Breast Augmentation

[Josilyn]

Hello all..

I have a breast implant surgery scheduled for Oct 30.  I have been on estradiol for 14 months and fill a B cup.  I am also kinda big as well, so that might have some influence on that size.The only other surgery I have had was an orchi. 

My question for all you girls is if any of you had breast implants and if you are happy with your choice as well as the results.

My goal with the surgery is to add a more feminine look to myself as I don't pass as well as a lot of you beauties out there and am hoping that this step will help.

Thanks,
Josilyn

[Rachel]

Hello Josilyn,

I had a BA on 7/12/2017, 555 cohesive silicone half under the muscle. The incision is in the breast fold. I was an A cup and 40 band (39 inches) and wore a sports bra. I did not fill a top to my liking and felt self conscious. I am now a full C and Dr. McGinn said that is a large as I could go.

Dr. McGinn spent 2 hours in the operating room working on me. She had to make a breast pocket and she managed to do 1/2 of each implant under the muscle, that will help hold them into place, she said.

I will lose an additional 16 pounds (24 pounds down) and hope to get to a 38 band. At 180 I will evaluate my tummy, hip breast measurements and see if I need to lose additional weight. I think I can go down to 165 to 170 but only if it makes a positive difference. My boobs will not deflate

I love how I fill a top now. I have not been on a beach this summer ( I really need a three day B&B stay at the beach) but I can feel better about my body now that I have a bust.

I obsessed about the implant size. I was supposed to have my BA Nov 15, 2016 with my GCS but due to a complication I had it 6 months later on July 12, 2017. In November I was obsessing on the GCS and the surgery issues I was facing. I was not thinking about the BA. Post GCS and 6 months I watched every Utube video and post there was about a BA. I was obsessing to the maximum.

Mentor makes up to 800 cc and Dr. McGinn recommended a 555 and said It would have to be over the muscle. It turned out to go partially under the muscle and the doctor had a difficult time with the right side.  I am East West and have a wide chest to no cleavage without a BRA and I need to wear a sports bra for 2 months 6 days. Also I keep wearing the ace bandage under the boobs for another 6 days. The sports bra and ace bandage are on 24/7 except for showering.

I was 327 pounds at one time (perhaps higher because I stopped weighing myself at a point. I had to use a cargo scale on the loading dock and it was really embarrassing) so I have skin that is plentiful, not loose but not tight ( I almost stopped eating for 6 months and exercised every day. I had to drop the weight and when I did the skin responded very well). So there is no issue of the implant going into the pocket the doctor made. There is a potential issue with stressing the incisions that make the breast fold. I need a strong capsule around the implants before I do any bouncing or there is a chance the implant could break the stitches and slide down. So I follow the doctors orders.

A trans BA is different than a Cis BA and Dr. McGinn explained the Cis have a breast pocket while trans need a pocket made.

I am really happy I had the surgery and the size that was chosen. If they were bigger then moving my arm out front would take more of an angular motion. I am big enough for my intent (feel better about myself) and not too big as to make a potential issue with my anatomy.

A guy I know sat next to me when I was eating lunch with several others. He sat there and said I should have gone bigger. He kept it up and said I can hardly see them and repeated it several times. I looked over and said, thank you. You have made me feel so much better about myself. He stopped, looked down and left.  None of the other people at the table said anything. Some people are so preoccupied with breasts. I decided to eat my wrap at my desk this week and walk for lunch. Perhaps I will do that the rest of the summer and fall.

It is funny to see guys sneaking a glance and looking embarrassed when I make eye contact with them afterwards. One guy at work I know well said I look good and it really made a positive difference. He was red in the face when he said it and it was precious. He is very cute and self confident; yet, he was embarrassed. I felt so good when he said that. There are some really nice people in the world.

I have had several woman comment positively about my size choice and how they look

It is funny how breasts affect guys. I always wanted the figure and compared how breast looked for what I hoped I would look like on HRT. I grew an A cup and my breasts were somewhat conical. Now I have a full C and when I can wear a regular bra my breast will fluff up a bit and overall look bigger. My breasts are soft and feel really good. I have some nipple soreness from the sports bra on one side and the implant on the other side. The poor nipples can not get any relief. I do notice my nipples are erect so much more now, almost always. I had several woman comment about showing and when can I wear a regular bra. I wear a lot of floral prints at work which helps camouflage things. All my tops still fit, so so happy.

I hope this helps.

[Josilyn]

That really helps a lot.  Congrats on your weight loss..  I need to find a regimen for me to start to follow religiously.  If that is your avatar on the post, I am very jealous.  I know I will not be able to get ffs for at least a very long time, but since my insurance has great gender dysphoria coverage, I decided for the breast implants.  Hopefully they will adopt ffs into their policy at some point.

