One More Story, 4/15 Surgery

[Noseguard]

5 Days to Surgery
I am so bored waiting for surgery last night I shaved my chest just for the hell of it.  It was uneventful last night, but this morning the sight of my hairless chest gave me an idea.

My G is so bad maybe if they were greased up and viewed without my head or belly they actually may look like a great woman’s chest.

So I grabbed the baby oil and greased em up.  Then I dimly lit my room.  Next I angled the mirror on my dresser just right so you could only view my chest. And you know what, I know at least a dozen women who would kill for my chest.   

Thanks to Mrs.Mom for her post. There is a sincere joy in your heart that comes through in your posts that can only be felt by a parent who's child has found true happiness. 
 
I recall my mother’s reaction to the first time I mustered up the confidence to tell her I had chest issues. I was 12yrs old.  We were headed for the local outdoor pool at the YMCA.   We would often go there on summer days and it was not uncommon to spend 6 hours there.  I would always be pushing for the whiffle ball game, ping pong, or anything other than swimming.  Of course it always came back to swimming.  One day I told my mom flat out I did not want to go, I was too embarrassed.  Her response was “oh come on, no one cares about your chest”.  Wrong.

No one loves her kids more than my mom.  In fact 28 yrs later she is very supportive.  In fact she is flying halfway across the country to watch my kids while my wife takes me to surgery.

I don’t blame her for anything, no ones fault, just a cruel biological joke.

[Noseguard]

4 Days to Surgery

Today it was 77 degrees in New Jersey.  We have had a very cold winter and today was really the first great day.

It had me thinking about opening our pool soon.  Usually we do that in early May.  If I was having any last minute thoughts of backing down they went away today.  Just the idea of having a shirtless day at the beach or poolside was enough to set my mind straight for Tuesday's surgery.

Funny story.  I have lost about 50lbs getting ready for this (and just to improve my health) and last week I was at a family function with my in-laws.  My weight loss was a topic of discussion.  At one point I stood up and walked across the living room where everyone was congregated.  As I walked in front of my brother in law he asked in a loud voice for all to hear "has the weight loss helped with the man boobs?".  I kept walking but as I did I said "NO, and that is a problem".  No one in the room other than my wife knew I was only weeks away from surgery.  My other brother in law responded (as I kept walking) "surgery is the answer".  I was not upset at all, each of them has their own "body issues", and it was not meant meanly.  I was shocked to hear they had any idea about G surgery.  I guess they will know how I go rid of my potatoes without me even telling them.

Maybe 15 years ago that event would have bothered me, but not now.

[Noseguard]

3 Days to Surgery

As bad as my chest looks, I think I will be looking at skin tightening sometime in the winter. Hope Im wrong.

Made my final two pre-surgery purchases.  I treated myself to a very nice "North Face" zipper front  shell to wear after surgery.  I am assuming a zipper vs a pullover make more sense.

Also splurged for the Arnica cream and supplements. Already have my meds so I think I am good.

Now all I have to do is find some way to occupy myself for the next 72+ hours. 

[what2do?]

goodluck man, who's ur ps ?

[Noseguard]

2 Days to Surgery

My doc is Jacobs in NYC.

Had a couple of consults, but in the end I chose him for three reasons.

One, he communicates very well, both listening and speaking. Has answered every question very promptly and thoroughly.  Most of those I asked anonymously through private emails from this board without him knowing I was even a patient of his, which speaks volumes.

Two, experience.  From my consults I formed the opinion (right or wrong) that most PS have practices that are 99% tummy tucks, facelifts, and female breast augmentation.  I felt the ones I talked to did Gyne surgery as a compliment to their other work.  For Jacobs, and a few others, seems like they do mostly Gyne surgery and that was an important distinction.

Three, this board.  I must have email 20 of his patients that post here openly as Jacobs clients.  All replied favorably to their experience with him.

Cost is high, but I could not see overlooking anyone of the above to save $2K.

[Noseguard]

1 Day to Surgery

Yes.  30++ years of of being a skin curtain chauffeur are coming to an end.

How do you put into a post what a day like tomorrow means?  Impossible.

Jacob's office staff called today.  I am supposed to take an antibiotic tonight with dinner, this is to get a jump start on killing any bacteria that might cause a post op infection.

Tomorrow morning my wife and I will leave our house in suburban NJ and make the 60 mile journey into NYC.  We will have to leave by 7am to be there for the scheduled 9:30 arrival.

Once there I will be eating my breakfast, two anti nausea pills (without water).  Could be out as early as Noon.

Thanks to everyone here who shared their experiences.  This place has been the single biggest source of information for this condition I have found, by far!

Sharpen up the pocket knife Dr. Jacobs, I am on my way.

[what2do?]

i'm happy for you, i'm also looking into dr jacobs for my liberation one day =) goodluck with healing and keep us posted ...

[Noseguard]

Surgery Done!

OK for all the 100K+ posts I have read during my 1 days, 21 hours and 46 minutes on line I don't recall anyone talking about the singe most painful experience of day.  Right now it feel like David Ortiz just used my head for batting paractice.  The caffeine withdrawl headache is, without exaggeration this time, by far more painful than my chest.   

However, the rest of the day was exactly as most of you have posted here.

My wife drove me in to NYC early today for my 10am surgery.  Pre-op questions, putting on the gown, and pictures took about 30-40 minutes.

In surgery the IV started, I relaxed, I fell asleep, I woke up. 

Immediately after I feet really good, mostly because the local anesthesia that they use during surgery was still in effect.

Now, 7 hours post op, I feel sore, whoever used the "heavy chest workout" analogy was spot on.

Napped today for 3hours.

I think the emotion for the day is RELIEVED.   

Relieved gyne is gone
Relieved surgery is over
Relieved I don't have have to hide my body
Relieved I can wear the clothes I want to

One last thought, only time will tell on the final outcome but for everything up to and including today, Dr. Jacobs has been excellent in his work.   And, I am not talking about his ability to rid me of my G, those results are still unknown. 

His straight talk on my condition, frank discussions about my expectations, and his ability to communicate effectively and fully are skills uncommon in the medical profession IMO. 

Thanks Doc, thanks fellow G sufferers and posters.  Thanks to my family for their support.

Today was a great day!

[GynO_DuDe]

Fantastic.

Welcome to the other side, and have a safe, steady recovery mate.

[Noseguard]

1 Day Post Op

I really don't plan on posting everyday, promise.

However, I must say how much difference a day makes.

I feel good actually, very good.  Raising my hands above my head is not easy, but I could certainly get dressed myself if I had to.

Also, I have made this observation; these first 48 hours are really no mans land.  The binder Dr. J has me in is tight, big, and soft.  I really cannot tell how my chest is AT ALL. I will remove it tomorrow for my first shower and have a peak.

I have done a good job selling myself on the idea that this operation will only be a first step, and a second skin tightening procedure will be needed in about 8 mos.

I will post again after my first follow up with the doc on Tuesday.

I am happy today!

[Noseguard]

1 Week After Surgery

I have been secretly excited this past week.  Everything has gone great.  I feel fine really, only a slight soreness and very minor discomfort.  Even the binder has not been a big deal.

I  say secretly, because my chest looks so good I have been telling myself "the skin could not shrink THAT much" or "it has to get worse that this" or "once the binder comes off my chest will sag and look bad".   My G was SO BAD that I had convinced myself I would not be in good shape until a second skin tightening could be done in about 8 months. All along, hoping that what I was seeing was real, and a realistic preview of my final resuts.

Well today I saw Dr. Jacobs for the first time since my surgery last Tuesday.  I am thrilled to report that he confirmed my hopes, he was VERY please with the skin tightening.  In fact he believes once the swelling goes down, I will be even flatter than I am now.  Dr. J is very careful to always express the healing process is long and things can change somewhat, but all looks "great" so far.

He described to me how he did some sort of procedure well above and below my nipples/chest to help pull the skin and get a better result.  Honestly this has been the only part of the surgery & recovery that I don't really understand.  And you know I don't really care.  You could tell me he used cranberry juice and an used toothbrush to get the result he did and not sure I would care, looks fantastic.

He showed me the before pics, WOW, I carried them around for 30 yrs, but in one short week I had blocked out just how bad they were. Once I post the before and afters you will see what I am talking about.  After the swelling goes down and the bruises clear up I will.

He told me he removed 950cc of gyno goulash from BOTH sides.

These are happy days.  I have bought at least 1/2 dozen new shirts, mostly Under Armor, and our annual family beach vacation can't come soon enough.

I will see him again in 4 weeks.

Two weeks to breaking as sweat, I can't wait.

[what2do?]

i'm happy for you man, i've been thinking about going to dr jacobs as well...do you have any before / after pics ? thanks ..

[Noseguard]

I will put some before and afters, just not yet.

I want to wait until the bruising and swelling go down some. Give me a couple weeks.

Jacobs is a great choice.

[Noseguard]

9 Days After Surgery

One observation about this board.

It seems the majority of posts are about two related themes when it comes to Post Op topics:

1. Questions about healing steps, timeline, or expectations
or
2.Frustration with results or healing

One theme that seems to get missed is the need to find not just a plastic surgeon but one that is an expert or at least has vast experience in the procedure.

Living close to NYC, when I began my search for a surgeon, I thought I would find dozens of great plastic surgeons in the city that had loads of experience with Gynecomastia.  I was half right.  What I found was dozens of great plastic surgeons for nose jobs and face lifts that also did some G surgery as well.  My plumber is a great guy and I am sure he could do some electrical work too, but I would not hire him to do it.  No different with this surgery. 

Here in the US the surgery is expensive I realize travelling to NYC for the expert I used is not realistic for everyone.   However I can not stress enough to everone contemplating surgery not to cut corners on research.  Ask the straight forward questions.  Study the before and after photos. 

I visited one Doc who's pics were so bad I actually thought he was showing me before pictures of poor first procedures that he had corrected and that in a moment he was going to show me his work to fix the problem.  In fact these were examples of his own work, not revision.  I ran from that office and never looked back.

That same doc wanted to do a procedure that I later found out most PS would not do on anyone let alone me.  This was a doc in a well to do town who quoted me $7K. 

Get references
Study the photos
Use this board, go back into historical posts, search for docs, email old posters who used them, get their take
Ask docs how many surgeries for Gynecomastia they do a week/month/year/career

Some of the most convincing referrals I got were from users of this board who had not posted in years.  I PMd them to see how they were doing years later. 

One last thought.  I am continually amazed at how many people ask questions on this board about a lump, a garment, exercise, swelling,............WHY? This board is great for that, but those questions are best asked of your doctor.

We all should expect that a doctor or at least his staff will answer as many stupid or non-stupid questions you may have.  That too should be part of the learning during consultation. Make sure you have a comfort level with the doc.  Is this someone who you feel comfortable will be there when you have a small question 2 days post op or one day pre op?

There are good PS out there, some on this board, but there must be many others.

[Noseguard]

10 Days After Surgery

Two Notes/Thoughts for Today

1.  I am having fun now.  Today after my shower I tried on a medium sized UA shirt and it fit great, even asked my wife how it looked and she agreed.  Medium?  All the shirts in my closet are at least XL and most are XXL.  I had to take the shirt off as my binder still has to stay on for another 11days, but I can't wait!!!

That 3 week mark is HUGE, binder comes off AND I can go back to the gym.  May 6th can't come soon enough.

2.  Yesterday I used the search feature to find other post surgical experiences, mainly of other Jacob's patients just to compare my experience with theirs.  I wanted to see how smoothly their return to exercise went?

I was amazed at how many of those old regulars have not been back on the board in months or even years. That is really great for them.  They are, I assume, pleased with their appearance and have moved on.  Don't blame them for not visiting anymore, hopefully we keep some percentage of those "experienced" members around as it seems new users pop up everyday here with questions.