Your once-perky breasts are a thing of the past. Pregnancy, breastfeeding, aging, gravity — these can all send your breasts downward, and the only thing that seems to keep them where you want them are your bras.
If you want to give your hard-working bras a break, it might be time to consider a breast lift, which is an increasingly popular procedure — there were more than 150,000 breast lifts performed in the United States in 2023.
Here at McHugh Plastic Surgery, Dr. Thomas McHugh is a leading expert in breast surgeries, including breast augmentations, breast reductions, and breast lifts. If you're interested in the last item on this list — breast lifts — read on to explore whether this procedure will help you get to your body-shape goals.
As we’re sure you’re painfully aware, life can take its toll on your breasts, and there are many factors that can make them droop and sag, such as:
Standing behind each of these risk factors is gravity, just waiting to pull your breasts downward and erasing your once perkier profile up top, as the skin and support tissues around your breasts gradually lose strength and become looser.
During a breast lift, also called a mastopexy, Dr. McHugh lifts your breasts to their original positions, higher up on your chest. This is a simplistic explanation for what can be a more detailed procedure that addresses all of the issues that come with sagging breasts.
For example, Dr. McHiugh often removes excess skin and tightens the remaining skin to lift and support your breasts. He also tightens supporting ligaments and muscles that hold your breasts in place.
As well, if your areolas have become enlarged or they’ve drooped, too, Dr. McHugh can isolate your nipples, keeping the nerves intact, and reposition them on your newly lifted breasts. During this step, he can also trim away your areolas to make them smaller.
During your breast lift, Dr. McHugh can also make your breasts more even because one breast often droops more than the other.
As much as breast lifts accomplish, the procedure isn’t a solution for all breast concerns. Namely, Dr. McHugh can’t change the size of your breasts during this procedure. If you want rounder breasts, you should consider a breast implant. If you feel like your breasts are too large, you might combine a breast reduction with a breast lift.
We can’t make the breast lift decision for you, but we can outline a few rules of thumb when it comes to this popular procedure.
First and foremost, a breast lift is best only after you're done having children. Having a breast lift and then going through pregnancy and breastfeeding again can quickly undo our work.
The American Society of Plastic Surgeons also lists these factors for good candidates:
We’d also like to add some age considerations to this list. If you’re in your 30s, 40s, 50s, and 60s, a breast lift can make good sense. The older you are, however, the faster aging will catch up with you after the breast lift and your breasts will begin their journey south again. In other words, for some women, a breast lift might not make sense, but we can certainly take a look.
The best way to figure out whether you’re a good candidate for a breast lift is to sit down with Dr. McHugh for a consult. To set that up, simply contact us today to schedule an appointment.
