When I was in high school I crammed myself into a 36C, not understanding the value of a well fitted bra. The first time I was fitted I was 20 years old, and smaller than I had ever been in my life. In my smaller size I was a 32DD. I can only imagine what I would have worn in high school had I worn properly fitted bras. Since then I've been pregnant three times, nursed three beautiful babies, and gained a significant amount of weight. Just before my surgery I wore a 44G-J, depending on the brand of bra.
Having large breasts has always caused problems for me. The worst was the back pain. I hadn't known a day WITHOUT back pain since my early teens. If you can imagine carrying a child improperly strapped to your chest, straps over your shoulders, that's what it was like. The weight was a constant pulling, causing aches, cramps, knots...you name it. I was constantly twisting and arching my back, trying to find SOME comfortable position. The weight pulling on my back and shoulders even affected my posture while sitting, and would pull me forward until I hunched. The size of my breasts combined with my scoliosis made exercise next to impossible.
In addition to the back pain I had several other problems;
Every summer I would end up with yeast infections under my breasts.
The size and positioning of my breasts threw my posture off so much that it looked like I was shoving my breasts out to the world, threw my hips back, and made me look pregnant.
My center of gravity was disproportionate to my height. Balance was, um, NOT my strong suit.
I never got a full night of sleep, because I couldn't find a comfortable position. If I slept on my back my breasts would fall to my sides, if I slept on my side my breasts would both fall to the mattress and pull until they'd bruise. If I tried to sleep on my stomach, my back was so arched it felt like I was trying to do a half push-up.
I wasn't able to wear a seatbelt properly, it wouldn't rest between my breasts like it was supposed to but would instead ride up to my neck, like a child sitting too low for a seatbelt.
I had to buy tops two sizes too big, and even then most of the time they still didn't fit properly in the chest. When we lived in Japan, the Land of Tiny Boobies, I had to order my bras from the US, resulting in a drawer full of expensive, improperly fitted bras.
And of course, there's the humiliation issue. It felt like nobody knew me for me. I was that chick with the huge rack. I even had to remind one person several times that he was talking to me, and that my breasts were not capable of holding a conversation.
And that was all just the tip of the iceberg. After 16 years of living with them, I was ready for them to go.
I had been trying for several years already to get the surgery done, but every doctor I spoke to about it was a male military doctor. Their instant prescription for anything when I walked in their office was to diet and exercise. Because I was an overweight woman their ears automatically closed to anything I had to say. Having my son put my attempts on hold for a few years, and I essentially gave up.
In early 2007 though, I had a routine GYN appointment with the most wonderful doctor I've ever had the pleasure of meeting. In the form I had to fill out before my appointment there was a question, "Do you have any issues with your breasts that you'd like to discuss today?" I was feeling like a smartass that day so I wrote, "Yeah, they're huge, let's get rid of 'em!" My doctor, Theresa, read it and sat down and TALKED TO ME. Who knew, a doctor that would LISTEN to her patient and validate her concerns!?! That day was the first time I had hope that I could finally live in comfort.
That day, Theresa and I came up with a list of reasons that I needed the reduction done, and she put in a referral that same day. The next day, I received a call from Tricare. I had an appointment with a local plastic surgeon for an evaluation!! A few weeks later I met my plastic surgeon, and he agreed, I would absolutely benefit from a reduction.
There were a few issues on the Tricare end of things, mostly that they accidentally deleted my plastic surgeon from their network, but after 6 weeks my breast reduction was finally approved. My husband was deployed and we were on the phone when I found out. He's still recovering from the eardrum I ruptured when I squealed with excitement.
Once my surgery was approved, the ball was rolling. It was approved in the second week of May, and they wanted to get me in on May 18th. TOO SOON!! My MIL was coming down to take care of us since my husband was gone, she still had to work things out on her end. Finally the surgery was scheduled, plane tickets for MIL were purchased, I was going under the knife on May 25, the day after my 10th anniversary.
A day or so before surgery. Bra size 44G
