First, let me thank all those who have posted. It was such a great help to me (especially Bonchai and wendyboo). I felt very prepared when my surgery day finally came around.
My Stats: 28 y/o 5’5” 145 lb. My pre-surgery bra was a Bali Live It Up™ Wire-Free, style 3355, in size 38DD, which fit me very well. However, when I told Dr. Baxt my size he said I was larger than a DD. The 38 band size was not quite snug enough, so I am guessing that I was a 36DDD(E). My chest measurement was 42”.
June 16, 2005 (Day of surgery), Day 1: Appt scheduled for 6:45am. They took me in the back a little before 7. I took off everything except my underwear and socks and put on a gown and foot covers. I filled out a bunch of paperwork, met Dr. Baxt, the anesthesiologist, and some of the nurses. All of the staff was very nice. When it was time for the surgery I remember getting the Versed and that is about it. I woke up and they told me I was all done. Once in the recovery room, I was in and out of it for a while. Then, I think we were on the road going home by a little after 10:45am. After having some bits of a soft pretzel and water, slept most of the hour and a half car ride home. Arrived home. Had some soreness. Slept most of the rest of the day. Up a few times to watch TV and eat dinner. I took Tylenol in the evening. My husband helped me change the pads twice. I had a lot of red drainage that looked like blood, but a little thinner. I had a brief call from Dr. Baxt. I told him everything was fine. He told me he removed about 1300ml from each side. My pain overall, on a scale of 1-10, about a 3.
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Surgery on June 16, 2005 (diary)
Started by TaraAtterbury, Jun 20 2005 03:59 AM
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#3
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Posted 21 June 2005 - 12:49 AM
Day 2: Drainage stopped in left breast by the morning, but still a lot of drainage in the right. Changing pads myself now. Soreness a little less. Underneath the breasts are dark purple. Wore the binder for the whole day, except to shower. I took off the binder and original front hook bra, but it hurts to have nothing on them. Kind of a throbbing pain. I put on a back hook bra with no problem after a little maneuvering. I have never liked front hook bras in general. I found the back hook bras easier to work with and have not put the front hook one on since. After shower put on a dry bra with sports bra over top and then replaced binder. Pain=2 Chest measures 41”
Day 3: Woke up and took a shower with bra on. There is soreness in the muscles under my arms (pecs?). Went out for the first time since surgery. A couple hours running errands and then later at Mom’s for several hours. Wore a very tight fitting Champion sports bra all day. After the tight band around me all day it was actually more comfortable to put on a looser pull on type sport top and then put the binder on for going to bed. Pain=0-1
Day 4: Breasts are light yellow all over and still very dark purple underneath. Out most of the day to visit with my in laws. Draining finally stopped in the right breast, after about 72 hours (left stopped in less than 24). Put on the binder for bed again. Pain=0 Chest is 40”
Day 5: Still showering with bra. Went back to work. Everything went fine. A little pain by the end of the day. Couldn't wait to take the super tight bra off. Noticed today that I am starting to get some hard lumps in few spots for the first time. Will have to start massage soon.
I can tell that I am a little smaller when I put on my old bra and there is a tiny bit of bunching in the material. Not enough to buy the new outfits quite yet, but I am very excited since tomorrow is the first day of summer. So far I am pleased with my progression.
Day 3: Woke up and took a shower with bra on. There is soreness in the muscles under my arms (pecs?). Went out for the first time since surgery. A couple hours running errands and then later at Mom’s for several hours. Wore a very tight fitting Champion sports bra all day. After the tight band around me all day it was actually more comfortable to put on a looser pull on type sport top and then put the binder on for going to bed. Pain=0-1
Day 4: Breasts are light yellow all over and still very dark purple underneath. Out most of the day to visit with my in laws. Draining finally stopped in the right breast, after about 72 hours (left stopped in less than 24). Put on the binder for bed again. Pain=0 Chest is 40”
Day 5: Still showering with bra. Went back to work. Everything went fine. A little pain by the end of the day. Couldn't wait to take the super tight bra off. Noticed today that I am starting to get some hard lumps in few spots for the first time. Will have to start massage soon.
I can tell that I am a little smaller when I put on my old bra and there is a tiny bit of bunching in the material. Not enough to buy the new outfits quite yet, but I am very excited since tomorrow is the first day of summer. So far I am pleased with my progression.
#4
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Posted 27 June 2005 - 02:18 AM
Day 11: Took a shower without a bra on for the first time yesterday. Does not hurt to go without a bra anymore. Went bra shopping today and bought some 36D bras. I can't believe they pretty much fit now. I started off thinking I would get 36DD bras and was surprised that I could wear the 36D's. I also bought a L shirt at a store where I used to always buy XL. The overall yellow is slowly fading and the purple is much less. Using lotion and massaging daily. Incisions are healing nicely.
#5
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Posted 10 July 2005 - 01:01 AM
Week 2: Went bathing suit shopping. Still some difficulty finding a suit, but not nearly the traumatic experience it was last year. I still have a little bit of a hard time finding a one piece that looks good (when the top fits the bottom is baggy, but let me add that last year it was hard to find a top that fit at all), but I finally found a tankini that came as separates and I found a top and bottom that fit pretty well. Then I actually went out in public to a water park and had fun instead of worrying about how I looked.
Week 3: The bruising is virtually gone. I still have some soreness, especially at the end of the day. I am wearing a wire-free bra during the day and a sports bra at night. I am still about a 36D or just a shade bigger. Two out of the 3 styles of bras I bought in 36D fit ok, but one is an underwire that is still a little bit too small.
