Life changing breast reduction and lift for 25 year old with no kids!

Here are pictures from day 7 and a comparison of my progress so far

I wanted to add to my initial review to give more details about my surgery and the process leading up to the procedure. I wish I had done these reviews as I went.

I started my process by visiting my regular doctor and requesting a referral. At the time, I had planned to go through insurance bcbs. I found the requirements needed and brought that info with me to my doctor. She helped me go through each requirement to see if I would meet them. She measured me and noted my neck and shoulder issues. She then mentioned Dr. Kortesis. After researching his office, I called to set up a consultation.

Consultation:
I had my consultation with doctor Kortesis in March 2018. During my consultation, I learned that Dr. Kortesis did not take insurance. He was very understanding and recommend me to another surgeon in the area. He let me know he was more than happy to complete the consultation anyway and even waved the consultation fee. This was so kind and something he did not have to do! During my consultation, he let me know that I was a great candidate! It was so nice to feel validated and listened to.

After my consultation, I called the doctor he recommends and learned they could not even book me for a consultation until August. After much though and conversation with my mom we decided that going through insurance may not be the quickest, easiest, and best route. We knew we wanted the BEST and if paying out of pocket is what we needed to do then we would. I knew after meeting Dr. K, it was the right choice.

I called back a few days later and was able to set up a surgery date for June 21st. It all became very real, very fast! I was also scheduled for a pre-op appointment.

Pre op-
I scheduled my pre-op appointment for June 12th. During this appointment, I had my blood drawn. I was also given my list of medications. These included prescriptions and over the counter meds. The nurse went through each medication very thoroughly. She also discussed all the things I needed to do/couldn't do before surgery. She was very upfront in explaining how important it was to follow all of the recommendations. I was instructed to fill my medications and bring them on the day of surgery.

Between my pre-op and surgery days I began gathering the things I would need for recovery. Luckily, I am a teacher and my surgery fell 2 weeks after school was over. I am grateful to have the time to recover over summer break. My mom would be coming into town to help me as long as I needed.
Some of the things I would recommend:
-Comfortable lounge clothes
-Lots of pillows (I used a chair pillow from Walmart. Wish I had bought a body pillow. Sleeping on my back has been HARD)
-Refillable ice packs
-Gatorade
-I did not buy any bras beforehand but I do recommend buying some comfortable no underwire bras. I could only tolerate the one from my surgeon for a few days
-Lots of healthy snacks (I pre-made fruit salad, pasta salad, jello and popsicles)

Surgery Day-
My surgery was scheduled for 10:30. I could not eat or drink anything after 10 pm the night before. This was honestly harder than I expected. I was very thirsty and wanted water so bad. I arrived and was taken to the surgical wing of the building and given a gown and socks. I gave a urine sample and then had pre-op pictures taken by the nurse. The anesthesiologist came in to meet with me and explained what she would give me in my iv. One of my biggest fears was nausea (spoiler alert: oh boy was I right!) so she said she would give me extra medicine. I also wore a patch behind my ear to prevent nausea and took a dose of Zofran before surgery.

Dr. Korteis then came in to mark me up. You have to have a lot of courage to let someone mark up your biggest insecurity with three different colored sharpies but Dr. K was very gentle and respectful. The nurse then took more pre-op pictures.

We were in between other surgeries so we waited longer than I expected before going into the surgery room. At 12:30 they came to get me and I hugged my mom. I was led into the operating room. All of the nurses were so amazing and helped me get comfortable. They placed massagers on my legs. I was able to keep on the athletic shorts I was wearing and did not have a catheter.

The anesthesiologist then placed my IV. It did not hurt nearly as bad as I expected. She did have some issues with the catheter but was reassuring and quickly fixed the issues. That is the very last thing I remember before surgery! It was like someone turned out the light to my brain and I was out.

I woke up still in the surgery room and immediately was very upset someone had woken me up from my nap! I was also very hot and asked the nurses to take off my socks.

I then was moved to the recovery area and my mom was called back. I was still very hot and soon after my worst fear, nauseous. The nurses were so sweet and gave me a fan and a cool rag. I did walk to use the bathroom very soon after waking up, which was a good sign. I stayed in the recovery area for almost two hours while the nurses worked to control my nausea. I then came home around 5:30.

I will add my recovery process soon!

I am 7 days post op from a breast reduction and lift performed by Dr. Bill Kortesis. I chose to have this procedure after years of back, shoulder, and neck pain. I wanted to be able to wear clothes, bras, and bathing suits appropriate for my age. I made the best decision and am feeling better each day post surgery. Dr. Kortesis and his staff made this experience so easy from my consultation to my post op appointments. They answered every question and eased all of my surgery anxieties. Recovery is a process but taking it easy and being patient has been paying off.
I would love to help anyone else thinking about this procedure. Feel free to comment any questions you may have.