POSTED UNDER Breast Reduction Reviews
20 Years Old, 32DDD/E to 32 B/C, College Student - Chicago, IL
UPDATED FROM 624charlotte
1 year post
Approximately One Year Update!
WORTH IT$20,000
It's hard to believe it has already been over a year since I had my breast reduction in December of 2015! Here are some (unfortunately) low quality photos I took to give an update! I'm about 5'4" and 115 pounds in these photos. They've healed really well, I have sensation in both except for a little at the bottom near the scars. The one side looks irritated because I just had a scar revision this fall (covered by my insurance luckily!) which is still healing! I'm so glad I did the revision though because the scar looks sooooo much better now! If anyone had any questions about that whole process I'd be happy to answer!
My breasts naturally hang low and are not super perky, and you can see in the photos that they have definitely dropped a bit- but i don't mind! I can wear either a 32C or 34B cup but I usually just wear bralettes or sometimes nothing if I'm layering sweaters in the winter! I'm not crazy about bras with underwire (I never have been) and I love not having to wear one now that my breasts are so much smaller!!! Literally not a day goes by where I don't think about how glad I am that I got this done. It sounds dramatic, but every morning I'm getting dressed it is such a relief to feel comfortable in my body :) Please let me know if anyone has any questions! I know this was brief haha!
My breasts naturally hang low and are not super perky, and you can see in the photos that they have definitely dropped a bit- but i don't mind! I can wear either a 32C or 34B cup but I usually just wear bralettes or sometimes nothing if I'm layering sweaters in the winter! I'm not crazy about bras with underwire (I never have been) and I love not having to wear one now that my breasts are so much smaller!!! Literally not a day goes by where I don't think about how glad I am that I got this done. It sounds dramatic, but every morning I'm getting dressed it is such a relief to feel comfortable in my body :) Please let me know if anyone has any questions! I know this was brief haha!
624charlotte's provider
UPDATED FROM 624charlotte
25 days post
About 3 Weeks Post-Op!
I posted the photos for this update above! I wish I'd posted more often this past week, but I actually went back to school on Wednesday so I've been super busy! It wasn't difficult at all to transition back to school, I haven't been in pain or felt fatigued, so that's been great!
The bruising/pain on the sides of my back is almost all gone and I can almost reach my arms all the way above my head now. A week ago I had the stitches taken out that were underneath my arm so I think that helped. The stitches all along the bottom of my breasts were left in though, because my doctor didn't want to take them out that early. I'll probably go back home from college for a weekend and have them taken out! He said if he took them out too early they would scar worse, so I didn't mind leaving them in.
I still can't hug people super tight, but if I'm wearing a winter coat I can barely even tell that my breasts are a little sore! The only time they feel bruised is just if I try to lay on my stomach or something (which I'm not supposed to do, but sometimes I wake up in the middle of the night because I'm trying to turn onto my stomach haha! I've always slept on my stomach, so it's hard sleeping on my back).
Nobody at school has said anything about my breasts looking smaller which is good, because I don't know what I would say! And I told all my close friends about it, so that wasn't an issue. They were all so shocked at how much smaller they were! Everyone was very supportive and complimented me :) I'll try to find some pictures from before where I'm wearing clothes, because the difference is insane! It's hard for me to post pictures at school though because I'm so busy and I don't have the right computer for it.
Overall my recovery has been great! I go to the gym and bike (I just don't do anything with my arms or lift any weights) and carrying around a backpack, walking to class etc has been totally fine! I'm excited for the remaining soreness to go away and to be able to use my arms again because I miss doing yoga. I'm also hoping to be able to lay on my stomach soon, but I think it'll be a while before I can do that. I'm never in pain though unless I reach too far or am bumped really hard in the breast. I'm the most sensitive person in the world though, so I think most of the time I'm just psyching myself out haha!
I am so so SO happy with all the clothes I'm able to wear now! The light blue fleece I'm wearing in the pictures above is something I NEVER could have worn before, my boobs never would've fit in it! But now I can wear it and look so much more normal and proportionate :) I honestly just feel so much lighter, it's crazy!
I'll try to keep posting updates, but as school ramps up I'm not sure how much I'll be on here! Please feel free to ask any questions though, I'll get to them as soon as I can!