Thank you for responding as I really need to hear and read as much as I can from real people as I am completely wrapped up in the thought of this surgery.

I know after the surgery I will be in a world of hurt as they are going under the muscle and told me what the exercises are going to be starting the next day which involve pressing down hard from the top of the implant to make sure it slides into the right place and doesn't float up.

I am sure, however, the pain will be worth it when I can put on a shirt and finally fill it out and maybe show some cleavage 

[Steph Eigen]

I have a breast implant surgery scheduled for Oct 30.  I have been on estradiol for 14 months and fill a B cup.  I am also kinda big as well, so that might have some influence on that size.

Have you trialed different volumes using either the rice in a stocking method or using a high quality silicone enhancement pad such as the Softleaves X99?  I the case of the former, simply cut a section of a nylon stocking or panty hose, fill with various carefully measured volumes of rice (short grain rice such as used to make risotto works best) and knot off the ends tightly.  Using these various volume augmentations of the natural volume of your breasts, you can pretty accurately assess the cosmetic result of surgical augmentation of equivalent volume.  The Softleaves silicone X99 enhancers come in several sizes, up to about 300 ml each. are much more comfortable against the skin than the rice in stocking device, are very anatomically compatible with your own breast shape (they are not breast forms) and are absolutely undetectable in a conventional bra.

Either way, try out several different volumes, see what you like best and what offers the best balance for you body shape and desired figure.  Many surgeons recommend this to patients who are unsure of the extent of augmentation they desire.

Good luck,

Steph

[Ejo]

Josilyn:

I had under the muscle 650 cc gummy bear implanted on 7/22/17.
I don't mean to scare you, but the pain is HORRIBLE for the first 3 days or so. You'll need to summons all of your mental strength to get through it, after that it began to go away a little at a time as the days have passed.
The pain and inability to move was so bad at first that I was not able to open a standard orange with a white top prescription container.
I highly suggest that you have someone available to help you 24/7 for the first 3 days, or I should say IT'S A MUST! Oh, and if you need to use the restroom for #2 forget about being able to wipe yourself, you'd need someone very close to you to assist with that! Luckily I was constipated for about 4 days after the surgery and didn't have to deal with that.
Perhaps my pain was more than others because I went from flat chested to 650 cc's. I'm 5' 8" and 180 lbs.
On a positive note, once the pain began to diminish and I began to check out my new breasts in the mirror and realized that all of the pain/ suffering (which still continues) is now all worth it! I am very happy with the results, but won't see finalization of the swelling for 3 months and final settlement of the implants for 6 months. So far they've made a huge difference in my confidence. Last week I went to a casino with a friend and his wife (straight couple) and just about every time I would go to the bar with his wife guys were asking if they could buy us drinks. Although I am attracted to women only, my mind was saying Wow! Are the implants worth it? Worth every penny and day of misery!!!
Best of luck with your procedure and be sure to fill your pain meds in advance because for about 3 after the surgery about all you'll be able to do is rest in bed, cry and ask yourself what the f**k did I get myself into. 

[Josilyn]

Thank you for your responses.. They mean a lot to me. The real thing I am feeling inside is a huge sense of insecurity as the neck up on my body is mostly male looking and I am afraid that I will look like a man with boobs and a pot belly to boot (Trying to lose weight vigorously).  I am trying to look forward to little spouts of FFS, but that is not for a long time.  The only feedback I get is from my (Very Supporting) wife who says the I will enjoy them one I get them, and that it will increase the feminine appearance, but of course I am skeptical. 

I have tried various of sizes using the rice technic and looking below the neck it looks pretty acceptable.  I am looking for a little outside encouragement to make sure I am doing the right thing in the next step of my transition.  I know it is completely up to me, but I keep flopping between being exited about the surgery to just waning to call it off most of personal fears, as once it is done it is done.

I am hoping someone has some words of wisdom to be able to guide me in  direction the could be right for me as I am getting no other outside encouragement or discouragement, as the only person right now I have to lean on is my wife.

I go to a support group every few weeks, but I am not to comfortable with discussing this with them as of right now and my therapist kinda avoids the subject and doesn't give any feedback one way or another, which I guess it is her job to keep personal opinions out of the professional environment.  I feel like I am stuck in a limbo and desperate for anything at this moment.

An advise?

[Ejo]

I'd say just do it! I have no regrets. Once you get past the pain after a few days, you'll be glad you did it.

[Josilyn]

I'd say just do it! I have no regrets. Once you get past the pain after a few days, you'll be glad you did it.

