I am devoting this blogpost to what to expect post-surgery at least through my own experience with breast augmentation surgery.  Though recovery from breast augmentation surgery is relatively tolerable, you should know what to expect.

First of all, when the procedure is completed, you will be wheeled over to a recovery unit where you will come out of anesthesia.  Some women may become very emotional or confused when coming out of anesthesia. What was strange about my experience coming out of anesthesia, other than the fact that it took me an unusually long time to come out of anesthesia, was that I was very chipper and even joked around with the nurses that it was time to party (what a goofball I was!).  My friend Mara picked me up from the hospital and drove me home.  Let me tell you, that car ride was the most painful one I have ever experienced as my very swollen and scalpel-assaulted chest bore the brunt of every single dip and bump in the road.  I sat in the passenger’s seat wearing a support bra.  Once home, I got in the habit of applying a sandwich of ice packs, one above my breasts and one below them, and began taking Vicodin three times a day to take the edge off the pain.  Some women may experience full pain relief from their prescription pain meds, while others (like me) might only receive some relief.

Do not make the mistake of assuming that you are tough enough to take care of yourself immediately post-surgery.  I am tough and I work out regularly, but I was not prepared for the need for complete assistance in sitting up in bed from a supine position.  This went on for four days.  I was very sore and had to stay home for three days before I felt strong enough to return to work.  I also had to apply the ice pack sandwich constantly for those first three days and was constantly alarmed by the fact that my new breasts sat so high on my chest that they abutted my clavicles.  It was truly bizarre.  As the days and weeks passed, my newly augmented chest began to relax and settle and the feeling that my skin and muscles were stretched to the hilt began to subside.

In addition to the constant pain which I experienced over the first two weeks following surgery, I experienced “zingers”.  Women may not be aware of zingers but they should be if they are preparing to go under the knife.  Zingers feel like sudden electric jolts which are felt at the nipple and which I imagine are akin to getting electrocuted.  They are strange but a direct result of local nerve damage which occurs as a result of the surgery.  This will also subside over time so don’t be alarmed!

After two weeks I was allowed to return to lower body weight training and after four weeks I was allowed to hit my upper body workouts.  To this day, however (and it has been almost ten years since I had my surgery), I cannot do heavy chest workouts and experience lateral movement of the implants when I work my chest.  This movement makes my boyfriend laugh and I can honestly say that I don’t blame him for laughing!

I have never had a single regret about having had the surgery and would do it again in a heartbeat.