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 find the comments here harsh.

My sister has massive boobs, she is getting them reduced on the NHS due to the weight, pain and the mental distress.

If she can get them reduced, then I can't see why the OP if she has an actual clinical problem, can't get them augmented. It is causing her mental distress.

Attitudes like many female posters here is why the NHS is so shit at dealing with womens physical, sexual and mental health issues. Smile with the bad service!

I can tell you my ex went to the doctor because he couldn't get his penis to rise and by god, they pulled out all the stops to help him get an erection. Oh that's because it's crucial for men's self esteem. But women can suffer crippling endometriosis and suffer without diagnosis or have no sex drive or have no breasts at all and they get told to shut up and deal with it.

It used to be like this about the menopause too with women telling other women 'it's just natural' and get on with it. Thank god things are changing with the newer generation.

OP find out if your trust allows it. Some do. You can also write to the trust or the hospital outlining why you think you ought to get it done. - I personally wrote to my local dental hospital years ago and was offered full braces for free as an adult so you can get unexpected support.

Your GP should be able to make an individual funding request which will be assessed to see if it can be funded, but the GP will need to be supportive. The grounds will be the impact on your mental health and well-being if there are no medical reasons. Nothing wrong with asking.

It's cosmetic surgery, use your savings or get a loan.

This isn't suitable for IFR, there's no exceptionality. I used to sit on an IFR panel - this wouldn't get past triage.

Gender reassignment surgery is covered centrally and not through the patients home NHS area although there is a horrendous backlog. Those being recommended for surgery to reassign will have whatever procedure is necessary

I have the same issue.

Partial mastectomy of the left breast, the breast stretched due to the tumor then sagged as the half remaining slid down to fill the space of the tumor. It's impossible to get bras other than sports bra type.

I asked at the time if they could just remove the flap of extra skin while they where there removing the tumor but they said no. It would have been so easy to do it at the same time as the surgery, would have only took 15 minutes extra too (they still had to do the exact same stitching they just would have had to do one extra cut). I was told no as there is a risk of 'nerve damage' (no more risk than the surgery was already causing though).

I have looked into go private, they just need to remove the skin and anchor stitch it to the muscle at the top. Its less than 1 hour surgery thats done under local anesthetic to fix it, I just can't afford the £5k. I wouldn't bother the NHS to do more surgery again though, I survive fine and I have met many women who need it much more than me.

Because the NHS isn't there for cosmetic surgery.

That said, I would argue that the mental distress you are experiencing is not dissimilar to trans people who could get treatment on the NHS for gender dysphoria. I wonder if this could be treated in a similar way possibly?

Everyone contributes to the NHS. Doesn't mean everyone is entitled to use the it for non medicinal purposes.

I need a breast reduction it has caused degenerative spine issues as had them all my life, size 12 to 14 waist. I am not eligible on the NHS

Sorry I’d be really annoyed that I pay almost half of all my income in tax some of which goes to the nhs to fund your cosmetic procedure. People are waiting months for cancer treatments or reconstructive surgery due to disfigurement or having to pay to go privately to get surgery for actual ailments. Take out a loan and get it done privately or get on with life. Taxpayers don’t owe you a boob job. Absolutely ridiculous.

And I agree that the comments are harsh. I assume that most are not so unhappy with their boobs that it's causing distress? To me under those circumstances it's perfectly reasonable to ask if surgery is available.

People can’t get life saving treatment on the NHS and you want a pair of tits?

I've heard that saying it has effected your MH won't really cut it now. They're really really strict.
It's always for people who've had cancer otherwise it's very much considered cosmetic.
Would you be able to save for a few years, if you asked everyone to contribute to that in lieu of bday/Xmas gifts. I think you'll be unlikely to get it from NHS to be honest.
They really can't be giving stuff out like that. Imagine how many women could say they have MH issues BC they hate the size/shape of their breasts?
I'm not trivialising your issues but you can see that they are on their knees.

There may be a case for why this isn't purely cosmetic and why in an ideal world the NHS would pay for it but ultimately it won't be a priority for a medical system that can't even afford basic care for urgent cases. Save up and go private, save yourself the time and headspace (and NHS time).

