From the age of 12 I started out with a 36C which...
From the age of 12 I started out with a 36C which was made sports days at school very interesting! I have always been recognised as 'The One with the Big Boobs!' and that's never really bothered me. What has bothered me is the stress and strain of carrying around a large chest. I'm now a 34G and have been for many years. I was a D/DD until the age of 21 when I started taking a high estrogen contraceptive pill for a skin problem. My breast grew and got out of control. One grew bigger than the other and they became droopy in my early twenties. Not something you associate with being young. I've always felt ashamed of my breasts and have never been comfortable taking my top off in front of boyfriends, not until I really trusted them.
From the age of 12 I have also suffered with chronic back pain caused by degenerative discs. More recently I have been diagnosed with Spondylolisthesis which is a slippage of a vertabrae in the spine. My breast have been a major contributor to the problem. I have to wear tight fitting bras to keep them in control and this causes grooves in my shoulders and the tight strap around my back causes muscle spasms. It's a hefty weight to be carrying around and when I don't wear a bra they swing around and it's really uncomfortable.
My Doctor referred me for a breast reduction around a month a go and I have had to get special funding from the NHS as this sort of op is not available on the NHS. I got the funding last week and they told me there would be a 6 month waiting list. I was disappointed it wasn't sooner but made my peace with it. I went to my Pre-Assesment meeting today and the Nurse took all my medical details, weighed me, blood pressure etc and told me what to expect in surgery in the coming months. Not long after leaving the hospital I called the admissions team to see if they had chosen a date for my surgery and they said it would be in 6 months but no date had been chosen yet however the nice lady on the phone said that the surgeon I was booked in with usually does hand surgery and very rarely breasts, so I asked it there was anyone else that could do it and to my total amazement she booked me in for my breast reduction surgery on Saturday!!! In 2 days!!! I was so excited I nearly cried!!!
I can't believe it! I have been wanting this surgery for 9 years and all of a sudden it's here! I'm so happy!!!
Can anyone tell me what I should take with me to the hospital? The admissions lady said dressing gown, slippers and an overnight wash bag. Do I take a bra? Is there anything else that anyone here has taken that would help me?? Your comments are welcome.
2 days post op and I'm feeling happy!
Well it's now Monday 24th June and I had my surgery on Saturday 22nd. 2 Days post op and the surgery was a success. It took me a while to come round in the recovery room and I was quite sick after the op from the general anesthetic and the morphine, I think that's been the only thing that's been unpleasant so far. I spent the night in hospital on Saturday as I was fitted with drains. They took the drains out on Sunday and changed my dressings and released me at 1:30pm. I went home and was very groggy but had a good nights sleep. I'm a little bit sore today and still a bit queezy from the general but other than that I'm fine. I've tried to put a few dresses on to see the difference but moving my arms around and up in the air is quite painful so I think I will have to resist temptation and just wait.
They have said that I'm most probably a D. I was a 34G so that a good reduction. I had the horrors yesterday in hospital thinking that they had taken too much away and that I should have said I wanted an E cup instead but now that I'm home and walking around and they are solid I'm just so grateful! I know they will drop and get softer but I'm really pleased. I think I look a bit slimmer as well. I've always had these enormous boobs sitting on my chest and I have quite broad shoulders so it's made me look out of proportion. I can't wait until they are healed and I can go shopping for bikinis and clothes. I love play-suits but I've always had too big a bust to wear them!
I am scheduled to have my dressings changed and stitches out this Friday.
More updates then.....
3 days post op and I'm loving the girls!!
I''m feeling so much better today. I think the general is wearing off as I don't feel so sick or tired. I'm not even that sore. It's lunchtime and I haven't taken any pain relief yet and prob won't need to. I'll see how I get on.
I do have a very sore tummy though. My stomach muscles are really tight, like I've done a hundred crunches. Did anyone else experience this? I though perhaps the surgeon may have been leaning on me whilst operating.
Here are a couple of pics. Sorry about the quality. They were taken on my phone.
Wet Bandages - Help!
