What to expect?

[toronto]

Hello there, first of all I'd like to say this site is amazing, i've read every thread and looks like this Dr Fielding is the guy to go to, so glad that OHIP covers a good cunk of it too.  I've deal with this since I was 11, started with the pad under my left breast, than the right, nipples getting weird.  Had no idea what it was, my mom took me to the doctor only to have the doctor tell us I was getting breasts, so embarassing.  Later in high school I would have to tape my breasts down because the teasing and staring was really starting to get to me and i didn't know what to do.  I used to want to go in there myself with a knife and take the lumpy pads out, I knew it was stupid, that's the reason i never did it, but it was just the ultimate embarassment and wanted it to go away. Ever since than, it's been layered clothing and dreading summer.  

I have a few questions those for those that have done it with Dr Fielding.  What do I expect exactly.  I book an appointment for a consultation.  What happens at this consultation exactly, is it in a hospital or does he do this in an office?  The day of the surgery, is it a hospital? real surgery with the hospital gown and everything like on tv? (never had surgery before).

I don't really want to tell anyone, if i get the surgery early enough I can leave the car at a subway station and kill time till i'm feeling ok to drive, is this feasible? or will i just be too out of it?  How many of you guys had to stay overnight? is that normal, or are they more worried that you have someone to drive you home.  If it comes down to it, I'd rather suck it up and tell someone than spend the night in the hospital.

After the surgery what do they put on you?  tensor bandage from what i've been reading right, how long do i keep that on?  Do i have to change it or once it's off, leave it off.

Whens the first follow up? What do they do?

How quickly can i go back to work (i know everyones a little different, i guess i'm just looking for people's experiences so i know a range of what to expect).

Thanks guys, i know i should do this, maybe if i know exactly what to expect it will make me less nervous.

[GoneForGood]

First things first...book the consultation...make sure you have gyne and it's not just something you can correct w out surgery. The consultation is no problem, it's in his office and very relaxed, takes about 15-20 min. The Doc can tell right than and there if you have gyne and how severe your case is. The consulation is free with OHIP.

Now for surgery, you should be able to book anywhere from 3 weeks on for the surgery from time of consultation. I booked 3 months after consultation but this was for convenience and work reasons, I could of had it a month later. The surgery is "a real surgery" with hospital gown and everything. From my experience you are going to want someone to drive you home. I wasn't in very much pain but it was hard to move your arms. I wasn't able to drive home and I didn't want to risk opening up the incisions (its not worth it). I had more of a problem with feeling very nauseous after the surgery...this went away by supper time though. If I were you I'd suck it up (like you said) and tell someone and have them drive you from the hospital...you don't want to damage what you have been waiting all your life to get fixed.

The Doc puts the tensor on after the op and you should keep it on until he sees you for the post op appointment normally 6 days after. I got a few new tensors from the nurses before I left the hospital because the one that is first put on can get a little nasty with the drainage. Going back to work will depend on your job. If you sit behind a desk than you could go back probably on the 3rd day. If you work a job that requires any type of strain on you chest I'd say 2weeks at least.

Keep in mind the above info is all based on my experience and others could differ based on their rate of healing, age, and other factors.

[toronto]

thank you for your response, good advice..i'm pretty sure it's gyne...i'm 6'.i used to be 230 lbs, doctor told me to lose weight, i'm down to 270..but the more weight i lost, the more it stuck out, i guess fat people are "normal" with big chests...i don't have an extreme case, but i've had the hard discs under my breast since puberty...honestly until 3 days ago, i didn't even know so many other people suffered from this...there was a toronto star article talking about guys that take steroids that get gyne (i've never taken steroids) and they were talking about estrogen inhibitors, so i started by doing a search for medicine and ended up here...

this board is so great, i've gotten the courage to do something about it, and the fact that OHIP will cover a good chunk of it is awesome news, looks like worst case for the lipo was 1200, i can swing that to get rid of this...

anyone else? i guess i want to hear other peoples experiences to know what to expect...

[Grandpa Bambu]

I'm 6'.i used to be 230 lbs, doctor told me to lose weight, i'm down to 270..but the more weight i lost, the more it stuck out.

Welcome to the board Dude!  

You are 6' huh.... JCF told me during my consultation that most of his Gyne patients are 6'+. I am six foot also. Interesting eh?

Yeah, my weight has been up and down also. I agree with you 100% that the more weight you loose, the more noticeable Gyne is. I think that's why alot of Gyne guys are overweight. Recently I was up to 227 pound but now I am 201. Joined Weight Watchers, rejoined the gym and cut back on my beer consumption big time.

GoneForGood pretty much hit the nail on the head with what to expect for the surgery but as you wanted other experiences, I'll tell you my story....

Watched 'Men With Breasts' ( Gynecomastia Documentary ) on TLC - The Learning Channel. Did a search on the Net and found this Site. I found that there were two local PS's who perform Gyne removal. Dr. Fielding and Dr. Lista. Lista is closer to me, however, Lista's proceedure is not covered by OHIP and Fielding's is. So.... JCF it was. I paid $1280 (incl GST).

Through this Site I found JCF's phone number and called the next day to set up a consultation. Dr. Fielding's receptionist's name is Leslie. Just tell Leslie that you would like to make an appointment to see the Doc for Gynecomastia. Some guys feel embarrassed about making 'The Call'. Don't be! Both Dr. Feilding and Leslie are medical professionals and to them, Gyne is just another condition that needs to be fixed.

It was three weeks from 'The Call' to my consultation. JCF is a really nice guy whom I felt very at ease with. He examined my moobs for a few minutes and said that I definitely had Gyne. Made another appointment for four weeks later to sign all the papers for surgery. Two weeks after that was my surgery.

