Consultation in a few days.

[readytoendit]

I wanted to go for a consultation months ago, but I've had a hectic summer that is just now starting to calm down. I scheduled a consultation for this Tuesday with a seemingly respectable plastic surgeon. Thanks to this site I know the right questions to ask. I've already been informed that the doctor has a before/after photo album of his past gyne patients in his office, and I'm definitely eager to check it out.

I'm very nervous and it's going to be a very awkward day indeed, but it's a step in the right direction if I ever want to truly feel comfortable with myself. My dad is going as well and is the only person that I've informed of my dilemma. Any thoughts or advice? Thanks.

EDIT: Here is a photo of my objects of dread - http://img532.imageshack.us/img532/356/photo49q.jpg

[Raider Fan]

No thoughts or advice.  Sounds like you're more than ready to go and are well prepared and educated on your condition.  That's all you can do; the rest is up to your doctor.  Hope your surgery turns out great! Best of luck!

[Paa_Paw]

Just a recent observation.

Living in Southern California, I spent the last week camped out at Silverwood Lake. Having a personal interest, I counted the number of men who were bare chested vs shirted and found that only 1 man in 7 was bare chested. the ladies were wearing swimwear which covered their breasts, albeit barely in some cases, but they were showing a lot more skin than were the males. the 1 in 7 number applied to them too, but in reverse with only 1 in 7 wearing more than a bikini top above the waist.

I have no idea what this might mean, but I thought it interesting. Are men just naturally that much more modest than women?

[DrBermant]

I wanted to go for a consultation months ago, but I've had a hectic summer that is just now starting to calm down. I scheduled a consultation for this Tuesday with a seemingly respectable plastic surgeon. Thanks to this site I know the right questions to ask. I've already been informed that the doctor has a before/after photo album of his past gyne patients in his office, and I'm definitely eager to check it out.

I'm very nervous and it's going to be a very awkward day indeed, but it's a step in the right direction if I ever want to truly feel comfortable with myself. My dad is going as well and is the only person that I've informed of my dilemma. Any thoughts or advice? Thanks.

EDIT: Here is a photo of my objects of dread - http://img532.imageshack.us/img532/356/photo49q.jpg

Checking before and after surgery images is a smart way to evaluate the skills of a surgeon. Having the images of many, many examples up on the web permits my patients to take their time evaluating my skill and sculpture techniques.

I have posted how to pick a gynecomastia surgeon here:

http://www.gynecomastia.org/smf/index.php?topic=16474.0

Hope this helps,

Michael Bermant, MD
Learn More About Gynecomastia

[Dr. Cruise]

Congratulations on your decision to pursue gynecomastia correction and good job on doing your homework.   In my experience, men find the procedure and recovery to be well worth the money and time spent.  In addition to turning to a board certified plastic surgeon, you will want to find a surgeon who specializes in gynecomastia correction and performs the procedure regularly.  Reviewing before and after photos is a good place to start.  Personal patient testimonials would also be valuable. 

[readytoendit]

The consultation went very well! The doctor was very knowledgeable about gyne and described to me how in most cases that liposuction and excision are necessary to get a desirable chest contour. All of this was old news to me, but it was nice to find out that this guy knows what he's doing in the area. He has performed two gyne surgeries in the past month and said that he has done ten a year on average for the past fourteen years.   

The examination was definitely awkward, but that's just part of it I suppose. I haven't taken my shirt off around other people in years, so doing so in front of a stranger and his smoking hot blond assistant wasn't my idea of fun. He determined that my case is mainly composed of excess breast tissue and would probably take three and a half hours to remove.

He only had pictures of before and after shots for about five different patients. This kind bothered me a little, but all five of the surgeries had turned out very well. Maybe most patients just aren't comfortable having their photos used? 

I took my dad back in the office for all of this so he could become more informed about the condition and how it is taken care of. I got a quote before leaving, which came out to be $6,902. Holy Christ! We're definitely going to have to take a loan out for this one. That's the next step, getting the finances sorted and all. It's expensive, but my dad said we'd do it if it bothers me that much. I explained how this surgery would basically be my rebirth, so that's more than enough motivation to go forth. 

I know you're supposed to 'shop around' so to speak with doctors, but I'm impressed with this guy. He seems more than capable of providing satisfactory results. Too bad I don't have $7,000 laying around though...

It's hard to believe that I'm actually trying to do something about this mess instead of suffering in silence.

[readytoendit]

Now the battle to finance the operation begins. I think I'm going to try to appeal the insurance company. You never know until you try.