[karategrrl]

KeraBear, I really enjoyed that article. I SO related to the bit about being able to fake menstruation but not breasts--but in my case, it was me faking NOT being a woman! I wanted to avoid puberty like the plague (was a huge tomboy, and wished I was a boy). I couldn't avoid the periods (dang!) but you'd never know I'd gotten it, because I didn't tell a soul and my breasts did not give me away.

Thanks for theupdate, spot-on. I have special interest b/c I'm about your age. Just started the mammos 2 years ago myself. It IS funny to have it doen when you're our size--my best friend is a mammographer (and also a sympathetic smallie) and she does mine, and we always laugh hysterically. I tell her I love the way it smooshes them down--it's the only time they look that large, ever--at least from the top!

[spot-on]

Hi Ladies
Just popping in with a boobjob update

My surgeon wouldn't do surgery without a mammogram due to my age (39 next month) and said it would be best to have a baseline for future mammograms. So I went for a mam' last weekend. Boy was that an experience! I felt rather sorry for the technician trying to smush what boob I have between the plates. She seemed to get lefty done pretty good, but righty was being difficult as it's smaller than the left.

Along with that I also had my bloodwork for surgery which was 3 vials! Damn bloodsuckers!

Hopefully no problems with either... guess I'll find out Friday at the pre-op when I try on boobs and decide on a size. Husband is coming that day too so we can decide together. I told him I don't want huge, just proportionate, so not to get carried away (or let me get carried away).

I'll post an update after the pre-op when I guess I'll have more details.

[KeraBear]

I'm a huge Felicia Day fan. She's got it all -- brains, musical ability, adorableness and beauty. She's great!

Hey, I just looked her up. Seems like a cool chick worth checking out!

Some of you may have read this piece by Nora Ephram , but I just read it for the very first time. I can identify with alot of what she says here, especially that bit about her jr. high friends returning from summer break all young-womanified! (Did I just invent a word? LOL! I had a bestie who returned from break with breasts, too. So traumatic! ha ha) And how she felt like she was a magnet for all all sorts of comments from other girls. And this was written in 1975. I guess some things never change.

It was a funny read, though. She is a good writer.

[nbdx0645]

I'm a huge Felicia Day fan. She's got it all -- brains, musical ability, adorableness and beauty. She's great!

[KeraBear]

I like anything with Ellen Page in it. She is my small booby hero. And we have a similar figure.

[KeraBear]

If anyone hasn't seen "The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo" I would highly recommend it if you would like to see a tiny, 5' -nothin girl rockin the small boobies kick some serious ass!

Oooh... i may have to check that out... if only because i am a 5' nothing girl! Ha ha

POW! WHAMMO! LOL!

[buttercups]

If anyone hasn't seen "The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo" I would highly recommend it if you would like to see a tiny, 5' -nothin girl rockin the small boobies kick some serious ass! I saw the first and the second one recently and the girl who plays Lisbeth Salander (Noomi Rapace) is absolutely incredible. She makes me feel good about myself and I love watching her take big, bad guys down. Finally an inspiring female character in a movie. Of course there are very graphic and disturbing rape scenes so just watch out.

I was just researching more about the books and I didn't like much about what I read. The character of Lisbeth is described as looking 14 because of her lack of boobage (apparently, I haven't read the books) and I guess in the second book she gets a boob job- which is completely inconsistent with her character and almost makes me not want to read them at all. It was disappointing to hear that this kick ass woman gets a boob job in the book, but at least they don't do that in the movie thank god. Makes me a little sad, but I still feel inspired whenever I watch her.

[KeraBear]

Oh yeah, and every else's comments so far have been really good too. I didn't want you all to feel underappreciated!

Karategrrl - good idea. Ditch the bf and go to Europe! LOL Less obsession with big boobies there, isn't it? LOL I can see your point, though. Relationships are hard work! How often do we really work on ourselves?

nbdx0645 - Too bad you didn't have the lounge back then huh? I know how it is when it seems like the whole world is against you. We've come a long ways, baby!

[KeraBear]

I would tell myself to celebrate my hot little body because it was and no one I've dated has ever said otherwise. Looking back, I wish could tell myself as a teenager that my breast size had very little to do with my self worth--tmy breasts were not the sum of my value as a person, but somehow they were the measure of my self-esteem (0). I would tell myself to make a list of things I liked about myself and acknowledge them every day because it doesn't make sense to fixate on what you perceive as your main flaw. Let people drink up all that beauty, confidence, and talent--and cultivate them, not the insecurity!

