Surgery with Mr. Vijh

[P_ns18]

Hi everyone. Probably like every guy who finds their way to this forum, I had been living with gynecomastia for many years. I first noticed the problem when I was 15 and I am now 34. I shuddered at the thought of having to take my shirt off in a public place and spent years wearing a shirt over my t-shirt during the hottest days of summer. I used to try and compensate for it by brining my shoulders in to try and take emphasis off my chest, and just walking into a clothes shop used to make me anxious and almost feel unworthy to be in there. I even turned down the opportunity to go on holidays with my mates, due to the fear of being ridiculed for this issue. I’m sure this is pretty consistent with how you guys have felt/ are feeling. I tried everything from dieting (although I’ve never been particularly overweight), pushing heavier weights in the gym, to even drinking turmeric tea, which I read was a miracle cure. It wasn’t by the way… I reached the realisation that I am sure many of you have come to that I won’t get rid of this naturally no matter what I do. In summer 2017 I decided enough was enough and I was fortunate enough to be in a position where I had enough money to do something about it. I had surgery with Mr. Vik Vijh in January 2018. It has taken me a while to post on here, but it was always my intention to do so. I want to give as honest an overview of my experience as I can, and now being 10 months post-surgery I am in a position where I can do that, and I hope it helps those of you that are struggling with gynecomastia and having it play on your mind literally every day of your life.

I first met Mr Vijh in early October 2017 after doing loads of research! My shortlist Mr Vijh and Dr. Karidis, and I decided on Mr Vijh due to his practice being located a lot closer to where I lived. I was impressed as soon as I met him. He was clearly very experienced and knowledgeable, and what I really liked is that he wasn’t promising me perfection. He was saying how most people are asymmetric and that we will always be asymmetric, and whilst surgery will dramatically improve the look of my chest, there is no such thing as perfection. I guess he was managing my expectations and I was really pleased about that. The consultation cost me £150, but I was very happy when I left and made it clear that I wanted to progress. My Vijh graded my level of the problem as grade 2, and worse on the left side of chest (I will try and post some photos). He showed me before and after photos of men with a similar grade of gynecomastia. He was very clear about some of the risks and complications that can arise, but this is no more than with any type of surgery. There was a bit of a waiting list, but I was booked for my surgery at the Priory Hospital in Birmingham in late January 2018.

When the surgery date came around I was nervous but really excited that my time living with gynecomastia was nearly over. The hospital was really nice and the staff were excellent. I know I was paying quite a lot of money to be there (£4,613 to be precise), but honestly the care was first class! Mr Vijh came into my room to draw markings on my chest and have a chat, and I wasn’t waiting long before I was taken to theatre. Mr Vijh pioneers a technique of removing the gland and tissue through an incision in the armpit. This is great because it leaves no scarring whatsoever on your chest.  Before I knew it I was in a recovery room and being taken back to my private room. The rest of my stay in hospital (one night) was comfortable and I was really well cared for and I went home after Mr Vijh had assessed me a little over 24 hours after the surgery. I was sent home with some pain killers.

Ok here’s the honest part… It seems that different guys have different experiences of pain and discomfort after the operation, but for me for the first 3 or 4 days I felt like I’d been hit by a train! I was very sleepy and lethargic and moving around was slow and uncomfortable. I was quite bruised, as to be expected, and activities like showering were quite tricky. I wasn’t in agony by any means, but I was uncomfortable and just a bit ‘out of it’ for a few days. The compression vest you are given to wear for the first week (later replaced by a more lightweight one) is also quite uncomfortable and doesn’t help with your movement. It’s vitally important to keep it on though and wear it properly. I took it off every now and then for a short while to air the area. I was really glad to ditch that one after a week though and switch to the lightweight vest that you can wear unnoticeably under shirts and t-shirts. You need to wear that one for another 6 to 8 weeks. By day 6 I felt like I really turned a corner. The bruising and swelling had subsided a lot and my movement was a lot easier. I could also now see an indication of what my chest would look like. I was so happy! It was an incredible moment! For years of longing for a flat chest and then to look down and see it, I don’t mind saying made me a bit emotional.

