I have small boobs. Left is slightly larger, which I know is common. I'm 44, and very fit, my youngest child is 5, I nursed all three kids and am having no more. My boobs went back to normal after nursing, but I'm starting to see the first signs of age-related breast sagging, but just in that one left breast! Because the other one is too small to droop yet apparently.
I have no desire to get implants or anything, and probably can't afford any type of surgery...but I was curious have any of you had reduction, and did you like it, and would you feel comfortable nipping and tucking only one boob? Or would you be afraid you'd end up even more lopsided somehow?
I'm thinking of having a consultation for the heck of it, but I'm asking for any first-hand knowledge gained for yourselves or friends or relatives...? Do you know any good forums or info sites on it? I'm curious if it would be good to "lighten that one up" before the skin gets more compromised with age...the other breast is perfectly fine. If they were BOTH starting to sag I would be fine with it! It's just the lopsided angle I don't love ..Sigh.
Give it time...the other one will catch up;) Try to be happy the other still looks okay. Both of mine could use some work.
I would talk to a plastic surgeon and get their opinion. I saw a plastic surgeon a number of years ago. (Wow, what a salesmen he was). I ultimately decided to do nothing and just get pretty Victoria Secret bras.
I had a breast reduction, I went from an H cup to a C. I had back pain and numbness, headaches, shoulder pain, neck issues and more from my breasts. I am glad I did the surgery, but I would never have done it for cosmetic reasons. There is a ton of scaring, and even though recovery was not too bad, there was a lot of healing to do. But in the end a consult won't hurt and you have to do what you feel is right for you.
I had a breast reduction surgery and lift bilaterally a few months ago. I can't speak to having only one side done, but I can tell you that my breasts were not perfectly even before, and they are definitely even now. So it's certainly possible for the surgeon to give you a perfectly matched set. ;)
That being said, you should understand that this surgery will leave you with scars. Mine aren't bad, even just 2 months after surgery, but they are good-sized. The scar runs from armpit almost to midline (it stops short of midline, so it's not visible while I'm wearing a swimsuit, for example), then up vertically from the base of the breast to the nipple, and then all the way around the nipple (because when they lift the breast, the nipple would then be in the wrong spot, so they relocate it, and in my case, made them both smaller). If you're not going any smaller, I'm not sure if the scarring would be any different. I went from an I cup to a C cup, so obviously they had to remove a lot of skin in my case.
Anyway, after they do all of that, there's some recovery time. The first 3 days sucked, and I was on a hefty rotation of Percocet. My mom came to stay with me, and thankfully she cooked, cleaned, and drove the kids around. I was cleared to drive after 3 days, but I was really sore, and under strict orders not to raise my hands above my shoulders (washing my hair was an adventure). The bruising and swelling was pretty nasty. After about a month, I was cleared to go back to lower body exercising, and actually I was feeling pretty good by then. At 6 weeks, I could go back (slowly) to upper body exercising.
So now I'm at 9 weeks and I'm feeling fantastic! My new boobs have a really good shape, they're perky like I'm 21 again, and my back pain is gone (I know that's not why you would be doing it, but that was my main driver for having the surgery done). Anyway, I would go ahead and have the consultation. See what the surgeon says, it couldn't hurt.
For whatever it's worth, my insurance covered 80% of my surgery, and I ended up paying around $2000 out of pocket. I would imagine that if insurance isn't covering any of it, it would be a lot more expensive (because there's no negotiated rate/ no insurance company forcing the doctor and surgery center to write off a portion of the cost). Anyway, I hope that helps!
Based on conversations with my plastic surgeon around "evening out", he told me that it's easier to smooth out than to reduce. So if you were to move forward with it, I'd be really surprised if anyone offered a minute "reduction" on one breast. Especially if you have a small cup size to begin with.
I'd have to guess that more likely, they'd suggest a fat transfer to pump up the other breast a bit. It's easier to give, than to take, if that makes sense.
I am younger than you and I have nothing left, but I nursed both my kids and that just kills all the tissue. I would not have it any other way. To me it shows the work I did for my beans.
My friend had implants, due to having nothing left after her kids ( and she did not nurse). But when she lost weight, that is the first place that took flight.
Good luck.
