Exchange City
Comments
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Hi, I am having my exchange done on Feb 19th. I wish I didn't have to complete this process. I am used to my painful, lumpy, dented, rippling and awkward rock solid expanders. The thought of more surgery makes me want to throw up. UGH! and all the new issues that go along with this exchange is not going to be welcomed. I am hoping to put some of my fear to rest. I also have severe AWS cording and this has been so difficult to drive, work, etc. I am hoping that it does not get worse during the upcoming exchange.
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I was given choices. Lumpectomy, unilateral MX, or BMX. It was my choice. When I saw Ps before surgery, he made my decision easy. I was only going to do this once. No lymph nodes so no chemo or Rad! Plus the word"invasive" meant it was on the move already. I hope you can keep the beast away! 😀
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roadrash, try not to get discouraged it does get better. I felt so much better after 1 week from exchange. Implants are so much more comfortable and to be quite honest you can't even tell they are not real til you look in the nirror. Hang in there.
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Thank you sandgar. I hope I feel the same way you do after it's over.
I will never get enough of the positive stories on this board. I just left my ps this morning and I am so much more confused. I am overwhelmed and my husband asked so many questions that I will need another appointment prior to the 2/19. My ps told me that these tissue expanders could actually deflate prior to surgery and I would need to go back in prior to the exchange. It never happened during these last 3 months so I don't know why he would tell me that. lol Doesn't he know that i have an anxiety disorder now. I am looking forward to the exchange but scared by the outcome. These implants are for the rest of our lives.0 -
Hi to both roadrash and sandgar!!
I am so excited about my exchange on 3/5/15. I am so tired of running into walls with these hard protrusions! LOL!
They are so hard and now I am starting to itch and I can't get to it! I have very little feeling along the incision, but have more feeling on sides and on top near the portal.
I can't believe the PS would tell you they might deflate!! Holy Moly, is he trying to scare you? I have had a great experience though. No problems with the TE. I go see my PS on 2/18/15 just to go over the surgery and pick out my implants. I am thinking a moderate projection. I was a 36B before BC. I have 420cc in each TE. What are you getting roadrash? Hope all goes well.
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Roadrash, I can't believe he told you that. I honestly never heard that before so don't even worry about it. Try not to stress it will turn out good. My ps really didn't let me make any decisions so I'm not sure what's better. Too much or not info or not enough lol!
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Sandgar, I remember a while back you weren't happy with your 500cc implants. I have the same implants and am wondering if you're pleased with them now?
We had a lot of dialogue with Divecat about cc's and cup size. I was wearing the wrong size bra with the 500 cc implants. I recently had a bra fitting at Neiman's and am a 34 D. I thought I was a 36 B. Divecat and I shared photos and she was right about the cup size issue. She and I and you as well?...are all about the same height and weight? Am 5'5 120 pounds and have a 30 inch rib cage.
Let me know how you feel about the size of your implants now. You said something about looking in the mirror and then you know they're not real? Am not sure what you mean by that?
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road rash, I have had my TEs in for one year today with no problem. My exchange is scheduled for May 8 and deflation of a TE is the least of my worries. You will be fine. Keep the faith
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Hi ladies. Thank you so much for your feedback. I had my husband call the surgeon's office and he was told that I am getting a 650 or 700 cc Mentor HIgh profile implant. My measurements prior to the last fill today were 720 x 12.8 width. Now, I'm freaking out because I can't find a high profile Mentor that would give me 650-700 cc with a 12.8 width. You need to be a mathematician to figure this out. I think my ps is going to go with the 650 because my overfill is very very tight and I feel like my breasts are going to explode. My PS told me that nto only could i deflate, but I could end up with thin skin and that is a major problem. I just want this man to stop talking at this point.
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OceanSky, I have 425cc implants wish I had gone with 500cc. I thought the te's looked huge like porn boobs so I asked him to go a little smaller and now seem smaller than I would like. As for looking in the mirror in the buff they look fake. Clothed they look real. Wish I could have gone with anatomical implants as they appear more real but my ps didn't do them. Do you have rippling and does the shape look natural to you?
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Roadrash, I think he means you are filled enough and if you go more it might cause thin skin. I was overfilled and think I have thin skin because you can see a little rippling but my skin still looks good so don't worry. I know how you feel though I am still stressing over my size and ps choice of implant after the fact.
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Hi Sandgar. Thank you for you feedback. That does make sense. I do have rippling now with the TE. I see many people were given chioces by their psurgeon. Did you get any choices? I didn't and I'm thinking now that it would have probably been better to look at a variety. I already know I am going to be disappointed and will need to lose weight to make me look more balanced. I agree these TE do look like porn star boobs but I don't think I am being unreasonable to want something that will fill out a cup size. I see quite a few people have been able to go back and switch their implants. Is that something you can do?
