Hi, my surgery is scheduled for 2nd October 2023 with Dr Elena Prousskaia in Bristol UK. You can see from my before pics how droopy my breasts are after pregnancy, breastfeeding and 3 stone weight loss. I used to be a 32E and now I'm an empty 32D/DD. I was a 34G when first breastfeeding, they were huge!
I hate looking at my boobs, I avoid being topless even when I'm alone after a shower, I will cover up. I also feel embarrassed about the way they look and move during sex, which is distracting! My partner loves me the way I am and doesn't think I need to have surgery, but he is extremely supportive after I explained the way I feel about my boobs. I am very lucky as I could never afford to pay for this on my own and take time off work.
I've decided on a full anchor Bilateral Breast Uplift with Round Moderate+ Implants dual plane placement. I can't wait, I'm quite nervous as I've never had any surgery before and I'm scared of the pain and how it will look afterwards with scars, but I totally trust my surgeon. She is amazing at what she does and such a kind and lovely person. I am also very lucky to have a wonderful partner who works from home and will be there to look after me everyday. I've been advised not to drive or do any housework for 4 weeks (yay!)
I want them to look natural, I don't want full projection at the top. I know my body looks good with large breasts as I've always had them so I will be interested to see what size implant my surgeon recommends. I have my pre op on 6th September so will update again then!
Updated on 6 Sep 2023:
I had my pre op appointment today. This involved a blood test and MRSA swab with the nurse and then an appointment with Elena.
This was my first visit to the North Bristol Private Hospital, where I will be having my surgery next month. It is a beautiful hospital. Very clean and the staff are all lovely and very friendly. Unfortunately I fainted when having my blood taken (I’m a fainter, so not totally unexpected) it was a shame as I felt so sick afterwards I wasn’t able to fully enjoy my appointment with Elena and ask all the questions I had written down. The nurse that took my blood was fabulous, she really took care of me when I felt unwell but she joked with me too, which always helps!
I bought 2 post surgery bras whilst there, then Elena measured my breasts and advised 200cc implants. She thinks this will give me a slightly bigger bra size that I am after. Im a 32DD now and would like to be a 32E, which was my bra size pre children. I trust her judgement as I have no idea what is right for me.
It’s feeling a bit more real now. I think I will be really scared when going into theatre but I just have to keep thinking of the beautiful boobies I will have at the end of it all!
Updated on 3 Oct 2023:
I can't believe I went through with it and had my breast lift! I was so nervous, excited and worried about fainting, but I had the procedure and didn't faint!
The day of surgery was yesterday Monday 2nd October 2023. I arrived at 7am. I saw Elena at around 9am and she did all her drawings on me and took social media videos and pictures. I asked her to go slightly larger on the implant if she thought it would look better and give me the full E cup I want so she said possibly 225cc but I don't actually know what size she used, I'll ask her next week.
I was taken to theatre at around 2:30pm (second on the list for that day). It was so surreal walking into the theatre and lying down on the table, I said it feels like I'm in a dream! They put in the cannula and then the anaesthetic. It feels like you have a really dead hand and arm and then you close your eyes and when you open them again you're in recovery. Feels like seconds, amazing! I didn't feel sick at all (which I was quite worried about). I just had the shakes for about half an hour, but that's very normal apparently. Surgery as about 3.5 hours.
Once back in my room I was given drinks and food and was able to sit with my partner for a while. My pain was about 3/10 at this point. More just uncomfortable than pain. My partner left at 8pm and they gave me liquid morphine as my pain was going up, probably to a 5/10.
I had drains in each breast. They are uncomfortable and you have to carry them to the toilet but you can't feel them specifically, they just make your ribs feel sore. The lovely night nurse Rekha gave me antibiotics through my cannula and regular pain relief through the night. She helped me to the toilet and was such a lovely caring lady. I had the leg pumps on for DVT so I really didn't sleep much at all as it's so noisy! The pain at its worst for me was about a 7/10 during the night a couple of times, but nothing I felt was really terrible. Just sore across the whole chest and hurting when breathing too deeply.
I had my drains removed at about 6am by Rekha. She knew I was worried about fainting so I just lay flat and took a deep breath in when she pulled it out. It didn't hurt that much and I didn't really feel the cannula being taken out either. I was really worried during the night about them being removed (pain can cause me to faint) but it was totally fine.
I saw Elena, my surgeon, before I left. She came in and undid my bra to check everything and let me touch and see my new boobies, they felt really full and firm, so weird!! They look so perky and so different to the saggy, empty breasts I'm so used to seeing. She took a photo for me which I will post here.
