want to remove implants, contemplating what to do after

Hi Ashell,

I recently had a bilateral mastectomy with no reconstruction and my chest is not concave. The best way to describe the look is what a pre-adolescent chest looks like. My surgeon didn't leave any bumps or lumps and the scars are symmetrical and diagonal. I look very slender and lean --- almost athletic. Of course, now I'm more into fitness .The thing I really miss are my nipples. Maybe doctors will figure out a way to regrow nipples? I know they're working on regrowing breast tissue.

From the way I understand it, Brava is usually used for a few weeks/months before fat grafting (and generally for people who still have breast tissue; I'm not sure how it'd work without that in place if it'd even do anything) to help stretch the skin to give the grafted fat more room to settle in and allow for a larger volume of fat to potentially be grafted to the area.

Ashell,

I do miss my breasts but given a choice between cancer and keeping my breasts, the girls had to go! They were not very large to begin with ( a small B cup) and you know, most models are very flat and fashion favors the flat chested woman.

Honestly, as hard as it might sound, push back.

I was lucky enough to have a PS and general surgeon that were both on board with what I want, but I've seen SO many stories here from women who had a PS that tried to push them into reconstruction that they didn't truly want and it always ended in extended unhappiness for them until they eventually went flat.

If you can't get your surgeon to listen to what YOU want vs.what they think you should want (and too many can't fathom the idea of a woman wanting to be flat), take it as a sign to start shopping around for a surgeon that will listen if you're able to do so, or get ready to double down hard on the surgeon you might be stuck with for insurance reasons to get what you want.

While I'd agree that most women, in a non-cancer or non-cancer risk scenario may not want to truly be flat, a lot of women in the situation in the context of breast cancer or high risk for breast cancer just want it to be done with and don't necessarily always want to go through multiple surgeries to get a result that ends with them having breasts, and that's really hard for some surgeons to understand.

It may help if you point out to your PS that you know that it's not a 'forever' thing and that, if you decide later (even years later) you want breasts again that there are options (flap procedures, TE to implant, or possible fat grafting) that you'll keep in mind if you ever change your mind, it can help them to believe that you've "thought it through". And don't let them lie, you can change your mind about being flat ANY TIME and choose to have those options done.

ashell: I once was in the uncomfortable position of having to convince a neurologist that my husband who was recovering from a terrible brain infection was backsliding in his mental status. He said I needed to be sure because " if you consult a neurosurgeon you're going to get neurosurgery ".

My point here is that when you go to the plastic surgeon he or she will most likely recommend some form of reconstruction. Not because they're bad doctors or insensitive but because that's what they do. So have a good sense of what you want when you go in. I also dislike the way my implants feel. I think one day I might want them out but right now I frankly think I'm too vain for that. I admire your confidence.

Ashell, I got the "young and beautiful" (although I am neither) crap from my doc too. As you say, the recon boobs only convince when clothed anyway. As such, it seems a prosthetic does the same job, without having to have foreign objects wedged under your pecs. The only situation that doesn't work for me is the idea of getting nekkid with a man, but if I had reconstructed boobs with scars across them etc. I would feel equally uncomfortable in that situation, possible even more uncomfortable. In all other contexts, foobs or just going flat work just fine, without the discomfort of implants.