Alright guys I am about 5 days post-op and believe it is about time I posted a complete recall of my surgery. I think it is the absolute least I can do to give something back to the board that has given me so much. It is because of all you guys that I am sitting here now gyne-free.
Some of the things I write may be completely irrelevant, and some not, but I will include everything for the sake of thoroughness.
A bit of background information first: I am male in my early 20-s, and have had large breasts for almost as long as I can remember. I believe it became an issue for me around the age of 12-13. Anyway I have been teased and taunted just like the rest of everyone, but ultimately I don't think it has left me with any serious mental problems. As time moved on and as people matured, the teasing seemed to become less and less. Now I have a very active social life and many good friends, none of whom would mention the problem. I am more than happy to wear just a plain t-shirt in front of them (in public however... is another story). I also have a great girlfriend, and have never had any serious troubles with the opposite sex, or any serious confidence issues.
At about 188lb, I would say I had a good A-cup. Pretty big compared to some of the minor problems you come across on this site. The thing is, they seem to be very soft... I did not have a problem with puffy nipples or anything like that... I just seemed to have large breasts. I assumed that they were mostly fat; I did not feel any hard mass underneath.
I had previously looked up male breast reduction online in the toronto area, and had discovered the term 'gynecomastia', and realized that there was surgery to correct the problem. However at the time I unfortunately hadn't discovered this board, and thought surgery was a bit extreme, and wasn't too fond of the idea. One year later, for some reason I decided to look up the issue again, and came across this board. Over the next few days I think I read over literally every single post in every single forum of this board, and realized that surgery was the way to go.
So I booked consultations with two highly-recommended gyno surgeons in the GTA: Dr. Fielding, and Dr. Lista. Most people from this board chose Fielding, mainly because he was cheap (less than $1000 CAD, as most of the cost is absorbed by OHIP). Dr. Lista was also highly recommended, but much more expensive (total cost was $5000 plus GST). Dr. Lista uses what is called "Power Assisted Liposuction" (PAL) as opposed to regular tumescent liposuction, which he claims (and some initial research confirms) is superior to regular lipo (less brusing, faster healing, etc). Since my gyne was mostly fat, I assumed that lipo would be mostly what I needed, and that PAL was the way to go.
Anyway my consultation with Dr. Lista was first. I arrived at his office, and was met with his incredibly friendly staff. They make you feel right at home, and were very supportive throughout the whole process. Every successive time I walked into their office they would all greet me by name, and engage in a bit of small talk. Anyway, his office was very clean, well lit, and 'modern'. All the other patients in there seemed to be 30ish women, who I assume were all there for boob-jobs.
I was sent in to an examination room at the back, and waited for a few minutes for the doctor to arrive. I wasn't really nervous at all, as I was well aware that Dr. Lista handles more than 100 gyne cases every year, and has probably seen much worse. Mine was just another one to him. Anyway he eventually walked in with a big smile on his face, and asked how I was doing. I told him what I wanted done, and he asked me to take my shirt off. He poked and prodded for a minute or so then looked at me and said "yep, we can fix this". He explained to me his techniques, and how he thinks they are better. He said that PAL can usually break up most of the glandular tissue under the nipple and suck it out, without having to make the 'peri-areolar' incision. He also explained that for patients needing more extensive gland removal, he had developed a special technique where he inserts a special device through the liposuction incision (made under the arm), to extract the gland. All in all he seemed very confident, and I was basically sold.
I told him that I had already seen Dr. Fielding (even though I actually hadn't yet), and had been told basically the same thing, but that fielding was about $4000 cheaper. Dr. Lista said there was no room to move on the price, and explained the benefits of his procedure. He was not at all forceful, and encouraged me to look into other options until I was certain. He even said Fielding was a great doctor, and that the two of them did their residency together. Anyway I knew I could afford the surgery, I knew that I wanted the PAL, and I knew that I would have to wait months before I could go in for surgery with Fielding, so I told him right then and there I wanted surgery with him. He asked me if I wanted to go home and sleep on it, and I told him no, I didn't want to waste any more time.
He walked me to the front and the ladies went over the whole procedure with me, had me sign a few forms, and gave me a prescription which I needed to bring on the surgery day (painkillers, anti-biotics, anti-nausea stuff, etc). Again for the whole time they were incredibly helpful, answered all questions I had, and were very friendly. I had a surgery date scheduled for about two weeks later. (Timeline so far: Day 0, discover this board. Day 7, consult with Lista. Day 21: Surgery day)
I went in a week later for a pre-op consult. Nothing new here really, just went over the whole thing again.
Alright after typing all that my hand is killing... so I need to take a little break. Consider this to be continued...
Topic: Surgery (PAL) with Dr. Lista in Toronto, (Read 5799 times)
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