Gummy Bear Breast Implants - my Experience. Kirkland, WA

I had a good experience overall, but wanted to share a bit about my recovery because some of it surprised me quite a bit & I would have liked to know ahead of time that these things were normal. I had an excellent surgeon & the outcome was fantastic. I just turned 40 & I went from a 34B (barely) to a 34DD, 480cc implants. My ride home from surgery was awful, an hour drive doubled-over in the passenger seat from the confusion of anesthesia and pain in my chest. It took about a week to sleep on anything other than my back and for a few days I couldn't move around once I laid down, unable to push up with my arms. I stretched like crazy & followed the recovery protocol & quickly regained movement, but was still tender for a while doing much with my arms like washing hair, opening doors, driving, etc. I had surgery on a Thursday & was out and about by Saturday, but certainly feeling it. My bruising was impressive, green & yellow down both sides and my front almost to my waist, with a few very dark blotches that looked like I lost a cage-fight. My skin was stretched so tight my nipples were almost flat & lightened in color, then after about a week the skin around my nipples got dry, cracked, red & so sensitive I could hardly stand the feel of fabric against them. I sent pictures to my surgeon to be sure I didn't have an infection, but it resolved itself after another two weeks or so. What I think shocked me the most was the nerve pain as the nerves worked to reconnect. Any change of position/elevation that caused renewed blood flow sent a surge of burning pain & tightness through my breasts. Sitting up in the morning was the worst & I had to sit for a minute before moving to let it subside. I coined the phrase "fire tourniquet" from the burning tightness. It truly felt a times that my skin was so tight, it was a balloon about to burst. Bra shopping was impossible for about a month because the repetition of trying on bras caused so much discomfort against my skin. My surgeon informed me that the more the breasts are touched, the quicker the nerves recover, but it's still quite uncomfortable in the meantime. I resumed cross-fit after about 3 weeks and was very pleased with my mobility & had no issues with my new breasts interfering with any part of my workout. Although, push-ups & pull-ups are a little harder with the added weight of the implants :) My original breasts were a little uneven in both size & height, but not enough to warrant different implants in each one, so my new breasts are also a little uneven in size & height, exactly like before. While I had hoped a "perk" of cosmetic surgery would be to resolve this, it does make them still seem natural, which was very important to me. I am now 7 weeks post-surgery & have no restrictions at all. Only every once in a while do I notice a little tenderness here or there, but it's rare. I do still have quite a bit of numbness around & under my nipple by the incisions, which I understand will take time to resolve. I have replenished my bra wardrobe and found that I don't like the feeling of underwires, nor do I need them, and can easily go without a bra depending on the shirt, since my nipples are so much pointier now. I didn't have to give up many of my prior shirts, but swimsuits had to be replaced. I am very glad I did this and am so happy with the outcome, my only disappointment was how downplayed the recovery process was compared to my actual experience. It wouldn't keep me from doing it again, I just would have liked to have felt better prepared.