The effects of aging can produce a variety of unwanted aesthetic changes to your body that can leave you feeling less attractive and less confident. Many women seek to lift sagging breasts, as they are a common issue eventually experienced by most women as they age. Luckily, women who are dissatisfied with the appearance of their breasts and are looking to rejuvenate and revitalize this area of their body can do so with a breast lift at Restore SD Plastic Surgery in San Diego, CA.
Sagging breasts, or breast ptosis, are a part of a change in breast appearance most women experience as they get older. The change is generally natural and cosmetic, though it often causes a significant amount of displeasure among those in whom the condition develops. No one should have to feel bad about their looks simply because their body is aging. Read on to find out more about what causes ptosis and how a breast lift can benefit you.
What Causes Sagging Breasts?
There are ligaments in your breasts known as Cooper’s ligaments that help keep your breasts lifted, tight, and perky while you are young. Over time, gravity can cause these ligaments to stretch, gradually resulting in downward-pointing nipples and breasts that droop or sag.
The stretching of Cooper’s ligaments and resulting breast sag can also be influenced by aging, collagen and/or estrogen deficiency, gravity, significant weight gain or loss, large breasts, menopause, multiple pregnancies, and more. Interestingly, breastfeeding, wearing an ill-fitting bra, or wearing no bra at all, have all been debunked as causes for ptosis.
How Can You Prevent Ptosis (sagging)?
Many women experience a change in the appearance of their breasts as they age, though when and to what degree this change occurs is largely influenced by your genetics and lifestyle choices. If your breasts are not sagging or have only just begun to sag, here are a few things you can do to help minimize your risk of experiencing further changes in the shape and location of your breasts:
1. Maintain a Healthy Weight
Significant weight gain will stretch out your skin. When you lose the weight, the stretched, excess skin has nothing to support it and can create a loose, sagging appearance in your breasts. Maintaining a healthy weight for as long as you can will help prevent the gain or loss of fatty tissue in your breasts, allowing them to keep their shape for longer.
2. Wear a Well-Fitting Bra When Exercising
Studies have shown that an ill-fitting bra, or no bra at all, won’t cause your breasts to sag. However, studies have shown that engaging in certain repetitive movements (such as jogging) can cause your breasts to sag due to the constant up-and-down movements your breasts make. Therefore, if you exercise regularly, it’s important to wear a comfortable, well-fitting bra to keep everything in place.
Your bra should be tight enough to minimize the movement of your breasts but loose enough so that it doesn’t cause any discomfort for you while being worn. A bra that doesn’t fit right may not cause your breasts to sag, but it can cause other uncomfortable side effects that are even worse.
3. Don’t Smoke
Smoking tends to accelerate the aging process all over your body. Fine lines and wrinkles can appear in a smoker’s skin years earlier than in non-smokers, and the reduction in elasticity and firmness extends far beyond your face. Smoking destroys elastin in your skin, which tends to have a pronounced effect in areas more prone to aging, such as the hands, neck, face, chest, and breasts.
4. Get Your Hormones Checked
The condition of your skin can be affected by an increase or decrease in the hormone estrogen. Fluctuations in your hormone levels will occur throughout your life for a variety of reasons, though a significant reduction in estrogen production (which happens during menopause) can be associated with a decrease in tissue collagen-the protein primarily responsible for your skin’s structure, elasticity, and firmness.
Healthy ways of boosting estrogen levels, including supplements, may improve the shape and form of your breasts. If you’re at or near the age when menopause generally occurs, or if you’re concerned that you’re experiencing a drop in estrogen production stemming from some other cause, speak with your provider and get a test. Don’t try to increase your estrogen levels on your own.
5. Think Carefully About Pregnancy
Studies have confirmed that the more pregnancies a woman has, the more likely she will experience sagging breasts. If your desire for perky, youthful breasts is greater than your desire to have children, you may want to avoid getting pregnant. However, it should be noted that there are many effective ways to treat breast ptosis, and the effects that pregnancy can produce on your body can all be addressed with one or more treatments we provide.
6. Cosmetic Surgery
While the above methods can help keep your breasts looking youthful and perky for longer, those who are already experiencing a significant amount of sagging in their breasts will need to undergo surgery to correct it. Depending on the cosmetic results you’re hoping to achieve, a breast lift, or combination of breast lift and additional treatments, can help you achieve the body contours you want while lifting and tightening your breasts.
What Is a Breast Lift?
A breast lift, or mastopexy, is an elective cosmetic procedure performed to rejuvenate drooping, sagging breasts and restore a more youthful and attractive positioning. During the procedure, a surgeon removes excess skin and tightens the remaining tissue to create a much more youthful and physically appealing breast contour. If your areolas have stretched, your surgeon can reduce their size during the procedure.
