Hard Lumps After Lipo Only Procedure

[chris22334]

I am currently 8.5 weeks post-op from a lipo-only procedure.

I chose lipo only because my chest felt like it was fat (soft, squishy, didn't feel any breast tissue, no tenderness). It made me look like I have large breasts. After 3 consultations with various plastic surgeons, 2 out of the 3 wanted to perform lipo-only procedures. The surgeon that wanted to do an excision had a hard time locating breast tissue when he performed the exam (about 1 minute of groping before he found something that felt like gland), so I also took this as a sign that it was mostly fat.

Fast-forward to the day of surgery. The surgeon does 4 incisions. 2 below the armpit and 2 on the edges of the areola and uses tumescent liposuction to suction out the fat. Since this procedure was local anesthesia, I was able to stand up right after and see the result. At the time, it seemed pretty good. I'd say about a 70% reduction; not perfectly flat, but the remaining seemed to be left-over anesthetic fluid.

The next day, I take off my compression vest to see the result. The remaining fluid drained out onto the pads, which was good, and the result looked even better. About an 80-90% reduction from pre-op. I was very pleased.
My surgeon had instructed me to wear the vest 24h for the first 3 days and then switch to a compressive underarmor type shirt for the next four weeks.

After the first night of sleeping without the vest, I awoke to swollen breasts. They were firm and hard, but I was never in any significant pain. Over the next few days/week my breasts had returned to their pre-op size and fullness. Now, at 8.5 weeks post-op, my breasts look the same as they were pre-op.

I can feel a large lump on both sides of my breast. The lump starts from my below my armpit and extends to under my areola on both sides.

Is this a normal part of the healing process? I was expecting to have a better result by now, but it feels like I am no farther ahead than when I was pre-op.

[pdubbz]

I am in a similar situation as you are.  It's been about 10 weeks for me post-op, Lipo only.  I did not have a severe case of gyno; what I and my doctor thought was just extra fat tissue.  So lipo only was recommended. 
Wore my compression vest 24/7 for 4 weeks, then 12 hours a day for the next 4 weeks.  But even after that first 4 weeks when I took the vest off, I also noticed small lumps under each nipple.  They have since grown and become mildly tender, especially in the last 2-3 weeks.  When I look in the mirror now I can't even tell that I had surgery; although the doctor claims he lipo'd out a decent amount considering I'm in pretty good shape.  In fact I can certainly say that it looks a little bit worse then pre-op. 
I'm hoping that it is swelling or scar tissue that will go away within 6 months from surgery date.  It doesn't make sense that this near what the final outcome will look like. The doc was board certified.  Another thought that I had was that my body was reacting to finasteride which I've been taking for hair-loss - i don't know. 
After doing more research, after the fact (shame on me), I should have pushed him more to do a glandular excision.  At my follow-up last week, the doctor said it could either be residual gland or swelling.  So his analysis left me feeling unsure.
But I'm keeping positive and hoping that it is all part of the healing process.