I've had a sponge bath and I got my bandages wet. I have a wound dressing on the crease of each breast which is soft and then a thick piece of stretchy squishy tape under each breast and a piece in the middle. The squidgy tape has lifted and the wound bandages are soggy. I called the hospital and they told me to take the thick tape off and dry the bandages with a low heat setting on the hair dryer. I've managed to do it all and put it back together but Im not sure it feels the same, perhaps a little wet still.
Has this happened to anyone else? I was so careful washing but when I was washing my hair with the shower hose over the bath some water must have trickled down in between my breasts and lifted my dressing. Im due for a dressing change and my stitches out on Friday.
1 week post op!
I've just been to the hospital to have my dressings changed and it couldn't be a moment too soon! They were getting sweaty and sticky and coming lose. It feels so good to have been cleaned up and have the big thick white tape off too. I can now see what they look like.
They said that I'm now able to have a wash properly. Thank heavens!! I have to take my dressing off and wash with baby wash or a very mild wash and then pat dry with a clean towel and then reapply the dressings. I have dissolve stitches inside but my outer stitches will need to come out at the 2 week post op date. I have a couple of stitches that are poking out, I have have to make sure I don't pull them! I was also told I had to wear my sports bra for 6 weeks and no exercise! I love swimming so keeping out the pool is going to be the hardest bit of all of this.
I figured out why I have been feeling so sick since the op. The nurse said the anti-biotics I'm taking are strong and cause sickness. That combined with the general is why I've been feeling sick and nauseous.
I have to say they are a lot smaller than I thought they were going to be. I asked for a D but I'm pretty sure they are going to end up being a C.
I caught a glimpse of my profile in a shop window when I was walking down the street and I look so much slimmer. My breasts aren't the first thing you notice now. No one stared at my chest like they usually do when I walk down the street. Not one person. It was really nice!! I did get a smile from a handsome Doctor though, perhaps he was just being friendly! I do feel more confident with the new boobs. I also feel like any attention I get from men from now is going to be genuine and not just because I have big bangers!! :)
I'm going to wait until I have my stitches out next week and then I'm hitting the shops to see what size bra I am and try on loads of clothes and see what suits me now. I hated clothes shopping as nothing looked right so my day to day clothes are just for comfort. I do have some lovely dresses for going out but some I'm going to have to sell or take in as they are not the right shape for me anymore.
Here are a few pics from yesterday and today..
Franken-boobies and a new size specific bra - 34D
I had a bath last night and it was heaven! First I took off all my steri-strips and plasters and then got in the bath and washed the incisions with a very mild body wash made by Sanex. It felt weird having my whole chest under the water, usually when I have a bath I have these two mounds poking out the water like round ice bergs!
I took some pics of the pups without the dressing on and they look angry! Bruised and jaggy scaring. This is going to settle down with time so I wasn't fazed. This site has really helped me prepare for the post op feelings and questions. I'm taking it all in my stride now as I know they are going to get better with time. The gift that keeps on giving if you will!
I went out to the shops today to by a proper fitted sports bra for wearing during the day to keep my puppies solid. At night I'm going to be wearing a more comfortable bra top which is just as supportive but less tight across the back. I have a back condition and wearing tight fitting bra's cause muscle spasms, otherwise I would be wearing the super support sports bra 23/7 for the next 6 weeks.
Going stir crazy without exercise!!!!!
Im still not even 2 weeks post op and already Im itching to get back in the pool and do my daily exercises. My PS said I had to wait until everything has healed and the Nurse who changed my bandages at 1 week post op said no exercise for 6 weeks. Due to my back condition I have a daily regime of swimming, walking, Pilates and Physio exercises and Im not able to do any of them at the moment. What has been everyone's experiences with recovery and exercise?
Frilly boobs! Has anyone else experienced this???
It's just over 1.5 weeks post op and I have noticed something which I thought would have gone away. Perhaps it still will but I have a feeling it's something I'm going to be stuck with. I had really noticeable stretch marks on my old boobs, they were more like tears in the skin which caused grooves and were unsightly. Upon a good inspection of my breasts I can see that these grooves have created a ripple effect and there doesn't seem to be a neat join of skin between the top and bottom half of my breasts. This is only in the cleavage part. The other joins are really smooth and are healing well. It's something I'm going to mention at my 4 week check up. Perhaps I will need corrective surgery. We shall see........