I'm definitely looking forward to the surgery and hoping I have no regrets. I am not exactly passing so I have a lot of self conscience issues.  That and the pain scare me immensely. 

Does anyone know about the healing process and what your breasts look and feel like now?

[HappyMoni]

It's funny but people think of gender confirmation surgery as the point of no return. In the public shere, it is invisible though. In my mind, the point of no return is BA. (Not that I think of any return) I worry about going too big. I wonder if going too big will make me top heavy and consequently more trans looking. In my consult with McGinn, she recommended 450 cc's. (I am 5' 7" and 165 lbs) I can't picture what that would look like. I have been through a few surgeries, Josilyn, and the pain was short lived, the benefit lasts and lasts. From what Rachel indicates, it is important to go to someone who is trans familiar. I do think I will spend some full days with practice enhancement to see how they look and feel.
Monica

[Ejo]

Speaking for myself. I am happy with the results. As far as the healing, after 3 days, the pain was half of the original. After that it decreased considerably each passing day. By the 10th day or so there was no pain, just soreness at the scars. It has now been around 70 days since my surgery and all I feel is my skin being a little tight when I stretch with my arms over my head. Do keep 2 things in mind. My breasts have gotten slightly larger once my muscles and skin stretched, and they're still stretching and dropping. It can take even a year or more for them to fully settle and 90+ days for all the swelling to go away. Also keep in mind that if you go behind the muscle, the muscle is going to push in on them and they will be smaller than prior to being implanted, so it's not a bad idea to go a little larger than you think.
I'm 5'8", 175 lbs. and my strap size is 38-40". I got 650cc high profile smooth and round gummy bears behind the muscle. That's as large as the doctor could go on my body. They feel very natural.  It's widely agreed by doctors that you won't see a final/ very close to final result until 6 months have passed. Definitely go to a dr. experienced with trans patients. I've seen more that one result from non trans experienced doctors that look like a man's chest that works out, so definitely do your homework! Good luck and please feel free to ask any other questions

[Ejo]

Josilyn: Once I got my breasts my confidence really increased, if that helps any. Try to make trans friends at your meetings and go out and have fun. That really helped me a lot too. After a while you'll no longer worry about if you pass or not because you'll be happy being you

[HappyMoni]

Speaking for myself. I am happy with the results. As far as the healing, after 3 days, the pain was half of the original. After that it decreased considerably each passing day. By the 10th day or so there was no pain, just soreness at the scars. It has now been around 70 days since my surgery and all I feel is my skin being a little tight when I stretch with my arms over my head. Do keep 2 things in mind. My breasts have gotten slightly larger once my muscles and skin stretched, and they're still stretching and dropping. It can take even a year or more for them to fully settle and 90+ days for all the swelling to go away. Also keep in mind that if you go behind the muscle, the muscle is going to push in on them and they will be smaller than prior to being implanted, so it's not a bad idea to go a little larger than you think.
I'm 5'8", 175 lbs. and my strap size is 38-40". I got 650cc high profile smooth and round gummy bears behind the muscle. That's as large as the doctor could go on my body. They feel very natural.  It's widely agreed by doctors that you won't see a final/ very close to final result until 6 months have passed. Definitely go to a dr. experienced with trans patients. I've seen more that one result from non trans experienced doctors that look like a man's chest that works out, so definitely do your homework! Good luck and please feel free to ask any other questions

Thanks Ejo, that really helps. I will maybe follow up later.
Moni

[JennyBear]

    Um, if your breasts are growing at a faster than average rate, should you still wait till the 2 yr mark on HRT (start of estradiol) before getting implants?
    I'm a pretty big girl, 5'11" with a 48" band measurement and broad shoulders from my self-denial body building days. According to most cup-size measurement calculators I would be a C cup, though on me with that barrel chest it looks like a tiny B or large A cup. What you see in my pics includes 2 triangular pads in my sports bras. At the moment sports bras are all I can wear without paying for expensive custom made ones as no one makes a 48 A and the only 48 B I've ever found actually measures to a D cup. I understand most of this is from the size of my rib-cage and pectorals, but to look proportional, I'm gonna need at least a D.
    Before I got approved for full HRT, (partly due to a temporary medical condition I'm recovering from that made me balloon up to over 300 lbs with bad BP numbers, down to 265 and dropping, same for the BP,) I had been taking herbal estrogens, mostly soy isoflavones and flax lignans. This started the breast growth, getting me to a tiny A or AA I've only been on Estradiol for 2 months, but if I've grown this much already, maybe my natural growth cycles will end well before the 2 yr mark. What do you guys think?

