Exchange City

GOOD news, Mominator.

I bought two fruit of the loom front closure at Walmart as well. Very comfy. One on and one in the wash. The I switched to my light cotton sports bras. Best wishes all.

Scottie

Had my exchange surgery last Wednesday and all went well I had Mentor high profile 800 cc's and I will say that I had no pain a little bit of discomfort because they liposuctioned under my arms and a little bit towards my back and that was the only area that was a bit of a pain. I will say that my implants and I realize it's only one week are a little bit squarish and my plastic surgeon said that happens sometimes because the tissue expanders push our chest walls backwards so it takes a little time for everything to come forward so I will just have to be patient and stay away from the mirror. Hope everyone else has Pleasant outcomes and thanks for all of the information on this thread!

Memyself, there is no drop and fluff with gummies. They are more static. But I love mine. It takes awhile for them to feel like your own.

Pamela, it was about six weeks before I noticed the swelling was easing up. Give it time. I am two months post op and my implants look much better.

Gentle (((HUGS))) Pamela, you are probably very swollen. Yes, the mastectomy breast will probably be much more swollen than the lift breast. Give yourself some time to heal.

OG56 and Memyself 17: I hope you both had restful weekends and are healing well.

Hi Ladies, I have had multiple exchange procedures due to infection, CC, etc. Last surgery we went to smaller implant thinking this might help with some of the complications. Problem is I'm left with funky side boob and about an inch of pinchable skin/flap about 1-2" below each armpit. Also some at the very top of the armpit that kind of bulges out of a bra when I put my arm to the side. I've had so many more serious issues with my implants that this is not exactly pressing but I would be curious if any of you have dealt with something similar and how your PS handled. It's as if my skin needs tightening if that makes sense. Oh, PS tried to address this somewhat in a prior procedure by doing some lipo but honestly the skin didn't tighten and there is very little difference (if any). I'm seeing PS tomorrow and will ask his opinion. No rush to go back to the OR but I know I'll want to fix this at some point since wearing a tank style top/dress or swimsuit isn't pretty.

Shoregirl, good luck getting an answer to your question. I am not sure what could be causing your problem but good you're seeing your PS. Appearance of size difference is sometimes caused by our own internal anatomy (ribcage or spine I think) causing one side to stick out further than the other. But as far as I know, implants shouldn't be stitched in place.

Hi everyone! I got home today from the hospital after I had my exchange surgery on May 31, and all went well. I got Polytech anatomical implants and they already look better than the tissue expanders! I am having a little pain at the incisions and from drains, but almost no muscle pain, anyway it's less painful than it was after the double mastectomy. Dr. said drains will probably come out tomorrow. This time I only have two drains. I hope I'll get rid of them as soon as possible! So to everyone awaiting your exchange, it is definitely much easier! I will take pain meds before bed. I also have an antibiotic to take since I have drains.

My TEs are very far apart. BIG gap. (Whippetmom agreed.)

I was really small (AA/A cup) and am only expanded to 270cc and done. Ha ha. I know that seems tiny but to me, I'm HUGE. I'm about 95lbs soaking wet. You get the drift.

Anyway, since the TEs are so far apart, I'm going to have to have lots of pocket work. Does this terrifically complicate the process?

Hugs to all.

Shoregirl - I hope your PS has some information and the evaluation goes well. Sorry to hear you are dealing with this.

Shoregirl and marketingmama: how were your appointments? Any solutions to your problems?

marketingmama: I'm having surgery on June 30 for CC. I'm guessing the recovery is similar to EX. What was your experience? Did the surgery correct your CC?

1040law: good luck on your EX on June 28.

Goldene: welcome to the squishy side! I hope your recovery is smooth.

EastcoastTS and farmdream: I had extensive pocket work during my EX. Recovery was still easier than BMX.

Happy Weekend to All!!

Specialk, I asked my PS to fix that area, too, but he said it wasn't part of thecfat grafting.