The bruising/pain on the sides of my back is almost all gone and I can almost reach my arms all the way above my head now. A week ago I had the stitches taken out that were underneath my arm so I think that helped. The stitches all along the bottom of my breasts were left in though, because my doctor didn't want to take them out that early. I'll probably go back home from college for a weekend and have them taken out! He said if he took them out too early they would scar worse, so I didn't mind leaving them in.
I still can't hug people super tight, but if I'm wearing a winter coat I can barely even tell that my breasts are a little sore! The only time they feel bruised is just if I try to lay on my stomach or something (which I'm not supposed to do, but sometimes I wake up in the middle of the night because I'm trying to turn onto my stomach haha! I've always slept on my stomach, so it's hard sleeping on my back).
Nobody at school has said anything about my breasts looking smaller which is good, because I don't know what I would say! And I told all my close friends about it, so that wasn't an issue. They were all so shocked at how much smaller they were! Everyone was very supportive and complimented me :) I'll try to find some pictures from before where I'm wearing clothes, because the difference is insane! It's hard for me to post pictures at school though because I'm so busy and I don't have the right computer for it.
Overall my recovery has been great! I go to the gym and bike (I just don't do anything with my arms or lift any weights) and carrying around a backpack, walking to class etc has been totally fine! I'm excited for the remaining soreness to go away and to be able to use my arms again because I miss doing yoga. I'm also hoping to be able to lay on my stomach soon, but I think it'll be a while before I can do that. I'm never in pain though unless I reach too far or am bumped really hard in the breast. I'm the most sensitive person in the world though, so I think most of the time I'm just psyching myself out haha!
I am so so SO happy with all the clothes I'm able to wear now! The light blue fleece I'm wearing in the pictures above is something I NEVER could have worn before, my boobs never would've fit in it! But now I can wear it and look so much more normal and proportionate :) I honestly just feel so much lighter, it's crazy!
I'll try to keep posting updates, but as school ramps up I'm not sure how much I'll be on here! Please feel free to ask any questions though, I'll get to them as soon as I can!
Replies (5)
M
Z
January 14, 2016
Thank you so much for posting your pictures and your story! I am about the same size as you (although a bit taller) and a 24 yr old college student. Thank you for your honest posts about pain and recovery and how it was to return to classes after such a short recovery time. Also, I will probably show your pictures at my consult in a couple of weeks as an ideal outcome of the procedure. I am so glad you are someone who decided to air on the smaller side of things, since I am hopeful that I can go from a 34DDDD to a 34B/C.
In reading the pretty gross comments about how "perfect" your breasts were before surgery, I can certainly relate. People often tell me that there is "nothing wrong with me" or that "women pay thousands of dollars for implants to look like you" but they obviously are missing the point. Ever since I was a teenager, I've always wanted to be small chested so that I could distance run and dance more than I was ever able to. I'm finally taking charge of things and moving ahead with surgery and I am so glad to find a case that is so similar to mine!
If you have any more info on how soon you were able to return to exercise (or even just walking, yoga, light impact stuff) I would very much appreciate it, since that's one of my main concerns. Also, were you pretty comfortable taking care of yourself about a week post-op? You mentioned the hair washing situation, but were you able to drive, get groceries etc. once you returned to school? Thanks again!
In reading the pretty gross comments about how "perfect" your breasts were before surgery, I can certainly relate. People often tell me that there is "nothing wrong with me" or that "women pay thousands of dollars for implants to look like you" but they obviously are missing the point. Ever since I was a teenager, I've always wanted to be small chested so that I could distance run and dance more than I was ever able to. I'm finally taking charge of things and moving ahead with surgery and I am so glad to find a case that is so similar to mine!
If you have any more info on how soon you were able to return to exercise (or even just walking, yoga, light impact stuff) I would very much appreciate it, since that's one of my main concerns. Also, were you pretty comfortable taking care of yourself about a week post-op? You mentioned the hair washing situation, but were you able to drive, get groceries etc. once you returned to school? Thanks again!
6
January 14, 2016
Thank you so much for your nice comment!! :) I'm so so excited for you that you're doing this for yourself, I hope everything goes really well for you! I'm also definitely glad I decided to go smaller especially because I'm still young, and as my weight fluctuates and I get older I don't want them to get big again! Plus, like you said, having smaller breasts makes it SO much easier to move around and be active. I also was always told that I was lucky to be so chesty, people don't understand how much they get in the way.
