26 Years Old, 5'7" 125ish Lbs, Inspira SRM 304cc. Coral Gables, FL

I scheduled 4 consultations and connected the most with Dr. Tal Roudner. I believe he listened to me the most with undivided attention and was all about a natural looking breast augmentation. He wasn't all, "I'll put in whatever you want." I knew he was the one! Haha. He took measurements during consultation too.

Had only one window to take time off work and they scheduled me right in for pre-op and surgery. I found that the coordinator was overwhelmed but she was nice and everything still worked out.

During Pre-op he took photos, discussed profile, and size. He has sizers as guides but relies primarily on communication and pictures of desired outcome. He recommended inspira SRM profile ( a moderate profile and comparable to moderate plus). He explained the possibilities and limitations to me. Very happy I chose him!

I finally decided to get a breast augmentation after years of wishing they were bigger and hoping I would just get over it one day. After trying to embrace them with different bras and braless tops, I finally decided to do it. I am very happy that I was in the right mind space- no pressure, no body resentment, no pushy significant other. I know myself and any of those would make me second guess the sincerity of my feelings toward this.

On to surgery...I was indecisive about incision site. I wound up going with periareolar per Dr's suggestion. He was open to either PA or IMF but strongly recommended PA in my case. Also, it's most common in his practice so it was important to me that he was going with the approach he's most comfortable with. What I've learned is that this whole process is easier and less stressful if you realize that everything is a risk vs benefit, not all your answers will be obvious and take some compromise. PICK A SURGEON YOU TRUST!

Day of surgery was smooth. It was at an ambulatory center. He was running late but I totally didn't mind. I wanted him to take the time he needed with me too! I was getting groggy as they wheeled me into the OR and the staff there asked me for my music preference. I heard the surgeon come in and poof...I woke up and it was done. They called up my mom. I cried when she got there because I was just so happy about my decision and it was done!! I got pain meds before discharge, water, and apple juice. We had an hour drive back home and I felt pretty good. My discomfort was soreness in the top of my breasts. I felt a little dizzy and nauseous when I was in the bathroom at home so I sat down and my mom brought me zofran and water. She helped me to bed as soon as I felt better. It came and went a few more times but I was fine after that. We took a nap. I advanced my diet to regular by dinner time. And slept for about 2 hours at a time that night but I didn't mind since I had meds to take anyways (write the times down and have your caretaker check them to avoid incorrectly dosing yourself!)

Biggest tip: If your surgeon is strict like mine in terms of moving your arms (he wants them down for a week), I've found it helpful to be mindful of staying relaxed in the shoulders. As a nurse, I find it a little too strict but I understand now that ever dr has their preference and some patients need strict or black and white directions. When you consult with surgeons ask about their recovery directions and make sure you feel comfortable with them! Some want you to raise your arms the same night and I totally would've wanted that but...no regrets, just reflections. Trying too hard to have immobile arms tends to make you want to stay so stiff in the shoulders and neck that makes me hurt more. When I realize this I ease my breathing and take deeper, slower breaths and gently drop my shoulders, stretch my neck and feel loose in my arms and elbow joints. This alleviates the stress in my upper body so much!

This is my first full day but I'll call it day 2 so it doesn't get confusing. (I had surgery around 12pm yesterday). I woke up early and spent the day out of bed more than in. I took a nice nap in the afternoon. I have Bromelain, Arnica, and Vitamin C as suggested by the office and I've been taking pain meds as prescribed to stay ahead of the pain. If I didn't feel too sore when it was due, I took it anyway. The soreness comes and goes with activity. So if I'm sleeping and really still, I wake up feeling stiff. A little neck rolling and slowly straightening up my back helps. Honestly my throat hurts more than my breasts when I wake up though. I wanted to give myself at least a good 2 days of healing on a good pain control regimen, then see if I want to space the Vicodin out some more or switch to Tylenol. With that comes being bloated. I bought prune juice before surgery and I've had about 32 oz already! Sorry if this is TMI but I find it important so I'll keep it simple lol...I'm feeling some movement going on but no luck yet. Although I've been out of bed I probably need to walk more to wake my system up quicker.

Today I felt some tiny, tiny zaps around the areola. My mom said she'd felt those too when she had her BA. It made me a little nervous but I don't even think I could call it pain so I let it go. Not much change that is noticeable in pictures so I'll post more a few days down the line.

I'm not allowed to fully shower for 7 days to avoid wetting the incisions so I had a modified lower body shower and sponge bath with my mom's help. I felt great!

Tip: before discharge, have your caretaker note if your dressing are clean or bloody and how much. Ask if more blood appears, when should you be concerned? My mom happened to notice the blood before leaving but I totally didn't think of that! When I looked in the mirror at home it hit me that I'd have no clue when the blood showed up so thank goodness she checked!