Recovery After Breast Augmentation Surgery

The length of time it takes for you to recover from your Breast Augmentation surgery depends on several factors. At the Toronto Cosmetic Surgery Institute, we are dedicated to ensuring that your whole experience, from the moment of your first consultation with Dr. Jugenburg, right through to your full recovery after surgery, is as positive and comfortable as it can be.

Prior to your surgery, you should familiarize yourself with the various aspects of the recovery. The following information – how to prepare, what to expect, and what to look for when you are recovering – is therefore provided as a general guide. After surgery, to allow proper healing and to achieve optimal cosmetic results, it is essential that you follow our care guidelines during the initial recovery phase. Thereafter, in order to maintain the new, beautiful appearance of your breasts, long-term proper care of your implants is also important.

If you need clarification on any of the following instructions, or you have a question that is not answered by the information below, please contact us and one of our experienced staff will be ready to help you. Please also be aware that thorough instructions will be explained and provided for you in person following your surgery.

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How to Prepare for Your Recovery

Whether you go home or stay in the Fairmont Royal York Hotel after surgery, you must ensure that a capable adult is able to stay with you for the first 24 hours. You cannot be left alone during the first night after your surgery, and more importantly, you should not be walking without assistance during the first 24 hours. During this time, you may be prone to fainting, falling, and hurting yourself. In the event that you wake up in the middle of the night to go to the bathroom, you must also wake up your companion. You are not allowed to go to the bathroom by yourself during the first night after your surgery.

Preparation for your Breast Augmentation surgery:

• Organize your affairs and schedule, so that you can completely relax and rest after surgery.
• Prepare a small recovery pack to bring to the clinic containing important items, so that you do not have to worry about these after your surgery. This pack might include a water bottle, simple dry snacks, ID (e.g., driver’s license), some cash and a credit card, for example.
• Prepare loose clothing to wear to the clinic and/or to change into after surgery.You do not need to bring a bra to wear after your surgery, as a sports bra or a surgical bra will be given to you.
• Make sure you arrange for someone to bring you to the clinic and to collect you after the surgery – you will not be allowed to leave by yourself.
• Make sure you have someone who can spend the first 24 hours after the surgery with you, to ensure your safety – you must not be left alone.

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What to Expect After Your Surgery

After your Breast Augmentation surgery is complete, the anesthetist will wake you up from your induced sleep. You will then be transferred to the recovery room where our experienced nurses will monitor you until you are fully awake. You may feel a little tired and groggy at this point. Most women do not remember the first 10 – 15 minutes after they wake up.

As a result of the surgery, you will experience some discomfort, swelling of your breasts, and bruising. To minimize this discomfort, protect your wounds, and hold the breasts implants firmly in place during initial healing, you will have supporting bandages wrapped around your chest and will be wearing your surgical bra.

It is normal to have spots of blood on your bandages; this doesn’t mean you are bleeding. You will return to see us in the clinic the following morning, when we will examine you and, if necessary, change your dressings and bandages. You will also have a compression band applied over the top of your implants and/or under the breast fold. If not staying in the Fairmont Royal York Hotel, you will need to have pre-arranged transport to return to the clinic (you will not be allowed to drive yourself).

These effects are normal after breast augmentation surgery:

• Some pain and discomfort in the breast area
• Swelling of the breasts
• Bruising around the breast and chest area
• Small spots of blood on the dressings/bandage
• Nausea, feeling sick
• Constipation can occur if too many painkillers are taken

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Will I Have Pain?

During the surgery, Dr. Jugenburg’s meticulous surgical technique will result in minimal pain. In addition, we use local anesthesia (freezing) to numb the surgical area and minimize the discomfort you feel after the surgery.We will also give you a customized cocktail of medication that we use for all our patients to minimize their discomfort.