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roadrash I wasn't given any choices. Not sure if my ps will change them out. See him next month.
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Roadrash--I wasn't given any choices with my first exchange. I have had issues; mainly, my implants fall into my armpits when I recline which causes discomfort due to the pulling sensation I feel. I saw a few second opinion plastic surgeons and am now scheduled for a revision from rounds to anatomical implants, along with a lateral capsulorrhaphy on both sideson 2/17/15. Yes, my insurance is covering the swap. My original PS didn't welcome any questioning of his plan--he did not want to talk nor did he listen to my concerns. The new PS spent a considerable amount of time with me discussing my options and even said that he has a "big bag of tricks" from which to draw from when doing breast reconstruction. He also said that I have to be happy and if I am not, he has not done his job properly.
Every woman is different; some don't want options and information. Others, like me, need options and information to be comfortable with decisions. Go with your gut--if you feel that you want a second opinion for peace of mind, get one! Don't hesitate to postpone your exchange until you are ready--although TE's can deflate, it is rare.
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Roadrash:
Well, I guess that depends what you mean by "choices". Your chest wall does dictate some parameters, like the width or height of the implant. It also depends on how much skin (and the health of that skin) they have to work with. And not all sizes come in all widths and so on. Not all PS's work with all brands or models of implants (mine for example does not use Mentor at all, but as we are in Canada he has access to a much broader range of Allergan than in the U.S.). However, I certainly did talk with my PS a lot about what my desired outcome was in relation to what my pre-surgery breasts looked like (so I discussed size, shape, things I liked, things I didn't) and he was very willing to work with me within the parameters possible for my body and brought implants into the O.R. that he believed would be suitable. Again, while I have a pretty good outcome, there are things that bother me (some denting/rippling one one side), no fault of his but just the way things worked out and due to the fact I have thin skin (I never had TEs, so this was just due to the MX itself and my own body composition), and he has been very willing to work with me about how we can try and fix it, including giving me options (i.e. fat grafting, or a switch to a different implant). I will be switching to different implants in March.
If you do not feel like your PS is listening or willing to work with you, please do not hesitate to seek a second opinion.
Sandgar:
When you say they look "fake" is it the shape that bothers you, like the roundness? The first PS I saw actually told me rounds look better in clothes, and anatomicals look better naked, ha ha. I don't mind how mine look naked, though the do have a lot of upper pole roundness to them but they do look stellar in a bra. I know my switching to anatomicals might mean a bit of a tradeoff there
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Hi EVERYONE!!
My exchange is set for February 20th!!
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Good news, Violet. It will be here before you know it.
Sandgar, what a shame you didn't know that TE's look a lot bigger than implants. I always can tell when a woman is going to be disappointed when she says her doctor told her to get fills until her TE's are where she wants them and then they'll exchange to the same size implant. There might be a woman somewhere that that advice works for, but not usually. Implants simply do not have the projection of a TE. They may be wider (or at least look that way) and they are also flatter. Many of us (me included) described my chest after my BMX with Direct to Implants as looking like man boobs! Square and flat. I had 800 cc Allergan rounds, Style 20. In my experience, new implants look like the top of a hamburger bun. BUT, good news, they change a lot in the next three months. They change shape, get rounder, and look...well, they look like girl boobs!
It doesn't make a difference if it's rounds or anatomicals. I switched to Allergan 410's, Style FF 740 cc and they also looked weird and flat at first. I've had 6 surgeries to repair damage from an infection and gotten new implants 5 of those times. My PS replaces them every time due to avoid possible infection. On me, new implants take a couple of months to settle...every time. It's not drop and fluff - gummy bears don't do that.
Even though I had Direct to Implant, I lost one due to an infection and had a TE instead on one side only. I had the unique opportunity to compare a TE and an implant. The 600cc TE looked bigger than the 800 cc implant. I had to wear "fluff" over the implant side to make me look symmetrical in clothes.
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When I had my last expansion, the nurse told me they don't over expand to account for the implants. Everyone else I've talked to said their PS does over expand. I'm afraid I'm going to come out of the exchange surgery being a lot smaller than the TEs. I'm wondering if I should expand over what I want just in case..
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Leslienva
I'm over expanded to 580cc (in 500cc TEs), and my PS is going to put in 740s at exchange. He said they would be just slightly bigger looking than my TEs.
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Leslienva,
Please post after ex. I am anticipating my ex on 3/5. I have 420cc in TE. I can't even imagine any more because they still feel do hard and full. Even if they are smaller than TE, I think I will be ok. Being 60, I just want to look like I have something in clothes. I will be getting 3d nipple tattoo. Will having more of a profile help with looking bigger? Robi
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Divecat, my rounds look very round and unnatural like a boob job. Guess I was hoping for more natural looking bigger boobs. Maybe I'm asking too much. Not sure I would be happy with anatomicals but wish I could try.
