Should I Have a Breast Augmentation Before Having Children?

Many women wonder if they should wait until their family is complete before undergoing breast augmentation. Certainly, pregnancy and breast-feeding can stretch the breast skin,  change the shape and appearance of the breasts, and cause significant loss of size; this is one of the main reasons many women choose to have breast augmentation surgery.

Should a woman who has never had a child (and plans to in the future), or a woman who wishes to have more children later, undergo augmentation mammoplasty? If your breast development is complete and you wish to have breast enlargement surgery, and then later become pregnant and breast-feed, your breasts will indeed change in appearance, just as in a woman who has larger breasts naturally, becomes pregnant, and nurses her baby.  Since breast implants are in most cases beneath the chest (pectoralis major) muscle, and in all cases beneath the breast itself, the presence of implants does not interfere with the function of the breasts.

Whatever breast tissue a woman has prior to breast enlargement surgery will swell and respond to the normal hormonal changes of pregnancy and later breast-feeding. The degree of enlargement, skin stretch, and later droop or sagging, is as individual as each woman. A patient who had breast augmentation prior to pregnancy may choose to undergo a breast lift when her family is complete, just as the woman without breast implants.  Others may simply choose slightly larger implants to further fill the stretched skin brassiere. 

Or, you can indeed wait until your family is complete, and then undergo breast augmentation surgery, or augmentation plus breast lift (mastopexy) if a lift is needed in addition to restoring volume.

What you need to know is that it is safe and appropriate to choose either way, whichever is best for you.

Breast augmentation does not generally affect the ability to breast feed. One study shows that about 54 percent of women without implants reported problems nursing. 93 percent of breast augmentation patients had their children before undergoing the procedure, so nursing was not an issue. Of the 7 percent who had children and nursed them after augmentation, 50 percent reported problems, essentially the same number as those without implants.

So if you don't mind waiting until your family is complete, and you like how your breasts look now, then wait until your child-bearing years are over to have your surgery. But, you said you have "never been happy" with  your size, and are "keen" to be a C-cup. THERE IS YOUR ANSWER!

No one knows how your breasts will change after breast-feeding; but there will be no shortage of qualified plastic surgeons to address whatever needs you have then! Good luck and enjoy your new look!

The decision whether to have your breast augmentation before or after you have kids can be challenging. The answer really depends on your goals. For women who are considering having children within the next 1-2 years,I typically recommend that women wait 3-6 months after their baby is born, or 3-6 months after nursing if you choose to breast feed. For women who would like children, but are unsure regarding timing, can have an augmentation at any time. It's important to know that breast augmentation will not affect your ability to nurse your baby, it does not affect your breast milk, and also won't affect your ability to undergo routine mammography (breast imaging). When considering breast augmentation make sure you find a board certified plastic surgeon who will take the time to answer all of your questions and explain all of your options, so that you can decide if breast augmentation is right for you.

Thank you for your question. Many women will have breast augmentation before and after having children. For women who are actively planning children or plan to have one with a year's timeframe, then I generally recommend waiting. Depending on how pregnancy changes your breasts, you may also consider a breast lift at the time of your augmentation. If you have implants before pregnancy, then you should feel reassured that the implants will not impact your pregnancy, but you breasts may develop some of the post-pregnancy and/or post-breast feeding changes.

If you plan to have children for sure, then it's probably best to wait until after you have them before getting breast implants. This is because many women find that the shape and size of their breasts changes with pregnancy and childbirth. It is very common for women to experience a significant increase or decrease in breast size, and there may be some sagging as well. For these reasons, having a breast augmentation before having children may improve your body contour, however the results may be negatively affected once you get pregnant. Following childbirth, you may find that your breasts are too large or too droopy (which would then require a subsequent surgery to address these issues).

It does not make much sense to me to get breast augmentation if you plan on being pregnant within a year. It is different if you do not know when you will start a family, do not know when you will be pregnant again or plan on starting some years down the road. Although it has never been proven it is reasonable to believe that breast implants before pregnancy would increase the chance that you will need a breast lift after pregnancy, especially with larger implants.

I hope you realize that this format of posting questions and receiving answers lacks the face to face direct communication required for you to make an informed decision regarding your surgery.

My response to your question/post does not represent formal medical advice or constitute a doctor patient relationship. You need to consult with i.e. personally see a board certified plastic surgeon in order to receive a formal evaluation and develop a doctor patient relationship.

Thank you for the question.

Timing of the breast augmentation is a very personal decision.  in general I advise patients if they are  planning on having  children in the near future (this is open to interpretation)  to wait on the breast augmentation procedure. Doing it this way will  potentially minimize  the number of operations  that the patient will undergo. The majority of patients who have breast augmentation are able to breast-feed, regardless of the incision site.

Best wishes.

If you are planning to have children soon, then I would wait to have implants.  Your breasts may change shape after pregnancy and may leave you with wanting  additional surgery if you should have them just prior to pregnancy.

If you are planning to have a baby soon then I would recommend waiting until you have finished breast feeding.  If you do have an augmentation before you become pregnant then make sure that you wear a supportive bra during pregnancy and breast feeding all the time.  The skin will stretch with the extra weight and you want to make sure that they have extra support to avoid stretch marks. 

If you are considering breast augmentation and think that you might want to get pregnant in the near future, it is best to delay the surgery until after the pregnancy and possible breast feeding.  The change to a woman's body after childbirth is unpredictable.  Some patients have very minimal changes and other patients have size changes, development of stretch marks, severe sagging of the skin and lowering of the nipple.  Your needs might change as well with possible weight gain or other generalized changes.

If you are planning on becoming pregnant within the year, I would advise against breast augmentation now and wait until after childbirth and breast feeding.  There may be some changes to your breasts following pregnancy, and it doesn't make sense to perform breast augmentation now followed by a possible revision after pregnancy.