5 weeks

It has been 5 weeks today and I feel totally back to normal in my everyday activities.  All the little aches and pains are gone and my breasts are really softening up.  They still haven't dropped as much as I would like so I am massaging religiously and even wearing the dreaded bra for a few hours a day just to keep things moving down and filling out.  One side is dropping faster than the other, but I can tell that both are making progress.  I just keep telling myself that they will each "fluff" in their own timing.  They really are so much softer than they were for weeks and weeks.  The massage helps out tremendously.  I can now squeeze them from any angle and they feel very natural already after only 5 weeks.  Some of the pains I had before are totally gone; I think they were worked out by the massage.  There must have been some scar tissue and stuff just sitting there and needed help to get moving.  The massage has also helped the muscle with the tenseness as well.  I did try running after my son while he was riding his bike.  I felt OK at the time, but that night while I was sleeping my boobs were pretty sore.  I guess I will wait a few more weeks to start running.  I was given the go ahead to start light weight lifting but no strenuous activity for one more week.  I have slept braless for about a week just because I CAN and don't have to wear "the bra" anymore.  I am hoping to find something comfy and mildly supportive so they don't get saggy!  I have not had any luck on finding a good bra yet.  So far I am only allowed to wear non-push-up & no-wire styles which are HARD to find in a 34d.  I found an awesome sports bra (under armour) that is soooooooo comfy and supportive.  I could wear it all the time and be happy!  I also settled for a 36c bra which was only $7, but it has ended up not fitting quite right and is incredibly itchy.  I would rather wear "the bra" than this cheap thing.  I just hated to spend too much on something that I might not wear for too long.  I may just have to shell out the bucks for another under armour.  If anyone has any good suggestions PLEASE LET ME KNOW!!!!!  I have measured myself to try and order from VS's (they don't have much I can wear in my size either), but I measure as a 34b which is what I was before (how can that be?????).  So strange.  Anyway, hopefully at some point I will find something besides sports bras to wear.  Other than that, I am feeling GREAT!!!!!!!!!!  Oh, one more thing for anyone thinking about this surgery:  It is amazing  how different I can look in different clothes.  The other night I wore a strapless dress out with my husband and my chest looked HUGE, but when we had dinner with old friends, I wore a conservative top with a camisole underneath and I looked not too much unlike my old self.   I definitely was not drawing any attention to them.  I have been so many various sizes in the past after breastfeeding two boys that I feel perfectly normal with an A or with a D.  (For the first few weeks when they were very firm and sore I did keep thinking that I felt exactly like a breastfeeding mother! Thankfully I am over that!!!!!!)  

3+ weeks post-op

Yesterday was three weeks since my surgery.  I only have 3 more days in the bra (or up to 10 more if I feel like torturing myself. HA!)  Seriously, I know the bra is helping the implants drop so I will probably keep wearing it at night and when I am at home for another week or two.  I do believe in following the doctor's orders to get the best results possible!  I would not go through all of this and then not do exactly what he says!  I definitely will not wear the bra out anymore though after this Friday!!!  It is so hard to hide under clothes and I am sick of wearing the same things every other day.  After taking some pics this morning, I thought they looked much better than the last pics I took.  I have been doing the massage exercises for about 2 weeks.  At first it was painful to do so I could only do it for a few minutes a day.  Now, I try and do it for an hour or so everyday.  They do seem to be softening up and hopefully dropping little by little.  It is so hard to tell.  I do notice the small aches and pains now that the big pains are gone.  I had a pain in my right breast near my armpit for awhile.  I think I might have stretched the muscle too much.  My incisions have been slightly painful off and on and they are kind of hard underneath.  I am guessing because of the scar tissue.  Some days the bra totally irritates my skin and other days it feels fine. 

Another strange sensation that I have noticed is the tightness of my chest muscles.  If I am cold especially, my boobs will get really tight.  It is the weirdest thing and hopefully the muscles will get accustomed to being stretched out and loosen up soon.  The next time I blog, I will be out of the bra (I hope) and wearing all sorts of cute clothes!

