40 Yr Old with 13yr Old, Smooth Saline 400cc Under the Muscle. Implant Deflation & Removal with Lift. Duluth, GA

So, I figured out where my review went in the app but I couldn't edit my update to add the pics. So, here are my 1 year post-op pics. The update is posted right before this post. ????

I’ve been gone from this site for at least 6 months. I needed to get back to “normal” life- a life where I wasn’t thinking about my boobs every single day. So, I decided to stop logging-on. I have now passed my 1-year anniversary and I feel the need to reflect, as one does on anniversaries. So I reviewed all of my old notes, the comments and my pictures. It’s hard to believe that it’s been a year. So much has changed yet so much has remained the same.

I went for my 1 year follow up last week. My surgeon was very pleased with my results. He did bring up my unevenness and the slanted nipple (technically, the areola, but you know what I mean), which is due to lack of tissue on the left side. My options are to have a camouflaged tattoo that will make it appear even, to have it cut and raised, or to do nothing. Right now, I’m leaning toward the do nothing option. Even though I don’t like it, I don’t see the need in repairing it since no one will see it but my husband & me. Plus, it would raise it up and that means that I would flash people with both nipples instead of just one. Lol.

Everything has healed nicely. My tube hole indentions filled out and are flat. (I was really worried about those because they were dented for a long time.) My sensation is mostly back. There is still a tiny bit of numbness on the right nipple, but it’s not enough to notice & it doesn’t bother me. The sensation in my right underarm and upper lat came back too. As you can see, my scars are visible, but they are light. They still get REALLY red when I’m overheated or hot-n-bothered. Lol.

Prior to explant I had a lot of unresolved back & neck pain. I went to the chiropractor often (at least once a month) and I had regular massages. The pain is pretty much gone. I still have flare ups, but it is nowhere near as bad as it was. My implants were under the muscle and that constant pressure was just too much for me. I have not needed to see a chiropractor since explant!!! Also, my hair seems to have stopped thinning. I’m not sure if it’s due to the explant or if it’s due to not using a flat iron anymore, but it looks better.

Exercising after explant was difficult. I was a gym rat prior to surgery. Time to brag…I could bench press 115lbs five times, squat 160lbs five times & deadlift 155lbs five times, and I could do 3 sets of each with good form. (I never did 1 rep max.) Anyway, I was strong! Not anymore. I kept trying to go back to the gym & things just kept coming up. It wasn’t that I didn’t want to go, It was that I was just so busy. Then my gym closed & I’ve not found anything that I like. So, I became sedentary & started eating pretty bad. I’ve lost muscle & gained fat. I still weigh about the same, but I had to go up a size in clothes! Most of my fat went to my hips & thighs, but I did get a little bit in my boobs. They are now a full A cup or a very small B cup. I actually have enough tissue that I can wear a push-up bra now. Before, it had a huge gap between the top of the bra & my chest. It sits flush now, but I will say that push-ups make me look like I have banana boobs. Hahaha. They are high, narrow & pointy! I’ve tried on so many styles & I can’t find any that just make me look normal. So, most of the time I just wear a basic VS bra with just enough padding that my nipples don’t stick through. I’m fairly flat, but most days I just don’t care. Summer time is a different story though.

Last summer sucked and I’m not looking forward to this one. I live near Atlanta, Georgia & it’s not called Hotlanta for nothing. The best way to survive summer is to wear almost nothing & stay in the water. I can’t wear anything with spaghetti straps because either my bra shows or my nipples show or both. And strapless doesn’t work either. Last summer, my boobs were so small that an A cup didn’t even cover them. Basically, I got really good at always putting my hand on my chest every time I bent over. Finding a bathing suit was a nightmare for the same reason. Your nipples always pop out when you are board flat. Push-ups didn’t work because there was nothing to push up & there was a hug gap revealing…you guessed it, my nipple. I looked like a boy in a triangle top. Bandeaus fell down, even with the strap on. I always wore a cover up if I was at a public pool. This year I may try a one piece. If that doesn’t work, I’ll live in cover-ups again. The one bathing suit I’ve found that works is a one-piece with a plunging neckline. I bought one for an upcoming vacation that just my husband & I are going on. It looks fabulous, but I wouldn’t dare wear it around my kids or at our neighborhood pool! It’s way too risqué.

I know. This is a lot. Thank you, if you’re still reading. One last thing… what would I do if I could go back in time? I would still have them taken out and I would have done it exactly the way I did it. Overall, I am happy with my outcome. I accept how I look. Hell, I’m over 40 & don’t need to be dressing like a teenager anymore anyway, right? Lol. And like I said, on most days I never give it a second thought.

I'll try to add pics if the app will let me. I had to write this on the computer because the app will not pull up my review for some reason???? Anyway, I don't upload any of my pics to the computer because I don't want my kids to accidentally see them!

I have been super busy these days, so this is my first post in a while. I am at the six month mark and am doing well. My scars have softened and are a bit lighter. I am still using silicone gel on them. I have gained 10 pounds! So, my boobs are a slight bit larger. I can almost fill out an a cup now! Never in a million years would I thought I would be excited about that, but I am. I just hope that I do not lose it when I start exercising again next week. I do still have shooting pain at my incision sites on occasion, but it is not that bad so no complaints there. My nipples are still slanted, especially the left one. I don't think that that will change unless I gain another 10 or even 20 pounds. And, I'm not willing to do that! I think the 10 pounds I have put on since surgery is enough.

Thankfully summer is coming to an end! I have to admit that I have NOT enjoyed pool or beach time this summer. I tried on countless bathing suits and bought several. My problem is that my chest is so small nothing really keeps me covered. I come out of everything! I have flashed so many people this summer that it is not even funny. I know I could get a halter style bathing suit that would work, but then I would have a really bad tan lines. Same goes for wearing a swim shirt. Oh, I've had the same issue with clothes too. I've had to get rid of so many tops that I thought I would be able to keep because of flashing people. I'm assuming the reason this is happening is because I had the lift because I did not have this problem before I had augmentation. But, it is what it is so I have to deal with it.

I know this post sounds a bit negative, but all in all I am happy with my results. For the most part, I don't really think about them anymore. I don't cover them during sex anymore or try to hide them from my husband. The only time really really conscious of them is when I'm in a bathing suit in public. Other than that, all is really well.