Surgery was at 11:30 am at St. Josephs hospital but had to check in at 9:00 am. You have to wear a hospital gown and paper booties for your feet. At 11:30 I was taken to the surgery room. There were three female surgical assistants in the room and two of them prepped me. JCF arrived a few minutes later. With a marker, the Doc made some circular marks on my moobs and then took some pics. A plastic mask was then put over my face, one of the assistants said "Good Night", I said "Good Night" and the next thing I remember was waking up in the Post-Op ward.

I was very cold in the recovery room and had to ask a nurse for a blanket. The blanket was prewarmed. Nice touch huh! Some guys say that the anesthetic causes you to be cold. A nurse had to change the tensor wrap for me as there was alot of drainage ( no drain tubes/bottles ). A little while later, my Wife arrived. Waited about and hour and then was released to go home. The Wife drove as Hospital Staff will not let you drive yourself home. Not a wise thing to do anyhow...  

Dropped by the pharmacy on the way home to get some Tylenol 3's for the Post-Op pain. It was more of a discomfort than pain actually. I wore the tensor wrap for a few days but as it was making me very itchy, I took it off. Had my follow up with JCF 6 days Post-Op at St. Josephs and he said that everything looked good. However, I don't think he was pleased that I took the tensor off. I don't suggest you do that. Keep wearing it. Your healing chest needs the compression. If you do take it off, itching/showers etc... put it back on again ASAP. I went to a local medical supply store and got a better tensor wrap. Much easier to put on and take off than the tensor that the hospital gave me. There is a pic of the tensor that I bought on my pics Page ( click on 'pics' in my Sig ).

Anyways.... that's enough typing for now. My pics tell the rest of the story....

Later...

John.

[toronto]

lol, i just noticed i said down to 270, i meant 170

[toronto]

Hey Bambu, i made the appointment, it's in mid-april.

from your pics, it's a night and day difference, hopefully mine works out as well...

quick question, do you think the tensor bandage is good enough? if you had to do it over again would you have bought a compression vest? they look like they're easier to put on and take off

[toronto]

Also Bambu, what time were you finally released, while your in your gown and  booties waiting to go in, where are you? a waiting room?

[Grandpa Bambu]

lol, i just noticed i said down to 270, i meant 170

Kinda thought that's what you meant.  

John.

[Grandpa Bambu]

Also Bambu, what time were you finally released, while your in your gown and  booties waiting to go in, where are you? a waiting room?

It was about 2:30 PM when they released me.

Not really a room as such but more of a wide hallway that has several cubicals with chairs on one side. There will be others waiting with you to go for their surgeries. I was talking to this really nice looking girl while I waited for surgery and she was so pi$$ed that her boyfriend/hubby ( not sure which ) didn't stay and wait with her. She looked very scared to me. I felt sorry for her.

Guy.... if you have Gyne and it bothers you, have the surgery. You will not regret it.  

John.

[toronto]

Bambu, I want your opinion on the compression vest question i asked in this thread...

[Grandpa Bambu]

Bambu, I want your opinion on the compression vest question i asked in this thread...

Sorry Dude.... I did not see that post at first.

Yeah, the tensor bandage that you get at the hospital gives enough compression, however, they make you itchy and are a PITA to put on. That is why I bought the one that is shown on my Pics Page. It has velcro and takes only seconds to put on and take off. You don't really need a compression vest unless you don't want anyone to know that you are wearing a compression garment.

Try the hospital tensor and if you don't like it, get something different as I did.

John.

[Grandpa Bambu]

Hey Bambu, i made the appointment, it's in mid-april.

Excellent! Please let us know how it goes...

John.

[toronto]

Sorry Dude.... I did not see that post at first.

Yeah, the tensor bandage that you get at the hospital gives enough compression, however, they make you itchy and are a PITA to put on. That is why I bought the one that is shown on my Pics Page. It has velcro and takes only seconds to put on and take off. You don't really need a compression vest unless you don't want anyone to know that you are wearing a compression garment.

Try the hospital tensor and if you don't like it, get something different as I did.

John.

where'd you get it? shoppers drug mart? walmart? who makes it?

man, i wish i had found this board earlier and had this done in winter, easier to hide any compression garment or tensor..ah well, i'm so thankful for finding this board that it doesn't really matter...found the board last saturday, booked the appointment tuesday, as bad as it sounds, knowing other people are in the EXACT same boat was such a relief after so many years of suffering alone...

[Grandpa Bambu]

where'd you get it? shoppers drug mart? walmart? who makes it?

Got it from a medical supply store at Steeles Ave. and Dixie Rd. in Brampton.
It is made by Dale Medical Products Inc. You can read about the compression belt here.

DMP Inc. calls it an 'Ab Binder' but hey, it's a compression belt non the less. Doesn't matter where on the body you use it. I found it to work great! It was $50 + taxes.

I've looked in stores such as Shoppers Drug Mart and other Pharmacies and found mostly tesnsor wraps much like what the hospital supplies you with.

man, i wish i had found this board earlier and had this done in winter, easier to hide any compression garment or tensor..ah well, i'm so thankful for finding this board that it doesn't really matter...found the board last saturday, booked the appointment tuesday, as bad as it sounds, knowing other people are in the EXACT same boat was such a relief after so many years of suffering alone...

Know exactly how you feel there Broh!

We are with you every step of the way!


John.

[FB]

Yes, Fielding will not even mention a compression vest but he won't discount it either. I bought mine from underworks and wore it for like 5 days but I'm not sure it really did anything. A tensor bandage is probably all you really need.

Got luck on your surgery and be assured you are in good hands with Fielding, as you can see with the before and after photo's of Bambu and my pics - he's top notch.