10 day post op - not quite what I expected

[rhyno18]

Wow...I just stumbled into this site a couple of weeks ago.  It was really eye opening to hear other people that are in the same boat.

Like a lot of folks on here, I started experiencing gynocomastia as a teen.  Even though I was rail thin, I had 'moobs'.  The story is all too familiar, hating shirts/skins in sports, NEVER taking my shirt off in public, dressing in layers, wearing a tight t-shirt under a polo - even when it 100* outside.

Thankfully it didn't impact me too much socially. It didn't impact my love life and I married a woman who didn't seem to care.  Well one time she made a joke about it when we were in bed - but she didn't realize how sensitive I was about it and never mentioned it again.  

But over time I just hated how it impacted my life.  I always change clothes in the bathroom. I always wore layers.  I never went shirtless...or even to go swimming with the kids.  I hated how some clothes fit on me.  The explosion of 'dry-fit' clothing was the worst.  I love to golf, but the idea of a sweaty dry fit shirt clinging around my chest out of the question.  Same with workout gear.  I took up running, but I hated how my chest bounced when I ran.

Like a lot of guys when I turned 40, my metabolism slowed.  And when I gained a little extra weight (5'10, 205), it seemed like the moobs got even bigger and firmer. I hated seeing my shadow on the shower all or seeing pictures of myself at certain angles.  The kicker was going on a family cruise this summer.   I wore layers every day.  I remember going to the pool with my kids wearing a tight tee shirt under a dry fit shirt.  

So a couple of weeks ago, I finally decided to do a little research on the topic.  I found sites like this and realized I wasn't alone.   Moreover I realized that surgery was a realistic option to fix it permanently.

I had a female friend whose husband was a doctor and who had undergone cosmetic surgery last year.  I remembered her talking about how good the doctor was and decided to get a consultation.

I have to admit it was a little embarrassing going into a plastic surgeon's office. You It was fairly close to my office and I had this fear of being seen there.

But the visit couldn't have gone any better.  Everybody at the office was great to work with.  The doctor was extremely understanding and talked about how common the surgery is these days.  We looked at before and after pics and talked about what I could expect.   He felt there was a good deal of breast tissue, so it would most be excision with a touch of lipo and recontouring the chest.

At that point I was sold.  It's hard for people who don't have the condition to understand - but the idea of just being able to put on a t-shirt in the summer, or look good in a golf shirt - or not be so self conscious was well worth it.

My wife was wonderful.  While she loved me the way I was, she could tell how important this was to me and was fully supportive.

My initial consult was on a Wednesday.  I scheduled the procedure for 10 days later (last Friday).  I was like a little kid waiting for Christmas.  The days just dragged by.

I could hardly sleep the night before.  I was SO ready to get it done.  The procedure is pretty much like everyone writes about. The actual surgery took about 90 minutes under general anesthesia.  The longest part was just waiting to get back in the surgery room.  I remember getting the anesthesia and passing out midsentence.

I woke up the recovery room really groggy.  I was bandaged up with the compression vest and drains.  The doctor said it all went well, he removed quite a bit of tissue and thinks I'll be happy with the results.  I spent the weekend taking it easy.  (It was perfect timing as there was playoff baseball and football on the entire weekend.)

The drains are a bit of a pain and sleeping in a recliner isn't fun - but overall it has been a pretty smooth recovery.  I took today off work, but feel like I can go back tomorrow. I actually can work from home, which makes it a LOT easier than having to worry about hiding the drains at the office.  I've been able to wear oversized t-shirts at home - so the kids haven't really noticed.  They know I haven't been feeling well...but it hasn't been a big issue.

Obviously I won't be able to really see the initial results until the follow up appointment on Thursday...but even with the vest, bandages and likely swelling, I can already tell a big difference in the shape of my chest. Having the words of a t-shirt be flat, not at an angle feels really good. I can't wait to see the final results.

My only regret is that I didn't do something about it sooner.  My father had a similar build and it never seemed to bother him.  (He'd go shirtless in a minute). If my son has the same condition, it'll be something we address early - so he doesn't waste prime years of his life like I did.

This really is a hidden problem.  My heart goes out to all the guys who suffer with it.  The whole thing is sort of a 'punchline' with most people, but they have no idea how this condition weighs so heavily on the people who have it.  I thought about it every single day. I am looking forward to life without it.

