Trip to see Vinnie

Lharry - If you go back to page 27 of this thread, you'll find the post below that I wrote for bobogirl. I made the trip from Arizona to Maryland by myself almost exactly one year ago.. I flew in on Wednesday the 7th and back home on Friday the 9th, as explained below. No issues whatsoever, but Vinnie will give you his cell phone number in case of emergency. As stated, I stayed at the Marriott BWI (http://www.marriott.com/hotels/travel/bwiap-bwi-airport-marriott/) because they had a shuttle. I flew in, took the shuttle to the hotel and went t bed. Got up the next morning, took the shuttle back to the airport and picked up my rental car (so I only had to rent it for one day...) and then drove out to Vinnie's.. After my appointment, I had dinner at a place by my hotel that Vinnie and Robin had recommended, then went back to the hotel, got up the next morning, returned the rental car, and flew home.,,.

"I'm staying at the Marriott BWI just because it won't cost me a dime (by using hotel points I've accumulated over years on the road). I'm flying in on Wednesday - because I couldn't get a flight that arrives early enough to make it in time for my appointment on Thursday and I am NOT missing that appointment for any reason.... And of course the last flight out on Thursday was before my appointment would be over, so I'm not leaving until Friday anyway.

I hear a lot of the girls have stayed at the Hilton Gardens in Ownings Mills which is just down the road from Vinnie's shop in Finksburg:

Good luck!

Amstar15 - no reconstruction here, just the 3D tattoos, By the time I got to this point, the last thing I wanted was another surgery.

Amstar15---I got nip recon then had Vinnie do the 3D tattoo. Turned out great. He was even kind enough to add shading to my reconstructed nipple so that as it flattens over time (which it more than likely will and mine did!), looking at it it still looks like it projects. When I look down I just have a little button but when I look in the mirror it still looks just like my other one. I like that when I look down I have 2 nips. Makes me feel a lot more "whole" than I did when I just had one. The nip recon was an incredibly easy procedure which took about half an hour and we just chatted the whole time. Never even had any pain. I did baby it for a good 2-3 months instead on just one like the PS said and I think that helped it keep it's projection. My PS told me when I saw him that if I wanted him to "plump it" he could inject some Alloderm in it but I'm more worried about it protruding through my clothes that being too flat so for now I'm pretty happy.

pinkheart would that be possible? Wouldn't itmess the tatts up?

Lharry - Forgive me, but I'm not sure I understand. Why would you get tats and then go for a revision? Practically speaking, you'll more likely have money tied up in the tattooing process and I would think you'd want to complete all revisions beforehand so as not to jeopardize the 'canvas' for the tattoos. (That's pretty much the point of Vinnie's five months post surgery rule.) I will say that the mere illusion of nipples that the tattoos provide is enough to take your visual focus off the scars, shape, and size that seems to be so prominent now. That said, I think that we all need to find the foobs that we can live with. (That's not to say they're going to be centerfold perfect, but an acceptable reflection in the mirror would be nice.)

If you think that before and after pictures would help, I could PM mine to you. Either way, best of luck with your decision!

Lharry, I understand what you're saying. Personally, if I thought I would want a revision in order to make the foobs look better I would do so before I got a tattoo. There's a very good chance the PS wouldn't be able to work around the entire tattoo and you could end up with part of the tattoo being moved to a different spot, and removing a tattoo is difficult even on the best skin.

Have you tried the temporary nipple tattoos just to get a feel for how everything looks? The one I had were no way near as good as my Vinnies but good enough for me to know I wanted something. I think I found mine from a link on Breastfree.org but that was several years ago. Funny story - the day my order of the temporary tattoos came in the mail DH brought the package into the house and announced "Dear, your nipples just came in the mail!"

Lharry---I've got one foob and one boob so really really hard to make them match. On my foob my PS did one of the origami type nip recons and then Vinnie did his magic. It made all the difference for me because looking in the mirror was also what bothered me most. And the next thing that bothered me was looking down and seeing only one nip. Now when I look in the mirror I don't even notice that one breast doesn't really match the other. My nip has shrunk down a bit so I have to say it doesn't really match the projection of the natural one but it's enough that it eases that little bit of OCD in my head that likes things to match. And I will say that time makes it all a little easier too as you learn to adjust to the new you....and new foobs.

My PS did my nip recon in Nov then I waited till June and had Vinnie do my tattoo. I didn't need to wait that long. It was just how my schedule (and Vinnie's worked out). I had the CV flap type of nip recon (I think that's what it's called). Took about half an hour and never felt a thing. Very easy to do as well as care for. I think taking skin from another area is much more intensive.

Yay WW! You're gonna love them!

I just had my exchange, so it will be awhile before I can see Vinnie. However, I am trying to decide between a fill 3D tattoo (no nipple) and having the doctor build a nipple and then having him tattoo the rest. Would anyone like to share a picture of a nipple recon with a Vinnie tattoo?

I know a patient who had another revision after getting Vinnie tattoos. She went to back to surgeons at NOLA. Did not mess up her Vinnies.

But me? Adding nipples after 3D nipple tattoos? Would love to hear Vinnie or Renee's thoughts on that.

I haven't started dating yet after a long marriage and divorce (to an ex who couldn't deal with BC). So Im wondering what experience anyone has had with new relationships and what guys thought about 3D nips??

Lucy, AZ & Kingster - Thanks!

PinkHeart - There is a thread on BCO for single women. I suspect there are a range of reactions that have more to do with the emotional maturity of the man (or woman) and less to do with how the reconstruction looks. A woman in my support group is dating after a divorce from a husband who could not handle it and she is having a wonderful time. Breast cancer is one of life's critical moments. You find out what someone is really made of.

Kingster - I think they're called origami nipples. It took about 20 minutes and I felt nothing. I like the nipples a lot because even without the tattoos they look a heck of a lot better. Lots of women choose not to but I want my husband to have a more realistic sensation when he touches me. It's really a personal preference. My surgeon said they'll flatten some but it's been 6 months and I don't see a change. I'm sure there is scar tissue but at this point a little more scar tissue won't matter for me.

bikefam---You can join the picture forum and see a picture of me with my nip recon and Vinnie tattoo. Even better, I only had one done so you can compare to the real thing! It's posted under my user name "lala1". I'm thrilled with my results. When I look down I see 2 nips and when I look in the mirror I see 2 regular breasts. Made all the difference in the world for me.

Does anyone know how to get to the picture forum? All I could find was to PM timtom but she has not gotten back with me. Thanks.

Hi ladies, I finally got my appointment to see Vinnie in Maryland April 4. I had my last fat grafting done in December and I'm hoping that is the end for me. But either way, I am moving ahead. A few years in the making finally coming to an end.