30 Y/o Mom of 4 Ready to Reclaim my Body

I am a 30 y/o mom of 4. Breastfed all four kids and was left with sagging breasts and low nipples. I've wanted my boobs lifted since having my first child however, decided to wait until I was finished having children to find a surgeon to give me, my youthful breasts back. I've researched several surgeons over the last 3 years and finally landed on Dr. Soto's instagram and realself page. Loved the results I was seeing and decided to book a consultation. I went for my consultation in December. He was very professional and showed me examples of his work and the results he thinks he can give me. He made me feel very comfortable from the get go. I originally wanted to do a breast lift with implants but during my exam he explained that if that was the route I wanted to go then it needed to be done in two separate surgeries due to having grade 3 sagging. So that is still an option on the table currently. He suggested I do the lift first and then after 3 months, reassess and see if I still want to do the implants once I'm healed up from the lift. Although he believes he can give me, my desired look without the implants so I'm very hopeful for that. My goal is to look as natural as possible so if I can do this without an implant I'm all for it. He is also going to do an areola reduction.
I've had large breasts my entire life, never below a full D cup. Currently I am a 32DDD. So a minor reduction was discussed. I will attach my before pictures and a picture of what he showed me, that my results could look like. My pre op appointment is set for February 21 and then my surgery is scheduled for March 10. Im very excited and a little nervous but ultimately ready to reclaim my body and feel beautiful and sexy again.

Surgery day has come and gone. Day of surgery went so smoothly. Arrived, anesthesia came in and placed my iv, nurse gave me my anti-nausea meds, (I placed my anti-nausea patch behind my ear the night before as instructed). Dr. Soto came in and marked my breasts and then back to the surgery suite we went. Everyone made me super comfortable, not even enough time to be nervous. I was comfortable and excited. Before I realized it, I was asleep and the surgery was over, and I was waking up in recovery. I had to stay close by in a hotel for the night just in case of an emergency. The nurse Valerie who took care of me in recovery, called to check on me that night and the next morning. Everything was moving along smoothly so I was released to go home. Over the next few days, I took all of my meds exactly as i was supposed to that way I didn't have any unnecessary pain that would increase my blood pressure or heart rate. By Monday (PO Day 3) I stopped taking my pain meds and switched to Tylenol only. By Wednesday (PO Day 5) I no longer needed the Tylenol. I am now PO Day 9 and already feeling so much better. I get super tired and worn out pretty easily after small tasks like folding laundry, but I've just been listening to my body and resting whenever I feel like I need to. I figure if I'm tired it's because my body needs to rest as its working in overdrive to heal. Around PO Day 4 the itching started, and they still itch but it's becoming less and less. I'm still having occasional sharp pains (zingers) but not as many as the first few days. the first few days the sharp pains were pretty painful, but they only lasted for a few seconds, so it was more than manageable. I would say the hardest thing for me, has been sleeping on my back propped up in bed but sleep is getting easier every day. I definitely needed my husband's help the first 3 days. You can't use your arms to push up or anything, so he helped me get in and out of bed, he always set the timer and got me up to walk every 2 hours as instructed by Dr. Soto. He helped me get onto the toilet and he also had to help me shower for the first 6 days. He helped me get dressed and dry my dressings everyday even to this day. Having someone with you for the first week is absolutely essential. I would not have been able to do any of this without him. I had my first post op visit last Tuesday (PO Day 4) where Dr. Soto said everything looked great and to keep doing everything I've been doing. He also changed my walking from every 2 hours to every 4-6 hours which was super helpful with sleeping. While sleeping I've been wearing my inflatable leg cuffs as directed that he provided to prevent blood clots.
Anyway, bruising started the very next day, but it was very light-yellow bruising. They were very swollen for the first 3 days and then started subsided a little bit every day as did the bruising. At PO Day 9 the swelling and bruising is almost gone. I go back for my second post op visit on Thursday (PO Day 13) where he said he would be removing my tapes. I'm trusting him but at the same time I've gotten used to the tapes being there and they give me comfort that my incisions are secure. But I am excited to see my areolas and see what my scar lines look like.
As far as the surgical bra goes, I actually really like it. I bought a second one from his office so i could alternate and wash them. It's very comfortable and makes my breasts feel secure. I do place gauze pads over the tapes just to keep the band of the bra from aggravating them while I'm sleeping. Oh, I did have some drainage, which is normal, but it was very minimal and now that the swelling is mostly gone the drainage has stopped as of PO Day 7. If anyone has any questions, just ask. I absolutely recommend Dr. Soto 100%. Hes been incredible and so far, I am extremely pleased with the whole experience. His entire staff is wonderful, and his nurse Valerie is awesome! I'll try to update again after my next appt.

So my breast lift journey has been going great since my last update. I am absolutely thrilled with my results. It's summer and I am thoroughly enjoying my breasts in all the swim suits. I am obsessed with buying them. HAHA. My confidence is restored. Self esteem: restored! I feel 100% better and so grateful to Dr. Soto and his team! So I am posting pictures from 6weeks up to this point in my healing journey. Just to update from my last entry: At 4 weeks I had a suture abscess that ended up infected but was taken care of with some antibiotics and debridement. Took a couple weeks to heal up from that but it wasnt anything I couldn't handle. Dr. Soto was amazing at seeing me a couple times a week until it was 100% healed. He and his team were on it and I am so thankful to them! At 7 weeks, I was completely cleared to resume normal activities and start working out again. My scars are healing nicely and Im very impressed with the way that they look. I kept having a reaction to wearing the paper tape so Dr. Soto recommended I stop taping and instead use the scar treatment gel 2x a day. I love the gel he recommends. I get it in his office. It's called Regenacyn Plus. It seems to work very well. My scars have not turned purple at all and they have stayed a nice lighter pink color as they are fading. They get lighter and lighter as the weeks go by. Even with not being able to tape, I still feel they look rather good. Im excited to see how much they disappear over the next 6-12 months.
Past the 7 week mark there has not been anything major to update on. Just living my life, enjoying my new boobs and all of the cute tops that I can wear now. Like I said, I'm obsessed with buying bathing suits and I can't stop shopping for all the bralettes, crop tops, workout tops, sportbras etc. It's actually getting a bit ridiculous. HAHA. Anyway, if anyone has any questions please feel free to ask. I'll do my best to check this over the next couple of weeks so I can respond.

I absolutely recommend Dr. Soto. He gave me exactly what he said he would. He fully delivered! I am so incredibly happy with my results and it was the best decision I've ever made for myself. As a mom of four kids I'm always doing for them and I NEEDED this for me. I feel confident, and sexy again. I feel better than I've ever felt about myself now and it was worth every single penny and recovery time. Best money I've ever spent! Ill update again in a few months just to show how my scars are progressing!