One thing that I found helped me is taking a picture every week to track my progress. I have the preop pic that I had sent to Dr. Baxt for the digital consultation. Then 1 week postop I started taking one picture every week. I don't know why, but I just didn't feel that much smaller at first. I knew I was by how the bras fit and what the tape measure said, but for some reason it didn't really sink in until I looked at the preop and the 1 week picture side by side. When I took the 3 week pic and compared it with the 2 week, I had forgotten how bruised I still was just 1 week earlier since it was all gone by then. I think it helps remind you just how far you have come in the healing process.
Week 3: The bruising is virtually gone. I still have some soreness, especially at the end of the day. I am wearing a wire-free bra during the day and a sports bra at night. I am still about a 36D or just a shade bigger. Two out of the 3 styles of bras I bought in 36D fit ok, but one is an underwire that is still a little bit too small.
One thing that I found helped me is taking a picture every week to track my progress. I have the preop pic that I had sent to Dr. Baxt for the digital consultation. Then 1 week postop I started taking one picture every week. I don't know why, but I just didn't feel that much smaller at first. I knew I was by how the bras fit and what the tape measure said, but for some reason it didn't really sink in until I looked at the preop and the 1 week picture side by side. When I took the 3 week pic and compared it with the 2 week, I had forgotten how bruised I still was just 1 week earlier since it was all gone by then. I think it helps remind you just how far you have come in the healing process.
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Posted 23 July 2005 - 12:32 PM
That previous post should have been 2 Weeks Post-op and 3 Weeks Post-op.
5 Weeks Post-op: I am now officially calling myself a 36D. That underwire bra I mentioned before fits now. The hard lumps are pretty much gone. I am happy with current size, but still hope to go down one more size to a 36C, that was my original goal.
5 Weeks Post-op: I am now officially calling myself a 36D. That underwire bra I mentioned before fits now. The hard lumps are pretty much gone. I am happy with current size, but still hope to go down one more size to a 36C, that was my original goal.
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Posted 30 December 2005 - 02:30 AM
Just wanted to give a quick 6 month update.
Currently my chest measurement is still 40 inches (2 inch reduction total). I would have thought a 2 inch reduction would have brought me from the 38DD bra I was wearing to a 38C. However, for some reason I now find myself wearing a 34DD bra instead. I have tried on a 38C in the same exact style as my old 38DD bra and the cups fit, but the band is just sooo loose that it provides absolutely no support. Apparently I was formerly a 34F? Even the 36D bras I mentioned wearing several months ago are too loose around the band and just don't feel supportive enough.
Anyway, my skin is tightening slowly, but surely. I had some wrinkling underneath for a while, but only when I raised up my arm. That is virtually gone now, as are the incision scars.
Happy New Year to everyone!
Currently my chest measurement is still 40 inches (2 inch reduction total). I would have thought a 2 inch reduction would have brought me from the 38DD bra I was wearing to a 38C. However, for some reason I now find myself wearing a 34DD bra instead. I have tried on a 38C in the same exact style as my old 38DD bra and the cups fit, but the band is just sooo loose that it provides absolutely no support. Apparently I was formerly a 34F? Even the 36D bras I mentioned wearing several months ago are too loose around the band and just don't feel supportive enough.
Anyway, my skin is tightening slowly, but surely. I had some wrinkling underneath for a while, but only when I raised up my arm. That is virtually gone now, as are the incision scars.
Happy New Year to everyone!
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Posted 31 January 2007 - 01:35 AM
I found out I was pregnant on July 31, 2006. I am due April 9, 2007. I am planning to breastfeed and will post my experience when the baby is born.
I am soooooooo happy I had the surgery before I became pregnant. Over the first couple of months of pregnancy my breasts grew to almost (but not quite) my pre-SBR size, but have stayed that size ever since. I can't even imagine what my breasts would have looked like if they had grown 2 sizes bigger than the pre-surgery size! I have every confidence that they will go back to their pre-pregnancy/post-surgery size after I am finished nursing. And maybe (keeping my fingers crossed) get a little bit smaller. But I will be happy just to be back to the 34DD. I did not appreciate how much of a difference SBR had made until I started to get bigger again. I was so uncomfortable at first and had to get used to the bigger breasts again. Now my belly is bigger than my breasts so they don't seem quite as big.
I will hopefully be back in April with a breastfeeding update.
I am soooooooo happy I had the surgery before I became pregnant. Over the first couple of months of pregnancy my breasts grew to almost (but not quite) my pre-SBR size, but have stayed that size ever since. I can't even imagine what my breasts would have looked like if they had grown 2 sizes bigger than the pre-surgery size! I have every confidence that they will go back to their pre-pregnancy/post-surgery size after I am finished nursing. And maybe (keeping my fingers crossed) get a little bit smaller. But I will be happy just to be back to the 34DD. I did not appreciate how much of a difference SBR had made until I started to get bigger again. I was so uncomfortable at first and had to get used to the bigger breasts again. Now my belly is bigger than my breasts so they don't seem quite as big.
I will hopefully be back in April with a breastfeeding update.
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Posted 28 May 2007 - 02:53 AM
I gave birth to a baby boy on March 30, 2007. I was able to breastfeed. No issues with the SBR at all. I have since stopped breastfeeding and I am returning to work after 8 weeks. I gained 40 pounds total with the pregnancy. I still have 15 pounds left to lose. My breasts are still the size they were for most of the pregnancy, but it has only been a few weeks. I will report back with any changes.
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Posted 14 September 2007 - 04:52 AM
5-1/2 months post-partum: I was just able to put on my pre-pregnancy bra (34DD) last week. My breasts have just about returned to their post-surgery size. There is a tiny bit of "spillage" on the sides, but I have still been wearing them. I am hoping that will still go away. I am so happy to be wearing some of my smaller pre-pregnancy shirts again! Now if I could just fit into my smaller pants...LOL...I am getting there very slowly. As they say, 9 months on and 9 months off.
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