Hey, y'all I'm finally sharing the how and why I got a breast reduction. Please Let me know if you have any more questions.
My decision to get a breast reduction took years of just thinking about. The first conversation I had about it was when I was 21 and a junior in college. I was having lower back pain and my shoulders were really starting to hurt because of bras straps digging in. for 5 years I didn't really do much about it and just thought that if I exercised and was more conscience of my posture that things would get better.
In September 2018, my brother got married and I wore and off shoulder dress for the wedding. One of the picture we got back was of me just walking and smiling but the most alarming things about the picture was the fact that I could visibly tell that my shoulders were rolling forward. I was on my way to having a hynch back and I didn't even know. That's when I finally decided that I really needed to get this surgery done. I didn't want to gett to the pint of no return andcould'nt fix my back. So I brought up the breast reduction surgery again and this time I just decided to talk to my dad because I didn't want to be talked out of doing it. My mom was hesitant of me having surgery because she thought I was too young.
Once I got serious about going ahead with the surgery we used our family resources to try and get more information. The original plan was to get the surgery done in Saint Louis so that my oarents could take care of me but that wasn't going to be feasible unless I ended work and school early. Plus when I started calling doctors offices in St. Louis they were suggesting that if I wanted my insurance to cover the procedure that I wold need to show proof that I was taking medicine to releive the pain, that I had changed my bed mattress and that I had gone to physical therapy for at least 3 months.. Since I hadn't done the first 2 I decided to go to physical therapy. Honestly, I'm glad I went to physical therapy becasue it was validation that I needed to get this surgery done. The Physical therapist put me through a variety of exercises and baby they were tough by the ned of the session she asked if I had ever thought about getting abreast reduction.
Unfortuantely, I wasn't able to complete all 3 months of physical theraphy becasue I had a summer interbnship in Austin. When I got back to KC I had a doctor's visit and I mentioned to her that I would like to get a breast reduction and o she was able to recommend some plastic surgeons in Kansas City. It took me a month to gather up the courage to give them a call. I called Dr. Garry Martin and was able to get a consultation within 2 weeks. I honestly thought it would be a lot longer.
I was so nervous going in by myself and the receptionist could tell how nervous I was but she was so sweet. When I got there the nurse took me back asked what I was here for and immediately started taking picture of my chest. No one asked if I had taken medication of have done any of the other preventive solutions.
After that Dr. Martin came in and introduced himself and we just had a conversation about why I wanted the surgery and then he started to explain how he does the surgery and some of the things that could happen during the surgery.
I had watched so many youtbe videos before going in for my appointment becasue I wanted to be prepared with questions. I think it's really easy for patients to be confused with the medical terminology so please do your research.
After the initial consultion he said that he would send it in to my insurance and I should here back in a couple of weeks. A couple weeks later I had to call my insurance to see if it was a proved becasue they were taking their sweet time and I need to get this surgery done in December. Once I go the approval from both my insurance and doctor's office. we scheduled the surgery and then I think I saw him one more time before my actual surgery date and that was it. We had gone back and forth with the size because he kept telling me I would have to go down to a C cup which I thought was way too small coming from an F/G. My ideal size was a D cup. he told me he would try to make that happen for me but didn't know if the insurance would cover it.
Day of Surgery
My parents had decided to come to Kansas City to take care of me for a couple days. I had to wake up at the crack of dawn to get to the surgery center by 6:30 am. Once I got there. I had to sign some paper work and then I slipped into my robe. I was honestly just chilling, no nerves. I was very up beat. Then once my doctor showed up these start to move a little faster. The nurses started coming in and giving me different medicines, I met the anastetiologist. Soon after that they told my dad to leave and I started CRYING!!!! I was so embarrassed that I was crying. Once they started wheeling me to the OR everything became a blur. I briefly remember seeing the OR lights and someone talking to me. Then it was lights out.
I woke up to my parents in my face and my doctor checking on me. I remember thanking all the hospital people. They were like you're so nice when you're on drugs. I was so loopy. I remember just being really tired. After that they put me in the car and my parents took me home. It was really that simple. You don't really feel too much pain on day 1 or day 2. I was wrapped up and had 2 plastic bottle sticking out from me to catch the blood. I was able to walk around lift my arms up. It was honestly like nothing had happened. I was a little more tired than usual but that whappen I was a little more tired than usual but that was it until I got home which was 4 hours away.
Post - Op
I swear I wasn't supposed to be in a car but my parents were adamant about taking me home. Before I had left to go home I saw my doctor so that he could take of the blood jugs out of my body.
The average time for recovery is 6 weeks until you can start getting back to normal. Please take all 6 weeks. I was trying to push myself after week 2 becasue I wasn't used to sitting still. But once I realized that I needed to just enjoy the down time I feel like the healing process went a lot faster. around week 4/ 5 I started using Bio Oil and Vitamin E to help with the scaring. As time went on I started to really feel the soreness from the surgery. I was taking the pain medication that I was prescribed and regular ibuprofen. Then It was just the ibuprofen and after that it didn't seem like the ibuprofen was helping relieve any pain so I stop taking the medication all together and would just rest my body if I was feeling sore.
I drove myself back to Kansas City after 6 weeks and saw Dr. Martin one more time before I had to move to Austin. He was very pleased with how I was healing. Something to mention is that you will lose sensation in your nipples. Like mine was completely gone. I couldn't even feel the regular skin on my boob. I did do some research and what I found out is that since the nerves are damaged during surgery you have to help regenerate them by massaging them and you could start having feeling after 6-12 months.
It's been 6 months since my surgery and I can tell you that I can feel sensation in my boobs and nipples. The scars are still there but I'm still massaging Bio Oil on them twice a day. For the the most part I'm back to normal. I find myself stretching my arms a lot more because they just feel stiff somedays. Soreness comes in and out. I love the way they turned out and I'm so glad I can wear whatever I want nowadays.
Here are some Videos I took just documenting how I was feeling in the Moment before and After Surgery.
Pre-Operation Appointments and Reflection
Day Of Surgery
Post- Operation