Video
Narrator V/O:
Allison Mitchell spent more than half her life weighed down with the burdon of unusually big breasts.
Allison:
It changed my life a long time ago. I became a a, well a lonely person, very lonely. I had quite a painful life. I have very bad back pain. I have had surgery on my spine, em, purely because of carrying the extra weight on my chest. It’s been very difficult.
Narrator V/O:
After 25 years, Allison’s breasts are really getting her down.
Allison:
If I could have my breasts reduced, I think it would give me back the life that I should’ve had. I think it just will give me back the opportunities to do the things that I’ve missed out on over the last 25 years.
Narrator V/O:
Can Dr Harper find a way to reduce Alliosn’s burdon?
Dr Harper:
Do you mind me asking what size you are?
Allison:
They’re a 36 double J. That sounds awful, ‘they’, doesn’t it? I’ve detached them completely from myself.
dr Harper:
Is that how you feel?
Allison:
Mm hum.
Dr Harper:
And what size would you like to be? I mean, if you could wave a magic wand.
Allison:
If I could wave a magic wand, I would say have none, have none, yeah.
Dr Harper:
Really
Allison:
Yeah. But, er, I guess, in the ideal world I’d be looking at a C or a D. But, I mean, yeah, something like that would be a dream come true. I just want them gone. I, you know, enough’s enough. I want my life back and they need to go.
Narrator V/O:
It’s no wonder Allison has back problems. At 5 kilos, her breasts weigh 10 times the national average – that’s like having a large baby permanently strapped to your chest.
Dr Harper:
I mean the breast tissue feels completely normal. Totally healthy. There’s just a bit too much of it.
Allison: Yeah, yeah.
Dr Harper:
And I think that you are a perfect candidate for a breast reduction. You’ve put up with it for an awful long time so I’m sure that the surgeons are going to be keen to do something for you, whether or not they’ll achieve the C/D cup. I’m not sure how much they’ll be able to reduce it, but it will definitely make both of them significantly smaller, em, and I think we should just get their opinion.
Allison:
Yeah, yeah, that’s fantastic thank you.
Dr Harper:
Grand. OK, pop your things back on.
Narrator V/O:
Double J breasts have weighed Allison Mitchell down for 25 years, but now she and her husband have come to the West London clinic, to see if there’s any hope of reducing them. Leading breast surgeon, Adam Topping, needs to decide whether it’s safe to proceed. He’s seen more breasts than a page 3 snapper, but even he’s blown away by her copious cleavege.
Dr Adam Topping:
Now, em, I have to be honest with you, er, they are the largest breasts that I have seen. OK. It’s going to be quite an interesting challenge, that’s for sure, you know, but-
Allison:
I always knew I was exceptional.
Narrator V/O:
The sheer scale of the tissue to be reduced means that for Mr Topping, this will be his most ambitious operation yet.
Dr Topping:
They are the biggest breasts that I have seen before and this is why we’re having to, I’m having to, adapt to the procedure to cope with the situation.
Narrator V/O:
To bring Allison down to a D cup, over a kilo and a half of tissue has to be removed from each breast. As well as repositioning the nipple higher up, the remaining breast has to be reformed into a natural shape.
Dr Topping:
I think the operation was very successful, er, it was always going to be difficult to actually create a breast that was going to have quite a degree of projection on it, em, but by putting a stitch in to move the, er, the breat towards the midline, I think we’ve managed to achieve that to a degree. All in all: very happy.
Narrator V/O:
He’s happy, but will Allison be?
Few people have undergone bigger changes than Allison, whose double J breasts have been ruining her life for over 20 years. After an ambitious 3 and a half hour operation, she’s come back to see Dr Harper. She’s half the woman she once was; has this made her twice as happy?
Dr Harper:
Allison, nice to see you. I have been so looking forward to seeing you. I can’t believe that.
Allison:
I know, it’s incredible, isn’t it?
Dr Harper:
Look at you!
Allison:
I know!
Dr Harper:
You look like the cat that got the cream.
Allison:
Well I have, haven’t I? I feel fantastic. I think it’s because I haven’t got that pain. I had that pain all the time my whole life. I couldn’t remember not being in pain because of them, and, you know, the weight’s gone. It’s, you know, given me back my life.
