Your breast lift procedure is done in a fully accredited facility. This is for your safety and to ensure optimum quality of care throughout the operation and the immediate postoperative period. Your anaesthetist, Dr Ross Foreman, will give you a general anaesthetic and you can expect the operation to take between 2-3 hours.

There are a number of techniques for breast lifting and this determines where the incisions are made and the subsequent scars. Dr Norris has trained extensively in the use of short-scar techniques which are aimed at minimizing the amount and length of your scars. This will most commonly involve restricting your scar to one that encircles the areola (periareolar scar) and one that passes downwards from the areola to the fold beneath the breast (vertical scar). In some cases it is possible to leave a periareolar scar only. However, not all women have breasts that are suitable for short scar techniques. The best option for you is something you will decide with Dr Norris after a complete assessment of your breasts.

If you are having an implant inserted at the same time as your breast lift procedure, then this will be placed either directly beneath the breast tissue or beneath the chest wall muscle.

At the end of the operation a drain may be placed beneath each breast. If this is the case it will be removed the following day. The incisions are closed with absorbable sutures to save you the inconvenience of having them removed. A dressing is applied over the incisions and you will leave the hospital wearing a comfortable and supportive surgical bra.

Many patients will go home the same day as the surgery, but some will go home the next day after a night of rest. When you go home you will require a friend, family member or partner to drive you as you won’t be able to drive yourself for 1-2 weeks. You will leave with written postoperative instructions, a prescription for pain-relief and antibiotics, and a follow-up appointment with Dr Norris for one week.

At home you will experience some mild discomfort for the first 2-3 days after the surgery. Some degree of discomfort is normal and your breasts and nipples will be slightly bruised, swollen, tender, and sensitive to touch. These symptoms settle quickly so that you can return to light daily activities by the end of the first week and many women will also return to work around this time. More rigorous and strenuous exercise and activities should not be started for 4 weeks.

At one week after the procedure you will have a follow-up appointment with Dr Norris in the consulting rooms. This is to check on how you are feeling, make sure the wounds are healing without problem, change the dressings, and reassure you that your postoperative course is going to plan.

If at any time before this first follow-up appointment, or at any time after this you note a problem or have any concerns at all please contact Dr Norris immediately.

The scars will be at their most prominent at 6 weeks and may remain this way for a few months. However, they will then begin to fade and become much less noticeable. Dr Norris uses various methods to minimize the impact of your scars and recommends massaging and moisturizing the scars to help this process.