Breast Implants Before and After

The decision to obtain breast implants often includes years of deliberation by the patient. This is completely understandable and should be the norm, as breast augmentation is a life changing experience. Physical changes within a person's body can sometimes be overwhelming and it is impossible to return to the exact same overall look after obtaining breast implants. A common question that interested breast augmentation patients ask is how breast implants have affected prior patient's lives and attitudes.

In order to look at the effects of breast implants before and after the decision in past patients, it is important to examine the reasons why these past patients were interested in the surgery at all. Although it is difficult to obtain the full reasoning behind a past patient's desire to obtain breast implants, the American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery conducted a survey in 2003 asking past patients to explain the general reasons why they wanted to undergo this surgery. The survey results to these questions showed that:

• 91% wanted to look better without clothes.
• 83% wanted to look better in clothes.
• 83% wanted to have larger breasts.
• 81% wanted to feel better about themselves.
• 79% wanted to feel more confident.
• 75% wanted to feel less self-conscious.

One look at these results show that many past breast augmentation patients were generally happy but had some insecurities related to the appearances of their breasts. Although breast augmentation surgery will not drastically change your opinion of your appearance or other people's perception of you, it will help you feel a little bit better by enhancing what many past patients considered a liability.

To fully understand the effects of breast augmentation on patients, the American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery asked another question on their 2003 survey that examined prior patient's opinions of the surgery after the fact. Results of this survey show that:

• 93% would recommend breast augmentation to friends and family members.
• 92% are happy about their decision to get breast implants
• 88% said augmentation "completely" or "mostly" met their expectations.
• 92% reported positive effects on their overall appearance.
• 84% said they would "very likely" get breast implants if they could choose again based on what they known, and 8% answered "likely" to the same question.
• 82% reported improvements in their self-confidence