Breast Augmentation-- Consider Carefully - Minneapolis, MN

I was a B+ cup before I had children, was then an A+. I decide to get an augmentation for the usual reasons-- to feel sexier and more attractive and my partner was encouraging me to do it. My surgeon recommended submuscular silicone implants, as she said they were more natural feeling, even though a bit more expensive. I told her I would like a C cup when finished and gave her pictures that I liked. I also figured out how big I wanted them through putting baggies with salt into my bra to see what volume increase I thought would work well. I told her 180-210 cc should do the trick-- no more than 240. She decided on the table that I would look better with a slightly larger implant and put in about 320.

The pain afterwards was a big surprise. They told me it would be bad, and they were right! They pain subsided after a few days but there was still a lot of swelling. I thought they looked too big, but she said to be patient and let them settle in and soften. I also didn't like the bulge on top-- she said because my breasts were a little saggy the implant sticks out a little on top (she called it a double bubble) and that the only way to get a better shape was to do a lift,. I absolutely was not interested in a lift. I just wanted a little more volume-- I liked the shape of my natural breasts. Over a few months my breasts did soften and feel better, even if too big. After a year I decided I definitely wanted smaller breasts. I also decided I didn't want solid silicone, but wanted to change to saline. I told her to reduce them to 180-210. She did not charge for her service- I only paid for the implants and the outpatient surgery center.

The surgery was very easy and quick. Again, she decided while I was on the table that the volume I requested would be way too small (that my breasts would look like little balls) so she put in 240 saline implants. They have been comfortable and no complaints. It was a definite improvement and feel lighter than the silicone although you can feel that little bit of squish along the lateral edges. Overall I have been quite pleased.

The main negative is still how clothes fit. I have often felt kind of like a "cow." And it has been hard to find bras that fit. I kept buying C cups and they just didn't look good. I just assumed since I asked for a C that I got a C. Finally I went to a nice department store and asked to have a fitting with a bra specialist. It turned out that my new breasts were actually more of a D cup than a C and that's why I was having problems with fit.

In some ways my "body image" has suffered since the implants. I have always had an athletic shape and build and having larger breasts makes one look a little more matronly, oddly enough. Often times I have felt my breasts interfere with exercise and I never ever stick my chest out or stand with my shoulders back anymore because I do not want to call attention to my chest. SOmetimes I feel like a have lumps of playdoh stuck on my chest-- like they are not part of me. Other times I forget about them. Clothes fit much differently than before, and I have to buy different kinds of blouses-- I can't get away with a loose flowing type of tops or dresses because it makes me look pregnant-- my breasts make the blouse stick out too far. Now I am 58 years old. I am well past menopause.

I quit coloring my hair a year ago and am quite pleased with my more natural self. I am into yoga, meditation and spirituality, simplifying my life and being honest, open and authentic. I have been thinking more and more about having the saline taken out of my implants or reducing their size. I don't know if they have to actually remove the implants or if they just can take the saline out and leave them in deflated. I am going to go visit my surgeon. She is an excellent surgeon, has a superior reputation and gets very good esthetic results. However, I think surgeons, especially young ones, need to realize that many women don't want to look like a [RS bleep] centerfold, but just to look a little more like they looked before they had kids. A small amount of volume may be all that many women want, but they end up getting talked into going larger because adding more bulk will give more lift. I didn't really care about lift but she didn't seem to get that. I think it should be standard procedure to suggest that all women experiment with the baggie idea and try out different cup sizes and find out what kind of volume increase they REALLY want. I think if I had been given the 180cc implants I initially requested that I may have been just fine with it all from the first procedure and may not be considering another change now. But, who knows?

I have learned a lot from the whole experience. I feel fortunate that I was able to try breast augmentation and I know if I hadn't, I would still be wondering about it. I do wish my surgeon had spent a little more time with me about exactly the size and look I was after and how my breasts would feel and how clothes would look different.

Well, I did it-- I had my implants removed on May 9 and I am SO HAPPY about it. It was a 40 minute minor procedure in the office--my surgeon put some local anesthetic in the old incision sites under each breast --she was going to remove the saline from the implants prior to taking them out, but was able to just pull out the intact sacs with no problem. I did not take a sedative and I had only very minimal discomfort during the procedure. I went home with my regular sports bra on and had only minor incisional pain afterwards for 2-3 days, easily managed with advil. I was also given an antibiotic to take for 5 days. The stitched incisions were covered with steristrip tape, which fell off 2 days ago, so everything now feels very normal and the half inch of bruising around the incision is almost gone. I was 49 years old when I got the implants, had them in for 9 years, and am now 5 years post menopause. During the last several years I could tell that my natural breast mass had decreased and softened a little bit. So, when she pulled out the 240cc sacs on each side, I certainly did look different-- a little saggy and baggy, especially under my arm pits, because the implants were quite large, extending well to each side and hitting the inside of each upper arm. Over the past 10 days since I had them out I can feel the tissue getting back to its old shape more. All of this is perfectly fine with me. It is such a relief not to have that weight on my chest and to have my smaller bustline back. I am back to a B+ cup and I look younger and more fit without the larger bustline. I also feel more like myself and last night I wore a dress with a little flounce on the bustline, which I never would have been able to wear before. I am very pleased with the result and am very happy I did it. The only thing I would change is the pricetag for getting them out-- $2100 -- but I had no control over that and perhaps that's just what things cost these days.