Breast size and shape can influence how clothing fits, how balanced your body feels, and how comfortable you are with your reflection. Some women have always felt that their breasts were small for their frame, while others notice lost fullness after pregnancy, breastfeeding, weight loss, or aging. You may also have one breast that is naturally smaller than the other or feel that your upper breast volume no longer matches the rest of your figure. Breast augmentation can increase volume and improve shape, symmetry, and proportion with a plan created specifically for your body.
At Women’s LifeCenter Aesthetic Surgery and Medispa, breast augmentation is not approached as choosing a cup size from a menu. Elysa Fisher, MD, FACS, considers your chest width, existing breast tissue, skin quality, nipple position, natural asymmetry, lifestyle, and desired degree of change before recommending an implant and surgical technique. Her goal is to help you achieve a breast shape that feels balanced with your figure rather than placing the same style or size of implant in every client. Dr. Fisher’s existing breast enlargement philosophy recognizes that naturally small breasts, uneven breast size, and volume loss after pregnancy or weight reduction can all affect how comfortable a woman feels in her body.
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Breast Augmentation Should Feel Like Your Decision
The decision to have breast augmentation is often more layered than simply wanting larger breasts. A client may want to restore the fullness she had before pregnancy, feel more proportionate in fitted clothing, or reduce a visible difference between her right and left breast. Another may have spent years wearing padded bras and adjusting necklines because she feels that her chest does not match the shape of her hips or shoulders. These concerns are personal, and they do not need to be dramatic to deserve a thoughtful conversation.
Our clients often describe their goals in feeling words rather than measurements. They may want to look balanced, feminine, natural, athletic, fuller, or simply more like the version of themselves they picture when choosing clothing. Those words can mean very different things from one person to another, which is why photographs and implant volumes cannot replace a detailed consultation. Dr. Fisher helps translate your preferences into a surgical plan that accounts for what your own tissues can safely support.
Breast augmentation should also be chosen for you, not because a partner, trend, photograph, or social expectation suggests that your breasts should look different. The American Society of Plastic Surgeons identifies personal motivation and realistic expectations as important parts of candidacy. A good consultation gives you enough information to decide whether the expected benefit, scars, recovery, long-term maintenance, and possible risks make sense for your life.
What Is Breast Augmentation?
Breast augmentation, also called augmentation mammaplasty, is surgery performed to increase breast volume or improve breast shape. Women’s LifeCenter currently describes its breast enlargement procedure as using breast implants to increase size and correct shape. Implants can also help improve selected differences in breast volume and restore fullness that has decreased after pregnancy or weight loss.
During surgery, an implant is placed within a carefully created pocket behind the breast tissue, behind the chest muscle, or in another position selected according to the surgical plan. The incision and implant position depend on your anatomy, the implant being used, the amount of enlargement desired, and Dr. Fisher’s recommendation. The result is visible immediately, although swelling, muscle tightness, and the initial high position of the implants can temporarily hide the final shape.
Breast augmentation increases volume, but it does not automatically correct every degree of sagging. An implant can fill the breast and may improve the appearance of mild looseness, yet it cannot reliably raise a nipple that has descended significantly or remove a large amount of stretched skin. When breast position is a major concern, Dr. Fisher may discuss a breast lift with or without augmentation. Choosing the correct procedure prevents an implant from being used to solve a problem that requires skin removal and reshaping.
What Can Breast Augmentation Improve?
Breast augmentation can be used for several different aesthetic goals. Some clients want a noticeable increase in breast size, while others want a subtle restoration that allows the upper breast to look less empty. The amount of change should be based on your body, tissue quality, and preferences rather than a particular cup size or social media trend.
Breast augmentation may help address:
- Naturally small breasts
- Loss of fullness after pregnancy or breastfeeding
- Volume changes after weight loss
- One breast that is smaller than the other
- Limited upper breast fullness
- A breast shape that feels out of proportion with the hips or torso
- Clothing, bras, and swimwear that do not fit as desired
- A desire for greater breast projection or a fuller profile
- Selected changes that are part of a personalized mommy makeover
No operation can guarantee perfect symmetry. Most women naturally have differences in breast size, nipple position, chest shape, or rib structure before surgery, and some of those differences may remain afterward. An implant may improve volume asymmetry, but it cannot always correct differences caused by the chest wall, skin, nipple position, or breast footprint. Dr. Fisher will point out existing asymmetries during your consultation so they do not come as a surprise after surgery.