I love this! Especially that last bit. I seriously think I am going to take up this advice and make a list if only because i have never done anything like that before. Maybe I will start with "hot little body" ha ha I am a short boobie challenged lite-weight! I've always wished myself different, but so far my bf has not complained. But yeah, I love the idea of writing down things I like about myself.

[karategrrl]

Starship, I can see why you felt crappy after that person's comment. I not-too-bright male kid once asked me if I was a boy. (I had short hair at the time, but was NOT a boy, most definetely.) I said, "No, are you?" Keep that one up your sleeve, grrl.

Advice to my teen self:
How great that you asked! Hmm...tough one...but I'd say:

1. Don't get consumed with boyfriends; spend your time having experinces to develop your SELF: go to Europe, play on a sports team, have many friends, run a small business, have crazy hobbies--whatever. My very biggest regret is spending YEARS of effort on heavy-duty relationships that I could have spent developing skills, talents, contacts, and SELF-ESTEEM that would have served me so much better than a string of what I now realize were really fucking stupid pointless relatiosnhips with boyfriends who only dragged me down and helped me go nowhere.

2. I agree with lapis--learn what looks great on you, and run with it. I didn't develop a sense of style till almost 30, and it makes a huge difference in how I feel and how I am perceived by others. YOU ARE WORTH IT. And it doesn't have to cost a lot, so don't let that be an obstacle. (I've gotten some of the best shit I own from the thrift shop!) Know your body type and what styles and colors look good on it.

[koffeewitch]

Hey, just to change things up a little bit in the convo. I have a question. If you could go back in time and give your teenage self any advice on getting through life, particularly school life with small breasts, what would you say?

I want to quiz you experienced ladies and soak in all the wisdom you have to offer!

Dude, now that I'm 37 I look at those in their late teens/early 20s and I see the beautiful skin and that dewey, fresh indescribable glow and the shining hair and graceful youthful bodies...and I think, wow, s/he has no idea how really gorgeous she is (just like I had no idea how really beautiful I was in my 20s...I was conditioned to see my "too-short" legs or some other totally imagined flaw).

You're only young ONCE...have the wisdom and insight to appreciate it for the fleeting gift that it is. Really....later, you'll wish that you had valued yourself more.

(Hey guys...on the issue of implant safety...do we know who paid for these studies?)

[nbdx0645]

Kera, this is so difficult! It's so hard to figure out what to say. Strongirl and lapis really nailed it.

If I could give my teenage self advice, it would be to talk to someone about my feelings. When I was a teen, my insecurities about my body were used against me. I was so ashamed of the way I looked, I trusted someone to help me 'feel better about myself.' It had the opposite effect. I thought, "If I didn't have these small breasts, I would have been more confident, and I wouldn't have been in that situation."

I don't think that I'd be able to talk to my younger self without getting screamed at. I needed help because my immediate family looked at me with pity and my friends made fun of me. It was hard to love my body because it felt like everyone was against it. But now that I'm older, I know that's not true. I'd tell my past self that you're no longer alone, and you're not going to feel this way forever.

[lapis]

Hi KeraBear, now that I'm 33 and a mom, I would tell my teenage self that femininity/beauty are not determined by breast size. Those larger-breasted girls were not any prettier or had any more right to be proud than I did, but they projected confidence. I used to think I was less feminine than other girls and realize now how feminine I am. At the same time, I would take my teenage self shopping, after looking at magazines about how to accentuate my figure. This has taken years to become aware of. I used to just wear baggy clothes, but certain cuts of clothes are super flattering. I would tell myself to celebrate my hot little body because it was and no one I've dated has ever said otherwise. Looking back, I wish could tell myself as a teenager that my breast size had very little to do with my self worth--tmy breasts were not the sum of my value as a person, but somehow they were the measure of my self-esteem (0). I would tell myself to make a list of things I liked about myself and acknowledge them every day because it doesn't make sense to fixate on what you perceive as your main flaw. Let people drink up all that beauty, confidence, and talent--and cultivate them, not the insecurity!

[strongirl]

Wow, what a good question, Kera. I really had to stop and think.

If I could go back and give my teenage self one bit of advice, it would be to be aware that guys were attracted to me and to pick up on the fact that they were hitting on me when they were. I was pretty naive and oblivious and I also assumed I was not attractive to guys - for a number of reasons, small breasts being only one of them and not at the top of the list, actually. I ended up getting hit on a lot and because I often didn't pick up on it, the guy was in control of the situation not me and I didn't respond the way I would have wanted to. If I'd been more aware, I would have stopped some of these interactions earlier. Others I would have encouraged and invited to go further, rather than being unresponsive which the guy interpreted as not interested. But at least I would have been in touch with reality and making conscious choices, rather than having others in control and me reacting (or not reacting) out my own insecurities.

