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Mommy Wants Her Body Back

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"Between having children and getting older, the breast tissue is going to change," says Dr. Iffath Hoskins, chair of the department of obstetrics and gynecology at Lutheran Medical Center in New York City. "And women today are more aware of their cosmetic issues and the choices they have to address them."

Surgery is a pretty drastic option, with the pain, risks and recovery time that come with it. For now, the majority of women still seem more likely to invest in a new bra than a new pair of breasts. Though the number of breast surgery patients is increasing, they remain a small percentage of the total population (about 329,000 women underwent breast augmentation procedures last year). But the trendline is clear—and to some observers it's worrisome. "Are we getting to the point where there's no such thing as natural aging?" asks Diana Zuckerman, president of the National Research Center for Women and Families. "So you have a baby and you no longer look 20. Is that so hard to deal with?" For a small but growing number of women, the answer, it seems, is yes.

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Posted By: nativerose @ 04/23/2008 12:20:53 PM

the title reads more older women are getting breast surgery, I'm not old but have taken the idea of getting breast implants into consideration for when i'm older (yes maybe I am vain). I've never done any research or put much thought into it since I didn't think it would be necessary yet. After reading all the risks on plastic surgery and all the women that have had problems with them I'm not even going to consider having breast implants anymore. So thank you.
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Posted By: haelftw @ 04/23/2008 12:03:14 PM

I see so many of you thinkng that berast surgery is pure vanity and foolish to boot. But as a 40 something year old divorced mother who suffered from severe breast asymmetry (>1 cup size) after pregnancy and weight loss, I can tell you that psychological well-being is as important as physical well-being. I won't say that my divorce was caused by my differently sozed breasts, but i will tell you that my ex was completely disgusted by them. So you tell yourself that there are better people out there that will accept you exactly as you are. It is very, very difficult to maintain a healthy self-esteem when rejection follows immediately after you (finally) become physically intimate with someone. And I never kept my 'difference' a secret. It was talked about long before anyone ever saw me shirtless. So after careful selction I now have two evenly sozed breasts, both the same size as my larger pre-surgery breast. I also have a caring, supportive, long-term partner who is aware of my surgery and what prompted it and he is able to admit that had he met me pre-surgery, he might not have stayed.
So before you automatically call all of us 'vain', ill-informed or selfish I think you should examine what you would do if you were in my shoes.
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Posted By: haelftw @ 04/23/2008 12:03:05 PM

I see so many of you thinkng that berast surgery is pure vanity and foolish to boot. But as a 40 something year old divorced mother who suffered from severe breast asymmetry (>1 cup size) after pregnancy and weight loss, I can tell you that psychological well-being is as important as physical well-being. I won't say that my divorce was caused by my differently sozed breasts, but i will tell you that my ex was completely disgusted by them. So you tell yourself that there are better people out there that will accept you exactly as you are. It is very, very difficult to maintain a healthy self-esteem when rejection follows immediately after you (finally) become physically intimate with someone. And I never kept my 'difference' a secret. It was talked about long before anyone ever saw me shirtless. So after careful selction I now have two evenly sozed breasts, both the same size as my larger pre-surgery breast. I also have a caring, supportive, long-term partner who is aware of my surgery and what prompted it and he is able to admit that had he met me pre-surgery, he might not have stayed.
So before you automatically call all of us 'vain', ill-informed or selfish I think you should examine what you would do if you were in my shoes.