[Dani]

JennyBear,

Many years ago, my chest measured 48 inches, but I weighed 340 pounds. Today with my weight about 100 pounds less, my chest measures 40 inches around. I need to lose another 40 or 50 more pounds. I do not have breast implants yet, but since my ethnic heritage gave me breasts that fill a 40 D bra, I may or may not get breast implants.  I have not decided.

However, since my over all chest measurement has decreased with the weight loss, I recommend to all of the ladies here, first get down to your desired weight and after 2 or 3 years of HRT, then make your decision as to what size and shape breast implants you will need for your personal well being.

[Nancys Girl]

I had mine done the first of this past August.  It might be the best thing I've ever done in my entire life, and I'm not kidding.  I had been doing hrt since May 2016, and had grown a tiny little set of A's verging on B's.  People told me they could see them, but I was not satisfied.  I had been scheduled for SRS June 28 and it got cancelled due to a bad lab result- I was pretty depressed over that and I decided that I needed to do something to perk me up.  I was well perked after the BA, I can tell you.  500cc silicone each breast, and now I am a C.  I bought some low cut bras and tops and it took quite a while to get over enjoying the view from looking down.  I work in a college, and I get a kick out of seeing the young male undergrads trying to sneak a peek.  And no pain whatsoever!  The only downside is the scars- I have to keep after them with an ointment to reduce them- it's called ScarAway and I totally recommend it.  Good luck, Josilyn.  May your experience be as good as mine has been!

[I Am Jess]

I had my BA 2 years ago after being on HRT for 6 months.  It was the greatest decision ever.  I went with 500cc Mentor Memory Gel Smooth Round Moderate Plus Profile implants.  I was an A cup and my doctor said that was as big as I could go.  He went in through the areola and placed them under the muscle.  Having visible breasts and not having to use forms helped my self confidence greatly.  I was a small C after the surgery but they have continued to grow and develop and now I am a large C small D.  Many people say you should wait until you've been on HRT for 2 years before getting BA.  I am so glad I did not listen to that advice.  Both my doctor (who is a rock star in trans surgery) and therapist (who's assisted over 1,200 people transition) said that it did not make a difference in getting them at 6 months.  They were right.

I'm 6'2" and weigh about 195 now and I wear 38 C/D bras.  The nice thing about having the BA is that I don't have to wear a bra unless I want to.  I've received so many complements on my boobs that I know it was the right thing to do.  Here's what they are looking like today.




Here's what they looked like a month or so after surgery.

[Josilyn]

Thank you all for the comments.. It really is giving me the courage that I need to go through with this surgery. 

I Am Jess.. You look great and I only hope that mine turn out to be that awesome. 

Please keep the posts coming, as my surgery date is approaching and I can use all the encouragement I can get!

[Josilyn]

Well..  I am 6 days away from surgery and super excited and scared.  Everything is set with my insurance and we have the green light.  Unfortunately I will be missing Halloween which is one of my favorite times, but I think this year will be worth it. 

I spoke with one of the Dr's assistants who schedules the surgeries and they told me that the 511CC Saline under muscle will give me around a high B, which i already fill out a B cup..  I am looking for a high C to low D as I am 6'1 and about 250 (Yes I am exercising and trying to lose more weight - 20 lost pounds so far).  I want to talk to the Dr's P.A. but she is out on maternity leave but I don't know for how long. 

Do you think I should leave  message for the Dr. to call  me back before I order the implants to get another option about the size..
Also is going to a D with my size pushing it a little or do you think it should look ok?

I know my questions seem inane, but I am really looking for feedback as I almost feel alone in this endeavor even though my wife is supportive, she is more of a "yes" person and does not give any real encouragement or discussion about the matter.

[Ejo]

Josylin: I can't comment on the sizes because once in the body the implants change size and shape, but I am curious why you are not going with cohesive silicone (gummy bears). They feel much more natural and can withstand way more punishment. There are some videos on youtube that compare the two. One shows a saline versus silicone being run over by a car. The saline bursts and the silicone remains intact. There's another video where they are dropped from a building.
The saline blows up like a water balloon and the cohesive silicone remains intact. Just my input...

[Josilyn]

I can't comment on the sizes because once in the body the implants change size and shape, but I am curious why you are not going with cohesive silicone (gummy bears).

I am going with the gummy bear implants..  I have felt them and they are very soft and realistic.  I spoke with the P.A. over at my surgeons office today and they said that about a 100cc will bring you up one size and they are going to have about 8 different sizes in the surgery suite.  I will be going over the sizes again with my surgeon and we will make our final choice then.  I think I am going to go with the 490 and that should bring me to a D which would be nice..  (I hope)!