Struggling with no before and after photos

I live in the Midwest. A smallish town in the midwest might I add.  I don't exactly have the biggest choice of surgeons.

So in setting up my consult with Renee I was informed, when I asked, that my Dr of choice does not offer photos of his breast augmentations. As in before and after.

I really don't understand that. I've never heard of that to be honest. Do you go to a car salesman and buy a car without viewing it first? No, of course not. But then again, this is a Dr who is booked so far in advance that you can't even get an appointment for 8 weeks in the "quiet" season! Peak being over the holidays from what I understand.

See the fact of the matter is, I don't doubt his quality of work but I still want to see it.

So now I'm struggling to figure out what to do. Should I completely scratch this surgeon and look for someone else or should I just trust in his reputation from word of mouth?

UPDATE: Well since he doesn't have any available photos I suppose I just have to make some available for any one who might want that kind of information.

Rescheduling my appointment again

OK, so I promise this will be the last time I reschedule.

So I changed my consult date to April 23rd. Something just feels good about that date.

Count down: 27 days

Whoohoo!

Trying to set my appointment

I'm a little disappointed. So I was told by my Dr that I can tell the office to squeeze me in whenever is convenient for me. So as I tried to reschedule today a snappy old lady asked me not so politely-"why". Um, why do you think? Because maybe the 16th doesn't work for me? And told me the 16th will be fine  for my appointment. Are you kidding me?

Counting down the months

Oh my gosh, am I exited or what! I feel like a 16 year old boy; all I can talk and think about is my breasts. I also dream about them over and over -almost every other night. 

Maybe that had something to do with the fact that I tried on every dress in my closet last night with 425 cc of "rice boobs" to see if my beloved dresses would still fit. Let me tell you, it was a tight fit!

It's so weird to think that in 4 months I'll be walking around with a completely different physique. 

One thing I have noticed with my rice test though is that it makes me look less skinny. Which is great. Less kid and more woman at last. It's just such a beautiful feeling for me. It makes me so excited.

Seriously, like once a week I parade around the house with my stuffed sports bra. It's so fun. On top of that- every time I purchase a nice item of clothing it's done with the intent of, will this fit in 5 months around my bust? So when I get home with pretty things I try it on immeadiately so that I can imagine the effect. 

The only current dilemma I have is- what size bathing suit should i get at victoria's secret? They have this awesome piece that I am terrified to lose out on. Should I just go ahead and get it? Im so tempted Im about to pull my hair out!

Preparing for your consult with your Plastic Surgeon

If you think you should just show up to your PS office with your current set of "twins"... think again. It takes more work than you think!

The first thing I am going to refer to is size. What size do you want to be? Sound's easy enough right? Well think again. Most woman who have a BA(breast augmentation) end up saying I wish I got them bigger. Why? Could it perhaps be that post op you have a huge amount of swelling and the amount of swelling that subsides got you over exited initially?

Here is what I would recommend. 

1. Do the rice test. It's not 100% accurate but its a great way to get a feel for what you will like. You fill up a knee high stocking with as much rice cc's as you'd like and put it under your sports bra for best effect.

 Measure it out in a measuring cup. every 1ml is 1cc. so every tbs is 15cc. 1 measuring cup(not bra cup) is 250 cc's, half 125 cc's etc. Before I guessed I wanted 350 max and then when i put in the 350 i was like no way its too small. Shocked I filled it up to 450 cc's then took another 25 out and found a great size. I walked around for 8h with my stuffed sports bra, was very comfortable-surprisingly- and the moment I took them off I couldn't look at myself in the mirror.

Now remember, this is a great way to prepare yourself when going to the Dr. Take them with and tell him you did the rice test and show him how it looked under your sports bra so that he will have a good idea what your looking for in size. He'll explain the more advanced things to you like using a say 400  cc implant and filling it to 450 to get the 425 cc look for an under the muscle procedure. Last mentioned is just an example not a fact/estimate. I'm just trying to help you understand that there are more complex things involved. Again, do try the rice test though, you wont be disappointed!

2. Take pictures of what you like and more importantly what you DON'T like.

3. Educate yourself about risks and realize that you are setting yourself up for multiple procedures over your life time as they on overage only have a life span of say 15yrs. But who know it can be 5 yrs! Are you able to deal with that expense?

4. What if something goes wrong? Can you afford a procedure in as short as a few months? Remember that all these expenses are out of pocket even if something goes wrong like say bleeding or an infection or rippling of the implant.

5. Know your options! Silicone vs saline. What's the difference -except that silicone is $1000 more? Do you know that silicone feels and looks more natural? Is it worth the risk for you?

6. Do you know how implants can affect your mammogram screening and breast feeding 

potentially?

 

My point is not to scare you but just to help you make an INFORMED decision so that you can't say down the line.. " I wish I knew.."

A favorite website of mine is breastimplants4u.com

Here is a bit of what they say about preparing yourself for your consult

 

Step 1: Making a consulting appointment

Making that first phone call to your plastic surgeons office is the first step to help you achieve your goal.

Fortunately, I'm married to a surgeon and we thus have many plastic surgeons for friends. I was recommended to a well known Dr who actually only does 30% cosmetic surgery. His work is excellent. In the majority of circumstances, it is not recommended to pick a surgeon of such sorts because you really want someone who specializes in 1 field. Unless you come across a truly talented surgeon.

So I went ahead and booked my appointment for April 16th at 3h30 with Dr. Paul Cederna. I am so exited I just can't wait to go see him.

Days until consult: 43

What will you do?

Every now and again we as humans reach a cross road. We look in the mirror and suddenly wish we had the body of a victoria secret model. Toned legs, flat tummy, a perfect bust and  a year long golden bronze glow and sexy, tassled hair from a day at the beach.

It's not easy to accept that we all are not 6 foot models. Though eventually we do. When we do reach that cross road we either act or let it be. What am I going to do? Act.

So I'm only 5'3.5". 108 pounds. Flat chested and a salon blond and have cellulite. Never have I done a days work out in the gym, done toning/strength exercises or anything.

Time for things to change. That was 1 month ago.

To date, I have decided to do more than just read celebrity blogs. I have started walking with my husband around the lake even though its freezing and mushy from the snow outside. I've started to do some strengthening exercises. Lunges, reverse lunges, leg stretches for my glutes and the accasional strip tease cardio. Anything to tone my legs and butt. I realized that my body has gone through a big change in the last year and a half and that it has not been for the better. I have also have not had any requirements to wear a bathing suit and that has made me extra lazy about my body. Enough is enough.

My goal has been to get my body in shape, not losing weight. Rather, gaining weight in muscle and hopefully toning my butt enough to improve the look of my cellulite.

I feel so much better when I exercise. Even though its just 20 min at a time,  days per week. Ultimately, I'd like to pump that up with a 3mile run in the woods during the spring and summer and more intense glute exercises so that I can be in even better shape during the winter for our trip to South Africa in the summer of Jan 09.

My reward for my commitment? A breast augmentation to sex up my look.

After years of wanting and waiting I have decided... enough with the padded bra's already! Victoria Secret can only do so much for a girl and it just is not enough.

Over the next few months I'll be documenting my thoughts with words and photos to hopefully help other woman who are curious or interested in going through the same thing to help improve their experience.

Bring on the ta-ta's!

*UPDATE: Just for the record. I have already seen a noticeable improvement in my upper legs just from my 20 min's a day routine. A little goes a long way*