Has anyone had a breast enlargement on the nhs in the last few years

[nobreasts]

Hi I have no breasts
It's impacted my bf of my children
I am healthy on the lower end of BMI
Have no breasts
GP in agreement
Have had babies so not particuarly a sex dissorder
Genuinely no breasts

Very upset

Have asked for an enlargement with nhs but Gp said he's never encountered and unsure how to go further thru this with NHS

Any advice appreciated

I expect counselling to help you come to terms with the body you ave will be cheaper than surgery.

It's by your address, so unless you move then you won't get it done by just going to another hospital.

If you spend some time googling (your town/borough) with the terms breast augmentation, POLCE, EBICS, low priority procedures, you'll find it.

Do they now? Because the NHS seems to disagree with you
Gender dysphoria - Treatment - NHS (www.nhs.uk)

My transgender friend had to pay for his own mastectomy, you'll be pleased to know.

Good, they should pay like us women have to

I was coming on to say exactly this. I am in constant pain in my back and can’t get a reduction unless I pay private.

In case you missed it my friend WAS a woman and transitioned to be a man. But this is not the point. The point is to check your sources before you make a statement, especially if the statement is derailing OP's thread and taking it in a completely different direction to pedal your own agenda.

I didn't derail the thread. I agreed with the posters pov who said that. Thank you.

I have no agenda. I was in OP's position once and can completely relate. I would like for her to have the comfort I now feel in my body, which was previously impossible. I've offered my advice and recommendations on which company I went with. Please check before posting.

Therapy to accept yourself for who you are would be money better spent.

I Just think you're much more likely to find any lumps without an implant to hide it.

I'd expect you to have to fund it yourself I'm afraid, as others have said.

Yet people can have sex changes on the NHS

Can't believe the number of posters popping on just to tell OP that this is cosmetic surgery, presumably to insinuate that it's unnecessary and probably not the kind of thing the NHS should cover (and especially when the system is stretched, for a little extra guilt).

For whatever reason, despite a functioning reproductive system and an adequate body weight, OP's body has an unusual lack development of actual physical bodily organs, to the extent she's had problems performing an important bodily function (a difficulty that can have many emotional connotations and implications, for some people). Moreover, this lack of development is in a part of the body that is very visible and has major social significance. Understandably, this physical lack of development of a normal adult female body part has resulted in what OP described as considerable, extensive problems with mental health in general and eating in particular.

Surgery won't improve the function of the breasts as working organs, but it can potentially radically change the way OP feels about herself, and how she navigates society. The NHS has generally recognised that going through life with a visible difference can affect mental (and thereby physical) health, and that where someone has such a difference, it can be changed with surgery, and the patient wants this, there are circumstances where "cosmetic" surgery can absolutely be within the remit of the NHS.

Nhs ops are rare for cosmetic reasons.
I would highly recommend Mr moritt at Claremont private hospital in Sheffield.

This comment epitomises the unpleasant "well if I can't get something I need, why should you?" attitude currently endemic in society. Although I understand it results from resource scarcity it is still thoroughly unpleasant (and no, I don't believe it was a question asked in innocence).

Sorry, op, I have no advice but can hear how much it's affecting you. I hope the advice offered in good faith here is helpful.

I am querying whether this is already available to me through the NHS which I contribute to

Everyone contributes to the NHS, but that doesn’t mean it’s necessarily reasonable for it to fund people’s cosmetic surgery. Being flat-chested isn’t a disfigurement - it’s your natural body type. As you’ve had children it seems unlikely that there’s a medical reason for it.

I do understand that’s affecting your mental health but ultimately this is cosmetic surgery. If you can get it on the NHS, that’s great - I hope you can. But I don’t think it’s necessarily something you could expect.

Surgery won't improve the function of the breasts as working organs, but it can potentially radically change the way OP feels about herself
I could only breastfeed out of one breast, so it swelled up and then went flat as a pancake afterwards. I have to wear a bra that’s padded on one side, otherwise I look lopsided. I’m not eligible for surgical reconstruction of the destroyed breast on the NHS, despite the fact that it’s depressing and upsetting for me, and it affects my relationship, and I’ve had to remove the mirrors because I cry if I see myself naked. How you feel is irrelevant, it doesn’t make you eligible for cosmetic surgery.