[cduub]

Thanks from all of us dude!!!! Great story

[xelnaga13]

Great story. I completely forgot how long the wait to get into the actual surgical room felt. I kept asking for something to knock me out because it was so unnerving, but they can't until the doctor draws on you. Good luck!

[anoroc]

Keep us in the loop.

[IN2DEEP]

Thanks for sharing with us, I can't wait to get the surgery too, in 20 days

Can you talk more about the drains? From what I'm reading they are a pain in the ..... to wear. How long did you had them on?

[rhyno18]

Thanks for sharing with us, I can't wait to get the surgery too, in 20 days

Can you talk more about the drains? From what I'm reading they are a pain in the ..... to wear. How long did you had them on?

I actually just got them out today...and not a moment too soon.  They were driving me crazy.

I had them in for 5 days total, I was supposed to get them out tomorrow, but as they were starting to be a bit irritating and the fluid level coming out was pretty low, my doctor said he'd take them out  a day early.

After surgery they were pinned to the vest I had.  That made them a bit bulky.  I ended up putting them in a fanny pack and just wearing a long shirt.   That cut down on the bulk, but still allowed enough 'give' in the line not pull.  It's pretty much just emptying them every few hours and logging the amount of fluid. The first few days the fluid is more bloody.  It eventually became a very pale pink color.

It was also a pain to try to hide it.   My kids are old enough to notice I was wearing a fanny pack all the time.  And when I went to my son's game, I was constantly try to make sure my shirt was pulled down.

On the second day I woke up with a HUGE blood clot floating around in the bottom of it.  It was too thick to squeeze out of the bulb. I freaked out a bit thinking something was wrong.  But my doctor said it was normal.  The drain system needs to remain 'closed' I just had to leave it in there the last 3 days.

The drains also require you to sleep on your back. I've been sleeping in a recliner since the day of the surgery.  Even without the drains, my doctor doesn't want me sleeping on my stomach for another couple of weeks.

Today was the first time we took off the vest and I got to see the results of the surgery.   There is still a bit of swelling and my nipples are inverted.  He said the swelling is normal and nipple shape will return over time after I get my stiches out.  Based on the large amount of tissue he took out he thinks the final result is going to look great...but it will be a couple of months before we get there.

I could tell a definite difference.  My gyne was more the 'pointy mass' type.  If you held you fingers like you would throw a baseball, you could have definitely cupped what I had.  It's much flatter now and I think it will look great when the swelling completely goes down.  I can already tell a difference in how my clothes fit...even though I'm still wearing the vest and gauze.

The downside is I also see how much weight I need to lose.  I gained about 20 pounds the last few years.   In an odd way, my gyne actually masked it a bit.  I think when everything stuck out a bit, it didn't make the chest part seem as bad.  I'm at 205 now and if I can get down 180 or so,I think I'll love how look.  But just seeing how my chest looks now, I'm absolutely psyched to get back in shape.  I should get the green light from my doc in about 2-3 more weeks.

[rhyno18]

Officially 10 days out.  I got the stitches out last Friday.  I'll be in the compression vest another 3 weeks.

I'm still coming to grips with how things look now vs expectations vs what the final result will be.

My doctor feels very confident that things are on track, but we'll have to be patient while the swelling goes down.  One side seems a bit more swollen then the other, especially underneath.  It isn't as flat as I'd hoped it would be, but it's hard to tell how much of that will go down with the swelling.

My case was moderate to severe.  Looking at Dr. "removed doctor"'s website, who seems to have the most comprehensive before and after gallery, I was closer to the guys on the 'severe tab'  (patient 20 is very close). 

While I didn't expect everything to be perfect 10 days post op, I'm a bit concerned with how things look.

The right side seems flatter.  But there is almost a 'concave' indention under my nipple and with kind of a half donut underneath and toward the sternum side.

The left side is larger than I'd like. It also seems slightly indented inside and is very puffy/swollen most of the way around, especially on the sternum and bottom.

My doctor told me the swelling pattern in cases like mine often resemble a 'donut' and that it will all settle down to the same contour as the nipple in the middle.    But I admit I worry there wasn't enough enough tissue taken out and what the final result will be.

One of the things discussed during my consult was realistic expectations.  His goal was a 'flat chest' and he felt very confident that based on his experience we'd get there.  He's a board certified plastic surgeon with many years experience and a boatload of these procedures under his belt.   So when he feels confident in the results, I should as well....but when I look in the mirror.

He told me the swelling will continue to subside over the next few weeks and somewhere by 4 weeks or so I should be much closer to the final result.

So I'm trying not to worry but....