Implant's shape & texture

I have the textured anatomical implants. They are above the muscle. I have not done any fat grafting.

My PS recommended the shaped ones and I just did what he said. I had to sign something about knowing about the very slight risk of lymphoma associated with them. I wish that wasn't true, but it is a really small risk.

Since my surgery, I've read a lot and come to the conclusion that shaped implants aren't really any better at looking like "real" breasts than the round ones. They seem like they should be, but you still end up with a "step off" at the top edge. Mine look good straight on, but the side view looks kind of "hunched" or something. Fat grafting would help that.

Also - one of my implants has turned so that the thin top piece is at the outside of the breast. It's not super noticeable, but I wish it hadn't happened. The PS said it would be easy to fix during fat grafting, but I think I'd maybe make some other changes if I do surgery again - like maybe getting round implants with a smaller diameter.

Have you been able to compare the feel of the implants, side by side? I think mine feel fairly realistic to touch. Some real breasts are firmer than others. It took me a while to be able to lay on my stomach comfortably, but I think that was more related to the surgery than the implant. It's fine now.

I went with direct to implant surgery so as to avoid multiple operations so I'm not too keen on having more. And I always worry that I'll trade what I've got (which is pretty good) for a new set of problems.

My PS stopped using the anatomical (teardrop) shaped implant recently because in several patients they rotated or flipped. With the round implants if they do that it doesn't matter. Also, apparently there was a study done that showed that even breast surgeons looking at photos can't tell whether patients have had round or teardrop implants. I assumed they would look very different, but my PS showed me post-op photos of some of her other patients and I couldn't tell the difference either. Also, when I held the implants in my hand in her office to see how they felt, I thought the teardrop ones felt harder and the round ones seemed more soft.

I got Mentor smooth rounds above the muscle. If you hold up a smooth round implant vertically, you can see that gravity pulls more of the silicone toward the bottom of the implant, so you end up with kind of a teardrop shape anyway. You can choose various levels of cohesiveness also -- to me the most cohesive ones felt too firm and the least cohesive felt too soft so I went with the middle option. Also, my PS did some manipulation of the pectoral muscle at the top to help it look smooth where it meets the implant.

I was a little worried about rippling with the smooth rounds, but I don't have any ripples unless I am leaning forwards -- then I can see a tiny bit. Overall I'm very happy. And I can sleep on my stomach too.

Good luck with whatever you decide.