Let me first introduce myself. My name is Lise, I'm 23 years old and live in Denmark. I'm 5'3 feet tall, and of average build. 6 months ago I was using a size 32G in bra...
“To me it was a taboo. why wish for smaller breasts, when so many women pay hundreds of pounds to have theirs enlarged? I felt very alone, and very insecure.”
I'd always had large breasts - for as long as I can remember, in fact. As the years went on, the problems increased. I had constant aching in the neck and shoulders. I had trouble sleeping and lying on my stomach. Also, I had deep furrows in my shoulders from the bra-straps, and sports caused me great problems whenever it involved jumping or running. It was painful.
My self confidence was low, too. My bosom was heavy and saggy. I dreaded the shower situations in the public swimming pool and the beach trips in bikini, and I didn't care for people glaring at my breasts. I had a lot of problems shopping for underwear. Even at age 17, I would have to wear "granny-underwear" and large bra's with wide straps. The cute lace underwear that my friends would buy just wouldn't fit me.
In the beginning it wasn't something I would mention to anyone. I used to think that I was the only one with this problem and these thoughts. To me, it was a taboo. Why wish for smaller breasts when so many women pay hundreds of pounds to have theirs enlarged? I felt alone and very insecure.
I finally took the courage to speak to my closest friends. I told them about my thoughts and considerations about having a breast reduction. But the reactions from them weren't positive. They thought it was silly. They told me I was fine the way I was, and that I should at least wait with surgery until after having had children.
At that time I was 23. I had no plans of having children any time soon, and the thought of having to wait 10-15 years was unbearable.
I had already made my choice. I was willing to go as far as paying the almost 4.000 £, which was the price of the operation, in case I was rejected a free treatment by the public health insurance.
I decided to see my GP. He was very understanding. He wrote me a referral, and told me that I should count on having a preliminary examination about 3 weeks later.
In my county, the hospital that dealt with breast reduction surgery had a 1½ year waiting time on preliminary examinations, and the same for the actual surgery. This enabled me to use the Danish Patient Choice rules and choose for myself, where I wanted the preliminary examination, and later on the surgery itself.
I contacted Mølholm Private hospital in the Danish town of Vejle. I made an appointment and had a preliminary examination 14 days later. On my way to my examination I was nervous, but also very excited as to what was going to happen. I knew that I would have to show myself in front of a surgeon, I had never met before, and that this itself would take a lot of courage. I wasn't completely aware of, what I was getting myself into, and what was going to happen. It made me very nervous.
During the preliminary examination, I was given a detailed explanation of risks and side effects, along with a description of the different operating procedures. The doctor also asked me, what breast size I had in mind, after which I told him, that I wanted a c-cup. He told me, that he would then need to remove 300-400 milligrams from each breast, and that they would be given a 2.5 inch lift. After the examination, I was offered a free operation, paid for by the national health insurance. I was so happy and relieved. Finally, I could relax. There was something to look forward to. Mølholm offered to operate me only 14 days later, but due to exams and an already booked summer holiday, I changed the date to the 3rd of August 2004.
In the weeks before the operation, I had all these questions, that I didn't get around to asking during the examination. The questions regarded everything from what I would be able to do after the surgery, when I would be able to do sports again, to what the result would look like. I felt that I was well informed at the examination, but at the time I didn't have that many questions. They came afterwards.
It was the third of August 2004. I was to be admitted at 9:00 AM. On the day of the surgery, I was so nervous. I was most of all nervous about the anaesthesia, seeing as I had never been fully sedated before. Luckily, the reception at Mølholm was warm, and I really felt that I was in safe hands. I was given a thorough explanation of what was about to happen, all whilst the plastic surgeon, Erik Løntoft, drew on by breasts with a marker.
The surgery was to take place at 11:40 AM. The hours prior to the surgery were long, and I found it difficult to calm down. At the same time, I was ecstatic and excited on the inside. This was it, my dream was about to come true, and I would be able to do all the things that I had previously been unable to do because of my large bosom.
I walked down to the operating theatre myself. The situation seemed very surreal, and the whole experience is still very blurry to me to this day. I don't remember much.
2½ hours later, I woke up in the bed at the ward. My glance went straight to my chest, which I could see was clearly smaller. I could have screamed from pure excitement - it was over with, and I felt fantastic!
A respectable amount of 325 and 335 milligrams were removed from my breasts. I felt surprisingly well afterwards, but there was a little pain, for which reason I had 2 morphine doses that were injected into my hand through a drip. The rest of the day went ok. It was a bit difficult to sit up in the bed, and I hardly had any appetite, due to nausea from the anaesthesia. I was discharged at 10:00 AM the following day. I had my bandages removed, and was given a sports bra to wear. The following pains were few and slight. The aching, however, was tough.
I would definitely go through the whole thing again, if I had to. I don't think it was as bad, as I had thought it would be. I'll never forget the experience of seeing my new breasts for the first time. They were so beautiful. Swollen, but beautiful!