Choosing a Breast Implant Size
Implant selection is about far more than deciding how large you want your breasts to be. The implant must fit the width of your chest and the amount of tissue available to cover and support it. An implant that is too wide may extend beyond the natural breast boundary, while an implant that is too large for the skin and tissue may increase visible edges, rippling, stretching, or future sagging. The most natural result usually comes from choosing dimensions that work with the breast rather than forcing the breast to accommodate an unrelated number.
Cup size is not a precise surgical measurement because bra manufacturers label sizes differently. One brand’s C cup may fit like another brand’s D cup, and band size also changes how the letter is interpreted. During your consultation, it is more useful to discuss proportions, projection, upper fullness, cleavage, and how noticeable you want the result to appear. Dr. Fisher will combine those preferences with measurements of your breasts and chest.
Clients are sometimes surprised that two implants with the same volume can create different appearances. Implant width, projection, profile, shape, and the client’s existing tissue all influence the final result. A narrow implant with greater projection will behave differently from a wider implant with the same number of cubic centimeters. This is why choosing an implant based only on a friend’s size or an online photograph rarely produces a reliable comparison.
Saline and Silicone Breast Implants
Breast implants have an outer silicone shell and may be filled with saline solution or silicone gel. Saline implants are filled with sterile saltwater, while silicone implants contain a cohesive silicone gel. Each option has its own feel, rupture behavior, age-related approval requirements, and long-term monitoring considerations. Dr. Fisher will explain which approved implant choices are available and why one may better fit your tissues and goals.
A saline implant generally becomes visibly smaller if the shell ruptures because the saline escapes and is absorbed by the body. A silicone implant can rupture without an obvious change in appearance or feel, which is known as a silent rupture. The FDA states that MRI is the most effective method for detecting silent silicone implant rupture and that ultrasound is an acceptable screening alternative for asymptomatic clients. Current device labeling commonly recommends an initial ultrasound or MRI five to six years after silicone implant placement and every two to three years afterward, although you should follow the instructions for the specific implant you receive.
The correct discussion is not simply that one implant is better than the other. Your natural tissue thickness, desired feel, tolerance for future imaging, concern about visible rippling, and preferred breast shape all matter. You should also receive the manufacturer’s patient information for the implant being considered. FDA-required labeling includes a boxed warning, a patient decision checklist, and a device card identifying the implants placed.
Implant Placement
An implant may be positioned directly behind the breast tissue and above the pectoral muscle, which is called subglandular placement. It may also be placed partly or fully beneath the chest muscle, depending on the anatomy and surgical technique. Each location affects coverage, movement, recovery, and the way the implant interacts with the chest muscles.
Placement above the muscle may offer a different recovery experience and avoids movement caused by contraction of the pectoral muscle. However, clients with less natural breast tissue may have more visible implant edges or rippling because there is less tissue covering the device. Placement beneath the muscle can provide additional coverage in selected clients, although it may involve greater early tightness and a risk of animation, where the implant moves when the chest muscle contracts. There is no single pocket that is best for every body.
Dr. Fisher will consider how much natural tissue you have, whether you perform frequent upper-body exercise, the implant selected, and the appearance you want. A fitness instructor who contracts her chest muscles throughout the day may have different priorities from a client whose main concern is thin tissue coverage. The recommendation should fit your anatomy and lifestyle instead of following a fixed office preference.
Where Are Breast Augmentation Incisions Placed?
Common breast augmentation incisions may be placed within the fold beneath the breast, along part of the areola, or in the armpit. The appropriate approach depends on the implant, anatomy, desired result, and surgical plan. Incisions are positioned with the intention of limiting visibility, but every incision creates a permanent scar.
An incision in the breast fold provides direct access to the implant pocket and is concealed beneath the breast in many clients. An incision around the areola may blend with the change in skin color but travels through a different area of breast tissue. An armpit incision avoids a scar directly on the breast, although it may not be appropriate for every implant or surgical situation. Dr. Fisher will explain the benefits, limitations, and expected scar location of the technique she recommends.
Scars commonly appear pink, raised, firm, or darker during early healing. They usually soften and fade over time, but they will not disappear completely, and individual healing patterns vary. Genetics, infection, skin tension, sun exposure, and nicotine use can affect how a scar develops. The final scar may continue maturing for a year or longer.
Breast Augmentation or Breast Lift?
