Pre-Op, Surgery, Recovery, Post-Op Updates: What no one could have prepared me for, and what I wish I knew going into my breast augmentation experience.
My breasts have lived an amazing life. I celebrated and shared them with thousands of people throughout my 12+ year burlesque career, and enjoyed them I think more than most during that time. I have emceed shows with my perky little breasts fully exposed, less the coverage of sparkly nipple pasties without missing a beat, completely normalized with that level of public exposure. Sharing and celebrating my body through my burlesque career was an incredible and empowering experience. Burlesque taught me how to love, celebrate and elevate my body, and enjoy this vessel to its utmost as a vehicle for expression, art, and personal and creative growth. Give Jay Siren a Google and you will see them immortalized forever on the interwebs.
At around 33, I began to see a loss in volume and projection as a result of normal aging. Starting with a 34 B, at that time my breasts transformed into a 34 A. I wasn’t mad at it, but always figured I’d get implants eventually for a change of pace and the sake of a different and even more novel lived experience. I figured I would wait until 40 to pull the trigger, but the stars aligned in the summer of 2022, and I ended up scheduling my surgery for September 30th of that year.
My partner had a good friend that began working for a surgeon from the San Francisco Bay Area that had just expanded his practice to Sacramento, CA (shout out to Dr. Tom Liu at Silicon Valley Institue for Aesthetics). My partner, who was super supportive throughout this entire process, brought up the opportunity to go have a consultation and see what options were out there for me, figuring that since a reputable surgeon was brought into our lives by only a degree of separation, it would be an easy time to check it out and get some more information.
In the surgeon’s office, I had all of my (million) questions answered and felt very comfortable with my doctor. Understanding the pricing structure and recovery commitment, I saw a lot of alignment in the structure of my current life and schedule to be able to accommodate going for it at that time. We were planning to leave California and head into an indefinite period of digital nomad-style international travel in January of 2023, so in order to heal fully before we set sail, I absolutely had to make the September 30th surgery date work.
We set the appointment about 5 weeks prior, which also began an extended period of quarantine for me. Having to take a covid test pre-surgery, and go into it as healthy as possible, I did not want to risk public exposure that could have resulted in me needing to postpone that surgery date. The 4 weeks following the surgery also had me confined to my home, less some little walks around the neighborhood around 3 weeks post-op (mostly because of the trauma caused by the surgical drains, as I explain below). This in and of itself was emotionally difficult - I am not the most social person, but almost 10 weeks of no physical interaction with anyone but my partner was definitely an aspect of this journey worth mentioning. Thankfully, we have a rock-solid relationship with an incredible communication dynamic, and were able to navigate this time in a way that managed to bring us even closer (with a bit of trauma bonding, for certain).
Though I have never had children, I carry most of the weight of my breasts in their outer lower third, which is a typical shape and density distribution for women that have given birth. During my pre-op, my surgeon explained that this is actually a great natural breast shape to accommodate implants. With 3d imaging technology, my surgeon was able to produce an image of what implants would look like on my body in various sizes.
We decided that in surgery, my doctor would select the final size for each implant based on what he discovered while I was on the surgery table. Because of the shape of my rib cage, he ended up opting for two different sizes, which I understand is not uncommon. I ended up with one 385cc and one 415cc. Other than some general nervousness (I had never been fully anesthetized before), the surgery experience was easy - I was put out and then awake and it was done.
The first week of recovery was the hardest week of my life. My surgeon described the process of the GalaFlex’s initial healing like trying to get a sticker to adhere to a wet glass wall. Because of this, the surgical drains were necessary to keep the adhesion area as dry as possible during that initial integration period. I had a surgical drain coming out the side of each breast, which needed to be stripped (drained) consistently throughout that first week. One of my drains was not working properly, and the internal suction created a level of pain beyond anything I had previously experienced (and I have been in some painful random accidents). This extended my initial recovery time by about a week, as due to the drain trauma my body didn’t really get to start doing its healing work until the drains were removed a week after the surgery.
My partner was incredibly attentive and thorough in his assistance to me that first week - making sure I took all medication on schedule, that I was hydrated and keeping some food down, and physically stripping the drains for me multiple times a day (it was too painful to do myself, even on the side that was working properly). This caused some extra inflammation on the right side, which I ended up being prescribed an additional anti-inflammatory for. I also got my period two days after the surgery, which felt like a cruel joke.
The implants went in under my upper pectoral muscles, and I have just over a 2in long super thin scar underneath the shelf of each breast. Because I did not need a lift, I opted for this insertion method over going in through the areola. Because my breasts are not idealized (meaning I have no real medial cleavage), and the weight still sits mainly in the outer bottom third, the scars are almost impossible to see unless I lift them up or you are looking directly at them. It was bizarre to feel my pectoral muscles forming over the implants - flexing in the beginning was an incredibly strange sensation. However, once the majority of the healing took place, this sense of separation subsided.
By the third week, I was only taking acetaminophen for pain, as well as continuing with bromelian and arnica montana for bruising and swelling. By the time we left the country in January, I was feeling swimsuit-ready and very happy with the results. I asked for the largest size that would still look natural on my frame, and feel that my surgeon made great effort to achieve that in a really lovely way.
Sitting here now, 6 months post-op, the impossible intensity of that experience already feels like a relatively distant memory. I don’t have any pain, outside of regular tenderness around my period. I love my juicy new boobies, which feel fully incorporated and like a normal part of my body. They continue to soften and have become increasingly more supple with time. I love squeezing them, massaging them and playing with them. Clothes fit differently than they ever did before, and I continue to find new, novel and fun ways to engage with my new real estate all the time.
Under objective review, I’d say the new boobs look just like my natural breasts but bigger - their general shape is the same, and my beloved nipples only very slightly increased in size, remaining aesthetically almost identical.
Though the initial healing of the GalaFlex was awful, I do not regret the choice to go for it. The implats themselves feel sturdy and in place, and do not migrate when I stretch, workout, have sex, or engage in general physical activity. I can honestly say that I will never put myself through this intense of an elective surgery again as long as I live, but do not regret my choice to go for it when I did.
I highly recommend the Sientra gummy bear implants, and despite my surgical drain issues, the addition of the GalaFlex as well. I have included links below to all of the information I could think to include about my preparation, surgery, and healing to help support and inform your own decision if this is a path you are also traveling right now.
All in all, the most powerful and important aspect of this experience, in terms of my relationship to self, was the ability to listen to my own sense of inner authority and trust in my capacity to manage whatever was going to come my way. There were a lot of long, painful, sleepless nights involved in this journey that allowed me to think deeply about how I love, support, and relate to myself. There were a lot of long, painful, and tiring days where the support I received from my partner and community of friends/sisters was invaluable. If this is also your path, the best advice I can offer is to do your research, and prepare your close human network for the journey as well - you will need physical and emotional support, particularly in that initial healing period.
So….own your choice, share it with those you love, and know that there is a booby-licious life waiting for you on the other side.
My Surgeon: Dr. Tom Liu, SIVA Sacramento
My Implants: Sientra Cohesive Gel, Round, Smooth, with Moderate+ Projection
GalaFlex Surgical Scaffold, “A biologically derived 2D scaffold for plastic and reconstructive surgery that supports, elevates and reinforces soft tissue.”