[KeraBear]

Hey, just to change things up a little bit in the convo. I have a question. If you could go back in time and give your teenage self any advice on getting through life, particularly school life with small breasts, what would you say?

I want to quiz you experienced ladies and soak in all the wisdom you have to offer!

[KeraBear]

I was just having a sort of argumentative conversation with someone and they said "Were you born a boy", I think it was a joking way of saying have you got any secrets. but for some reason it just hit all my insecurities and I had a total breakdown on the bathroom floor type moment. I can't believe over such a silly little comment, which probably had nothing to do with the way I look anyway. I feel awful.

I'd rather boob job discussions were in here- it's the only thread I check regularly, and I can imagine the surgery thread ending up getting derailed into small booby discussions.

Oh geeeeeeez, what a terrible thing for someone to say! That is the worst insult ever for gals like us... when people attack our very womanhood. At least that is the source of my greatest insecurities. I hope you are feeling better about things. You're beautiful, Starship! *hug*

[spot-on]

Just a quick update. I am scheduled for surgery on 7th December, pre-op appt on 19th November. I will pop in with updates every now and then to let you know how things are going....

[spot-on]

Hey Girls

Well the research I've done (and it's been LOTS over the last 2-3 months) shows no correlation between implants and auto immune diseases. The FDA has done 14 years of studies and found no link between implants and auto immune disease. Most of the websites women have written on are women who had the old silicone implants that leaked everywhere inside the body, that obviously has an impact on the body and those implants have not been used since 1992. During my research for every website I found saying there was no causation was another claiming a link. The facts are that the new implants have been studied by numerous bodies and no link has been found between the NEW implants and auto immune diseases.

References
American College of Rheumatology (ARC) Study 1995
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/im...itionstate.html

statment from the ACR

The ACR believes that these studies provide compelling evidence that silicone implants expose patients to no demonstrable additional risk for connective tissue or rheumatic disease.

details of the Institute of Medicine report 1999
http://www.smartbreastaugmentation.com/implants.html

AMA article
http://www.ama-assn.org/ama/no-index/about-ama/13669.shtml

From all the research I read the general consensus is that auto immune diseases are more prevalent in women (lucky us!) and can be caused by a variety of things, one of those is bodily stress. Surgery is obviously stressful regardless of the reasons, and hence SOME women who undergo breast augmentation get auto immune later in life. Auto immune diseases usually require a trigger, like surgery, but to say the cause is the implants is false, it's more likely the stress of surgery. On the breast implant website I hang out at, many of the women have auto immune and DON'T have implants yet! Is it more likely that these women who got Auto immune AFTER implants may have gotten the disease anyway? Who can say?

That said I know that each person is different and what affects one person affects another completely differently. I watched the documentary that someone posted and honestly I think there is more going on with that girl than implant issues. Even now after explanting, with all the problems she had, she is looking into enlarging her breasts with various other methods. I don't know I just got the feeling something else was going on with this girl other than the breast implants.

Hey spot on, do you have any references to this you can share? I found lots online about all sorts of links between implants and scary autoimmune things--would be interesting to read otherwise.

I for one support you and would LOVE for you still to share here. I am very interested in how it goes for you! Or at least post somewhere (if not in the "small-breasted supoort" place and let us know where.

[starship]

I was just having a sort of argumentative conversation with someone and they said "Were you born a boy", I think it was a joking way of saying have you got any secrets. but for some reason it just hit all my insecurities and I had a total breakdown on the bathroom floor type moment. I can't believe over such a silly little comment, which probably had nothing to do with the way I look anyway. I feel awful.

I'd rather boob job discussions were in here- it's the only thread I check regularly, and I can imagine the surgery thread ending up getting derailed into small booby discussions.

[karategrrl]

There has been NO link between implants and the immune disease etc women have attributed to implants - the FDA did HUGE studies on this, and anyway the implants are different now to 10 years ago so it's comparing apples and oranges imo.

Hey spot on, do you have any references to this you can share? I found lots online about all sorts of links between implants and scary autoimmune things--would be interesting to read otherwise.

I for one support you and would LOVE for you still to share here. I am very interested in how it goes for you! Or at least post somewhere (if not in the "small-breasted supoort" place and let us know where.