Congrats Goldene on your exchange, glad to hear you are doing well!! Thank you ladies for your well wishes Hercules, I asked my ps if the implants are stitched and he told me no. Now I need to vent a little, I don't know what to do or say as I am very non-confrontational. I asked my ps if it is possible for the implant to flip over, as that is how it appears. He looked at it and said, "you are about 6 weeks post op, I think you are seeing the swelling has gone down, and this is how it looks." He showed me one of the anatomical implants with the textured shell. He said "these can rotate, which is why they textured them, it acts like velcro to the skin. But you have the smooth rounds. It can rotate but that won't affect how it looks, its round." I said no, no way. Look at the other one, it is perfect, round, nothing has changed. I went to bed and both were the same, perfect. I woke up and the right one was flat in front, and you can grab the whole edge from the side. It looks like the projection side has flipped toward my back. He looked some more, called his assistant to look, and finally agreed saying "it is very, very rare, but I agree with your diagnosis, the implant has flipped!" I was dismayed that he tried to dismiss me, but then he added insult to injury saying to watch it and do nothing for 6 weeks, maybe it will flip back on its own!! I didn't think to ask him what would prevent it from flipping constantly if that is the case. He said they could try to manipulate it in the office, but it would be very aggressive and he worried the incision could open, so he nixed that idea. He said if it didn't flip back he would have to operate Now, he knows he already has to get me back in the OR to revise the scar on that side that goes all the way to my shoulder blade, so why wait? I also brought up the fact that my left breast has a hard knot on the flat part of my chest just above the implant. I brought this to his attention 2 weeks ago. He dismissed it as being "the edge of the implant." I can move my implant while holding my finger on the knot. The knot doesn't move with the implant. Then I mentioned that the implants are very uncomfortable when I cross an arm over my chest and when I lean over. They are above the muscle, with just my skin over the implants. When I do those motions I can feel the implant hanging off my body and the skin stretching and it hurts. I asked if FG whould make it more comfortable and he replied it absolutely would, although 2 weeks ago he told me he didn't think I needed FG. So now he has 2 reasons to schedule OR time, flip my implant, and do some FG. The final thing I brouight up was that the left is bigger than the right, and since he will be in there anyway can he make them symmetrical. I feel they are too big anyway, so he could put a smaller one in the left to make it match the right. He said,"let me wrap my head around this, usually people want FG to make the breast bigger, you want to make it smaller and FG." Well yes!! They are too big, uneven, and the implant edges hurt my skin. I don't think that will change with a smaller implant, it should still be F grafted to cushion the edges since my skin is so sensitive to them. He said he could, but that I need to think about something. " Better is the enemy of good." I said what does that mean" He said "I think you look great. When you go chasing perfection, it can bite you. You could get an infection every time we go in with implants, or you could end up losing it. Just meditate on that." I am just so discouraged. I really liked my ps, but now I am very concerned at his LACK of concern!! As my mother said, he should have taken one look and said "your implant has flipped over. Its rare, but we need to fix it in the OR, what day is good for you?" Do you think he is being egotistical and not wanting to admit its not his best work? Or could he get penalized in some way for having to revise?

So, my thought is this. I will call my bs Monday. She is the director of the whole breast center, and he is on her team. I will ask for her to evaluate the knot on the left breast, hopefully I can get imaging ordered for both sides. This way I can be put at ease about the knot on the left, and we can see if in fact the r implant has flipped over. I really don't want to wait til the end of July or into August to have more surgery. And wouldn't putting it off be bad for the capsule, to have the implant all distorted in there and it heal like that? I am going to the beach tomorrow and take my mind off all of this. But I am eager to hear any input you all have. Especially those who have downsized or had revisions. Has anyone else had an implant turn over backwards? Thanks for listening, blessings to all.

Mominator, recovery after CC was pretty easy. I took a week off work if I remember correctly. The rough procedures for me have been those involving a lot of pocket work and a round of fat grafting (the liposuction was done on my inner thighs and that definitely smarted).

My CC was corrected but then I developed the opposite problem. I bottomed out. This shocked my PS and is very uncommon. I had another procedure done 3 weeks to correct that issue (capsulorrhaphy) . Went with smaller implants as well.

A question for you guys: I had my exchange 2 and a half weeks ago. One side looks good but the other is getting ripply.. it looks like an old grape. I see my plastic surgeon on Tuesday but do you guys know what my options will be?