WARNING: NSFW / graphic content below.

Another expansion done! We added 75ccs to each expander, for a total of 225ccs/side (pic below). I am now just a tad over my size before the prophylactic bilateral mastectomy in January.

I decided to speed things up a little bit – rather than doing 50ccs per expansion, we bumped it up to 75ccs. So far, so good, but it has only been a few hours. The worse of the pain the first time hit me when I woke up on the day after the fill. I felt like I was back in the recliner the first week post-op. I popped an ibuprofen, did some stretching, and moved on with my day. The pressure eased as days passed and I was back to “normal” within a week. Well, here we go again. I imagine it will get worse with each fill, but we shall see.

For a recap of why/how the expansion process works, see They’re growing or check out the video below, which was shared by fellow PBM-er Trisha on her blog I’m getting my boobs chopped off. By the way, if you haven’t noticed, I list a number of blogs on the right side of the page under Relevant Sites & Blogs. Check them out! Most of those ladies has also undergone a mastectomy; some proactively and some after a breast cancer diagnosis.

Source of Figure 7.1: Steligo, Kathy. Breast Reconstruction Guidebook: Issues and Answers from Research to Recovery. Maryland: The Johns Hopkins University Press, 2012. Print, third edition.