Ann's Journey - Part II
Ann waited 30 years to consider breast surgery, 10 more years to do it and nearly another decade living with results she didn’t like. Why put off her happiness any longer?
Ann’s long-awaited breast augmentation surgery had dramatically transformed her frame, but not for the better. She felt her new breasts were saggy, heavy and far too large for her body. She was self-conscious about the attention they commanded, and she was now having regular stomach aches, which she blamed on the constant weight of her breasts sitting on her upper abdomen.
Ann knew she needed a change, but she didn’t know who to see or what procedure could give her the breasts she wanted. A plan finally began to take shape after a lunch date with her daughter.
A Family Affair
“My daughter always said she wanted to get her boobs done when she grew up,” Ann says. “I kept telling her, ‘After you have your kids, then you should get them done.’”
Her advice came from personal experience. As a mother of three, Ann was intimately familiar with the impact pregnancy and breastfeeding can have on a woman’s figure. Her motherhood journey had left her naturally flat chest even more depleted, and was one of the catalysts that led her to getting breast implants. Postponing breast surgery until after children is the perfect path for many women.
But after years of hearing her daughter express unhappiness with her breasts, Ann had a change of heart.
“When my daughter graduated from college and was making good money, we went out to lunch and she said, ‘Someday I’m going to get my boobs done,’ and I just said to her, ‘Why wait another day to be happy? That’s something that has bothered you so, so badly… so why wait another day?’”
Encouraged by the support, Ann’s daughter booked a consultation with Dr. Philbin at Edina Plastic Surgery. She came home raving about her experience.
“She was like, ‘Oh my gosh, I had the nicest doctor!’ She talked so much praise about him. So then I went to one of her consultations and I met him. I just loved the way he dealt with her, being that she was young. He was so professional, so kind, so gentle, and he wasn’t making decisions for her. He was very honest and just… great. I knew if I ever got anything done, I would love to go to him.”
The Mammographer’s Inside Scoop
Several years passed. Ann’s daughter loved the results of her procedure, and she wasn’t the only one.
“Four of my daughter’s coworkers also went and got boobs from Dr. Philbin,” Ann says. “They all loved him and they all looked really good. That’s what made me decide. All of a sudden, I was just like, ‘You know what? I’m going in!’ At that point I had no idea what I was going to get done, although I knew I was probably going to go to Dr. Philbin.”
To be certain she made the right decision, Ann booked two consultations — one with Dr. Philbin and one with a surgeon at a different practice. A memorable experience during a mammogram reinforced Ann’s hunch that she would ultimately choose Dr. Philbin.
“The lady doing it was like, ‘This might sound weird, but where did you get your boobs?’ I said, ‘It’s funny you say that because I’m going to Edina Plastic Surgery tomorrow for a consult to fix them up.’ And she goes, ‘Not to be a creep, but I see a lot of boobs, and all my favorite ones come out of Edina Plastic Surgery!’”
All that was left to solidify the decision was meeting the other doctor. The experience left no doubt in Ann’s mind that Dr. Philbin was the right surgeon for the job.
“The other doctor I went to… yuck. There was no click. I didn’t like him. No bedside manner. He was just kind of rude. He acted like I was a pain in the ass. The same day, I went right after him to see Dr. Philbin, and I scheduled the surgery right then and there!”
White T-Shirt Dreams
From the very beginning, Ann’s experience with Edina Plastic Surgery was different.
“Dr. Philbin is so nice and honest. He didn’t make me feel weird or ugly. And he’s funny,” she says. “The way the staff talked about him — even the recovery staff when I picked my daughter up from her surgery — everybody praised him and how he helps people make great judgments. That really sticks in my mind. I just trusted that he was doing the right thing. He always looks out for his patients’ best interest.”
Ann went into her consultation with few expectations about what might come next. She didn’t know what procedure she would need, but she knew she wanted to play a more active role in the planning process than she had the first time around, and her vision was clear:
“My goal was to not have to wear a bra. Isn’t that every girl’s dream? I’m sick of that. I just want to look cute in a little white t-shirt with no bra on.
After his examination, Dr. Philbin agreed that Ann’s implants were too large for her body. He recommended a size that would be smaller and lighter, and suggested a breast lift to address her loosened skin. He informed Ann that the procedure would leave her with more scars than the breast augmentation, but that the results should last and she was unlikely to need another surgery in the future.
“I was a little hesitant about the scars. But then, who even ever sees them? This surgery was for me. I was like, I’m not going to be one of those little old ladies sitting in a wheelchair in a nursing home with my boobs sitting on my knees! I might as well get them done now so I can feel good about myself until then.”
Finally taking the advice she gave her daughter years ago, Ann booked the surgery. She was done waiting for happiness.
