BREAST IMPLANT SIZING 101
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Annette I totally understand....and who WOULD say that??? Jeesh! If I judge my decision on my neighbors recent augmentation or my BFFs large DD's then I feel like I need to go bigger. If I judge it on how I cant sleep at night with this TE anymore, or the look on my DH's face when I wear a tank top...I know I am big enough. I think Ill go with how I look and feel and not with comparing myself to people who havent had BC.
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Just called PS office and they are using a mid profile but he usually uses a high profile (ordered range 371-379 style 15 mentor cohesive gel). Not sure why the switch. I think I'm going to make another appointment to get this explained to me.
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Lago ~ that is odd that he switched the size from what you had discussed? I'm thinking sometimes the PS's don't realize how much some of us research/know about all the little details (from sites like this) so they dont' "bother" us with all the specifics.. and just say.. "you will look good".
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He didn't switch he just told me low profile but ment moderate profile. What I meant by switch is if he usually uses high profile why low on me. At least that's what the nurse told me but…
just spoke with the scheduler who orders these and she said he usually uses mid profile with reconstruction. I'm having a chat with the doctor tomorrow after noon. I wish he didn't say low profile yesterday. That's what got me thinking too much about this. The nurse might have been wrong about him using high profile most of the time.
I'm wondering if my PS is mixing up what I want to look like with what I want to fit into. I want to look like a full B/small C but not necessarily fit into a B/C bra.
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The hard part is...The "look" of a small C to one person could be the "look" of a B or even D to another person. It is too bad they don't have you try on implants in a bra (like they do with augmentation patients) when you are still flat from the mastectomy. That way you could say... I like the look of THIS size implant on me. I wonder why they don't do that?
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Thats an EXCELLENT point Susan!!!! When we were filling, PS just would keep asking if this was 'big enough'....or if I asked how much longer I had to go, he would just say until I felt happy with my size. But then he would tell me that the TE is a horrible way to tell what the end result would be. (Then how am I supposed to KNOW?????). So one day I went to my appointment saying "Before my MX, I was going to have a BA and we had decided on a 325." That completely changed him....so I went in with a sports bra and tried on 325's and 350's on the good side and he did his best to place it so it would look the most like it would after surgery....and we decided on the 350 on the left.
I think it should be standard practice, that unless you want to be the same size, that they SHOULD try on implants and talk about size more BEFORE....now granted there have been cases of 'boob greed' after the fact! Wah ha ha
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lago: That is just fine for you. He will be using midrange profile, Style 15 - Allergan though, not Mentor. The Style 15 is a very nice style of implant and with what you describe as NOT wanting, the Style 15 is ideal for you. My sister has the Style 15. I will go look at your photos....
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Suebee ~ so interesting that you mentioning the BA made him think differently! Again...why the heck don't they have us try 'em on while we are flat? I'm going to suggest this to my PS at next visit!
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Saw the pics Lago. Your PS nailed it with the style!
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Thanks whippetmom for checking. I am pretty sure he only uses Mentor but I'll find out tomorrow when I talk to him. I just wish he didn't make the verbal mistake yesterday of saying "low" profile. I feel I wasted a lot of energy on this. I never had any doubt with him in the past. You did make me feel much better.0
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Lago my PS usually uses moderate profile impalnts on most people. I think he may use high profile on me but i am guessing. I think they might be better for a good upper pole projection whch seems like i need because i am looking very hamburger bun now i could be wrong what do you think whippetmom?0
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Carrol - You have that appearance with the TEs because you have quite a bit of excess skin. Your pre-BMX size dictates that you have the skin flap to fill up and so yes, for you, HP is the best style. I personally do not feel that you need to be fully expanded in those TEs....Make sure you tell your PS you do not want excessive droop...that you want only a teensy bit of ptosis....droop....
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Carrol although our frames are similar in size our breast sizes where at oposite ends of the scale.
Sounds like high profile would make sense for you. 0 -
Susan - yes PS totally forgot that I was a candidate for a BA before diagnosis. It made it much easier that I had been through 'sizing' before. I had a general idea of what I was looking for...
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Tara....