From then on things just got easier and the look of my chest kept improving. I was back at work and for the main, engaging in normal day to day activities. I did have a situation where the skin around my nipples started peeling off. I guess this was down to the areas underneath the skin taking a battering during surgery, but it was nothing to worry about. Mr Vijh is very good post-surgery and I sent him a picture of this and he said it was fine and normal. A bit of e45 cream sorted it out. The important thing to remember is that your chest shape will keep changing for 6 months to a year, so give it time to settle. Having said that pretty soon I was wearing clothes that I had in a “will wear one day” drawer. Again, an absolutely awesome feeling and after a couple of months I was able to get back to the gym. The summer just passed I have been on 4 holidays and whipped my shirt off pretty much as soon as the plane touched down on Spanish soil! Making up for lost time I guess! It’s such an incredible feeling to not have this hanging over me anymore, to not be self-conscious about my chest and enjoy things like summer holidays and even small things like taking my kids swimming. Sure, it’s a lot of money but if you’re anything like me having this done has changed my life! Having the surgery is one of the best decisions I have ever made and I haven’t looked back since. I would even go as far to say that I am nicer person to live with these days. I think gynecomastia affected me even more than I realised. If you feel like I did and you’re fortunate enough to be able to afford it, what are losing by having at least an initial consultation? I couldn’t recommend Mr Vijh highly enough! Sorry for such a long story and if you’re still with me, I hope it’s helped you in some way. I am happy to answer questions if there are any comments and will be as honest as possible. Wherever you are in your gynecomastia journey, I wish you the very best of luck. It’s good to see that there is a community out there helping guys who are living with it. Cheers

[P_ns18]

Photo 1 is obviously a before shot, taken a couple of days before my surgery. I used to have days where my chest would look worse than others. When I took this it happened to be a good day, however usually my gynecomastia was more pronounced.
Photo 2 is day three. Not pretty, but the bruising it to be expected.
Photo 3 is 1 month after surgery.
Photo 4 is now. For some reason I couldn't crop the photo, hence covering my face.

[Checkmate]

First of all - thanks very much for sharing your detailed experience! and congrats on some amazing results! Im from the UK and looking to do it as soon as possible! Im undecided whether to go for karadis or mr. Vijh! 
I like the fact he goes in under the armpits - can the scars be seen with your arms by your size or are they completely under your arm pits? have they faded yet?
Hows the scar tissue etc? 
Does Vijh remove the full gland or does he leave some to avoid inverted nipple? and was liposuction on the chest in with that price? 

Many thanks mate

[P_ns18]

Hi mate, thanks very much for your comments, I’m certainly really happy with the results.

In terms of the scar, you can’t see it at all when arms are at the side. It fits very neatly in the crease between the arm and chest. Even with arms outstretched, someone would have to know it was there to see it.

The scar has definitely faded and whilst I can still see a scar, it doesn’t bother me at all. I always consider myself as someone who scars quite easily and these aren’t bad at all. I’ll try and get a close up picture and send it. There is no scar tissue or lumpiness whatsoever. In the early days some light massaging of the area may help to ease out any lumps and bumps. Mr Vijh is a very careful worker though.

Mr Vijh removes the whole gland, sorry I should have mentioned that before. He told me that he avoids dishing out by liposuction around the periphery. Yes the lipo was included in the price.

I hope that helps and I’m happy to answer any more questions. All the best with your decision and good luck if you decide to go for it.

[Checkmate]

Sorry for hammering you with loads of questions. Didnt mean for it to come across like a questionaire haha. 


Great news about the scar, I think im swaying towards Mr Vijh after seeing a few threads on here from recently. Id prefer the scar in the place you have it instead of on the nipple anyway.


Right ok, Initially I looked at poland for a smaller price where they removed all the gland, they emailed me mentioning a fairly high risk of indentation of the chest which put me off slightly. Does this mean that as hes removed the full gland the gyne cannot come back?


Thanks for your speedy reply really appreciate it. Waiting for a phone call to sort a date for a consultation. 

[P_ns18]

No problem at all mate. Yes the scar being under the arm is definitely preferable to being on your chest itself, in my opinion.
Mr Vijh does discuss with you the risk of indentation but he doesn't describe it as a high risk. From my experience he is pretty skilled at avoiding it through his combination of gland removal and liposuction. My level of gynecomastia was grade 2 as well, so I suppose a medium level, and I have no indentation at all.
In terms of it coming back, no it shouldn't do. With the entire gland removed the only way it could come back as far as I'm aware is through normal weight gain, which is the same risk as anyone else and probably not considered as true gynecomastia anyway. I've read somewhere that steroid use can bring it back, but I don't know a lot about that. The procedure is considered as a permanent correction of gynecomastia.
I am sure Mr Vijh will explain this a lot better than I can in your consultation with him. I hope it goes well mate and I'd be interested to hear how you get on.

[Checkmate]

Ok brilliant thanks for your replies it's been massively helpful. Glad it all went well and I'll let you know how I get on in the near future.

[P_ns18]

You're welcome. Good luck with it!

[Checkmate]

Hi pns. Had a consultation with Mr Vijh. Very nice guy and seems confident with his work. Have the option of surgery in December think in going to go for it. Thought I'd let you know 👍

[P_ns18]

Good for you mate! I really hope it all goes well for you and that you're as happy with your results as I am with mine. Keep me posted mate