I Had Private Treatment for Breast Reduction

Ruby is an attractive woman in her late 30s, who is dressed in flattering casual clothes and who looks relaxed and happy. “I am feeling absolutely fantastic and I am enjoying going out, doing lots of new things and exercising for the first time in years,” she says.

In the last six months, Ruby lost a stone and a half in weight. Not through gradual dieting, or a crash diet, and her weight loss happened overnight, literally.

“After years of misery I opted to go into a private hospital and have a breast reduction operation, which changed me from a size 40K bra (imagine how difficult that was to get!) to a 36DD,” explains Ruby.

Problems with Large Breasts

Many women with small breasts often want to have larger ones and opt for breast augmentation surgery but very large breasts can become a medically significant health problem. “My breasts grew very quickly when I was a teenager and by my early 20s they were really a problem. I couldn’t do any sports to keep fit, only swimming and even then it was very difficult to get a swimming costume to fit,” says Ruby. She even went swimming at 7.30am, when there were few other people there. “Going after school was a nightmare because of all the taunting I got from teenage boys,” she adds.

But it was not only teenage boys. Men in the street thought it was fine to leer at Ruby and make lewd suggestions. “They thought I was fair game, just because I had breasts bigger than Jordan. But unlike her and other ‘stars’ I tried to hide mine away as much as possible, wearing baggy shirts and sack-like clothes,” says Ruby. Her first job in a bank was good and she did well but promotion was not very easy to get because of the attitude that her large breasts produced in co-workers and managers alike. “I know they called me ‘booby-Ruby’ and it really hurt,” she explains.

A Pain in the Neck, Back and Shoulders

The weight of Ruby’s large breasts was considerable and it put great strain on her neck and upper back. “I was in constant pain, particularly after a long day at work if I had to do a lot of computer work. I found it difficult to get a supportive bra and the weight of my breasts was dragging me around all day,” says Ruby. When she began to get recurrent headaches and her hands became numb after sitting in the office for long hours, Ruby approached her GP to see if there was anything that could be done.

A Private Mammoplasty

“My female GP was very sympathetic and said I probably had a very good case to get a surgical breast reduction done on the NHS. The trouble was, it took ages for a decision to be made and I wanted to get something done within the next year. I just couldn’t stand the constant pain anymore.”

Ruby’s GP referred her to a local private hospital and the surgeon there agreed that she would benefit from breast reduction surgery. As she had private health insurance with work, this fortunately agreed to cover her for the operation and she was booked in. “I had to wait four weeks, which really seemed to drag by but then I was in hospital for just three days and went to stay with mum and dad afterwards.”

The operation went very smoothly, and Ruby accepted that she might not be able to breastfeed a baby in the future. “To be honest, if I hadn’t had the operation, there is no way I could see myself getting married or having any children, so this was definitely the lesser problem,” she says. Once the incisions healed and the soreness resolved, Ruby was fitted with a very supportive bra. “It was amazing, I felt like a new woman. The grooves in my shoulders where my bra straps used to dig into me started to heal, my headaches went and my fingers were no longer numb because of the pressure caused by the weight of my large breasts,” explains Ruby.

The Right Decision

Ruby is now even more convinced that having a mammoplasty was the right thing to do. “I do have scars and the operation did carry risks but I wish I had gone to the GP earlier and had this done years ago. I can now do all the things that my breasts were stopping me from doing and I am really going to make the most of my life,” she adds.