Breast augmentation primarily adds volume. A breast lift primarily raises and reshapes breasts that have descended by removing excess skin and repositioning the breast tissue and nipple. Some clients need only augmentation, some need only a lift, and others benefit from a combination of the two procedures.
A common sign that a lift may need to be discussed is when the nipple sits at or below the breast crease, although the entire breast must be evaluated. Adding a large implant to significantly loose skin can create a fuller breast without producing the higher position a client expects. It may also place additional weight on tissue that is already stretched. The safest and most effective plan sometimes involves accepting lift scars to achieve the desired shape.
Clients who have lost volume after breastfeeding often assume that an implant alone will restore their earlier breasts. That may be true when the skin remains supportive and the nipples are well positioned. However, when both fullness and position have changed, augmentation with a lift may create a more balanced result. Dr. Fisher will explain which part of your concern comes from lost volume and which part comes from stretched skin.
Am I a Candidate for Breast Augmentation?
A suitable candidate is generally in good overall health, has fully developed breasts, and understands the benefits and long-term responsibilities associated with implants. You should have realistic expectations about size, shape, symmetry, scars, recovery, and the possibility of future surgery. Breast augmentation should also be your own decision rather than something you are doing to meet another person’s expectation.
You may be ready to discuss breast augmentation if:
- You feel your breasts are small for your frame
- Pregnancy or weight loss has reduced breast volume
- One breast is noticeably smaller than the other
- Your breast size has remained stable
- You understand that implants are not lifetime devices
- You accept that future imaging or surgery may be necessary
- You can stop smoking and nicotine use as directed
- You can arrange help during early recovery
- You have realistic expectations about improvement
Medical history can affect whether surgery is appropriate. Dr. Fisher needs to know about breast lumps, prior biopsies, mammogram results, breast cancer history, allergies, medications, supplements, pregnancy plans, breastfeeding goals, nicotine use, and previous breast procedures. The consultation also includes an assessment of your general health, breast dimensions, skin quality, nipple position, and existing asymmetry.
Your Consultation With Dr. Elysa Fisher
Your consultation begins with what you want to feel and see, not with an implant catalog. Dr. Fisher will ask why you are considering augmentation, how noticeable you want the change to be, and whether you are mainly concerned about size, upper fullness, asymmetry, or changes after pregnancy. She will also discuss the clothing and activities that matter in your life because the ideal result should work outside the examination room.
Dr. Fisher will examine and measure your breasts, chest width, skin quality, nipple position, and natural asymmetry. She will review your health history, medications, family history of breast cancer, previous biopsies, and breast imaging when relevant. Photographs may be taken to document your starting anatomy and support surgical planning. These steps are consistent with the elements the American Society of Plastic Surgeons recommends discussing during a breast augmentation consultation.
Dr. Fisher completed her undergraduate, graduate, and postgraduate medical education at Northwestern University and has been board-certified in plastic surgery since 1992. She describes her role as being accessible and serving as a source of information for clients considering options that range from office-based care to surgery. That philosophy is especially meaningful with breast implants because informed decision-making must extend beyond the early cosmetic result.
Clients have described Dr. Fisher as caring, thorough, and attentive to details during consultation and postoperative care. One client shared that Dr. Fisher identified a healing concern during a postoperative visit before the client even had to point it out. Experiences like this reflect the value of remaining accessible after the procedure instead of treating surgery as a one-day transaction.
Preparing for Breast Augmentation Surgery
Preparation may include a medical evaluation, laboratory testing, breast imaging, and adjustments to certain medications or supplements. You should not stop a prescribed medicine without approval from the clinician who manages it. Dr. Fisher will also give you instructions about eating, drinking, bathing, transportation, and what to wear on the day of surgery. Breast augmentation should be performed in an accredited surgical facility or hospital setting.
Nicotine must be discussed honestly because it reduces blood flow and can interfere with healing. Cigarettes, vaping, nicotine pouches, and other nicotine products can increase the risk of wound problems and infection. Follow Dr. Fisher’s required stopping timeline before and after surgery. Hiding nicotine use places your health and result at unnecessary risk.
Arrange for an adult to drive you home and remain available during the initial recovery period. Prepare easy meals, move frequently used items below shoulder height, and arrange help with children, pets, laundry, and heavy household tasks. Front-opening clothing is often easier because reaching overhead may be uncomfortable. Planning ahead reduces the pressure to perform movements your body is not yet ready to handle.
