5-foot-4, 32H/J, Vancouver BC

I’ve had a reduction seriously on my mind for 13 years and am sure I tossed the idea around before that. I inquired with my family doctor a few years ago and did some research but never actually acted on it. One day last April (2017) I was fed up and ready to go in that day if I could! I talked to my doc about it again and finally made the next step and got a referral to a plastic surgeon.

I just checked to see when I got my referral last year - I thought it was in April but I guess that's when I decided I wanted to ask for a referral and called my doctor for an appointment. The appt with my family doc was on May 15th and that's when she gave me the referral to Dr. Nelson. There was a 4 month wait for consultation, and my first consult appointment was eventually set for Sept 14th. While I waited over the summer, I made a list of "reminders" as to why I wanted the surgery. In addition to all the common reasons we all seem to experience - back pain, indented shoulders, difficulty exercising/running, the challenge to find bras (everyday bras or sports bras) that offer both coverage and lift/support (not to mention stylishness), underboob sweat, etc - I also listed the following:
- Rowing. I was on a rowing crew for a couple of years, and although I loved the sport, the team, being on the water, and the exercise, I always had a tough time getting to the proper catch position. Eventually my bust size was hindering my technical/skill development enough that it was part of the reason I left the sport. And forget about finding a club singlet that fit; even finding tank tops that fit and moved properly were challenging.
- Curling. I took curling lessons in 2016, and although I found it interesting and would have enjoyed moving on to the second and third level lessons, getting into the right position at the hack and in the slide was difficult, and the "top heavy" weight distribution caused balance problems. I sensed that pursuing the sport would end in a similar way as rowing did - full of frustration - so I didn't continue.
- Clothes shopping. ALL the shopping reasons. Other than my boobs, I'm fairly petite, so my unproportional proportions cause an even bigger challenge when it comes to shopping. Cute dresses fit except I can't zip them up. Bikinis, hahaha! One piece swimsuits (e.g. for aquavit or actually swimming) that actually fit and offer support do not exist. Dresses with waistbands - boobs basically sit at the waistband giving the impressing that I have zero torso. Empire style tops and dresses are impossible - the waistband is supposed to sit under the bust but actually sits overtop. Blouses with buttons - Nope. Cardigans - Nope. Strapless dresses - definitely not. Sleeveless tops/dresses - almost never - by the time I size up to fit the bust, the armholes are too big and the bra shows at the underarm. And bras are never cute enough to be OK with them showing! Racerback tops/tanks - I'd love to wear these but can never find a bra that the straps wouldn't show - and who wants their 1" thick straps showing?

I also started lurking on this site last summer. Whenever I started to have doubts about getting the surgery, I'd refer to my list and check out all the happy, motivational journeys on this site to remind me why I need to finally get this done!

I had my consultation with Dr. Nelson on Sept 14/17. I was super nervous! Dr. Nelson was really nice; she gave me a general overview of the procedure and patiently answered all the questions I had (there were a lot!). Here are some of the topics we covered:
- Drains. Dr. Nelson doesn’t typically use drains. Drains are used to take out the fluid between the skin and tissue. Dr. Nelson uses stitches inside and the drains are not necessary.
- Anchor vs. Lollipop. Dr. Nelson typically uses the lollipop technique. Occasionally a small ’T’ bar is needed at the base of the vertical scar, depending on the width of the breast, and occasionally a full anchor is required. She thinks that she’ll be able to use the lollipop during my procedure, and possibly the small “T” bar depending on how things go. “Boxy” breasts are usually a result of the anchor scar and not lollipop.
- Reduction vs. lift. A lift generally involves less than 200 (grams? not sure of the measurement), moves nipple and tightens skin but does not remove significant tissue and patients generally remain the same bra size. A reduction removes a significant amount of tissue and also lifts the breast.
- Symmetry. My breast measurements are very symmetrical. This was not a surprise to me - I know that the vast majority of us have one breast that is larger than the other, one nipple higher than the other, etc, but I have never been able to see this difference on myself. I know I'm lucky that I haven't had to have this concern over the years. Dr. Nelson said that although the attempt is made, surgery doesn’t always result in correcting asymmetry, but that because I am almost exactly symmetrical, there shouldn’t be a difference at the end of surgery (but no guarantees). Revision surgery is a possibility in cases where there is above-normal asymmetry or if scars around the nipple are not round.
- Necrosis. I have seen a few scary photos showing necrosis of the nipple. Dr. Nelson said that necrosis is a particular risk with smokers. She once had a patient who did not disclose that they were an active smoker, and that resulted in some necrosis. She said that sometimes there is only a small spot of necrosis, and that eventually the necrotized spot will eventually lighten up in colour and heal into a slightly darker pink spot on the nipple.
- Upper pole. I’d never heard of 'upper pole' before coming across this site! Dr. Nelson mentioned that if you have upper pole, you won’t lose it. She added that reductions can increase upper pole in those who don’t have it, because it pushes the breasts up which makes them fuller on top.
- Infection. There is a risk of infection but this is rare.
- Areola size. This is determined by a cookie-cutter type of tool. There are two sizes; a smaller size for B-C cups and a larger size for D cup and up.
- My eczema. I have eczema which sometimes gets quite bad on my torso and under my bust. Dr. Nelson said that eczema does not cause any problems even if I have an outbreak on surgery day.
- Recovery time (for taking the dog out, driving, going back to work). This could be up to 6 weeks but would likely be more like 3-4. An earlier return to work on a gradual basis might be possible because I work a desk job.
- Wait time. Wait time for surgery is 36-40 weeks (9-10 months)!!! With approximately 2 months notice regarding the date.

The knowledge I gained in the appointment meant I left the office feeling much more at ease than I did when I went in. But the wait time! Wow, 36 to 40 weeks meant I was looking at May/June/July 2018 - so long, especially because I already waited four months for the consultation. I was hoping for as early as possible (a) to get it over with and (b) so that I wouldn't be healing in the middle of summer. I generally have bad luck with ‘getting what I want’ when it comes to these sorts of things (Murphy's Law and all that), so when I heard the wait time, I figured that I'd definitely be at the tail end of July and recovering in the hottest weeks of the year and resigned myself to that!