A Guide To Breast Augmentation Recovery
Congratulations. You did it!
Hopefully your breast augmentation surgery went swimmingly and your new breasts are everything you hoped that they would be and more!
Now you are on the road to breast augmentation recovery. We will tell you what to expect from the moment you wake up and are brought into the recovery room after your surgery, to how to sleep and bathe while you are healing and what you can — and can't — do in the days and week following your surgery. We will also give you the 411 on serious complications that can occur after your surgery and require immediate medical attention such as temperature greater than 101° F or bleeding from the incision site.
There will likely to be some bruising and swelling after your breast augmentation surgery. Some remedies are available that may help speed the healing process including supplements of Arnica and Bromelain. Ask your surgeon what you can do to minimize the bruising and swelling after your breast augmentation.
You will also likely have scars depending on the incisions that your surgeon used to insert your breast implants. Everyone's scars look and heal differently. That said, there are things that you can do to minimize the appearance of these scars. Learn about your scar treatment options in our comprehensive article on the subject. Check out our potos documenting the 10-week progression of scar healing after breast augmentation with an inframammary incision.
Many women experience some emotional changes and/or depression in the days or weeks following breast augmentation surgery. There are many reasons for this including the lingering effects of anesthesia, which may bring out your sensitive side, medication side effects, sleep loss and pain. Reading our articles will help you determine if how you are feeling is normal, or if you need to seek medical help for your depression.
Complications can occur immediately after your breast augmentation surgery or down the road. For example, capsular contracture (scar tissue around the implant) can occur at any time. Other complications such as bottoming out (when your implants go south of your inframammary crease), double bubble breast deformity or other types of implant displacement may also occur. You may have also heard isolated tales about the possible contamination of a saline breast implant, but this is rare with today's sterile operating techniques. Some complications could result in the need for revision breast augmentation or breast implants removal.
But before you start thinking about another surgery, take a deep breath and remember that it takes time for your new breasts to heal. Learn what to expect in the months after your breast augmentation so you can understand all the changes that your body and your breasts will go through in the months following your breast augmentation surgery. For example, breast implants don't drop overnight. Be patient, and wait at least six months before you jump to any conclusions about how they look and feel.
If you do have concerns about how you are feeling, healing and/or the appearance of your breasts, your postoperative visits with your surgeon are the best forum to discuss and address these concerns. Your recovery will entail several post-operative visits with your board-certified plastic surgeon, and we will provide a heads up on what to expect during these visits. Check out our all-encompassing list of post-operative topics that you may want to broach in your follow-up appointments before you see your surgeon. It will help you stay focused during the visit(s).
In this section, we also discuss breast implant maintenance such as massage or compression exercises and your breast health after surgery. We provide the latest information on breast cancer screening in our article mammograms (breast X-rays) after implant surgery, and discuss in depth breast cancer and your risk of developing it so that you know what to look out for.
We also get to the fun stuff in this section with an article devoted solely to bra shopping after breast augmentation implant surgery. It's a must read! You may be wondering whether or not underwire bras are an option, and while there is no one-size-fits-all answer, our article will help guide your bra shopping decisions.
Enjoy!