@Starjumpfifty

Thank you I'm going to look into the link you have shared

Life is too short to wait until I'm older to have it done when my kids have grown up and I can "justify" the spend

I want to love my body

I don't know why women are so fucking competitive about who's most resilient wholesome or selfless

I want to have it done, I'm exploring whether or not I need to spend £8,000 of my money to do this or if I already subscribe to a system whereby this is possible to have done??

I don't want to engage in mental health therapy in order to come to peace with my breasts

I want to change them

I'm with you, it's not a bad thing to change something you don't like

I feel for you, I really do. As someone who's contemplated getting them done a lot in the past but learned to live with my very small breasts now. I also have a large butt that makes it look worse. However that is quite different from having none at all though.

The media and bloody men have a lot to answer for. Why do women feel the need to look a certain way. Its a sad world we live in, when beauty is perceived as being an hourglass shape with a good rack. We should have body acceptance and like our bodies for what they are, instead of feeling the need to artificially change them? That's the problem.

Cosmetic surgery on the nhs is only if the person is disfigured. They do breast reductions for back pain issues I knew someone who had that. If you really want it done you need to go private and either save, get a loan (banks will do loans for this) or see about a payment plan as some private hospitals will do this.

People can have sex changes on the NHS. Sex change is not the same as gender reassignment surgery. See my comment further up for NHS source.
This thread is about OP who is not transgender. If you have concerns about equitable access to healthcare, I suggest you write to your MP.

Thank you so much for taking the time to articulate my position.

I felt vulnerable and defeated reading most of the above replies

Why is it some sort of wholesomeness competition on here? I've been told I have a clinical condition whereby I've got no breast tissue

If I was fat people would tell me to diet not go to a counsellor to accept being fat

Why is this any different?

It has HUGE social significance , why should I never be ok with how I look when I know if I had breast enlargement (not that the size is of relevance but to a B cup ) I would feel miles better about myself and my overall confidence would improve

I am a strong woman who's endured a lot including spending £60k to sort my own back out using private medical care BUT that in itself is irrelevant and I did this after realising the NHS couldn't and wouldn't help me??

I am now going through the same process to ensure this is not included within the NHS locality

My GP said he understands and supports my position and it was very rare he has never had a woman come to him and ask about enlargement
He also agreed my breasts are effectively non existent

I don't know why anyone is arguing with me about this

It's offensive

Breast implants are a pita. I had a similar issue to you and went private. Had them put in a few years ago and they’ve since been recalled because of a link to lymphoma. Taking them out now won’t lessen my risk though apparently. You also can’t check your breasts properly for lumps. From a cosmetic point of view they make you look fat if you’re heavier and like two balls if you’re thin. I wish I’d never bothered. Honestly just embrace your slim figure.

As someone who has been privy to the costs involved in NHS therapy, this isn't necessarily true. Added to that, it isn't even guaranteed to help. Added to that, decent mental health support is even more scarce than physical NHS resources.

I’m sorry this is affecting you so much but surely trying therapy first would be a good idea and then persue surgery if you are still unhappy. Implants would probably need removing in future so it’s a very expensive procedure. The NHS next to mine won’t even do uterine ablations any more as they say they are unnecessary.

I did but it was almost 20 years ago now so not recent. I had very obvious asymmetry that upset me quite a bit. Before I went to uni my family GP was very dismissive and just said I should be able to accept my body. A few years later towards the end of my degree, I saw a GP and she was much more understanding - she said it would probably be quite a wait for surgery but she referred me and a year later I had surgery - it was two-stage because I was also pigeon-chested so they flattened out my breast bone as well. I was put through the same clinic that those with breast cancer reconstruction went through and not one consultant or nurse suggested or implied I shouldn’t be treated - they were all very understanding about how I felt. I assume (like infertility treatment) that there might be very different approaches between primary care trusts (or whatever they are called now) so it might be a bit of a postcode lottery. It also seemed fairly subjective - if you saw someone sympathetic then it would make a difference in how it’s presented as necessary. It was accepted that this was not just cosmetic or a whim of mine. I can’t say what would happen now though. Good luck OP xx