stronger woman because of it. Updated on 11 Jul 2012: Well, it has been two weeks since my surgery and I am feeling better each day. I love my real, soft, warm, squishy breasts! :) I am also so elated to report that my feeling is coming back! This is huge for me and my husband, and makes the removal even more worth it. If any of you have lost sensation, please have hope that it will return. I also wanted to say thank you to everyone that has posted their story on this site. Each one helped me make the right decision, and I have gained a lot of encouragement and inspiration from your experiences. Updated on 19 Feb 2013: It has been almost 8 months since my explant, so I thought I would give an update. I am still so pleased that I got them removed. I think my breasts look pretty much how they would have looked after two kids, even without having implants. They have fluffed up a bit more though since the explant. They do not ripple anymore when I bend over. The scars still are tethered but not as badly. And, I figured out they got tethered after healing from the implant surgery, not explant. The other day I realized that my breasts are no longer a self esteem issue. I just don't care that they are small. They are me and I love me. And I love being able to hug my husband and kids tight, and have them lay on me with no rocks in the way. Those are cherished moments. The only issue is still not being able to find a pretty bra. This has been a real emotional challenge at times. I am a 34AA but no bra that size works. My breasts hang low and have no volume above the nipple. So, they do not fill the top of the bra cup, regardless of how small the bra is. The cup actually caves in on top. I have found some little cami bras that are very comfy, and look nice under clothes. I really like them, except they don't look sexy. Some of them even came from the teens section, so I feel weird when my husband sees them. Emotionally, it is also a bit uncomfortable to be an adult women with two kids and having to shop in the same section as 12 year olds getting their first bra. I will keep looking for a bra, but I am so happy otherwise. I realize a new level of maturity and self confidence. I would love to hear more of your stories! Updated on 4 Mar 2013: I added some new photos taken 3-3-13. And, I have made a new discovery...COCONUT OIL! For 8 months I have been using lotion and massage to get my breasts to firm up and be fuller. Well, I started using coconut oil and the results are very noticeable. The skin has firmed up and no longer wrinkles when I lift my arms or bend over. And my breasts have shockingly fluffed up a bit more. They really look better after only 2 weeks of using it. There are a ton of great uses for coconut oil. Check it out online.

Silberg was approved by insurance and had lots of good reviews, so I went to him for a breast reduction. He was super warm and reassuring the first time I met him but increasingly short and impatient with me afterwards. I always felt bad asking questions like I was annoying him so I shut up and smiled so he would like me. Came out of surgery with uneven sized breasts - my areolas are vastly different one tiny and one huge (wth?) and one breast the incision isnt under the breast but on the side of my breast, so it shows. He said “huh, wonder how that happened”. On the other breast the sutures are weird making the bottom pinch into a straight line instead of a curve. I went back for almost a year while he tried to correct the issues with no improvement. Now 3 years later, still uneven, still deformed and also flat on top. The profile view dips in under the breast bone before curving out slight where my breast is. I can feel an empty hole when I rais my arm up. I feel ugly and deformed. I dont understand how he is still allowed to operate. He wanted to cut into me to fix the hypertrophic scarring. I asked if we could try steroid injections first he said no and had his asst schedule the procedure. When i showed up he asked if we already tried injections (?!) is he going senile as well? I hate him for making me feel bad for asking questions. I should have known better but I was so excited about having it approved by insurance and finally getting it done I didnt want to wait another 3-6 months to find a new dr to apply to my insurance company again.

I have suffering for years with unexplained body aches and pains, from my head to my ankles, always running to have certain tests done, and feeling frustrated when they couldn't find an answer for me. I have suffered with sleep disorder, not sleeping soundly, and with unbelievable pain, only on my right side of my body. I have read and compared my aliments, with almost everyone on this site, and yes I too have almost every ailment on your lists, from Fibromyalgia, joint pain, lack of sleep, and terrible ringing in my ears it has progressing gotten worse to the point, I notice myself asking people "what did you say"? or not hearing things right. This is just some of my aliments. I decided to meet with my Doctor who had put them in over 19 years ago, after the birth of my last child. I was glad that I could also do a fat transfer, if needed. Through out the years Ive gained substantial weight, and so did my breasts, I felt like "Dolly" My rib cage below my breasts were painful due to the weight, I had my back x-rayed for something unrelated reason and found that my T-spine, behind my bra strap was slightly curving, that really upset me, however at the time, I was'nt prepared to remove the implants. Prior to my implants, I was a small 34b. and not sure what my breasts would look like after removing the implants, however finding out that fat transfer would give me some volume afterwards if needed was a relief. I can live with my own body fat being "transferred". During these last 5 years, I have suffered from body pain, from my ankles, to the top of my neck. I too feel as if I've been walking in a fog, and losing my memory. I suffer from maniac depression and anxiety, something I've never had. I can barely get out of bed, and exercise like i used to. I am hoping that by removing my breast, and living a healthy lifestyle, will get me back on my feet and all of these symptoms will subside. I have enjoyed and found it very helpful reading everyone's comments, it has helped me make this decision confidently, and knowing I am not alone, and that I no longer want these foreign objects in my body. My doctor says, on the 6th we'll remove my implants, wait 6 weeks post op, to see how well they spring back, and determine how much of a lift, and fat transfer i'll need if any. Going from a small 34b to a 38D., humm we'll see. I will keep everyone posted, with my surgery and photos as soon as I can. I am now excited to have them removed. Girls, ladies one thing I've learnt; love yourself first, take care of your bodies you only get one, and if your really lucky you'll find a "Man" to love you for who you are, and not some barbie doll.