My NHS experience so far...

[radio-boy]

Cheers buddy, ill let you know how i get on. Infact, i think wether im satisfied or not, ill be back to tell my story. Lets hope its a good one.

[radio-boy]

HOLY CRAP.

My surgery is tommorrow  

Friggin terrified.

[phantom]

givemerespite

I am no guru.  I just happen to be a medical representative that deals in hormonal products.  It also means I deal with the NHS everyday and know how to work the system and having been through the gynaecomastia process from diagnosis to satisfactory surgery, I just want to impart what I know with other.  Thanks for the kind comments.

Best wishes to you r_b for your surgery TODAY!

[radio-boy]

Nope its still tomorrow, i was posting at a silly time in the morning!

Really im hoping to be home tomorrow night... but i doubt that alot, but friday is more likely. Just a few final q's before judgement day.

1: how big are the bandages likely to be? how long are they usually on for? noticable under a Tshirt? its a bit warm for jumpers/coats!

2: never had anesthetic before, how long will i be knocked out for if my op is at 2? when am i likely to wake up? when i wake up, will i be out of it for a while or ok to ring my folks about 5ish?

3: will movement be painful straight away?

4: will i feel/see any result straight away?

5: when does the bruising go away so its un noticable that ive had surgery?

I know most if not all of the questions are subjective, but a bit of an idea would be a help. Thanks!

[phantom]

r_b

I can only answer your questions by telling you what I went through.  You can ask your surgeon when you meet him or her just before you go to theatre.

1)  My bandages covered the whole chest area with 'straps' of bandages over the shoulders.  At it's thickest, it was about one inch.  It was not particularly noticeable with a baggy shirt over it and definitely not with a jacket.

2)  I was out for about two hours.  I felt very awake straight away, although a friend that came to see me straight after surgery said I was talking all kinds of crap.  I think I was on some kind of high, knowing it was all over.  I spent the whole afternoon and most of the night chatting to people.  Naughty really because I was not supposed to using my mobile.

3)  I would say movement is more uncomfortable than painful.  Imagine you do a very heavy workout at the gym today.  Tomorrow you are going to suffer.  I felt no worse than that.  But the pain killers they give you are stronger than what you buy over the counter.  They can also make you constipated so eat lots of fibre.

4)  You won't see the results so to speak because of your bandages.  But I am sure you will try to sneak some kind of look.  Yes, the results are pretty instant.  But remember, you skin and underlying tissues have been very traumatised.  once the bandages are off, you skin will look dark, bruised, macerated, swollen in parts.  This is when many people sink into a temporary depression because the area often looks worse than when you had the boobs.  This is a perfectly normal part of the 'journey.'

5)  I was quite a rapid healer and all bruising had gone within a week.  Most guys seem to have stubborn marks that can persist for up to four weeks.

Hope that helps.  I look forward to your post op news.

Best wishes.

[radio-boy]

Cheers mate, whatever happens tomorrow, youve been a great help all the way through the pre surgery stages. Ive got some Bio Oil stuff that is meant to be good for stretch marks and scarring, do you think thats a good idea?

[phantom]

I've no idea mate.  As far as I know, there is no clinical data to support how useful it is.  I have a generous serving of stretch marks from weight loss.  Not nice, but I named them, moved on and got over

[markashleigh1979]

I have a generous serving of stretch marks from weight loss.  Not nice, but I named them, moved on and got over  

Hi phantom, have you ever used cream (stretch mark cream) to see if it will help reduce the scarring ?
I found this site on the web, they offer free trials of their stretchmark cream....thought it might be of some interest .

http://www.ecresearchcorp.com/SearchResults.asp?Cat=33&utm_source=google&utm_medium=ppc&utm_term=stretch+mark+cream&utm_campaign=ecr_trilastin_int&Click=30672&GCID=S12345x001&KEYWORD=stretch+mark+cream

[radio-boy]

Well, im out. Overall experience was fine, not in much pain etc.

Im just not sure if the result is what i want and wether it makes much difference. I only have very small dressings over my nipples, so i have a very good idea of what i will look like. We will see i guess.... :-/

[outertrial]

Do you think they didnt take out enough?

[radio-boy]

Probably. the difference is pretty slight.  

[outertrial]

Yeah, I heard that about the NHS surgery.

[radio-boy]

Im still undecided....

With my top off, undoubtably, i look better. I can be confident when sleeping with the ladies now, i wont be self conscious in that department at all, and for me, that is a massive plus, if not the main reason i got the surgery done.

Under clothes it doesnt look so great for some reason. i think some of this may be down the the fact that i have a barrel shaped chest, no joke.

Underneath the nipple there is alot of hard tissue, that is probably scar tissue if what i have read on here is correct. If i massage that and break it down, will that increase my flatness, or will the scar tissue just turn into some other tissue?

Thanks folks.

[phantom]

Keep with it r_b

When do you go back to your surgeon for a post-op review?  I would not worry about 'final' results until at least three months, so if your next consultation is significantly before then, ask if you can go back around at three to six months later to get their opinion and let them know how you feel about the result then.

I don't actually know just how much difference massage makes.  It is said to help flattening and healing (as it encourages blood to the area).  So feel free to massage as soon as it is comfortable to do so.  I did 10 mins morning and 10 mins evening.  But do what your surgeon advises.