How intense the pain will be, therefore depends largely on the surgical technique that is used. Going under the chest muscle (sub-pectoral or sub-muscular) tends to be more uncomfortable than going over the muscle (sub-mammary or sub-glandular). Each person also has a different pain threshold. Most women have minimal discomfort and are able to resume regular activities the day after their breast implant surgery. Irrespective of how little discomfort you might feel, however, you must still follow all our post-operative instructions to ensure proper healing and best results.

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Post-Operative Care

Following your Breast Augmentation surgery you must:

• Return to the clinic at 2 weeks after your surgery to have your sutures removed (in very rare instances where a surgical drain is used, it will also have to be removed once there is minimal  fluid discharge).
• Massage your breasts as advised by Dr. Jugenburg and his staff (do not massage your breasts if you have also had a Breast Lift performed at the time of your Breast Augmentation).

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Restrictions After Your Surgery

Following your Breast Augmentation surgery do not:

• Sleep on your stomach or sides for 6 weeks (you must sleep on your back).
• Run, jump or perform any other vigorous physical activity that will make your breasts bounce and potentially break open your wounds, or dislodge your implants.
• Try to look at your scars by pulling up on your breasts (to see the breast fold and areola scars) or lifting your arms (to see the armpit scars) because you risk breaking open your wounds.
• Lift your arms above your shoulders, especially if your surgery was performed using the armpit (Trans-Axillary) approach.
• Get your wounds wet for the first 2 – 5 days after surgery, unless Dr. Jugenburg has applied a waterproof bandage to protect your scars (Dr. Jugenburg will always tell you if he has used a  waterproof bandage).
• Bath for 2 weeks; after the first few days, you can shower, but make sure to thoroughly dry your wounds (you should use a hairdryer on a low setting to completely dry the wounds and the  dressings).
• Remove your surgical bra and comp ression band(s) until Dr. Jugenburg has advised you to do so (with the exception of when you are washing).
• Wear an underwire bra (or push-up bra) for at least 6 weeks after surgery (that is, until your wounds have properly healed and your breast implants have settled), or as advised by Dr.Jugenburg (further advice on bra support is given here).

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What to Look for After Your Surgery

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If any of the following occur, please contact the clinic immediately on (647) 360-1975:

• Bleeding soaks through the bandages and does not seem to be stopping
• One or both breasts seem to be significantly swollen after the surgery
• Feeling short of breath, having difficulty catching your breath, or pain deep inside your chest
• Severe headache

A nurse will speak to you over the phone to determine if you need to be seen urgently or not. If you are unable to contact the clinic, or if it is after regular business hours, please go to your nearest hospital to have a physician examine you.

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Follow-Up Visits

After your surgery, you will have scheduled follow-up visits at the Toronto Cosmetic Surgery Institute to allow us to monitor your progress and healing. Follow-up visits are very important and we ask that you do not miss them. They allow us to ensure that your breast scars heal beautifully, that the breast implants settle in as expected, and that, ultimately, you are left with the perfect breast enlargement.

Unless there is an unlikely concern about your healing, your initial follow-up visits will be with one of our expert nurses.

At this time, we will again provide you with instructions on the massage techniques that you should be performing to help your implants to settle down and to obtain and maintain a naturally soft breast. Dr. Jugenburg will see you again once your wounds have healed to monitor the progress of your implants as they settle in.

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The Royal Treatment

All our Breast Augmentation patients have the option and the convenience of staying in the Fairmont Royal York Hotel the first night after surgery. Patient will be asked to contact the hotel and they can request our preferred rate (inform the hotel you will be coming in for surgery with us).  If you have chosen to do so, once you are ready to be discharged from our Recovery Room, we will transport you to one of the luxurious hotel rooms, where you will be able to recover while enjoying the comfort of this spectacular hotel. We will also give you a small care package of essentials to use during your overnight stay. The following morning our nurses will visit you in your room, to be assessed and to have you bandages changed if necessary. Once you have been fully checked out, you will be able to leave and go home in your pre-arranged transport.