There is a world of difference between not liking how you look and full blown body dysmorphia. OP hasn't said that's what she has, but it's possible, and if it is it can be serious stuff leading to life threatening eating disorders and other. Rey real problems

I wouldn't completely rule out going abroad, if you do your research. My sibling is transgender and went abroad for breast related surgery, I was horrified at the time and really worried about them, but they had researched the surgeon and the hospital and had a really good experience. They got a loan and it cost about £6k, I think it was Turkey but I may be wrong.

Well said 👏

With all due respect OP, AIBU probably isn’t the best forum for a question like this as it quite often descends into a bit of a pile-on. Unfortunately almost every non-emergency condition my kids or I have presented with to our GP has resulted in the suggestion that we “go private” (even for a condition that affects my child’s ability to walk) so I totally understand your frustration. It is immensely frustrating to see what a postcode lottery it is, and how women’s issues seem to be brushed off with shocking regularity compared to men’s.

I hope you can get this resolved and please don’t take the negative comments too personally — I think many people are just angry about how bad things have got with the NHS (but should perhaps direct their anger at the government who oversaw its demise, rather than at a woman who is clearly in distress due to a very real medical problem).

I'm sorry you're going through this. I can't judge someone for hating their body, I do too. For me it's my teeth, I've never smiled for a photo since I was a child. I cover my mouth when I laugh. I don't look in the mirror when I brush my teeth. I don't have a spare 5k either so...

Anyway I do know someone who had an enlargement 6 years ago on nhs. She was an a cup, you wouldn't believe that she's had any work done. She did have to wait 2 years with extensive therapy in that time. At first she got the impression the therapy was to try and change her mind. She nearly gave up.
Honestly, if you have the money you go for it. Why waste at least another 2 years of fearing a bikini. You deserve to be proud of what you see in the mirror.

I do know of someone who had an enlargement on the NHS. This was many years ago now, not England. She said it had caused significant mental health issues to have such small breasts. My understanding is she also had her teeth done for the same reason.

Being flat chested is very fashionable at the moment. There's so many clothes that you just can't wear a bra with.

I think you need to have some therapy, no on cares what your boobs look like- I'm assuming your not 18 and desperate to be a page 3 girl.

It's not a massive facial disfigurement, I don't even notice how big other women's boobs are unless they're hanging out. People really don't care what you look like, no one is noticing but you.

My young daughter has a unsightly dermafibroma on her leg which occurred after a mosquito bite. It causes her pain, makes sports uncomfortable, wakes her up at night if she falls asleep on that side, and she's becoming very self conscious of it. We've had multiple gp appointments about it, and asked about removal, but as it is classed as "cosmetic" the only option is to pay to go private. The reason we want it removed as it's imparing her ability to be active, play sports, causes her pain and affecting her sleep. We are now in the process of saving up £5k to go private. She's 9 years old and shouldn't have to be going through this, but that is the reality of the NHS right now. They don't have the resources for my daughters issue, citing it as "cosmetic", when the cosmetic side of it is the least of our worries, we know the surgery will leave her with a large scar anyway, it's the discomfort and negative impact on her physical activity we want to improve. I highly doubt they can find the money to fund boob jobs, when they can't find the money for a simple procedure to dramatically improve the quality of a child's life.

But OP cares, that’s the point. She has a medical issue affecting breast growth — that isn’t “fashionable” 🤦‍♀️

My friends nice has this. And they've told her parents, that she can have surgery when she's older if she wants it.

I am.sorry you are suffering distress @nobreasts. However, even 20+ years ago I had to pay for my DC to have grommets because the NHS wouldn't. I have also paid for dd to have a breast reduction as physical issues were arising; 8/10 years ago I also had to pay for her MH care and support when she was self harming. Most recently the NHS refused me having optimal treatment for severe osteoporosis as I am under 65. Therefore I have paid. The above totals about £23k.

I am.sorry for your predicament but I think you will have to save up. Meanwhile can you have some therapy to help you manage?

The size of your breasts doesn't affect your ability to breastfeed or produce milk, I have none, couldn't fill an A cup but fed DS for nearly two years. Breast size depends on the amount of fatty tissue, it's the glandular tissue that produces the milk and even with insufficient glandular tissue it's often possible to BF. You can have large breasts and still have IGT.

I don't know if it's possible to have an enlargement on the NHS where you are but I just wanted to say you shouldn't blame not being able to BF on the size of your breasts, it could happen to anyone with any size boobs. Hopefully that will be helpful to know and help you feel less negative about them.