My Not So Drastic Reduction from D Cup to B? (Hopefully)
I have been seriously thinking about this breast...
I have been seriously thinking about this breast reduction for a couple of years now. I am one of the millions of un-insured in this country so I will be paying out of pocket for this procedure, which I pray to god is going to be worth it!!! I am currently a full D cup. I have gained some weight over the years and alot of it got distributed to my chest. I am described as "voluptuous" and "curvy". I have boobs and hips and meat on my bones.
I am 5'3 and weigh between 140-145 lbs. I am 40 years old. Yes, I look great in corsets and bikinis- but give me a break- when the heck do I wear those things?? I live in the boonies and wear Tshits, jeans and boots. My ample chest is just plain uncomfortable for me anymore. I HATE wearing minimizer bras all the time. I hate when I look in the mirror all I see is BOOBS. I hate feeling like my breasts are spilling out all over in my workout tops. I'm sick of having a hard time finding blouses that fit properly, cant wear any of the cute sundresses and things in the style that I like and forget about doing any type of cardio-running or those type of things its just plain not happening.
Also- this is not a reason for me doing the surgery, but as an added bonus I will get rid of most of this tattoo I have around my nipple. I got the stupid thing when I was like 18 and needed a place to put it where my mother wouldnt see it. So brilliantly- I got it on my right breast. GREAT idea---NOT...... Dont get me wrong- I love tattoos, but not really this one....
I thought I would write about this journey because there is not alot of experiences out there from women undergoing a smaller breast reduction. So many women on here are HUGE and going through the rduction. Many women are getting reduced TO a D cup. I am in the minority and thought if there was anyone out there like me who is a D cup and wants to be smaller. Another thing is- I dont have much support. My family will not know. They will NOT support my decision and I don't want to hear any negativity about it from them. My boyfriend thinks I am nuts. That may be because, well, he is a man and sees me as his sexual object and of course he likes them. But he doesnt have to lug them around all the time!! He does NOT want me to do this. I've tried to tell him that I have made up my mind and at this point I would appreciate his support. We will see. He hasnt said a word to me about it since then. My friends think I dont need it. BUT they are tiny "A" cups and dont have a friggin clue as to the pitfalls of being buxomous. And one of my good friends is a man. Need I say more.
In light of all this, I did ask the 3 Dr.s I consulted with if I have body dysmorphic disorder or something because everyone is making me feel like I'm an idiot for doing this. They all said that they have performed reductions on women my size and that I do have shoulder grooving and poor posture from having "dense" breasts. I would be a poor canidate for any type of insurance to pay for it because it wont be a large enough reduction. But I dont have insurance anyway so even if I did, it would be an elective surgery. As an added bonus, having smaller breasts has given me the incentive to quit smoking for the surgery.
So ultimately, I am worried about the recovery as I will be home by myself most of the time. I have no children to care for which is good, but I do have a dog, 2 cats and chickens to care for. I am concerned about being prepared for the recovery more than anything. I turned 40 years old this year and I am not getting any younger. The time to live my life and make myself happy is NOW. I would like to end up a B cup. I want to be more comfortable in my clothes and in my own skin. Thats the bottom line. I came here for information and support and I am so thankful for this place. So many wonderful stories and women here. Maybe someone can relate to mine. Thanks for reading.
Replies (4)
My surgery is scheduled for April 5th!
However, I went for a mammogram last week, and today I got a call that I have to come back in for another mammography and an ultrasound on my left breast....
It kind of caught me off guard.
So hopefully, it is nothing. I go back on Wed. and hope this will not interfere with my reduction surgery!
Welcome to RealSelf! I don't think you are crazy at all. This is a very personal decision and I think that only you can make that decision for you. My husband had always been very supportive for all of the years that I talked about having the surgery, but when I finally scheduled the date he got more reluctant. I don't know if it was because I was messing with his toys or that he was just nervous for me. However he is very pleased with the results. I am much more confident than I had been and confidence is sexy!! Plus boobs at your chest is much more attractive than the boobs at your waist!
Recovery was not horrible at all. In fact it was pretty easy. I too am 40 (eeks...almost 41 now) and would be described as curvy as well. Though I have had 4 kids. Just make sure to follow doctor's instructions and give yourself time to rest and heal.
I was able to do some chores around the house at about a week post-op. I would do laundry by carrying a couple of pieces of clothes to the washer and from the dryer at a time and then fold with limited arm movements. I would vacuum with both hands on the vacuum cleaner and use the weight of my body...not my arms... to push it forward. I think you will be able to make it work as long as you protect yourself from straining and lifting.
Good luck! And remember there are lots of people here who are willing and ready to support and encourage you through this!
PS: Good luck at your appointment tomorrow! Please let us know how that comes out!
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2/22/12
Well, I had gotten a call this week that the mammogram I had last week had some inconclusive findings and I needed to come back to the hospital for another mammogram and an ultrasound on my left breast.
To make a long story short, after they took the mammo and ultrasound they basically said- we cant say its totally negative, but we didnt find anything either....
WHAT?? What the heck does that mean?
I said, I'm scheduled for a breast reduction in April. She said, well, you need to come back in 6 months for another picture and I'm sorry if that spoils your surgery..
I was like, well, if you cant find anything, then I'm OK and why on earth shouldn't I have the surgery???
I was SO pissed. She said that it would ruin their "baseline" for the next mammogram. Because my breasts are so "dense" the mammogram is inconclusive but there is a possible questionable spot, but they cant really say for sure its anything right now, blah blah blah.
I am sorry, but I am NOT going to ruin my surgery over this big "maybe". I asked my medical records be sent to me so I can talk to my surgeon about this if necessary.
I am feeling very agitated over this right now.
Replies (4)
I would certainly talk to your surgeon about this. If the spot in question is part of the tissue that will taken with the breast reduction then I would think that would be a good thing to remove it, especially since that tissue will be sent to pathology for review. And if your surgeon is hesitant about doing the surgery without a conclusive answer, would you be able to have a sterotactic biopsy beforehand to rule out a malignancy? I'm not sure how expensive that is to do, but as you don't have insurance you wouldn't have to worry about meeting their guidelines for having it done and I would think that your surgeon could give you an order to have it done if you are willing to pay for it.
Good luck!
My mom had something like this a few year ago. They found something they couldn't quantify, and in six months when they rescanned it turned out to be nothing :)
My sister is a nurse practioner specializing in oncology, and I sent the reports to her for her opinion. She said there were some calcifications noted, but they usually turn out to be non-problematic. So, I am fine I am sure!
The odds are certainly in your favor that it will all turn out fine. Women with large breasts tend to be called back for additional views more often because they can't get the compression so there tends to be overlap of tissues. My last mammo prior to surgery was the same way. The doctors were reassuring to me while I was waiting to go back for my follow up, but it is hard not to worry a little bit. Wishing you all of the best!
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Well, I told my plastic surgeon what the report of my mammography said and he said that the microcalcifications would not interfere with the surgery and if there was anything questionable, they would remove it. I will bring the report with me when I go for my pre-op next month. WHEW....
I'm statring to look for bras and things on makemeheal.com. Its quite confusing!
I wish the surgery was tomorrow- all this anticipation is going to make me nuts!!
I don't think you are crazy at all. I am starting a bit bigger than you- a DD- and also want to end up as small as possible (I was told it's important for the new size to line up well with your body type). I'm thinkin probably somewhere between a B and C.
When is your surgery?