Finally Scheduled for March 28th! - Arlington Heights, IL

Hi all, I have been researching breast augmentation for months, and I finally think I'm ready. I am so thankful for this sight I thought I would pay it forward and share my experience. A little bit about me is I am 31 and a mother of 2 (which I breast fed for 14mths each!) I have always been really confident in my body. I'm not sure why but have always been really happy that I am. My current bra size is a deflated 32c. My body measurements are: 5' 4' 112lbs 32 25 36 (Baby got back! lol)

I became interested in a breast aug only months ago..maybe 6. My weight fluctuates only about 5-7lbs, but for my small frame that is very noticable. So on my most recent extreme exercise kick, I started to lose weight in every area I didn’t want to. My butt, thighs and worst of all my boobs! It was so weird, everything changed but my stomach and I looked ridiculous! Also me in a sports bra is not sexy to say the least. That really got me paying attention to my boobs a little more. I had my first child when I was 20 so I can honestly say I don’t remember what my breast used to look like! They were always small, but I don’t remember what they looked like at all, if they were perky nothing.

So far just this week alone I have had two consults. The first one was actually scary. It was in a beautiful affluent part of town (Richy Rich) and had a pretty decent office. I was offered water etc and had to wait a while. Here is where things got sketchy. Finally after 10min (late) goes by she put me in another central waiting area. Why there are no portfolios to peruse or something to make use of all this time.. IDK! So back there I get to see was going on. Nothing but CHAOS , Doctors are confused who’s seeing who, what patient is in what room…um OK. Then finally after waiting another 20 min (Now 30min late) she (front desk lady btw) comes and puts me in a room, then proceeds to empty the garbage! Before she could close the door another doctor comes in and says I have to chart, then plops down without another word and charts, then a patient comes in undressed and stares at me, basically saying this is my room get out! Fortunately I was not undressed so I went back to the waiting area…WTF. Finally I get put in a room, again, get undressed and sit and wait. First thing I notice is there is no sink for the Doc to wash their hands..EWW (I have come to find this is common ?) then I notice there are Botox bottles and actual NEEDLES on the desk by the computer. I have officially decided this is not the place for me. The doctor came in and she is a lady dressed in leopard and high heels and probably in here 50’s with lots of face work down. I mention this because the doctor I choose should be aesthetically on the same page with me and she obviously is not. BTW what is wrong with a dr. looking like a dr. and wearing a white coat! She does the exam, and I became more and more confused what she was talking about. Even though I had done plenty of research and understand all the terms. Nothing she said actually made since. Then she had the nerve to show be a bad before and after of someone with sag like me that did not get a lift…WTF there is no reason that women should have ended up looking like that, she should have ended with a sag, not a deformity. You’re the surgeon, you need to make it work the best you can! Finally that was done and I get her quote $13,000 for and aug and lift…Are you kidding me! 5 hours of my life (incl travel time) down the drain?

Today I met with Dr. Ross of the liposuction and cosmetic surgery institute. I was not initially impressed with the office, but while it is in a nice area it is older, so I decided to keep an open mind. After filling out some paperwork I was escorted to the back. Unfortunately it was not an exam room , it was a room with a couch and a mirror. I was told to get undressed so I did and waited. Fortunately there was literature to read about the doctors in the practice, so a least that was helpful. After about 15min or so the dr walks in. Older guy 50-60s in a blazer, jeans and pointy shoes (lol) I don’t know how else to describe it! He sits and tells me how long he has been doing this and approx how many procedures he has done (very impressive) he says give him a minute to give his speech and then ask questions. So I did and impressed again, I had none. Then he went to discuss recovery, again all was explained, no questions. Finally the exam. He looked, pinched and said ok gown back on. Not impressive, but still open minded. He told me over the muscle, no lift. While that all sounds like heaven, I was a little leery. He told me I had plenty of tissue to cover the implant, so no need to go behind muscle, he said for darker women he likes the nipple incision, but that depended on size of the implant and he said my nipples are still pointed in the right direction and was confident I would look good without a lift. He said while I would benefit from the lift, I would not like the scarring and would be happy without it. I was freaking elated! Just a breast aug, any good surgeon can do that in their sleep. I was mostly concerned about the lift, the scarring, the placement the symmetry. Without it I’m gravy. Basically this doctor had me after his speech. His experience showed in his confidence. At first I thought he was over simplifying things, but when I really thought about it the other doctor only left me confused. Him telling me the basics and ensuring me he would make sure I looked good is really all I needed. My millimeters difference on each side and knowing all these terms for my chest wall blah blah was not helpful. Just make sure you know what your doing and make it look good!

