I Love My Pregnant Breasts

“I loved my breasts during pregnancy and want them back to that size and look. You know, full and perky.” First, before, I address this issue, I just want to say that, yes, breasts are the fixation of us women. Men like them, but we are obsessed with those body parts.

During pregnancy, breasts serve to nourish the life soon to be born, and the body gets them ready for that function. Hormones during pregnancy not only support the uterus for the growing baby but also get breasts ready for this important function. Breast ducts enlarge for milk production, blood supply increases because of this food preparation, and the nipple areolar complex re-adjusts so baby can extract food. That, in short, is why breasts enlarge and look nice, shiny and plump. Whether you are able or not to breast feed, the body still prepares breasts for this function. Eventually, hormones revert to the non-pregnant levels, and breasts lose that look. In other words, the volume, fullness, glowing, plump, and perky look goes bye-bye. Often times what remains is what we call in plastic surgery a “deflated” look or loss of upper pole fullness. Because the support structures are no longer held under tension, nipple position may change…..a plastic surgery term that we call ptosis.

All of these considerations are important to address for ladies desiring breast surgery with a mental picture goal of acquiring that “look at my pregnant breasts” look. Remember, however, that we are living creatures and not a slab of marble. After pregnancy, circulating hormones and chemicals are different as well as skin elasticity. Breast implants, saline or silicone, do a very nice job replacing volume. However, in addition to replacing volume, there are many other considerations that we, as plastic surgeons, must take into consideration like chest wall issues, breast asymmetry, skin quality and nipple position. Breast surgery after pregnancy varies with each person which is why your procedure may be different from your friend’s surgery. It may be more involved than you think. And, of course, there’s the healing factor and how your body takes to surgical recovery.

Along the lines of health remember that October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month. BREAST CANCER HAPPENS IN 1 out of 8 WOMEN AND MEN GET IT, TOO. For both genders, do your monthly breast self-exam. Ladies get your mammograms; I don’t care how much it hurts—it saves lives. We all can get breast cancer, and if cancer is caught early, there are reconstructive options…..if even needed. Life is precious, and, again, the breast thing is our fixation. With or without them, we are still beautiful and so is life. Treat it with care.

Wrinkles and 9/11

Other than obnoxious, what exactly are wrinkles? Wrinkles are lines, folds and crease that form on our skin for many reasons. With age skin just plain changes losing elasticity, thinning out, and reflecting sun damage or toxins from prior years. Not only is skin the largest organ of the body but also is constructed of many different cell types from oil glands to pigment forming cells to hair follicles…to name a few. Have you ever wondered why we just can’t blow-dry our wrinkles away every morning the way we dry our hair?

Skin care is a daily ritual and first step to aesthetic care, so to speak. Even with the best and perfect plastic surgery, if your skin is not in good shape, the result will not last. In addition to basic skin care, skin reflects our general health as well, because we are dynamic human beings…. Our skin reflects our basic metabolism and body function. Skin also drapes over muscle and fat so that if the aforementioned are not in good shape, we put some of the blame on bad skin. Many corrective products exist on the market from cleansers, fillers, lasers and neurotoxins. In the ensuing blogs, I’ll address different corrective measures. But for now, I want to stress that there isn’t one great miracle treatment. There are certainly some nice lasers and products out there, but each one has its limitations. Again, I will demystify and simplify treatments in future blogs. For now I feel compelled to spend the rest of this blog to discuss 9/11.

To shift gears, my blog would not be complete if I did not mention 9/11. I was living in Chicago the time completing my plastic surgery training. I’ll never forget watching on TV at Cook County Hospital those towers collapsing turning a vibrant city into what appeared to be a war zone. Areas that were so familiar to me were now gone or covered with rubble. Prior to living in Chicago, my life in NYC was coupled with my surgical residency in Brooklyn and a post-doctoral fellowship at the Rockefeller University and New York Hospital. One of my projects involved the burn unit allowing me to attend the New York Hospital burn unit Christmas party in 1995. I was so impressed by how much the firefighters viewed their job with enthusiasm and excitement. They related stories of the day giving each other high-fives. They were all gentlemen. In the after-shock days of 9/11 all I could picture were those firefighters of Christmas 1995 and wonder if they were all now with God. To this day, I pray for them and all the brave firefighter souls that work so hard to ensure our safety. God Bless.

FAT AS PROMISED

So, I just ate three slices of pizza, looked in the mirror and swear that my face looks fatter. I know that sounds ridiculous but many of us do what I did and think that fat is that easily mobilized, gained or lost. Because of that mentality, TV, print and radio is and flooded with devices promising to melt, freeze or blast away fat without surgery. Fat is gone and, poof! We look like a Sports Illustrated swimsuit model. Trust me, if a machine like that existed, I would be the first to buy it and hook myself up.

We have fat everywhere in our body and the stuff does become a part of our body chemistry. Fat is pinch-able. It’s around our inside organs (know as visceral fat). It is biologically active just like skin, liver, kidney, heart etc. in that it participates in our body function. That’s why the slow, regulated way of losing weight is not only safest but also long-lasting. What happens as we age is that our bodies obtain more fat …both men and women!!…our hormones and chemistry change, and we lose muscle mass which slows our metabolism as well. Working out is fun in our 20’s, a good thing to do in our 30’s, a MUST in our 40’s+++.

Let’s get back to talking about these miracle machines. Most of you know that I own a smart-lipo MPX device. It’s a wonderful and strong laser that specifically targets the fat cell and shrinks the skin. However, after melting the fat it must be removed with a liposuction cannula….literally, removing the fat from the body. The laser is an in-between step that provides for a more specific and gentle procedure that yields much better contouring than the old-fashioned liposuction that you have seen and been grossed out by on You-Tube or TV. The indications are still the same as with traditional liposuction in that you should be on a good diet and exercise program but have persistent areas where the fat just doesn’t go away. None of the machines out there serve as a miracle wand that permanently removes fat. After all, we are not a bar of soap. We are active, ALIVE, creatures and there is not substitute to a healthy lifestyle.

Understanding Plastic Surgery and Your Body

You, too, can understand your body. You, too, can understand plastic surgery. And, yes, you can and will be able to understand the flood of information that assaults you from TV, internet or advertisements. In fact, when I talk to friends and patients that is the number one, recurring comment to me, “Melody, there is so much information out there and so many products. How do I make the right decision?”

Well, thank you to my friends and patients (or both) who inspired me with this blog idea so that I can communicate, educate and hopefully inspire you. That being said, Topic #1 is….. I feel fat. When we feel fat, we think we look fat. What makes us feel this way? Are we truly fat? Did we eat too much? Or do we have issues in this anorexia-based society? Stay tuned to next week’s blog.