What Are the Benefits of a Breast Lift?
While the most commonly performed breast enhancement procedure involves breast augmentation, not every woman’s issues with her breasts stem from their size. If you’re suffering from moderate-to-severe breast sagging, it can result in an overall loss of confidence in your appearance. Choosing to undergo a breast lift can address this issue and more.
- Firmer Breasts: When you want to rejuvenate and revitalize your breasts, lifting them so they sit higher on your chest will go a long way toward accomplishing your goal. However, you’ll also want them to have a firmer look and feel in addition to their new position. When your breasts are lifted during surgery, we provide them with new support structures so they can maintain a firm appearance and feel.
- Improved Nipple Projection: If your breasts are sagging, it’s a common side effect that your nipples will point downward towards the floor. During a breast lift procedure, as your breasts are reshaped, we can also reposition your nipple-areolar complex, providing for a more natural, forward-projecting nipple.
- More Attractive Shape: When your breasts sag and deflate, they can lose the attractive shape you experienced in previous years. Breasts can often become tubular and elongated, losing the round, tight, firm shape that younger breasts generally have. By lifting your breast tissue, we can restore a rounder, more attractive shape, eliminating the long, tubular, sagging look your breasts have now.
- Relieved Back and Neck Pain: Your back and shoulders are not designed to support the weight of heavy, pendulous breasts, and as your breasts begin to sag, they can result in increased instances of back and neck pain. This is particularly true for women who possess particularly large breasts, whether due to genetics or significant weight gain.
A breast lift can help relieve back and neck pain by repositioning the weight to a higher place on your cheast, where your back and shoulders are more capable of supporting it. - Reduced Skin Irritation: When your breasts sag, the skin underneath your breasts can rub against the skin of your chest or upper abdomen, resulting in rashes that can be itchy and irritating. The issue can be particularly bothersome for women who exercise often or who live in warm climates and therefore tend to sweat more. When your breasts are lifted via surgery, they will no longer rub against the skin beneath them, eliminating the rashes or irritation you’ve been experiencing.
Combine Procedures for Dramatic Results
Patients have differing cosmetic goals, and while many are satisfied with the results of a breast lift alone, others are looking for a more comprehensive alteration. That being said, a breast lift can be combined with other cosmetic features for patients who desire improvements in additional areas of their body.
Procedures commonly paired with a breast lift are abdominoplasty (tummy tuck), liposuction, and other body shaping or contouring procedures.
Who Is a Candidate for Surgery?
As previously mentioned, breast augmentation (typically involving enlargement via implants) is the most popular procedure women choose to address their breasts. However, augmentation isn’t always the right answer for everyone. Aesthetically pleasing breasts involve shape, symmetry, and location: not just size.
If the shape of your sagging breasts is causing you concern, and you’re not necessarily interested in increasing their size, a breast lift may be the perfect choice to address your concerns and help you reach your aesthetic goals.
Why Choose Us?Dr. Katerina Gallus first decided to open our office in October 2012 while attending the American Society of Plastic Surgeons’ annual meeting in New Orleans. It is our mission to provide patients with the highest quality experience, utilizing state-of-the-art surgical and non-invasive techniques to treat your conditions and help you obtain the results you crave.
Meet Dr. GallusFemale board certified plastic surgeon Dr. Katerina Gallus received her Bachelor of Science from Duke University, after which she continued on to obtain her medical degree at the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences in Bethesda, Maryland, where she met her husband. After graduating from medical school, Dr. Gallus completed her General Surgery Residency at the Naval Medical Center in San Diego.
While achieving board-certification in general surgery was a major accomplishment, her dream was to pursue training in the field of plastic surgery. She completed her Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery Residency at Indiana University School of Medicine in Indianapolis, Indiana. During her time in the Navy, Dr. Gallus was the program director for the Transitional Year Residency, a program that trained nearly 100 Navy Physicians. She also served several deployments, during which time she provided immediate surgical trauma support to wounded US soldiers and sailors.
Rejuvenate and Enhance Your Breasts With a Breast Lift
Sagging breasts are a very common issue that many women experience as they age. Often, sagging breasts result from stretched ligaments, a post-pregnancy change in shape or volume, or as a result of significant weight fluctuations. With a breast lift, the problem of saggy, droopy breasts can be addressed through surgery by lifting them, removing any excess tissue, then reshaping and securing them in a higher position.
The condition of your breasts doesn’t have to affect your self-confidence or self-esteem any longer. With a breast lift, you can have the firm, round, supple breasts that you deserve. To find out more, contact our team at Restore SD Plastic Surgery in San Diego, CA by calling 858-224-2281 or contacting us online today.
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