I was discharged at 7:30am and I have to say my experience with Elena and her team had been excellent. The nurses and doctors are all really friendly and take care to listen to your worries (mainly fainting for me!!) everything is triple checked by different people and all the staff are caring and excited for you and are always there if you need them. The hospital is beautiful and very clean. I would highly recommend her and her team if you're considering surgery.
I will keep updating as I found it so helpful when I was planning my operation.
Updated on 3 Oct 2023:
Updated on 9 Oct 2023:
Recovering well. I stopped taking co-codamol on day 4 as it definitely constipates you! Now just taking paracetamol and antibiotics, but I don’t take paracetamol much as I’m feeling ok most of the time. I have been icing throughout the day as I found my swelling got worse on day 6. I got some small round ice packs from Amazon and they are great.
I am so bloated but things are starting to return to normal after 7 days.
I can’t feel my nipples at all, hoping the feeling will return over the next few months. I have feeling in the rest of my breasts so it’s just the nipples. Boobs are bruised but nothing major.
Morning boob is real. I had read about it on real self. I do wake up at 5/6am and everything feels really tight and I can feel a lot of pressure under my breasts where the incisions are. It does ease off after getting up and moving but it’s annoying as I’m not getting as much sleep as I’d like.
Managed to get dressed yesterday, put some makeup on and go out for lunch which was nice.
I have my 1 week check up in 2 days so will update after that.
Updated on 12 Oct 2023:
Saw the nurse yesterday. Everything is healing well, the incisions are very neat and nipples look good. My right breast is much more bruised and a bit odd looking but will settle over the next few weeks. She removed all the tape, which didn’t hurt, surprisingly. I can now shower, hurrah!! I still have to wear my Macom bra 24/7 and sleep on my back.
She recommended using bio oil on my breasts (not the scars yet) to prevent stretch marks.
It feels really weird when I take the bra off. Feels like my boobs are going to fall off my chest! They are quite hard, swollen and bruised and sitting high. I’m looking forward to seeing them change over the next few months. I have no sensation in my nipples at the moment. Hoping it will return as the heal.
Implants were 200cc in both sides.
Seeing my surgeon next week so will update again then.
Updated on 28 Oct 2023:
I’m now 3 weeks post op and have started using silicon scar gel today, morning and night. Stubborn bruise is slowly going away on right breast, bought some arnica cream and that’s definitely helped. I’m also using bio oil to help prevent stretch marks on my boobs as I had a lot from puberty, hence the sagging!
Still have to sleep on my back for another 3 weeks, which is not great but worth it! I am waking up in the night feeling like someone had punched me in the back, which I think is from lying in the same position for hours. But I have noticed that morning boob has gone away now, thankfully. My breasts are till tight, firm and tender if I am not gentle with them but I have no pain in general and forget I’ve had it done when I busy at work in the office.
I am loving the results more every day as they drop and fluff. My right breast is the bruised one and it was a funny shape but seems to be settling well. The nipple on that side is also not completely round like my left (which is perfect) however my surgeon said that could change as the internal stitches dissolve and everything stretches and settles. I will see what it looks like at 3 months and discuss with her then, but compared to how I looked and felt before a slightly odd shaped nipple is ok with me!!
Still in my post op bra day and night but I’m expecting to be told I can wear normal bras during the day when I see the nurse at 4 weeks. Then just the Macom bra at night.
Overall I am thrilled with how they are looking and I still can’t believe these are my boobs now!
Updated on 15 Nov 2023:
6 weeks post op and everything is healing well. My boobs are really soft now and feel much more natural. They’ve dropped a bit and the shape is perfect, I wanted a natural tear drop shape and that’s exactly what they look like. I really love the way they look and my partner loves them too!
I can sleep on my side now, which is amazing. I wear a normal bra if I’m going out but I still find the Macom bra more comfortable as underwires can irritate the scars under the breast after a few hours. Scars are getting better slowly. I’m using the silicon gel every morning and bio oil once that has dried.
Unfortunately I still don’t have any nipple sensation yet. Maybe that will change but it’s a risk I was willing to take.
Updated on 26 Apr 2024:
7 months since my op. Everything is still going well.
Updated on 27 Jan 2025:
Loving my boobs, I feel great. They are firm and feel so natural. I love wearing low cut dresses and tops that I would never have worn before. My partner loves my confidence and loves my boobs, he always loved them but now he gets to touch and look at them a lot more lol! I use fake tan and that definitely helps to hide the scars somewhat.
My scars are still fading. My right nipple scar is a bit thicker at the top than the other scars. Not sure why as I used the silicon gel on all scars. It doesn’t bother me at all. The scars around my areola used to be sensitive and a bit sore to touch but that’s nearly gone now. I still don’t have much feeling in my nipples unfortunately, but I would still have chosen the surgery regardless, and that could still come back according to some reviews and doctors.
Updated on 27 Jan 2025: