The One Time Only Diary of a Sixteen Year Old Guy...

[ThatOneGuy]

Hello everybody who may or may not read this. I'm David, I'm sixteen years old, and my manboobs are quite literally larger than my previous girlfriends'. And many girls I know for that matter.

After having them since seventh grade (I'm a Junior in high school now) I finally decided to find a way to get rid of them last year.

I looked at easily hundreds of scams, and articles debunking said scams, and a couple guys who said that one could lose Gyne by lifting weights and exercising etc.

I tried working out and dieting etc. and I lost 20 lbs., but the gyne naturally didn't even so much as budge. Discouraged, I looked even harder on the internet for a cure or at least a temporary remedy. I stumbled upon a spice called Turmeric, which is supposed to hel wiht weight loss, and help balance out your hormones (at least in men), that being said, a lot of people claimed that they lost their gyne by taking 900-2500mg of concentrated turmeric supplements per day. I tried this, it was cheap, and I'm sure that it help me with weight loss, but it definitely didn't do anything for my gyne.

I finally realized, while looking a website boasting about some "miraculous" Gynecomastia correction pill; that my only solid answer beyond this point was surgery. I refuse to weight one or two more years for the off chance that my 'moobs' might go away, I just want to get the surgery and be done with it.

So I talked to my mom about it and she seemed a little bit 'on the fence' about it, but after a while she finally saw that these were legit boobs, and that they wouldn't go away from weight loss, seeing as how a 20 lb. weight loss didn't do jack shit anything to them.

She eventually agreed to let me talk to some doctors and surgeons about it. "Finally" I though "I can get rid of these two huge problems that have plagued me physically and mentally."

Of course, she had to talk to my dad, who I was surprised to find was against the idea, saying that it was just fat and that I need to lose more weight before I make a decision like that.

I lost a lot of weight in the last two months, and while every other part of my body has shrunk considerably, my gyne has stayed the same. My dad doesn't get it, it would seem. So my mom agreed with him (I thought she was with me =/) and now I can't get the surgery.

Why? Because I don't have parental consent, I don't have a means of paying for it as my dad controls my insurance (which I was hoping I could get to pay for my surgery, it would take a while, but it would be worth it) and my mom is in a tight spot financially at the moment (my parents are split up). Not to mention, she doesn't agree with me all of a sudden.

So here I am, twenty lbs. lighter and with huge man boobs that have done me only harm. I can't get a surgery, and I probably won't be able to until I turn eighteen, get a job and find a way to pay for both college, living expenses, and surgery.

FML.

[Raider Fan]

Hi, David, and welcome to gynecomastia.org! You'll find a lot of information here to help you.  

You provided an excellent write-up of your problem and your feelings.  And these are my thoughts about what you wrote....

Sounds like the only way for you to have a chance at surgery right now is to change your dad's mind.  And you can only do that by educating him and providing him with correct information from the literature and professionals who know.  He simply doesn't know about the condition, and it's up to you to educate him.

The very word "gynecomastia" MEANS growth of the breast gland in males.  It doesn't mean growth of the breast from being overweight.  That's called pseudo-gynecomastia....or false gynecomastia.  It is called that because having only fat around the breast is not real gynecomastia.  Real gyne involves the actual growth of breast tissue.....just like a female. Losing weight can help make the problem look a little better, but if you have true gynecomastia, losing weight will do nothing to the inceased size of the gland.  Do women still have breasts when they lose weight? Of course they do.  Losing weight isn't going to make their boobs disappear.  They might get smaller if they lose weight because of the fat loss, but the breast tissue growth will remain.  Most people can understand this if it is explained to them like that.  

Somehow, you need to furnish your dad with written information on this subject, as well as have him talk to doctors who will tell him the facts about gyne.  Possibly the doctors on this site will help you know what to say.  When he hears the truth from a doctor, there will be no disputing the facts.  Encourage him to also look into the condition by doing his own research on the internet. As you know, there's lots of information on it.  

If your dad can come to know the heartache this is causing you, as well as put himself in your position when he was your age, I think he just might change his mind about getting help for you....now!  I really believe this is just a matter of educating both of your parents on this.  He also needs to know that there's nothing weird or "wrong" with you, and that the problem is actually very common.  Sometimes dads don't want to face the problem because they don't want to believe something is wrong with their child.  Your "problem" is not a life threatening one, nor are you "sick".  But it is still a problem that needs correcting to improve your life.  Anyone should be able to understand that with proper educating.  When you look at it like that, there is no doubt that surgery is an absolute necessity. This is your LIFE we are taking about.....and your enjoyment of it.  What's that worth?  Anything, I'd say.  

In the meantime, I would recommend getting a tight fitting compression shirt to not only hide what you have, but to make you feel more comfortable and "normal" as well.  A shirt that makes you look better will give you additional confidence until you are able to have the surgery.  It will also make you feel better about yourself, and that's worth a lot!  

This site has links to the compression shirts, as does the internet.  Just Google "compression shirts for gynecomastia" and a wealth of things will come up.  They aren't that expensive and it will make you feel better, so give one a try.

Good luck with it all.  Things will get better!  

[Dr. Elliot Jacobs]

Absolutely couldn't agree more with Raider Fan -- though his choice of teams is circumspect (I am a Giants and Jets fan).

Dr Jacobs