Breast augmentation surgery uses breast implants to improve the form and size of a woman’s breasts. Breast augmentation surgery is performed on women for various reasons. It includes improving body shapes, restoring breast volume after pregnancy, and making their breasts symmetrical. One or more cup sizes may enlarge a woman’s bustline through breast augmentation surgery.
Breast augmentation recovery is that the time it takes to recover from surgical breast enlargement varies depending on the surgeon’s expertise and the kind of change you want.
Larger, more difficult-to-perform breast augmentation operations will take longer to recover from. On the other hand, minor adjustments may take as little as one week until you are back to normal.
Breast Augmentation Recovery Time
It takes less than a week to return to work and have little to no discomfort following breast augmentation. It takes 6-12 months to heal completely. Following your breast augmentation surgery, here is what to anticipate.
Week After Surgery
Following surgery, your breasts will be swollen and bruised. Compression with a surgical bra, ice, rest, and chest elevation can help reduce swelling and discomfort immediately after surgery. During the first week, moving your arms, walking, and keeping hydrated can help you recover faster.
A pain pump will become your new best friend in the first week after your breast augmentation. A pain pump is a lovely tiny ball packed with numbing medicine that plastic surgeons do not use. To administer a constant stream of medication, two tiny tubes go from the ball to the regions of your incisions and newly created breast pockets.
The pain pump significantly lowers, and in some cases eliminates, the need for oral opioids, which may have adverse effects ranging from constipation to addiction. You will also feel better quicker since the medication is given just to the region of discomfort rather than the whole body.
Month After Surgery
Your discomfort should be mostly gone by now, and you may start enjoying your new women. Right after surgery, light activity such as walking is possible. However, do not engage in any strenuous activity for at least 2-4 weeks following surgery. It enables your wounds to heal completely.
Your nipples and the regions surrounding them may feel numb or sensitive at first. Later then strange, itchy, tingling, or have a mild burning sensation during the following several days or weeks. The nipple nerves are stretched because of surgery and subsequently squeezed by edema(1). The new sensations are encouraging because they indicate that the nerves are reactivating and functioning properly. This sensation usually goes away during the first 3-4 weeks following surgery. Although, to perfectly heal it may take up to 6 months.
You will be told to perform a mild breast implant massage to keep your breasts supple and minimize the development of scar tissue around your implants.
2-4 Months After Surgery
At this time, your breasts will begin to descend and look more natural. Your breasts are perkier in the first six weeks or so following surgery. Many women fear that they will constantly be standing at attention. Do not be concerned. Without wearing a bra, your breasts will be softer and naturally slip somewhat below your breast fold.
6-12 Months After Surgery
By this point, your new breasts will feel completely natural and integrated into your body. There should be no aberrant nipple sensations, and you should be able to lactate and produce milk if you get pregnant. Normal breastfeeding is quite probable for patients who have a baby after breast surgery.
Possible Complications
- Breast augmentation has several risks, including the following:
- Scar tissue that alters the breast implant’s form (capsular contracture)
- Infection of the breasts
- Changes in breast and nipple feeling
- Changes in implant location
- Implant rupture or leaking
Correcting these issues may require further surgery to remove or replace the implants.
Types of Breast Augmentation Surgery
Inframammary Incision
A breast fold incision is the most frequent breast augmentation surgery method. It was the first surgery used for breast augmentation operations, and many plastic surgeons still employ it as their preferred method.
An inframammary surgery is done beneath the breast, where the bottom portion of the breast meets the chest wall. It allows an expert plastic surgeon to put either saline or silicone implants below or above the muscle and determine the best location for a natural look.
Periareolar Incision
The areola, the darker skin surrounding the nipple, and the surrounding skin of the breast are separated by a periareolar surgery. This is also known as nipple surgery. The surgery is on the bottom part of the areola, and a breast pocket is produced above or under the muscle. An implant is inserted through the incision, placed into the breast pocket. It is positioned ideally by the plastic surgeon once it is ready.
Transaxillary Incision
The transaxillary incision, also known as the underarm incision, is a complex surgical procedure that entails precise surgery in the natural fold of the armpit. Following the incision, the plastic surgeon makes a route to the breast and creates a pocket for the breast implants, which may be put above or below the muscle.
Furthermore, the transaxillary incision technique is often performed using an endoscopic method, which means the incision is usually just an inch to an inch and a half long. As a result, once completely healed, the incision may typically be concealed inside the armpit.
Umbilical Incision
The trans-umbilical breast augmentation (TUBA) method involves an incision along the navel (belly button). The surgical instruments will build a tunnel in the belly that will enable implants to flow through and be placed beneath or above the muscle. Importantly, only a saline-filled implant may be inserted using this method.
Breast Augmentation Recovery tips
Breast augmentation surgery may change your life by making you feel more confident, self-assured, and comfortable in your skin for years following the operation.
Whatever method you choose to alter your breasts surgically, one thing is certain: you want a painless procedure and a quick recovery.
Stay Away From Underwire Bras For At Least Six Weeks
You would avoid wearing an uncomfortable bra after breast augmentation surgery anyway, but there is also a medical reason to avoid underwire. Underwire bras may irritate your skin and cause your surgeries to become inflamed, in addition to being unpleasant against swollen, sensitive breasts.
The friction created by the wire as it passes through your sutures may aggravate your discomfort and delay your recovery.
As your body recovers, sports bras or gently supportive bras with no wires that feel good against your skin are a better option. Before going back to the underwire, if possible, wait until your incisions have healed fully, which may take up to 10 weeks following surgery.
Take Warm Showers
It is best to avoid submerging your fresh incisions in a bathtub or swimming pool until they are completely healed. Bacteria may be introduced into your freshly sutured skin by bath or pool water.
This may result in infection, which can cause problems and slow the healing process. Warm showers are preferable since they reduce the risk of infection while also soothing tight chest muscles.
Avoid Drinking And Smoking As You Recover
It is a good idea to avoid alcohol and nicotine until you completely recover, just as you were instructed not to smoke or drink before breast augmentation surgery to ensure that your body was in optimum condition before undergoing anesthesia.
Smoking prevents oxygen-rich blood from reaching your incisions, where it may help heal them. Alcohol dehydrates the body, putting you at risk for bleeding, infections, and medication interactions.
Sleep On Your Back
It is recommended to sleep on your back after breast augmentation surgery, particularly if you have undergone implant surgery to increase your breasts.
Sleeping on your stomach or side may cause your implants to move or droop, and it is inconvenient just after surgery since your breasts and nipples may be very painful.
Sleeping on your back also keeps your incisions from becoming irritated, which may interfere with recovery.
Heavy Lifting And Severe Upper-Body Activities Should Be Avoided
Avoid lifting more than 20 pounds for the first six weeks following breast augmentation surgery, including children. Heavy lifting and intense upper-body exercises raise your risk of bleeding and the development of hematomas, which are blood vessels that seep into the breast tissue.
Maintaining a blood pressure below 100 also aids your body’s recovery after surgery.
Verdict
Follow your doctor’s advice for the healing time after your breast augmentation. You will notice substantial improvements in your general health as a result of doing so. You may be able to recover quicker and prevent problems in the process. Because this kind of pain is so unique, there’s no way to predict precisely. However, with a little forethought, you can put yourself in a far better position.