Breast reduction

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squishymissay
squishymissay Posts: 37 Member
in Introduce Yourself
Looking for friends that are trying to lose weight after breast reduction surgery.

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  • lwjenkins28
    lwjenkins28 Posts: 1 Member
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    Hi Squish! I'm having breast reduction surgery & an arm lift next month. My insurance is covering the reduction. I already lost 105 lbs, so not looking to loose any more except with another skin removal surgery later inthe year. Have you already had a reduction?
  • ManiacalLaugh
    ManiacalLaugh Posts: 1,048 Member
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    I have not had a reduction, but I'm seriously considering it. Might I ask how long was your recovery time? Specifically wondering how long before you could exercise normally? (Or if you don't exercise, when it was advised that you could lift heavy things, chase the little one around, etc...)
  • meganjcallaghan
    meganjcallaghan Posts: 949 Member
    edited June 2015
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    @maniacallaugh

    it's probably going to be the standard 6 - 8 weeks you should wait after any kind of surgery. I know my mom couldn't even lift a glass of water without spilling it all over the place for like a week after her reduction. And maybe this doesn't apply so much to removing skin, or breast tissue, but I know that part of the reason I wasn't allowed to run for at least 8 weeks after my nephrectomy (despite feeling totally fine to do it before even a week had passed) was because I could end up causing a hernia from doing certain movements etc before the muscle and whatnot had knit back together.....which would require more surgery.
  • Zaftique
    Zaftique Posts: 599 Member
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    I love my reduction. 15 years ago now! Recovery for me was about 2 weeks in bed, sleeping. To be fair, he also took a full pound of tissue off of each boob, so maybe that's unusual. No idea. I was prohibited from raising my arms above my head for maybe a month, but I remember I got my first job within about 2 months of surgery, so it wasn't too bad.

    Fair warning, MC: you will want someone to help you out those first two weeks. My mom had to wash my hair, help me in & out of bed to go to the bathroom, etc. I was kitten-weak. I don't know what the expectation is, but I wouldn't recommend doing it without a support system in place.

    And LWJ: you are lucky!!! Insurance didn't think my boobs were all that bad, never mind the constant back pain and nerve damage in my shoulders. :P My grandma finally said "well *kitten*, I suppose I gave em to ya; may as well take em back." hee hee. My mom hadn't seen me topless since I was a kid, so when she finally saw them as the doc was doodling on them, she was all, "JESUS CHRIST THEY'RE HUGE," and I'm like, "WHAT HAVE I BEEN TELLING YOU SINCE I WAS 13, DAMMIT." ;)
  • ManiacalLaugh
    ManiacalLaugh Posts: 1,048 Member
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    Zaftique wrote: »
    I love my reduction. 15 years ago now! Recovery for me was about 2 weeks in bed, sleeping. To be fair, he also took a full pound of tissue off of each boob, so maybe that's unusual. No idea. I was prohibited from raising my arms above my head for maybe a month, but I remember I got my first job within about 2 months of surgery, so it wasn't too bad.

    Fair warning, MC: you will want someone to help you out those first two weeks. My mom had to wash my hair, help me in & out of bed to go to the bathroom, etc. I was kitten-weak. I don't know what the expectation is, but I wouldn't recommend doing it without a support system in place.
    meganjcallaghan wrote: »
    @maniacallaugh

    it's probably going to be the standard 6 - 8 weeks you should wait after any kind of surgery. I know my mom couldn't even lift a glass of water without spilling it all over the place for like a week after her reduction. And maybe this doesn't apply so much to removing skin, or breast tissue, but I know that part of the reason I wasn't allowed to run for at least 8 weeks after my nephrectomy (despite feeling totally fine to do it before even a week had passed) was because I could end up causing a hernia from doing certain movements etc before the muscle and whatnot had knit back together.....which would require more surgery.

    Ugh - I knew it was going to be a lot to chew. Looks like more planning and a little more waiting is key.

    Thanks for the info!
  • kimmyj74
    kimmyj74 Posts: 223 Member
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    Hi gals. I am currently 4 days post-op from breast reduction. My PS took 1.1 pound from each side. I am feeling pretty good as of today. Still can't shower, drive, lift anything heavier then 5 pounds or reach above my head. I only needed pain meds for 2 days and Tylenol yesterday. Nothing today. I can tell already I'm going to love my new chest but now I notice my BIG stomach.
    I have gained about 20 pounds in the last couple years and I knew my stomach was big but my large breasts were always hiding it. Now I feel disproportionate and will need to loose those extra pounds. Since I am still post-op and can not exercise I am focusing on eating healthy with protein for healing. I will resume a calorie restriction and add exercise when my Dr gives me the ok. I'm hoping exercise (especially jogging) ill be less painful and more enjoyable.
    Please feel free to friend me and tell me about your journey
  • brightsideofpink
    brightsideofpink Posts: 1,018 Member
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    Hey ladies! I'm another fresh off post-op. I had my surgery 10 days ago. I started with an H cup and expect to settle in around a D. I was surprised to learn that I came in just under 2.5 lbs removed in total. I had thought there would be more. The good news though is that the surgeon said it was mostly fat, which as you know weighs less in the same volume. That is good news because it means my breasts weren't very dense, which can be a contributing factor to breast cancer.

    Anyway, that aside, even on recovery day 1 I knew I had made the right choice.

    I had some pretty bad side effects for a few days. Nausea was really bad, far worse than any pain, even after I quit the narcotics. But its since cleared up. I have only just started to be able to walk around outside of the house much, but that has mostly been limited by the July heat. I tire easily and the sun and heat make it worse. I think I'd have been out walking much more otherwise and hope to get back to it soon. My doctor said no exercise which involves bouncing or lifting for at least 6 weeks. I'm a little nervous about getting back to running after such a long time off, but I think I'll catch up in short time.

    I'm happy to answer any questions or add friends and share the journey or tips. I've been on mfp for over a year and have lost 70 lbs (or 67.5 through diet, lol).

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