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Into day three from my exchange. The verdict is still out whether I am gonna like these. I went with the round naturelle 45 at 700ccs. The cc number is questionable I will find out Monday for sure at my post op appt. . PS said he would put in what fit. I had 650 ccs in the TE. It is amazing that you loose a lot of volume when you put in the implants. I hear they will drop and fluff over time, so I need to be patient. This is my second try at implants due too numerous infections in between. I had the anatomical ones at first and they were just not right for my body frame. Just wish I didn't have to go through everything to get to where I am now. I just want to thank whippetmom for all the wonderful support and advice she has given me. She is wonderful!! Hope everyone is resting and healing well.
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Hi, I am so glad that I am not alone in this. I really regret my ps telling me I could be a C cup again from all the reading I have done it might not be possible. I start out below C level and I have a smaller chest size. I wish he had just told me not gonna happen than keep telling me I would be better than before. Clearly, that line must work on some woman but anyone who has been through the process knows we just want the facts.
Lori- I think I might need to postpone the surgery if I do not get some clarification from my ps. I hate the thought of having a surgery to revise something like the wrong implant. I might have complicatins and would prefer a trip to the hospital for those complications. I left a message for me ps on Friday. I am dissapointed in myself for being too scared to ask questions. I have watched many videos now and I do know that I want high profile along with the memory (gummy) or even textured. When I called the nurse on Friday, she informed me that she ordered mentor, high profile round.
Sandgar- mine will look like yours if i go with my ps. The textured and memory take on a different shape then the round. I hope you can get one of the newer ones.
Divecat- Im going to get a second opinion. I made an appt for next week and it's not even in my own county. I am afraid of the offices talking to one another. I wish I could post a pic because if i did you would see that these TE are so far apart. I asked him at the last appt and he said that's normal. I really don't think so but again who am I too question a ps. My ps has told me numerous times that my TE will be like the exchange implant. After reading all the true stories, I know that is impossible. I think I am more realistic and disappointed. I have already started preparing my husband that i might need to go shopping for new clothes. I will need to lose weight ASAP. I had C size boobs with a C size butt. I will prbably be getting more of a B size in the end so now I need to get a B size butt. I am just in to much pain from these expanders and my AWS cording to get motivated to lose weight.
Togetherness- You just taught me something new. I didn't know that they were going to drop. I wonder if I should be getting a life along with this exchange.
Sandra- what a journey you have had. You must have incredible patience and tolerance for pain. I hope you are healed and fully recovered now.
Leslie- I am getting 650/700 cc mentor (will depend when ps gets i there) ad I am currently overfilled to 780. My ps toldme that he needed to stretch my skin but he said if my boobs had been bigger he might not need to overfill me. Perhaps, you already had enough skin to cover the implant.
I hope we all get the deisred results we want.
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Road rash, The plan was to go from an A to a C so I'm a little worried about coming out of the implant exchange as small as I went in. I guess I'll have to discuss it with the PS.
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Hi, I am with you. I feel like I am going to come out and go WTH! It seems like breast augmentation is so much more advanced when it comes to forecasting cup size. I am believing that we are all going to get good results. As I find out new information I will share it with everyone. We are learning as we go.
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Road rash I didn't know they would drop either. Whippetmom mentioned that I needed to give mine 10 days to drop and settle. Some here on the board call it fluff. I did get my card in the mail today from the hospital and he did put in 700ccs with the 45 natrelle. So very happy about that. I have mud flaps on the side that will need to be lipoed. Just be patient everyone say
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Ladies drop &/or fluff can take 3 months or longer.
But you can not compare breast augmentation to replacements after cancer. Most of the original breast tissue is gone after cancer surgery so there's not much to "build on to". As for size - you'll see on many threads that cup size is deceiving. Even if you end up wearing your old bras, you will NOT have projection. Maybe wider, but the implants likely won't stick out & fill the end of the cups.
Hope you all will get 2nd & 3rd opinions before a re-do.
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My implants were still changing at up to 5-6 months post surgery. My own PS says he has see things take a year to settle. 10 days is much too soon to know final results! As MinusTwo says, recon is a entirely different ballgame than augmentation....far more complicated for one, and cup sizes are just not a good way to think about it.
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Yes I now that ten days is soon but that will give me an idea where I am once the swelling and bruising is gone. It will take months to get the true picture. Whippetmom said definitely three to six months before making any revisions or changes. I am just taking it day by day and not stressing. Main thing is that I look decent in my clothes and above all cancer free. All the rest is just cosmetic! It is definitely a wait and see game
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I'm guessing we need to wait awhile after the implant exchange to get the 3D tattoos
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