July 20th Surgery Date! It's finally here!

Hi everyone! I am so glad to have stumbled upon this site. I look forward to interacting with you all and reading your stories. I would like to thank you for being open and honest. Baring your "before and after" breasts is like baring your soul. Thanks in advance for being a support system the way only another person with our experience can be. I appreciate you all already!

Alright, here we go! I am 38 years old. 5'3" and 130 lbs. The last bra I bought was a 36G. All I think of is G for gross. I have a beautiful 18 month old daughter and what I want more than anything is to run around the park with her and not have to worry about my huge breasts. I also want to gain back some self-esteem so I can show my baby girl how to be a self-assured, confident and strong woman.

I have been thinking about getting a breast reduction for over 20 years. I was a senior in high school when my breasts started to get really large. By the time I was out of college I was a DD. Then they just kept growing. And growing! And here we are today.

When I was younger, I thought surgery was such an impossibility and then by the time I was really suffering with back, shoulder and neck pain and migraines, I didn't have insurance. Well, I have insurance now! A few months ago I went in for a physical and told my doctor about my breast issues. She referred me to a plastic surgeon and he said there would be no problem with insurance covering the surgery. Really?! Wow!

The next available surgery appointment he had was a few months away. I put it in my calendar as a far off thought. Well, now I have entered the month of my surgery. Every time I open my datebook, there it is! Only 17 days away.

I am so ready to get rid of these boobs. They are big and sloppy and I don't feel like they are a reflection of my personality at all. They weigh me down in so many ways. In every way! I thought when I had my daughter I'd gain an appreciation for them through breast feeding her, but I had a ridiculously low milk supply and had to supplement with formula. What a waste!! Yet another reason on my very long list of reasons why it's time for them to go.

I have a few appointments leading up to the surgery, so I'll be posting as new things happen! Also, I'll be posting photos of myself. Excited to see the before and after of my own body!

So I had my pre-op appointment this morning with my surgeon. I was so nervous just going in for this appointment. After waiting so long for a BR, all of this is so surreal.

My doctor is so nice. I feel very comfortable with him. He told me all about how the day would go... come in 2 hours before surgery, surgery is about 4 hours, in recovery for about another 2 hours, then head home. That's a hell of a day!!

He told me he'll be using drains on me and showed me how they work. I'm so glad he showed me because having never seen these drains, I was picturing those huge ribbed straws like you have in your water bottle. Instead it was the thickness of a spaghetti noodle. I've had giant staples in my torso. I can handle a spaghetti noodle! (I hope!) He also showed me another thing they use for pain. It's called a pain-pump. It's about the size of a small peach with very thin Y-shaped tubing coming off of it. Each side of the tubing is inserted into each breast through a teeny hole on the cleavage side of the breasts. It's full of a lidocaine type of pain med and it naturally gets pulled into your system (as in an I.V. drip system). It deflates as the medicine enters your body. He said it is a very effective way to manage pain. I've had a catheter for 4 days. I can handle a couple teeny tubes! (I hope!) Ahhhhh!!

He told me to bring with me the day of surgery a very cheap front closing sports bra that is very, very, very tight. I should be able to just get it around my ribs, but the cups should not even be close to closing. I'll have to keep this on, day and night, for 6 weeks. He mentioned that he has found the way that people heal best is if they don't lay around every day. He said to get up, go outside and walk around. Keep the range of motion of my arms extremely limited (no lifting, pushing, pulling, etc.), but move!

Now the exciting part. He said he can take my breasts down by half. He says most women want to be a C or D. I said I wanted to be a small C. He said he would do that. I'm so happy.

I got cleansing wipes and instructions from the nurse and I filled the scrips for my antibiotics and pain meds today too. One more blood test early next week and I'm all set until the big (small!) day! Awesome!!

Well, today I went and bought a front closure sports bra for my surgery as my doctor requested. He said to get one that was really tight in the cup. I bought a 34B bra!!! I haven't been that size since middle school. I got teary-eyed in the store. This is all so incredible.

I'm so excited for Friday. I put a coundown timer widget on my phone so I can watch the day get closer and closer...