<p>I have a weight problem. Right now, I’m just above the borderline at which overweight turns into obese.</p>
<p>I also have the sort of figure that is tactfully termed “top heavy.” Since I was 15 (a very long time ago), I have never worn a bra with a cup size less than DD, even though my weight has fluctuated by 50 pounds over the years. </p>
<p>At a checkup this week, my doctor suggested that I get breast reduction surgery for the purpose of losing some weight instantaneously. She was annoyed when I refused. </p>
<p>Has anyone else been given this type of advice? Is there some medical basis for it? Or is it just that the decrease in weight on my chart would look good in the electronic health records for my doctor’s practice?</p>
<p>I really doubt the doc is looking to pad her records for # of pounds a patient has lost. </p>
<p>You ask a good question - did you ask the doc these questions??? Is your top heavy figure a hindrance to exercise, etc. that would allow you to lose some weight? - that might be a logical reason. </p>
<p>I had a breast reduction about 15 years ago and it was great!!! ( I wasn’t over weight, I was about a ddd, still ama 34DD, even though I told the dr i didnt want to have to wear a bra)
You will love it.
Its much easier to buy bras, and shop for clothing.
It helps my exercise asthma & my posture. Its really up there with my knee replacement as a surgery that made a difference to quality of life.</p>
<p>If you arent interested though, I would ask Dr for more concrete information re possible health benefits.</p>
<p>Getting annoyed because a patient doesn’t wish to undergo unnecessary surgery, yes, that makes a doctor nuts. I don’t know if there’s something more to it that you haven’t said, but if not, yes, your doctor is nuts. </p>
<p>I did not question my doctor on this point as thoroughly as I should have. I was focused on a different health issue that I wanted to discuss, and this came up out of the blue, and I wasn’t prepared for it. I will be seeing the doctor again in three months, and I will ask for clarification then. </p>
<p>So perhaps you were taken back by the suggestion of the breast reduction surgery. That’s understandable. If you are going to this doc for other medical concerns I’m guessing you most likely have trusted her in the past? Then trust her enough to ask for further information. You also don’t have to wait three months. You can call and request further explanation by talking to her nurse or by talking directly on the phone to the doc. </p>
<p>Or surprise the doc by making your health and weight a priority and adopt some new nutrition habits in the next three months so you can show some weight loss as that seems to be a concern of the docs (and yours?) anyway! </p>
<p>Yes, your doctor is nuts (at least in my opinion). Even I know that the weight around your abdomen is purportedly the most “dangerous” weight you can carry, at least from a health perspective. </p>
<p>Last I checked, abdominal weight is a risk factor in metabolic syndrome and diabetes. Heavy breasts - not so much.</p>
<p>Perhaps your Dr meant that you will “look” like you have lost weight instantly. The few people I have known that had reduction surgery look much smaller afterward than you would expect with just having a few pounds of breast tissue removed.</p>
<p>Women get breast reduction surgery if their breast size is a problem-- back pain, for example. Or they get the surgery for appearance. But is there evidence that breast reduction will reduce the health risks of having too much body fat? That is, will breast reduction lower the risks from diabetes and heart disease, and other health problems associated with obesity? That’s the question I’d want the doctor to answer, and I’d want her to give me hard evidence.</p>
<p>I would not declare the doc “nuts” without knowing other details. Are those the exact words she used or is this how you interpreted what could be a very legitimate medical advice? I highly, highly doubt that an MD would recommend surgery for vanity purposes. Does the doctor have concerns that your current weight prevents you from getting any benefits from exercise? I suspect this was one of the reason that suggested “instant loss of weight”. Breast reduction surgery is not just a cosmetic procedure. Unnecessary weight at the top can lead to a lot of medical problems down the road, as EK says, and also can hinder exercise. I understand and personally would not consider surgery as my first option. This is what I would do: I would try to get a clarification from your current doc and a second opinion about the necessity of the procedure. If you think you can adopt and exercise program, focus on the overall weight, and bring it down to the normal range, do this first. You may or you may not really need a reduction surgery depending on the results of your weight loss because the breasts can “shrink” on their own due to overall body fat reduction and gain in lean muscle.</p>
<p>I hate to say this…but if you are bordering obese, I can’t imagine that breast reduction would reduce your weight in any huge way.</p>
<p>I would hope that there is a weight reduction plan in place for you. Once you meet your weight loss goal, then consider whether breast reduction is something you want to do.</p>
<p>Sometimes people who need to lose weight and have difficulty doing so get motivated by a “jump start”. So perhaps your doctor was suggesting a way to get that start, and also addressing the challenges on the body of carrying extra weight. Instead of declaring the doctor “nust”, which is offensive, perhaps it opens a dialogue. Many patients are defensive about their weight and don’t want to talk about it. Maybe this was a way to open the door.</p>
<p>How could you tell the doctor was “annoyed”-- this is how you were reading her reaction to your reaction to her suggestion? Plenty of opportunities for misreading in this exchange, so I wouldn’t say the doctor is nuts yet.
Perhaps she thought you looked like you could benefit/would be more comfortable and more able to exercise if you had the breast reduction? (I’ve known a couple women who had reductions and they were SO happy they did–it was all about comfort for them.)</p>
<p>Good point. I was caught off guard, and my reaction may not have been objective. When I was much younger, my family tried to talk me into this surgery for cosmetic reasons, and I refused. There were bad feelings on both sides, and some of mine may linger. I think my next conversation with my doctor will be more useful because I will be much more ready to discuss the subject.</p>
<p>Thank you again, everyone, for all the insights. I haven’t been on CC for a while because my kids are well beyond college age now, but I knew that CC’s Parent Cafe was the place to come for thoughtful opinions. </p>