Ripple Effect
Hi all,
I went to see the Plastics Nurse yesterday as I was a little concerned about my wound. It wasn't healing in 2 places and as a result it was weeping and there was a funny smell. She told me the reason it wasn't healing was because I still had knots in my dissolvable stitches that were sitting just under the surface which are to be pulled out and cut off at the 2 week post op date. As it was almost that yesterday she sorted then out for me. I have one knot left that is too deep to pull out and cut so I will have to wait for my body to push it out. The rest have been taken care of and are going to heal up nicely.
I asked her about the ripple effect I have and she said its the way the surgeon has stitched me and that this will settle down after I have begun my moisturising massages to lift the scar tissue from the lower levels of muscle, which I can start today as Im 2 weeks post op today. So nothing to worry about there. Plus Ive had some reassuring comments from other patients on here. Thanks girls!
Im really excited to be taking off my steri-strips today for good and also starting the scar massage. They're going to start looking great over the next month or so! Can't wait!
Tanning and exposure to the sun
It's 29 degrees here in London today and I'm wanting to get out in the sunshine and work on my tan however I have read some reviews by PS and it is strongly advised to keep your wounds out of the sun for at least 6 months as it causes the scars to get darker in colour. Not something that any of us want!
Has anyone got any advice or comments about this subject?
Scar massage
I was told at the two week PO mark I need to begin massaging cream/lotion/oil into my scars twice a day to prevent them from sticking. I am using Bio Oil which is great for scars and stretch marks and also E45 Cream. I'm doing the massage for about 5 mins twice a day. Is this long enough. What have everyone else's experiences been?
Doing well....
I've now reached the 3 week post op point and things are going well.
The scars are looking better and the bruising had reduced significantly. The swelling has gone down and they have dropped into a nice shape.
Leaking liquid fat......
I'm 4 weeks post op tomorrow and the healing has been going well, until Wednesday. I had some swelling and redness on the outer scar (dog ear) on my right breast. The area felt very hard and tight and warm. I called up the hospital and they asked me to come down for a check up so I went that day. I was worried it might be an infection and wanted to get it checked out ASAP to be on the safe side.
When I got there the nurses were really lovely and told me that I had a knot from a disolveable stitch that was trying to get out of my t-junction wound, this is something she had tried to remove before but it was too deep. She said it would come out naturally and until then the t-junction wound wouldn't heal up properly. That was all fine. They also said that I had a build up of fat in the dog ear section of my scar due to the fact that fat gets moved around your breast during surgery. My body is now breaking it down into liquid and it's trying to escape from any open wound and over the next few days that may happen and not to worry. The nurses patched me up and sent me home with a dressing on my t-junction and plenty of extras. When I took the dressing off that night to wash the wound I noticed droplets forming on the t-junction and coming out at around 1 every 10 second. It looked liked melted orange butter leaking from my breast, very strange!!! I've been changing my dressings since Wednesday and it's still dripping when I remove them. Luckily it isn't drenching the dressings when I'm wearing them. I'm going to give it a while longer and if it continues I'll call them again to see if this is normal. Has anyone else experienced the 'melting butter' effect?
Old Boobs
I've been looking through my pics and I can't believe these used to belong to me. I'm 5 weeks post op and everything feels wonderful, just as it should.
6 and a half weeks post op! Healing well....
I've reached the 6 weeks post op date and I'm feeling good. Yesterday was the first day back in the gym. I did really gentle exercise on the cross trainer and a nice fast walk on the treadmill as well as walking to and from the gym which is another hour of walking. I also went down to the pool and dipped my feet in the water. I'm still not able to swim as I have wounds that are still not healed, almost there but not quite just yet. It was such a challenge not diving into the pool and having a good swim. I watched everyone else and was so envious. I usually swim everyday so it's been 6 and a half weeks of torture not being able to have my daily swim. I've woken up this morning feeling so refreshed and not sluggish like I have been for 6 weeks through not getting any exercise. I feel GREAT!!!!!
