Breastfeeding after Breast Augmentation Surgery

Pregnancy wreaks havoc on a woman’s body. For nine months, she is stretched out of shape in every direction and then, when the baby is born, expected to spring back into her pre-pregnancy state. Unfortunately, some areas of the body take more of a hit than others and are not resilient enough to simply snap back into place. Breasts are a huge concern for many pregnant women and other women in the post-natal period. Our skin has certain elements that encourage elasticity, but the growth required for women when the breastfeed is often beyond natural repair.

Many women also enjoy the large cup sizes that come along with breastfeeding. Suddenly their bras and shirts look better when they are fuller. Husbands tend to notice the change and may enjoy their new toys. When a woman becomes engorged with milk for her baby, her breasts can grow enormously in a short period of time.

The reverse is obviously true as well. Once breastfeeding is complete, the milk ducts will empty and that may leave a lot of empty space in sagging skin that made room for the initial growth. During this period, many women feel like their breasts are losing the fight with gravity and no longer look as attractive as when they were pert and perky. At this point, some women opt for breast augmentation surgery in order to regain their pre-pregnancy figure and may even end up with breasts as big as when they were breastfeeding.

However, one of the big concerns with women that seek breast augmentation surgery is whether or not they will be able to breastfeed with current or future children. For this reason, some women opt to wait until they have finished having children before pursuing this type of procedure. Other women would rather not wait and still other women do not plan to get pregnant after their breast augmentation, but nature has other plans.

If you are wondering if you will be able to breastfeed after your cosmetic surgery, the answer is “maybe.” Since there are a wide variety of augmentation procedures and an equally wide variety of healing reactions during the post-operative recovery period, your plastic surgeon may not be able to guarantee that you will be able to successfully breastfeed with implants in place.

One of the biggest factors that can determine whether you will have difficulty breastfeeding is the location of the incision. Incisions that the plastic surgeon places in the fold under the breast or within the axilla armpit area pose little to no threat to breastfeeding. However, one of the most popular breast augmentation incisions is around the areola because it allows for hidden healing without telltale scar lines. This location can significantly compromise the milk ducts or nerve endings and inhibit a woman’s ability to breastfeed.

If breastfeeding after your implant surgery is important to you, it is vital that you discuss these concerns with your plastic surgeon before your procedure.