I love that I made this decision for myself - finally

I am 6 weeks post-op from my breast reduction. This is a surgery I had a consultation for 10 years ago with another surgeon, decided not to do it then, and since had gotten even larger. I was wearing 34H bras when I had surgery (they were close to the right size but probably not exactly... you know how it is when you have to order online and different brands fit different).

I had a comprehensive consultation discussing what to expect, how it would be done, etc. I scheduled the surgery. I had bilateral breast reduction with liposuction of axillary at the surgery center. It took 3 1/2 to 4 hours. Then after I woke up I went home. No drains (it was a possibility depending on his judgment of how things looked).

The first few days I slept sitting up on the couch with my feet propped up, took meds around the clock as prescribed. Pain that I had was incisional pain and discomfort really. It wasn't no pain but by Monday I was able to stop taking prescription pain meds and use OTC as needed. I was instructed to start showering the next day and daily after, apply neosporin to incisions.

The first week was a mindf$^%, they were so swollen still, the incisions hurt, they felt tight and like they weren't even part of my body, I didn't want to do something that would open incisions, it was hard to not feel like I could just totally open up my breast in some way. I had to keep reminding myself to just follow the instructions, be patient for healing. The worst was the first couple of weeks. After that, I was less worried about those things and focused on making sure there was no infection, wanting the pieces of stitches sticking out to go away (dissolvable stitches), wanting swelling to go down, etc. I did have a couple places where stitches started to create a small abscess. I used q tip to make sure it was clean and applied neosporin and they resolved within a few days. Even from week 5 to 6 I feel like they feel more natural, that's when the piece of stitches all finally fell away, incisions finished closing up. It is still uncomfortable to do some things, only started laying on my side some. They do still change through the day. I have taken weekly photos (have to figure out how to get them small enough to add)

I'm still bigger than I'd hoped but:
1) I'm sure I still have swelling
2) we discussed prior to surgery that he might not be able to get me as small as I wanted (c cup) but could possibly get me to D. He would do what he could while also being confident that the result would maintain nipple viability. My nipples are viable and that was very important, I'm confident my surgeon did what was necessary.
3) even though looking in a mirror they are larger still than I hoped, when I'm dressed they look proportionate
4) I am able to wear straight size sports bras!! (S,M,L depending on sizing)
5) I know in the coming months they will continue to change in shape and size and very likely will be exactly what we discussed

I love that I made this decisions for myself. I'm thankful that I have not had complications. I can already see that when all is said and done I will love the results.

These are the photos from my breast reduction preop, 1 day post, and weekly after that. Hope they help show progression. I know it can be hard to find photos of where you are in your recovery. I will add 3 month photo once I'm there.

1) Through five weeks, I was aware of my breasts 24/7. They are uncomfortable, tight, foreign, itchy, having sharp zings of sensation, etc. It was annoying! Between 5-6 weeks is when some of that started going away for me.

2) my cousin who had breast reduction surgery recommended a u shape pregnancy pillow. This was a lifesaver for the purposes of propping myself up at night

3) they itch! - I took antihistamines and lightly rubbed the itchy areas