My scars are healing well. I had a couple of problems with my right breast. There was a lot of swelling at the end of my scar under my arm which increased over a few days, it was very firm and sore to touch. I didn't worry as the nurse said that it was fat and my body would break it down but it would try and escape through any opening in my scars. I woke up one morning and it had done just that. There was an open hole on my scar and fluid had leaked out. It felt so much better as there was no soreness or swelling. I made sure that over the next few days I kept it nice and clean and put fresh dressings on it whenever it leaked. It was open for a few days but has healed nicely now.
I also had a problem at the t-junction of my right breast which opened up and was leaking fat but from what I have been reading from other people reviews that seems quite normal which I was glad about. Its only just stopped weeping and has scabbed over nicely .
I'm massaging my scars everyday with Bio Oil. It's always sore at first but after about 30 seconds I'm able to put a lot of pressure on them and really loosen them up. They are still quite red but are now starting to turn a nice silver colour, this is something that's happened over the last few days. The only thing that is worrying me is that they are very lumpy underneath. The top layer of scaring is very neat but when you apply pressure to the scar it's all bobbly and lumpy, as are my breasts in certain areas. I'm wondering if this is going to settle down or if this is just scaring as it should be. I would be grateful of some advice from you lovely ladies! :)
My breasts have now dropped a bit. I think the left one is finished but the right is still swollen either side of the vertical scar, more massage will help no doubt.
I have to say this has been a very pain-free op. I haven't had any problems apart from the two I have mentioned and I stopped taking pain killers on the 2nd day as they weren't necessary. My advise to anyone thinking about or waiting to have this procedure is that the whole experience for me has been positive and had given me so much more confidence. I'm able to wear what I want and I'm not defied by breasts anymore. I had mine done for medical reasons as I have back problems and it has made a huge difference already. My shoulders don't ache and I don't feel like I'm being pulled forward all the time. There are always going to be risks involved with any surgery so make sure you do your research and find a surgeon you can communicate with and both work out a realistic goal. It's a thumbs up from me!!!
1 Year Post Op and I'm Happy! :)
Wow, I can't believe it's been one year, almost to the day.
I had my breast reduction surgery on the 22nd June 2013 and I haven't looked back once, nor have I felt any kind of regret. I was a large 34G/GG and I am now a pert and manageable 34D.
I am incredibly happy with my new size and I want to share my '10 reason why' with you.
I hope this will give an insight into what it's like post op and I'm sure most of you deciding to go ahead with the surgery will be doing so for some of the below reasons.
1. My back/shoulder pain has dramatically decreased since having the breast surgery.
2. I don't have to wear a bra around the house or even when I go out because they are small enough to keep relatively still. My old boobs used to hang off me and swing around the place which was very uncomfortable.
3. I don't have to worry about summer arriving and my breasts getting a rash underneath from perspiring.
4. I'm not stared at in the street or jeered at by men because of the size of my breasts
5. I can run for a bus and it doesn't hurt, nor do I need to hold onto my breasts for fear of them escaping or causing me damage! This goes the same for sports, I can do more without a reinforced heavy duty sportsbra. I use a tight bralett instead and this is enough.
6. I can walk into a shop and try on anything I like. That's not to say everything suits me because it doesn't, I'm only human but I'm not eliminating clothes any more and things fit much better
7. I can buy cheap bras. Having large breasts means you are ripped off by 'big boob' bra shops, now I can shop as cheaper shops and get lovely bras as well as spoiling myself with luxury underwear from time to time.
8. I feel comfortable with my top off, unlike before
9. I can wear a string bikini, something I could have never done before
10. My breasts don't define me any more.
1 Year Post Op - Scaring
I forgot to mention the scaring. After 1 year there is still some scaring but this is not too visible from a distance. When you get close up you can see thick silver lines which are neat. With any surgery there will be scaring of course. I'm currently looking into scar revision surgery. This can only be done 1 year post op.
My scars really don't bother me, I'm not ashamed of them however as I'm going to be starting performing as a burlesque dancer I would like to have the size of scar reduced somewhat. My scar lines are quite big, everyone's scar tissue varies.
1.5 Years Post Op and Still Super Happy!!!
To any of you out there who are deciding weather or not to go ahead with the surgery, take a look at my journey and hopefully it will answer your questions and put you at ease.
:)
