Most Awesome Decision Ever: Possibly - Tulsa, OK - I'm five feet tall and weigh almost 120 pounds, and have always been petite except for my boobs. They have never been considered small, though they weren't quite as large before having two babies. Those babies are now 10 and 7 years old, and my bra size had gone up to a 32F (or 32DDD). Almost ALL of my breast tissue is dense (90-95% of it), with very, very little fatty tissue involved. I lost 20 pounds and didn't lose an ounce of boob size. A recent mammogram showed some possible problems, but the sheer amount of dense tissue made it very difficult for radiologists to see. My mom had breast cancer at an early age, so this just reinforced to me that it was time for a reduction. Physically, I was just done with carrying them around. I would have up to four migraines a week brought on by neck and shoulder pain, and I was sick and tired of feeling sick and tired. I was also tired of trying to find shirts that fit my small frame but didn't look crass on my huge breasts. I interviewed several doctors before finding one that I loved. Through this process I learned how important it is to keep having consultations until you find a doctor that you trust implicitly, and who you feels respects and values you. The surgeon that I chose is out of network for my insurance, but it was really important to me to use him, so I did. Insurance may or may not choose to cover the surgery, but I have no regrets. I'm now 11 days out from surgery, and feeling pretty great. The first two days were rough, mostly because I am terrible about actually taking pain medications (I hate how they make me feel), so my pain wasn't managed as well as it should have been. My doctor includes armpit lipo in the surgery, and so those sites were REALLY sore for the first two days, and then they mellowed out. I slept a lot for the first few days. Like, really a lot. So much that I was almost embarrassed, but it was exactly what my body needed. I felt light-headed some days, as if perhaps I was anemic (oh, my period started two days after surgery...awesome timing!), so I started taking iron supplements and making sure that I had tons of protein, and that really has helped. Now I'm just swollen, bruised, and getting those painful zaps as the nerves regenerate. I seem to have full sensation in both nipples, for which I'm hugely grateful. My hope was to go from 32F/DDD to a 32B, but most likely I'll end up a C cup due to blood supply restrictions. This is absolutely fine with me, as I have complete confidence in whatever my doctor needed to do that way. I can't possibly recommend this surgery enough - I haven't had a single headache, let alone migraine, in the 11 days since surgery, which is pretty much a miracle. I have no neck or shoulder pain and just feel so much lighter and more energetic. I no longer feel frumpy or matronly in my clothes, and I can't wait until the swelling goes down to see the finished product. You'll see in my photos that I started out with my right breast being significantly bigger (and lower, hee!) than my left. Surprisingly, my right breast is healing the fastest and with the least bruising/swelling. Ol' lefty is still super swollen and bruised, but I'm holding out hope. For the first week after surgery I was in thick white tape over the incisions (no gauze) and a soft surgical bra that did not compress at all. Now for the next five weeks I'm in this thin tape that you'll see in the photos, and sports/compression type bras. It's been really interesting to me how different doctors are in terms of their post op instructions, so I just wanted to note mine.
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