A Life Changing Experience - Beverly Hills, CA

I was unhappy with my breasts starting as a teenager. I think it began with exercising without the correct bra, but whatever the cause, even at 17 I was saggy and uneven. I vascillated between forcing myself to be OK with them and having a sense of utter despair. No matter how much I exercised and tried to make the rest of my body look as good as possible, of course, nothing changed. I hated them.
In relationships throughout my teens, twenties and thirties, men didn't ever audibly complain, but there were occasionally some responses that reaffirmed how I felt. I would spend a lot of energy trying to make myself OK with walking around naked, but even on my own I was deep down full of self loathing. I really only told a few people about it throughout the years, as I tried to fight against it, but it was hopeless. I didn't have the money, I didn't want the scars, I was embarrassed with the fact that I had such a superficial obsession and wasn't the 'type of person' to be that way. I continued to push myself into hoping I would eventually not care.

Then, something changed in my life financially, and at 43 I also came to terms with the fact I would most likely never have children of my own. These were two of the reasons why I could never seriously consider a breast lift (breastfeeding is always a risk afterwards, plus the post pregnancy sag), but all of a sudden the idea opened up. Now that it was a possibility, I allowed myself to fully come to terms with the extent of how much I hated them. Coming out of the shower, I would avoid looking at myself at all costs in the harsh bathroom light, and when I did I would cry. And there were a couple of nights where I couldn't sleep all night... I was so desperately unhappy. I told my mom finally (who was hesitant but supportive) and 2 other people before I decided it was time to at least get consultations.

Dr. Minniti came as a recommendation from another surgeon who had done some light work on my mom. I was so nervous coming in, but almost immediately when I met him, I felt so at ease. I told him my whole story and more, I was emotional, I was talking a mile a minute. He really took a long time to listen to me, to just look me right in the eye steadily and patiently, and I felt so safe. On examination he looked at them and said they were still nice, but he thought I was a great candidate for the surgery because of how I felt and also because of my skin type, which he said would heal really well. He was so encouraging but not in a pushy way. It was such a personal experience. Then I met Gail, who is a real mensch (which is also a great word for Dr. Minniti.) She was also patient with me and talked to me about how she really hoped I would do it. She worked out the payment which was about what I assumed it would be and told me about the timeline to expect to heal. It was such a positive meeting, on the way home I felt like a huge weight was lifted off my shoulders and was so optimistic. I only saw one other surgeon as I felt I had to, who was no comparison. They were overjoyed when the heard. So I scheduled my surgery for the next month, near Christmas.

I was very very anxious before the surgery. I was afraid it wouldn’t work out as much as I wanted it to most of all. Well, I can laugh at all of that now. The surgery was not a big deal (what I disliked the most was the post op medicine, which made me a little crazy, especially Ambien… though the Xanax really helped.) Everything was really well organized and timely and by the book. And I had Dr. Minniti's visits to look forward to, as they were starting to heal and take their proper shape.

So what do I think about my breasts now? Well.. I think Dr. Minniti is like Michelangelo. They are truly beautiful, perfect, exactly what I hoped for and more. It’s 6 months later, and they have settled into what they will look like hopefully for a long time. I can’t stare and smile at them enough and I show them to everybody. (Seriously, I flash people all the time. It's hilarious. But I'm so proud now.) The scars have faded a lot, the silicone sheets are easy, and Dr. Minniti told me in the many follow up sessions that he thinks they will be virtually invisible at the end of the year. He was so accessible throughout the healing process, responding to my every question via email quickly and promptly and sometimes humorously. (Neither of us thought I’d be so anxious… but this was so important to me.)

To go from hating a part of my body so intensely, to absolutely loving it, is the most sensational feeling. The time I spent thinking about them was taking so much space in my brain and all of that insecurity has been totally erased. I have absolutely no regrets about anything except I wish I had done it years ago. And Dr. Minniti made it so easy and seamless and did work that exceeded all of my wildest dreams. I would recommend him 300% to anyone looking to get a procedure.

I'm finally adding the before and after photos (13 months post op.) Amazing to see these... he's such and artist and I'm so happy.

Still so happy. I gained and lost 30 pounds because of my mom's illness and passing... and worried they were going to look bad.
I've gone through my own health struggles and worried they would be affected.
But I'm 52, and they still look great!