There you go.
Dr Harper:
Goodness me.
Allison:
What do you think of that?
Dr Harper:
Well, you’re half the woman you were, aren’t you?
Narrator V/O:
Last time Allison met Dawn, the 36 double J breasts meant she was 3 kilos heavier.
Dr Harper:
And you can probably put your bra on sitting down, can you?
Allison:
I can. I don’t have to get up and stand up and nope, don’t have to do any of that any more. I can, you know, just sit and do it.
Dr Harper:
I’m utterly amazed that, you know. That is a phenominal job. Amazing.
Allison:
Yep. They’re fabulous, aren’t they.
Dr Harper:
When those dressings come off, you should rub vitamin E cream into that. It’ll really make a difference to the scar tissue, actually. It’ll be, I mean that’s just amazing.
Allison:
I think so. [laughs]
I feel I could take on anything, do anything that I want to do, and, I guess my only regret is that I didn’t do it much, much sooner. Em, but it’s it is phenominal. It it’s like being a whole new person.
Dr Harper:
Amazing. Amazing. Do you wanna pop your bra back on – sitting down?!
Allison: Mm hm, yeah.
Consultation: Breast Reduction
A patient comes to see Dr Harper with enormous 36JJ Breasts that are in need of a reduction.
Yes
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Hi I am 43 years old and had a breast reduction on the NHS 11 years ago. At the time I was wearing a double F bra. The operation was very painfull and the scarring and recovery were really bad though the end result was at the time worth all of the discomfort. However, I am sorry to say that although when I recovered from the surgery I was a C/D cup, my breast have now gone up to a GG cup. I have put on about a stone in weight since I had the op but this still doesn't account for the increase in size. Just want you all to be aware that this can happen, I know of one other person who has had the same thing happen as me. Am currently agonising whether or not to get advice from my GP regarding my daughter. She is 15 and is currently a 32JJ, and still growing!! It is absolutely heartbreaking when she is in tears as she feels like a 'freak' compared to her normal skinny friends. A lot of people call her 'fat' because she has to buy such outsize tops to get her boobs in the last blouse I bought was a size 18, (she is a 12-14 on the bottom) and the buttons were still straining)
Didnt think this was so common! My friend and I were chatting about it the other day! I have all the same symptoms, backache and a constant burning sensation across my back, shoulder and neck pain, aswell as headaches, why should people have to suffer this? Im a 30h, 5'2 10 stone my bottom half is a size 12 and top well try hetting something to fit i usually ned to take a 16 or 18 top! which make me look fat! Sick of people staring and the final straw was some random man who i did not know grab them.
im 18 and i am a size 10 in clothes. my breasts are large for my size. they are 32f and cause me really bad upper back pain that speads across my shoulder blades.i cant stand straight and i always have people staring at them which is getting me really down now can anyone tell me if i can get them reduced on the nhs?
I totally get where you're coming from, get yourself to your gp and state your case, im going next week and wont stop until i get what i want, im a fortune on bras, massage for my back and not to mention painkillers ive had enough! Let me know how you get on x
I am a 30FF, but too me they feel bigger, I got measured at debenhams, and I can only wear a particular bra because its so uncomfortable, don't know if this is because its new bra or not? I am a size 10 in clothes, and the strap of my bra feels they they are digging in, and I have had a rash under my arm that is only just recovering. I feel embarressed about my size, they dont feel right for my frame and I actually hate my body. Please can anyone help?
im a 34 J cup size and when i was pregnant and breast feeding i got too big for the largest bra on the market. i was always large bust wize i went from nothing to a d cup in a couple of weeks in my early teens and was emensely bullied at school for it. at the age of 18 i was quite ill and went from a size 16 to a size 10 and yet my cup size went from J to G, not a vast reduction and i looked a freak! im in the process of trying to convince my doctor that 12 years later ive had enough of the constant back ache, neck ache and ridicule for the hunchback im developing trying to hide them. i desperatly want to be normal and the vidio really did strike a chord with me. im so lonely and depressed at being so large chested. if i could cut them off myself then i would!