My TIPS for breast augmentation surgery recovery

• Hydrate several days in advance... drink lots of water and have a lot of healthy liquids on hand for after surgery (I drank Vitamin Water & Izze).  I am almost positive that being well-hydrated helped cut the post-anesthesia nausea for me.
• Use deep breathing and positive attitude to help recovery from anesthesia and after surgery.  It really does help!
• Get help... especially if you have little kids!!!  Have someone that can help YOU (wait on you hand and foot) for the first 3-5 days or so and totally care for the kids.  Do not plan on taking care of small children for at least a week.  You will not be able to pick up anything over 5-10 lbs. for the first two weeks.  It is hard if you have kids and they are so used to having Mom accessible all the time.  Older kids can help out to some extent.  
• Take is SLOW.  Some days you will feel great and feel like you are ready to face the world like normal, but then you realize the next day that you have overdone it.  Force yourself to take everything slowly.  Do get out and about when you are ready, but don't do too much too soon.
• Fill your prescriptions and make sure your caregiver is familiar with them and how often you need to take them.  TAKE THE MEDS ON TIME!  It helps if you don't let your pain meds wear off.  There is nothing fun about pain that hits you like a ton of bricks.  The meds will help you be pain free and comfortable.  That is what they are for, and it actually helps you heal better to not have pain.
• Follow your Doctor's orders, and call if you have any questions or concerns.  They are always more than happy to help!
• Have everything ready to go ahead of time.  It will be at least a couple of weeks before you feel like cleaning the house, doing laundry or anything else for that matter.  Buy lots of food, stock up on healthy snacks (high fiber to help with regularity!), and make and freeze meals. 
• Speaking of having everything ready... get your bed/chair/couch ready to go BEFORE you leave for your surgery (with LOTS of pillows.  I had a memory foam wedge pillow that I LOVE!!!  It helped out a ton!   I can't imagine sleeping without it.... still using is actually).  The first couple of days you won't be able to move well at all and can't use any upper body strength.  Think about this and set everything you need on your nightstand or table within a close reach (reading material, remotes, phone, drinks, snacks, trashcan, tissue, chapstick, etc.)
• Invest in some loose-fitting zip-up hoodies or comfy button-up shirts for the first few days.  For the following 4-6 weeks while you are in the compression bra/surgical bra you will only be able to wear shirts that come up to your neck to hide everything underneath so think about what you will be able to wear afterwards.  Wearing the same few shirts for several weeks gets really old, boring and depressing.  I love shirts that I can button up over my bra but still look girly and a lot cuter than a huge t-shirt.
• My last tip is something I haven't read anywhere else, but I have found this to help out a lot.  Getting used to bigger boobs is definitely part of the whole process.  I have found that they get much sweatier (especially being squeezed together and cooped up in the bra), and it helps to put some powder in the middle of them.  I use lotion on the bottom where I have found I am getting stretch marks and kama sutra honey dust actually in between and on top of them.  

11 days post-op

It has been 11 days since my surgery and I am feeling almost back to normal (except for this annoying bra).  I went for a check-up yesterday and they thought everything looked great.  I was instructed on how to massage the implants to help them drop.  I am very excited to get things moving!  I can't wait to sleep normally again.  I still have to sleep on my back but will flip to my side with lots of pillows if I get too uncomfortable.  I have 2-3 more weeks with the bra and then I am out of it for good!!!!!  I am counting down those days!  I took some pics with my mac so they are mirror images, but they will give you a good idea of my progress so far.

One week post-op....CONTINUED

OK, today is one week after my surgery.  I feel like so much has happened in the last week.  Yesterday I blogged about all the things I was able to go out and do...WELL, today I am recovering from all that.  You definitely have to make a conscious decision to make yourself take it easy even when you feel great.  Recovery is like that.  You don't just get better all of a sudden.  It is long and slow and sometimes a little annoying.  I also have made myself stop taking the Percoset and am taking Tylenol.... which helps with pain, but nothing close to the potency of percoset!  Anyway, getting off the drugs will hopefully get my body back into it's normal shape.  I don't feel awful.  I just have to take it easy and remind myself that a FULL day of shopping and being out probably isn't the best idea.  Sitting around like a couch potato is still my agenda... much to my dismay.  I also think my hubby is getting a little worn out being Mom/Dad/Housekeeper/Cook & ALL THAT.  I have tried to give him really good feedback and praise but it never seems like enough.  He is a trooper that is for sure, but I know he is ready to have me back full force (not to mention the sexual tension from having to go 6 weeks w/o any action because of my labiaplasty- which feels great like I had nothing done whatsoever).  Poor guy, hopefully he won't read all these things I am writing about him!!!!!  Oh, and I decided not to call Dr. Pousti's office about my bruising.  It is not painful today so I think it is just a normal bruise and not a hematoma or anything like that.

One week post-op

So far I am feeling great considering tomorrow will be my 1 week post-op anniversary!!! My implants drop and soften up a little bit each day.... not a lot, but enough that I can notice a little improvement. I am very happy with them so far and just cannot wait for the healing to be over with (#1 is getting this surgical bra time done and finished. I will not miss it in the least, but I know it is doing its job.) I would love to just go sans bra for a day, but I will be faithful to the surgical bra and cling to the vision of two weeks from now when I can say aurevoir to it! I have not been laying around for days now. I feel like I am ALMOST back to normal. In fact, today I was out most of the day doing various things (mani, pedi, shopping, lunch, starbucks)... still taking 1 percocet as needed. Tonight I will try and go back to Tylenol PM and see if it does the trick and if it allows me to rest. If it doesn't go well, I am not too proud to go back to Percocet until the discomfort is totally gone. To be honest, I am waiting on the all important first BM since surgery and I know they will quiz me on it at my next appointment in a few days. I hate NOT being regular, but it hasn't been a problem so far. In a few days it could get to be uncomfortable, but hopefully it will happen soon. Not a fun subject, I know, but it is the reality of having surgery, anesthesia & pain meds all messing with your system. So, my breasts do look beautiful and I am very happy with the look of them. I asked for Ds and my husband thinks with the swelling and all that they look like DDDs (that is to say that he is VERY happy with them... can't wait for them to be all recovered and ready to play.  ha!). (I got 550 cc in each side- silicone of course)  I already feel comfortable with them and I don't think I will have much issuea adjusting to the added size.  The compression bra seems to minimize their size somewhat.  I have tried on a few shirts with no bra and they seem huge, but with the surgical bra they are all held in and are easy to hide under a big T-shirt.  I do have a little bruising on the sides of each breast near my armpit. The right one is growing fainter, but the left is a very small (~1 cm) deeper looking bruise that is somewhat painful. I plan on calling the office tomorrow just to check on it to make sure it is not a problem developing. I think everyone tends to overreact when it comes to things like this...and I probably am doing just that, but I will call just in case.