Bye Bye Boobs
Yes, this is a post about my boobs – and how after 20+ years of having them, I said goodbye to those obnoxious back-breakers!
If you haven’t figured it out yet, the point of this whole blog is to live my truth out loud in hopes of freeing someone from shame in a similar situation. Divorce, breast reduction – shame doesn’t have a place in my life, and I don’t want it to have a place in yours, either.
Ok. So, rewind to college. I had a consult with a doctor to get a breast reduction and was told that I should wait until I had children. So I had children and was blessed to be able to breastfeed them for a long time. And then I gained weight, and lost weight. My boobs only got bigger though, never smaller.
I found myself at a bra size 36K and would have to special order bras that cost over $100 each and still made my back miserable. For anyone who knows bra sizes, it’s kind of hard to imagine what a K cup is – and no, it isn’t the size of an individual coffee pod… I wish! It’s also hard to tell in older photos, because they were basically strapped down to my chest. Let’s say a large seeded watermelon… each!
Before my separation I lost some weight. During/after the divorce I lost some more and have kept it off for a year without much effort (happiness and lack of stress will do that, I suppose). Guess what I didn’t lose? My damn boobs!!! So, I decided it was time to say goodbye. Back in April I got a reduction! They’re still big, which catches people off guard when they learn I had a reduction, but they’re no longer watermelons, and they’re now in proportion to my body.
It’s hard to tell, because they were always strapped down within an inch of their life, but here’s a same -shirt comparison. The bottom 2/3 of my boobs are GONE!!
I kind of love the humor of this being a TWINS shirt – haha. It just happened to be the best side-by-side in the same shirt
It has been a freedom like I could never have imagined. I actually cried when I bought a bra from a normal store OFF THE RACK (and texted all my friends)! It still blows my mind that I can run an errand to the store in just a spaghetti-strap tank top, or that I own a bra with less than 3 hooks. I bought a half-dozen swimsuits off Amazon this summer – some STRAPLESS (I’m in the twilight zone, y’all!!)!
My reduction happened this past summer. My surgeon was AMAZING. But apparently, my body hates dissolvable stitches. I’m an overachiever in all aspects – including healing. Soooo, my body continued to ‘heal’ even when it should have stopped, and I ended up with some pretty gnarly scars. So just last week I went in for a full scar revision to remove the large and painful scars that had built up. Hooray for healing TWICE. But this time I get to be a real life Frankenstein’s monster with dozens of stitches on Halloween. They will be removed in a few weeks (and my body will hopefully calm down and heal normally).
Even with the revision and having to go through surgery and recovery again, I would 1000% do it allll over again in a heartbeat! Most insurance companies will take into account years of chiropractic work and any skin issues caused by disproportionately sized breasts. If you’ve been considering it, I’d encourage you to look into it!
A quick google (because when is anything on the internet ever wrong?!) says 95% of women who get a reduction are glad they did. I was worried about the scars. I had the worst scars. I was still happy! I know about a dozen people personally now who have had it done, and they all would do it again! Most people’s scars fade to be practically invisible, with most on the underside anyway.
I also know ladies who have gotten implants, who would do it again in a heartbeat. Like I said at the top, I’m sharing my story because there isn’t any shame if you are uncomfortable in your body. A reduction had been on my radar for decades, and I am more than happy to answer any questions anyone has about it!
P.S. – A new SheFit review video will certainly be coming! I got new sports bras 2 sizes smaller and still LOVE them.