I am so glad that my posts helped you!! That was my goal in making this page, because especially being on the younger/smaller side of things I sometimes felt like I wasn't a good candidate for the surgery. I couldn't have been more wrong! I am SO unbelievably happy that I did this, I finally feel like my body looks and feels the way it was meant to.
As for the exercise and stuff, I had my surgery on a Friday afternoon and from the time that I woke up I was able to sit up if I moved the hospital bed up to a 45 degree angle (which was a little hard because my chest/arm area was really sore) and get to the bathroom by myself and stuff. I had no problem walking to or getting into the car when I went home on Saturday which was also great! I mostly laid down on my couch or bed on Saturday and Sunday because the pain medication made me weak/dizzy. But I was able to get up off the couch/bed on my own. It helped if I had a heavy blanket over my legs because I pretty much had to use my abdominal strength to sit up since I couldn't use my arms! I could go to the bathroom, get water all by myself etc!
Like you mentioned, the only thing I really needed help with was showering, but by 1 week after surgery I could totally do it by myself! I stopped taking pain medication on that Tuesday (4 days after my surgery) and after that I was able to drive! I would recommend maybe asking your doctor when you should drive though, I was still pretty sore and couldn't make like sharp turns or anything because my arms couldn't move the steering wheel that abruptly. But by a week post-op I was definitely able to drive pretty comfortably!
I also started walking around a lot more after Tuesday, sometimes if I moved too fast though my chest would move up and down and pull on the bruising/incisions. About a week after surgery though I started wearing little cotton or sports bras if I knew I was going to be walking around a lot (like at the mall or something) because it kept everything from moving around and making me feel sore. I hope that makes sense?
I was also able to get groceries once I started driving at 5 days post-op! I just couldn't carry anything too heavy because my arms were sore and it was mostly just difficult because I couldn't reach anything up high (and I'm already short!).
I started going to the gym and doing the sit-down stationary bike a week after surgery and was fine with that! I started doing pilates/abs exercises around that time too. I'm still waiting to do yoga sadly, because I can't really do downward dog still. It tugs at the incisions under my arms. I still do stretching, I just don't do vinyasa flows or anything. I'm probably going to call my doctor sometime next week and ask when I can start lifting weights again! I think you can start doing it generally between 4-6 weeks? I haven't tried running yet though, I'm worried all the up and down motion will make me feel sore because it'll tug on the incisions and bruising.
I went back to school at about 2 and a half weeks post-op and haven't had a problem with anything! I can walk, drive, get groceries, bike at the gym, carry my backpack, and I haven't been tired! I think being younger definitely helped me in a fast recovery.
I hope this answers your questions, feel free to ask me to clarify! I feel like my response was a little all over the place haha! I am so excited for you :)
I am so glad that my posts helped you!! That was my goal in making this page, because especially being on the younger/smaller side of things I sometimes felt like I wasn't a good candidate for the surgery. I couldn't have been more wrong! I am SO unbelievably happy that I did this, I finally feel like my body looks and feels the way it was meant to.
As for the exercise and stuff, I had my surgery on a Friday afternoon and from the time that I woke up I was able to sit up if I moved the hospital bed up to a 45 degree angle (which was a little hard because my chest/arm area was really sore) and get to the bathroom by myself and stuff. I had no problem walking to or getting into the car when I went home on Saturday which was also great! I mostly laid down on my couch or bed on Saturday and Sunday because the pain medication made me weak/dizzy. But I was able to get up off the couch/bed on my own. It helped if I had a heavy blanket over my legs because I pretty much had to use my abdominal strength to sit up since I couldn't use my arms! I could go to the bathroom, get water all by myself etc!
Like you mentioned, the only thing I really needed help with was showering, but by 1 week after surgery I could totally do it by myself! I stopped taking pain medication on that Tuesday (4 days after my surgery) and after that I was able to drive! I would recommend maybe asking your doctor when you should drive though, I was still pretty sore and couldn't make like sharp turns or anything because my arms couldn't move the steering wheel that abruptly. But by a week post-op I was definitely able to drive pretty comfortably!
I also started walking around a lot more after Tuesday, sometimes if I moved too fast though my chest would move up and down and pull on the bruising/incisions. About a week after surgery though I started wearing little cotton or sports bras if I knew I was going to be walking around a lot (like at the mall or something) because it kept everything from moving around and making me feel sore. I hope that makes sense?
I was also able to get groceries once I started driving at 5 days post-op! I just couldn't carry anything too heavy because my arms were sore and it was mostly just difficult because I couldn't reach anything up high (and I'm already short!).
