Breast Implant issues

[Biosblbay]

Looking for some advice from people who have had implants and had them removed or currently going through the process.

I have had my implants in since I was 18, I am now 32 so a very long time! Never had them checked, 2 children later and of course they aren’t what they used to be!

I am now a 38/E or F and I just find they are far too large for me now and after kids they aren’t as perky so I can no longer go without a bra like I used to and now bras make them look so much bigger, I just don’t like it. I also have a very noticeable larger breast that droops more than the other and aren’t symmetrical anymore.

I also get some pains, often the pain travels to my ribs and sometimes chest. I occasionally experience hardness at the tops of my boobs so I am potentially experiencing capsular contracture.

They are just becoming an inconvenience and I am thinking to have them removed fully.

Since having kids I have really bad health anxiety so the whole procedure from the anaesthetic to the healing process scares the hell out of me!!

I am so scared that I just don’t know if I can go through with it but I know I have to at some point.

Trying to find people that have been through this procedure before, how your experience went, would you recommend, did you get a lift or no lift, how was the healing process, how dangerous is it etc. just want to get as much information as I can, some reassurance especially so I can make a start on this journey without feeling anxious about it.

It's expensive and fairly painful for a few weeks/months.

I had mine at 25 and removed 25 years later. Mine had ruptured (many people don't realise theirs have ruptured until they get a mammogram). For removal and uplift it's abut £15k. My main recovery was about 8 weeks. 4 months before I was back properly exercising.

@user746016 did you have a lift as well? Would you say having them removed is more painful than when you had them put in?
I have also seen pictures of people where they have had implants removed and these tube things that are attached from the breast to bags which look absolutely horrendous. Did you have those, if so, what are they for? I am petrified to get them out but they are becoming a nuisance, make me look bigger than what I am as they have grown in size and I am sure they are making me ill! Always getting pains, hard lumps that come and go, they just don’t seem right anymore. £15,000 is so much more than I was expecting though, I was thinking £9k max! 😩

Yes I had removal and uplift. It was much, much more painful than having them put in with a much longer recovery time. I had mine done months ago and I still have some occasional discomfort (although not much now). I slept upright for about 8 weeks and was effectively sitting around resting for the first month and then had to be very careful about what I did after that. It would have been very difficult if I didn't work from home. You can't lift anything at all and it's very difficult to do basic things like hair washing. You have to keep them dry for a few weeks so even washing is difficult. Driving is not recommended for the first six weeks or so and even being a passenger is not recommended due to the seat belt.

My friend had hers done a few weeks before me for purely cosmetic reasons. She was pretty much in bed for six weeks but she hasn't had any pain at all since. She has however struggled a bit psychologically since she is a very different shape to the shape she was before. She has said she now feels much fatter because her body doesn't have the same proportions as it used to (ie no boobs to balance out her general weight). Hers was slightly cheaper than mine at £14,300 but she didn't stay in overnight for monitoring and only had one follow up appointment (my surgeon did two).

I wouldn't have had mine removed if there wasn't a medical reason to do it (in my case there was). I certainly wouldn't do it just for cosmetic/fashion reasons. There is also a reasonable chance that you will suffer some loss of sensation since the nerves can get damaged and nerve repair takes a long time/can be permanent.

I didn't have drains in mine. It wasn't required. It's quite common to have drains though if they anticipate fluid build up.

It needs thinking through carefully.

I should say that my surgeon was at the top of his game. You might be able to get it done more cheaply.