What No One Shares About Boob Jobs

A “boob job,” is a bit of a misnomer. A lot of people think a boob job is one thing: a breast augmentation, but it’s more involved in that. Today, a “boob job” can mean a breast lift, a breast reduction, a breast augmentation, a breast lift and an augmentation, or a revision.

Our patients have various reasons for getting a boob job. Often, their breasts have changed dramatically over the years because of childbirth, nursing, yo-yo dieting, dramatic weight loss, or aging. Some of them are looking to add volume with implants, while others want a reduction so their back, neck and shoulders will stop aching.

Then, some women come in for a “revision” because it’s been about 10 years since they had their last boob job and they need an update, or because they want to go bigger or smaller. Regardless of the “reason” for a boob job, there’s usually a procedure or a combination of procedures to help patients achieve the look they want, or come really close to it.

Rising (Breast) Trends

If you’re thinking about a breast lift, reduction, or augmentation, you’re not alone. According to the American Society of Plastic Surgeons, there were 313,735 breast augmentations performed in 2018, up 4% from the previous year. There were 109,638 breast lifts performed in 2018, also a 4% increase from the year before. If you’d like to see some of our own patients’ before and after photos, check out our gallery.

There’s so much to learn about breast augmentations, breast lifts, breast reductions, and breast revisions. Here are 5 things that no one tells you about boob jobs:

1. Implants don’t last forever. If you’re considering getting a breast augmentation, it’s important to realize that implants do not last a lifetime. It is common to need them replaced every 10 years or so.

2. Implants can be damaged by trauma. If you’re in a car accident and the airbag hits your chest, or if another force strikes your chest hard, your implants can rupture and need to be replaced.

3. A full recovery takes time. If you’re planning on getting a breast augmentation on Friday and returning to work on Monday, you want to be more cautious. It’s more realistic to take one to two weeks off work, and to wait a solid six weeks before resuming strenuous activities, like running, CrossFit or weightlifting.

4. You’ll need to massage your breasts after surgery. To prevent capsular contracture, a situation where the body builds a “capsule” of scar tissue around the implants and squeezes them, causing pain and hardness, you will need to massage your implants. We generally recommend daily breast massages for a few months after the surgery to ease discomfort.

5. You want to rethink going braless. Although going braless on occasion when you wear a backless cocktail dress is no big deal, you want to think twice about going braless on a regular basis. Even though your breasts are firmer and perkier than before, they’re still fighting gravity. Your implants will have some weight to them and that weight will contribute to how much they sag as the years go by. The type of implants you choose will also be a factor. Saline implants weigh more than silicone.