I started going to the gym and doing the sit-down stationary bike a week after surgery and was fine with that! I started doing pilates/abs exercises around that time too. I'm still waiting to do yoga sadly, because I can't really do downward dog still. It tugs at the incisions under my arms. I still do stretching, I just don't do vinyasa flows or anything. I'm probably going to call my doctor sometime next week and ask when I can start lifting weights again! I think you can start doing it generally between 4-6 weeks? I haven't tried running yet though, I'm worried all the up and down motion will make me feel sore because it'll tug on the incisions and bruising.
I went back to school at about 2 and a half weeks post-op and haven't had a problem with anything! I can walk, drive, get groceries, bike at the gym, carry my backpack, and I haven't been tired! I think being younger definitely helped me in a fast recovery.
I hope this answers your questions, feel free to ask me to clarify! I feel like my response was a little all over the place haha! I am so excited for you :)
V
January 15, 2016
Congratulations on your surgery! I didn't think I'd ever have a reduction, despite wanting one since my 20s, and finally did it this past August, at 46 (34H). I should've done it years ago, and I'm so happy for you and the other young women that go for it - no need for the pain and self-consciousness large breasts can often cause if you put it off!
My friend had one in her 20s, and her daughter is only 13, is 4'10" and wears a 30J. She's a dancer, and hasn't developed the pain and slouching yet, but my friend wants to be proactive about it. It will be a few years before she'd have surgery, but I referred her here and recommended she read the reviews done by younger women, so thank you for writing about your experience! Best wishes for a continued smooth recovery!
My friend had one in her 20s, and her daughter is only 13, is 4'10" and wears a 30J. She's a dancer, and hasn't developed the pain and slouching yet, but my friend wants to be proactive about it. It will be a few years before she'd have surgery, but I referred her here and recommended she read the reviews done by younger women, so thank you for writing about your experience! Best wishes for a continued smooth recovery!
6
January 16, 2016
Wow, thank you so much!! I am so excited and happy that my review can help other young girls :) Congratulations on your surgery as well!!! Thanks again :)
B
October 29, 2016
Echoing everyone on here that you look great! I look almost identical to you. How much was removed from each breast? My insurance requires 400g per side.
6
November 1, 2016
Thank you so much! I keep meaning to post more photos now that it's been 9 months and I keep forgetting. I'm not actually sure how much was removed from each side, I'm sorry! My insurance had me submit photos (and I also had a history of a herniated disk in my back which also helped get it covered). I didn't have a gram requirement so I never looked into the details.
L
November 22, 2016
You look amazing. I am similar size to you (pre-op), 25 years old. I'd be interested to see what yours look like now, if you have time can you post an updated picture? I'm kind of flip flopping if I should get the procedure done! I also like the size you are, are you around a C cup? Thanks :)
6
January 13, 2017
Hi! I'm so sorry, I just saw this! I really need to do an update, I just keep putting it off because I'm so busy with college etc. but I will definitely try to do one by the end of the month! For the most part everything looks the same, my scars are fading a bit slowly (I have extremely fair skin so I expected this) and I actually had a scar revision on my right breast so that is also still healing, but I'd like to make an update on that too! I also think my breasts "dropped" a tiny bit and aren't quite as perky just because that's the way my breast tissue is naturally. I'd absolutely recommend the surgery if you're seriously considering it, I can't think of anyone I know who regretted it! :)
Replies (3)
T
January 13, 2016
Your results look great, are you using anything on your scars? The one seems to be healing very nicely.
6
January 13, 2016
Thank you so much! I haven't started using anything on them yet, I probably will soon though. My doctor said the one side looks much worse because it blistered and that it was normal and would go away soon. So I'm hoping in another week or two it'll look the same as the other side! I'm thinking I might use bio oil on my scars, my friend used it and said it worked really well.
G
January 13, 2016
Looking gr8 ;-) I bet it feels nice to be "balanced"
6
January 13, 2016
Thank you so much! It really does, I feel so natural now. I definitely think that this is how my body was meant to be proportioned :)
K
Replies (5)
As for medications, I was given an antibiotic right after surgery through my IV (which they do for all surgery patients). Then I had an oral antibiotic that I took for about two weeks post-op. I was also given hydrocodone for pain and ondansetron (Zofran) for nausea caused by the pain killers. Thanks again!