He left me to try on implants with the client services lady, very nice and huge boobs! I started at 325cc and went up to 450cc! I really loved the 400cc but am simply scared of having boob envy. Even though it was fun to try them on, I am pretty much just going to tell the Dr. to fill em up and make sure they look good.

We finally discussed price and the prices were INSANE! $4,900 Saline and $6,500 silicone!. Wow my budget was $7,500-$8,500. I left feeling really good and had a date in mind. I didn’t do the deposit yet, because I wanted to talk to my hubby about it.
As I sat here reading reviews, as always, I can’t help but think what if the doctor only wants to do this the easy way. Maybe they simply have one price for aug, whether its unders or overs, arm pit or TUBA and so doing it the easiest way is the more economical for them. I mean how many people do overs any more. I don’t think I really even researched overs. My husband insists the doctor knows what he is talking about. But other than gas and time what would it hurt to see one more doctor. I really feel good about Dr. Ross and he did explain why I could do overs, but it’s the question if I should do overs!
Just the old question of is it too good to be true!
Please give me some insight on your thoughts on unders/overs. Saline/Silicone.

Just a brief update, I have a consult with Dr. Otto Placik scheduled for 10/2. After posting a question to the doctors I realize that the majority prefer submuscilar so I am going to keep looking for a surgeon. I feel as though even though I told my self not to include cost as a factor, after hearing only $4,900 it was hard not to be motivated by it! I Definatly feel uncomfortable going back to Dr. Ross and saying ok ill do it but I want submuscilar. Maybe he didn't suggest it cause he is not good at it. I doubt if that is the case, but that's the problem right now DOUBT. Ugghh. I can feel my chance slipping away I can only do this during the week of Thanksgiving and my consult is in Oct. to top it off we may be getting our basement done ($10,000) as a mom will I really add $7,000 to that for myself? I appreciate the advice ladies. I want to do this right the first time so I'm gonna keep looking. I hope the window doesn't close in my face ;(

Well today was my consult with Placik. It/he was wonderful! The office was really nice and staff very friendly. I was about 10 min late trying to find it and they were technically closed. The girl that made the apt made a mistake and booked me for after hours but I never felt rushed or heard anyone complain. I had to watch a video and do a little quiz which was informative. I liked that I had something relative to do with my time. Then the RN called me back. She was really nice and looked really good. Meaning of course she had work done but it looked really natural and very pretty. She talked about how the consult would go, advised they would point out my flaws but only to take note and correct them. She gave me boobie books, yaaa more boobs! I got undressed and within minutes the Dr. came in with the RN. Can I say how elated I was to see him in a doctor coat! He had nice clothes underneath, no gold chains, no snake skin so that was a plus. He started right away taking measurements and talking to the RN in medical jargon. This took about 5 min and they said I don't have to have a lift but was close. He advised my asymmetries and how to fix them. Then the fun part came, trying sizers. They have the new ultra high profile implants, WOW. That's real bang for your cc's. For my narrow frame I could fit 590 cc's or more easy. The width of my breast was 13 if this is helpful. Not that I felt rushed but I know I would want to come back and do sizers later so I tried a few and really Liked 480 cc's ultra high. Then we discussed cost. And there in lies the RUB. It came to almost 8k for silicone no lift...aww come on people. That's $1500 above national average and I'm in Illinois not Beverly hills. I think I gave to much away and didn't have my poker face on. I know a girl on here that just got hers done with him and a lift for less than that. I'm not giving up yet. Has anyone ever negotiated a BA? It needs to be about $1k less for this to make sense...ughhh it's always something.