To answer your question, I am 5'7" and 160 lbs. I am 32" under my breasts. When I put on one of my old bras I fill it out completely, the only difference is these new boobs are already compacted and I don't have to squish them into the bra like my old boobs...if you can understand what I mean by that. They project wonderfully and I really don't look any different in clothing...I am a little shocked actually because I didn't expect to look like me. I think they look really natural...I am wearing a shirt today that is somewhat low cut and I have really nice cleavage and honestly there could not have been a better implant to give me the look I wanted. The width is also excellent and I never had the pronounced hamburger bun look, even right after surgery.
Kelly
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kdhawk: So happy for you!!!
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whippetmom ok thanks for the advice i have been telling him i like the side that is higher better but i will tell him again for sure next time so he knows that i don;t want to droop . . you would think he knows that though lol.0
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I just posted some updates to the picture forum...
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I had a unilateral MX on May 13th. Prior to surgery I was about a 40DD and still am. My PS asked if I wanted to stay the same, get bigger or go smaller. I told him I wanted to a reduction and lift on the good side and try to match as much as I could on the other. Gravity and childbirth have not been kind to my non-cancer side. My PS was glad, said that was what he was thinking.
I have a Natrelle TE style 133MV-15, 600cc. He put in about 100cc during surgery, 60 @ my first fill, and 100cc at my fill on Thursday.
I'm 5'4, about 160. Measuring my ribcage is about 34 to 35. I would like to get a C or small D. I'm just wondering if we are on the right track with a 600cc TE.
How does one get access to the picture forum? I don't even see a picture forum.
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Whippetmom, Hi I have been sent from disappointed in my exchange and exchange city. I would like a PM and your the expert. I had my exchange April 13th. I have had a 2nd opinion and she said the muscle was flattening the implant and she always put her imlants over the muscle. I always thought under was standard of care. I have a 3rd opinion soon. My PS wanted to wait 6mo. now reading all the posts I guess that was the right thing to do. I had a 650cc expander filled 760cc and a 650 implant. I feel very tight and flat.I am 5'6 190lbs rib 38inches measured just below breast.If you need more info You can email or I will come back here to look Ferrarioriginalbeads@yahoo.com
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Beads: At the top righthand side of this page, you can do a member search and again to the right there is an option to send Whippetmom a private message.
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Emaline: Please PM either myself, Lilah, Firni, Estepp Or Whippetmom re the Picture Forum as it isn't on BCO.
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Emaline and Beads: Sorry.....could not get on bc.org yesterday....
Emaline: Your TEs are quite sufficient to get you where you need to be. I think between 650 ccs and 800 ccs - high profile implant, but it all depends on the amount of reduction achieved on the native breast.
Beads: Your implants are too small for your frame. You need 800 ccs - and I recommend using a Style 45 in Allergan - extra full projection style implant - smooth silicone round. I know the doc you consulted with in northern cal - I have mixed feelings about her "over-the-muscle" placement. Talk to your oncologist about this before going this route.
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Kelly- thanks for the reply....it helps as we are about the same width & I was worried the 45's would not be wide enough. They are a bit less in width then my TE's. Do they give a nice slope, without a big drop off ?
I noticed the Allergan style 20 700cc's has more projection then their 800cc's ones....the 700cc style 20 seems to be closer to the style 45 in 800cc's. It's all very confusing. Does anyone know if going too wide without as much projection may be the problem to getting that hamburger bun look? My TE's are 750cc's now overfilled to 840cc's & was planning on exchanging to 800cc's but now thinking 700 may be better if I go with style 20.0 -
And does anyone know when they overfill what specs on the TE's change....width, height, projection, or all equally? And by how much? Then that throws off figuring out the exchange equals.
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I got a little angry with my PS because he said something similar to what I'm hearing other PSes say... that the implant will look like the TE, so just fill until you're happy with the size. My TEs were humongous! But that's because they were hard and solidly fixed in place. The implants are fine, but look completely different than the TEs. You can't use them to determine the exact final outcome of the exchange...
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JoanDavies my PS said to let him know when the projection of the TE's looked right to me. He did state that the TE's would not look like the implants. TE's are much higher, harder and not the same shape.0
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My TE's didn't get their projection until they were full because they were so wide & also tall height. It took a lot of cc's just to fill them up before they would fill out.
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I have capsular contraction on one of my TEs so that side is high and i like how it looks and the other side is too low.
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Thank-you Whippitmom I will take this info with me when I go for 3rd opinion.
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