A recent global study has found that over 70% of women are unhappy with the size or shape of their breasts.
Love them or hate them; there’s no denying that the world is obsessed with boobs. Seeing as they’re plastered all over billboards and magazines, it’s impossible to escape the images of perfectly shaped breasts. Unfortunately, this has led to mass insecurity among women.
Luckily, breast augmentation is an option for those who decide to take matters into their own hands. However, this is a significant procedure with possible risks and complications, one of which is scarring. If you’re considering getting a boob job, you need to do your research first.
Read on to learn about the risks of scarring after breast augmentation surgery.
Pre-Op Preparation to Reduce Scarring
Before getting a breast augmentation procedure, it’s essential to do thorough research. Choosing the cheapest surgery on the market is more likely to leave you with unsightly scarring.
You should look into the types of modern procedures that minimize breast augmentation scarring if this is something important to you.
You also need to understand that breast augmentation recovery is a long process and look at some breast augmentation before and after photos to give you an idea of what to expect.
Once you’re committed to getting surgery, you should shop around for a surgeon that you can trust. A good plastic surgeon will answer all your pre-op questions and give you a comprehensive after-care plan.
Scarring One Week Post-Op
The first week after your surgery is the most important if you want to reduce scarring. Your surgeon will provide you with an after-care plan, and it is vital to follow this 100%.
You should leave your dressings on during this week so you won’t be able to see the extent of the changes to your breasts, but you’ll be able to feel sensitivity and swelling.
Bear in mind that you’ll need to rest after surgery, so you should stock up on pre-cooked meals, painkillers, and anything else you’ll need before your surgery.
The week after your operation, you should wear a support bra 24 hours a day to keep your breasts supported and reduce any pressure on your scar. You can wear this type of bra for up to six months after surgery, but it is vital to stop complex scar tissue from forming in the first week.
You should stay hydrated to enhance the elasticity of your skin and promote healing. If your skin is dehydrated, it won’t get the adequate oxygen and nutrients to help the wound heal. Equally, smoking depletes the oxygen content of the skin, so avoid cigarettes after surgery.
Whatever you do, just make sure that you follow your plastic surgeon’s advice.
Scarring One Month Post-Op
After one month, you can expect to have visible scarring. Your scars will probably be raised and still have some discoloration.
At this stage, you should be living a healthy lifestyle to help your scars heal; a nutritious diet does wonders for skin healing. Beyond diet, you should avoid direct sunlight on your scars to prevent further damage and don’t have scalding showers.
You can help the process along by taking vitamin E supplements and applying cortisone cream to your scars.
Scarring Six Months Post-Op
After six months, your new breasts will be starting to take their final shape; they’ll begin to feel and look more like natural breasts, and your scars will be noticeably decreased.
Remember that it can take up to 18 months for your scars to heal completely, but after six months, they should be well on their way.
You can help by adopting a daily gentle massage routine in the area. This will increase blood flow to the skin, helping soften and flatten the scar. You can also apply regular silicone treatments to help the skin heal quickly.
If you’re a keen gym-goer, you can cautiously begin to incorporate upper bodyweight exercises but don’t overdo it as you risk impeding the healing process.
If you feel like your scars aren’t healing correctly, make sure to get back in touch with your surgeon for a check-up.
Scarring 18 Months Post-Op
Somewhere between 12-18 months, your new breasts should settle into their final form.
They’ll ‘drop’ into a natural position, and your scarring will be unnoticeable unless you know what to look for. If you examine your breasts, you’ll be able to see faint lines, but you can rest assured that other people will not notice.
However, some people experience post-operative complications such a poor wound healing; if this happens, you should be in close contact with your surgeon to evaluate your options.
If your scars haven’t healed in this time frame, one option is to have laser skin resurfacing. As the name suggests, this procedure uses a laser to flatten, re-color, and re-texture the skin’s surface and effectively hide scarring.
Reduce Scarring From Breast Augmentation With These Tips
That’s your in-depth guide to the possibility of long-term breast augmentation scarring and how to prevent it.
Although there are always risks with surgery, any scarring should be minimal and not noticeable to other people if you take these precautions. So, if you were considering getting breast augmentation surgery, just make sure you’re ready for a long road of after-care to get the best results!
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