I've always had boobs bigger than my class mates at the age of 12 I was the first, I was the first in the year, I'm now 17 and I hate them. They cause me nothing but pain, pure agony and griefas it's now at the point of ut hurts to do exercise. The developent of my boobs don't want to slow down I've gone from beeing a 32f to going to a 32ff/g in little under 2 months it's ridiculous. At 17 it's hard having big boobs ynger people or people will small breasts think it must be great with all the attention and jet generly having big breasts. But guys they put you into a catagory of easy. How do I go about myback ach? Is there anyway I can make them look smaller?
i find that minimisers are a good way of hiding the size. i am still not happy with my figure but they are a good way in getting a smaller bust look
are private clinics as strict about bmi,s as the nhs as i am 47 5ft 6ins tall and weigh 13st 11lbs and i am considering a breast reduction but am worried i will be turned down is this the case even if i am paying for the op myself, i am also an insulin dependent diabetic are the odds stacked against me before i start my bra size is 36h
I was told by NHS to lose 2 stone before I could have BR done on NHS. I saw the same consultant privately a couple of years later after being unsucessful in my weightloss, and at 5'8 he told me that because of my height, my weight was not an issue (if I go private)... so I think the answer toyour question is no... you should have the same restrictions going private vs NHS. However, I dont know what the guidelines are regarding diabetes.. but I wish you all the best there. I am 43 and have just had my op 10 days ago... with a kilo taken off each side, I have never been happier!
hello im a 17 year old girl from northern ireland i have very big breats and a very small frame. this is causing me back problems and discomfort. when i wake up and walk down stair it feel tike im carrying a tonne on my chest. i cant run as it is painfull and i can hardly ever get an outfit theat doesnt make me look stupid i dont know what to do about my problem as anyime i talk to someone about it they say "a girl would die for your chest" but noone understands i just want to be petite and normal ...can anyone recomend what to do please?
Hi my name is Fiona. I know exactly what you are going through as i have had to deal with it all mt life im 40 now and 4ft 11 and am a 34e but there was stages in my life when i was bigger but i have 3 kids now and i think my size reduced slightly after having the children but i still suffer a lot of neck pain and have chronic back pain. The other reason im repling to you is my middle child who is 16 takes after me and from she was 11 her breasts started to grow and just have'nt stopped she is now a 36g which is totally out of porportion for her frame. She absolutely hates them with a passion, can't get nice clothes to fit her like all her friends her bras as she calls them granny bras as they are not pretty. We are going on holidays in 2 weeks and it has just been an absolute nightmare trying to get a bikini to fit her so between the personal aspect and the mental issues she has now asked me to bring her to our gp to see if she can get a breast reduction on the NHS. We have been online reading alot of articles and i know a few women personally who have had it done quite recently and dont regret a minute of it but they would be in my age bracket im not too sure if my gp would say that she is too young but she has tried dieting she plays football for a local team does a lot of training alround but cannot loose anything of her breasts, so at the minute we are just waiting on an appointment to see our gp and see what her advice is and take it from there. This probably is of not much help to you but when she read it she was like there is some-one else here that is like me as she feels so isolated. Anyway good luck with however you go about it and if you get any good recomendations i would be glad to hear from you as surgery really is a very last resort for my daughter.
I'm in the possition were all bras cause me discomfort. I currently wear a 30HH, but think i may be bigger as i am starting to fall out of the cup. I get frustrated when other females say they wish they had them and tell me that i love them really. They don't understand. It's really hard to find a good fitted bra some girls don't know how lucky they are. I feel that my breasts are out of poportion with my figure and i get alot of unwanted attention too. My boyfriend of nearly 2 years is very supportive i met him before i grew big so it helps knowing i've found someone who likes me for me, other than my body. I've started to get back pain and this worries me although i don't know for sure if this is anything to do with my huge breats it's just i can't think of any other reason as to why. I'm not embarassed, but i like to fool myself and tell myself i'm smaller, so sometimes i convicne my self quite good.
Hi, to all not sure, dont give up. I was 32GG and am two weeks post op thro the nhs. I have an infection which is slightly hindering my recovery, but the pain was so much less than i expected. The surgeon removed 3 pounds of tissue and i am hoping for a c cup, currently in a d cup but i am a bit swollen. Overall i have no regrets whatsoever. dont give up
