Opinions regarding Reconstruction

I didn't, and never regretted it for a minute. Knew nothing about it until I found this place, and then reading sooooo many accounts of recon gone bad, even those who say it was worth it in the end tell of multiple surgeries, major pain, etc etc.... Just can't imagine. If you have any doubt at all, I think you should wait. You can always do it whenever, even years down the road, if you choose, but it's not so easy to undo if you don't like it.

I decided to go flat for a variety of reasons, including a much shorter and usually less painful recovery time, and haven't regretted it for one second.

Went from a 34DD to flat as a board and I love it.

Given a chance to do it again, I'd still choose to go flat, wouldn't even consider reconstruction due to the longer healing time, the extra pain, and the fact that, personally, I just didn't find many of the outcomes of implants, fat transfers, or DIEP type reconstruction to be all that aesthetically pleasing; I also wasn't very attached to my breasts as they were fibrocystic and extremely painful since puberty (it felt like someone constantly stabbing me with a burning knife, and it was confined only to the breast tissue area).
I can never remember a time in my life that I wanted breasts due to that alone, however I clearly remember asking about having a BMX to stop the pain since I was about 16 but, of course, doctors won't do that--and everyone around you tells you 'breast pain is normal'.
In my case, it was a relief to have them gone and I wish I could have been the one to dump them into the medical waste container for all the physical pain they caused me over the years.

And yes, since the preventative BMX, the pain has gone 100% because the offending tissue is now gone.

I'm much happier with the way clothes fit, with how I look, my posture is better (those girls were heavy, about 2 1/2lb each), my back and neck hurt less, my shoulders hurt less, I no longer have grooves from bras on my ribcage and shoulders at the end of the day, and I can easily do cardio without having to deal with the 'bounce' since there's nothing left to bounce.
Plus, I also like being able to just throw on a shirt and go and not have to worry about a bra.

I also have a husband and I just--kind of told him what I was planning on doing, he didn't get a say in it because it wasn't his body and wasn't his call to make; I told him as much before he even got the idea in his head that it was even partially his decision so there was no question that his opinion on the matter was absolutely irrelevant.

Thankfully, he's a decent person, and agreed 100% that it wasn't his call to make and that he'd support me no matter which route I took with it.

That said, what was best for me might not be the best for you; it'd be a good idea to look through the Breast Reconstruction and Living Without Reconstruction After a Mastectomy forums just to make sure you get a variety of opinions, experiences, etc...that will allow you to weigh the pros and cons of both for your own personal situation.

Just another story here....it bothers me every day that I haven't had reconstruction. I can't work up the courage to schedule the surgery with all the negative stories, but I hate the one-sided uni-lateral mastectomy I have. I wasn't offered immediate reconstruction at the hospital I went to. If I could do it again, I would change hospitals to have the options.

Just my story.

It's so hard to make a life altering decision with so little time. I wish it was easier and there was a perfect right answer for everyone. The reality is there are ladies here who have such different stories and what worked with them(and me) may not be the same for you, and that's ok.

You just have to make the best decision you can with the information you have now and know that you did the best that you could when you could!