RECOVERY AFTER A BREAST AUGMENTATION & YOUR POST-OP APPOINTMENT

You just had your breast augmentation surgery...now what? You are in the car with your trusted transporter, and what comes next?

Rest, healing, and a few appointments to make sure you have the best results possible for your breast augmentation!

Having someone at home with you while you recover from breast augmentation surgery is a must-especially if you have young children. Let me state that again–having someone at home to help is a MUST. A MUST. Your focus needs to be on healing, you want the best results possible and the optimal healing environment includes you not exerting yourself. Think lots of reading books, magazines, watching movies and shows, and relaxing. Your body needs to heal. Even with the small incisions I create. I also recommend that my patients eat a healthy, balanced diet. Have nutritious foods in the home (stock up before your surgery). Remember–optimal environment for optimal healing.

For the first couple weeks following your breast augmentation surgery, you should not lift a significant amount of weight (more than ten pounds) so be cautious with what household chores you are doing. Picking up your children will not be allowed for at least three weeks (depending on their weight) so you will need to keep that in mind and have help when needed. We want you up and walking around even on the day of your breast augmentation surgery, but nothing too strenuous. Short, leisurely walks are perfect. Do not submerge your breast augmentation incisions for at least three weeks. So no pools, baths, or lakes. Showering is fine beginning the day after surgery, but do not submerge your incision. Water running over the breast augmentation incision is fine.

I advise not exercising beyond a light, casual walk for the first few weeks. Weight lifting is not advised. You want the breast implants to settle into their position and not stress the body. Take a few weeks off from working out, I promise it will be easy to transition back. Remember, you want the best results.

Your first post-op appointment is scheduled a week after surgery and if possible it’s best to have someone to drive you. Most patients are off of pain medication at this point (I really only recommend two to three days on the pain medication if possible, but of course that varies with every patient) and then can drive themselves to the post-operative breast augmentation appointment. I will continue to have you come in every few weeks, and then every few months to watch how you are healing and see how the implants are dropping into place. Once the six weeks have passed since surgery, you will be able to go back to working out and doing whatever you want-and those six weeks fly by. Follow-up appointments are scheduled every few weeks, then 3 months, 6 months, and 1 year. After that, we ask that you come back every few years to check in. The post operative appointments are included in your surgery price.

Also, I always like to remind patients that your breast implants are placed high on the chest and they "drop and fluff" or settle into their final destination in typically 3 months. Don't worry, gravity does it's thing here.

-Dr. D

Dr. Chase Derrick sees patients in the DFW area including Dallas, Plano, Frisco, and Richardson. He also has an office in Sherman, serving the Texoma region. Dr. Chase Derrick is Board-Certified through the American Board of Plastic Surgery and a member of the American Society of Plastic Surgeons and the Aesthetic Society of Plastic Surgeons.