What Happens During Breast Augmentation Surgery?
Breast augmentation is usually performed with anesthesia selected for your safety and comfort. Dr. Fisher makes the planned incisions and creates a precise pocket for each implant. The implants are then placed above or below the chest muscle according to the surgical plan. The incisions are closed in layers with sutures, adhesive, tape, or another appropriate method.
Both breasts are evaluated throughout surgery, but equal implants do not always create equal-looking breasts because the starting anatomy may differ. One side may require a different implant dimension or pocket adjustment to improve balance. Even with careful planning, perfect symmetry cannot be promised. The objective is meaningful improvement while respecting the limits of the natural tissues.
A surgical bra, dressings, or compression may be placed before you leave the operating area. Some clients return home the same day after they have recovered appropriately from anesthesia. You will receive instructions about medication, incision care, sleeping position, activity, showering, and the symptoms that require an immediate call. A follow-up schedule allows Dr. Fisher to evaluate healing and implant position over time.
Breast Augmentation Recovery
Tightness, pressure, soreness, swelling, bruising, fatigue, and temporary changes in sensation are common during early recovery. The breasts may initially look higher, firmer, larger, or less symmetrical than expected because the tissues and muscles need time to relax. Acute discomfort often improves during the first several days, although soreness and swelling can continue for several weeks.
Gentle walking is usually encouraged, but lifting, pushing, pulling, chest exercise, and strenuous activity must wait. A client who works at a computer may return sooner than someone whose job involves lifting children, performing massage, handling equipment, or using the upper body repeatedly. Even when you feel better, the implant pocket and internal tissues are still healing. Dr. Fisher will guide your return to work and exercise according to your procedure and progress.
Many clients require several weeks before they feel fully comfortable with routine activity, and complete recovery is often described as taking approximately four to six weeks. However, the implants and breast tissues can continue settling after ordinary activities have resumed. The final shape becomes clearer as swelling decreases, the skin adjusts, and the implants move into their planned position.
Recovery is not perfectly predictable from day to day. You may feel stronger one morning and notice increased swelling after doing more activity that afternoon. This does not automatically indicate a complication, but new or worsening symptoms should be reported. Following your own postoperative plan is more useful than comparing your progress with a client whose anatomy, implant placement, and procedure were different.
Breast Augmentation Results
Breast enlargement is immediately visible after surgery, but the early appearance is not the final result. Swelling, tight muscles, and implant position can temporarily make the breasts look higher or rounder than they eventually will. Over the following weeks and months, the tissues soften and the implants settle into a more natural position. Incision lines also continue changing for many months and sometimes longer.
A successful result should feel proportionate to your shoulders, waist, hips, and overall frame. Some clients want a subtle breast that is difficult for others to identify as augmented, while others prefer a fuller and more noticeable profile. Neither preference is automatically better, but the desired result must be achievable without asking the tissues to support an unsafe or unstable implant. Dr. Fisher will help you balance your aesthetic goal with long-term considerations.
Pregnancy, weight fluctuation, aging, gravity, and hormonal changes can alter augmented breasts. The implants themselves do not prevent the natural breast tissue from stretching or changing. A future breast lift, implant exchange, revision, or removal may eventually be considered. Breast augmentation should therefore be viewed as a long-term relationship with a medical device, not a permanent procedure that will never require attention.
Breast Implants Are Not Lifetime Devices
The FDA emphasizes that breast implants are not considered lifetime devices. The likelihood of complications and additional operations increases the longer implants remain in place, although this does not mean every implant must automatically be replaced after a fixed number of years. Implant removal, replacement, or revision may become necessary because of rupture, capsular contracture, pain, position changes, cosmetic preferences, or another concern.
You should keep the device card provided after surgery because it identifies the manufacturer, style, size, and other details about your implants. Continue routine breast health care and tell mammography personnel that you have implants so they can use appropriate imaging views. The FDA confirms that clients within recommended screening age groups can still receive effective mammograms after breast augmentation.
Silicone implants require particular attention because rupture may be silent. Follow the imaging recommendations for your specific device even when the breasts look and feel normal. New swelling, firmness, asymmetry, pain, a change in breast shape, or a lump should be evaluated rather than assumed to be part of normal aging. Regular follow-up supports both breast health and implant monitoring.
Risks and Important Safety Information
Breast augmentation is major surgery and carries both surgical and implant-related risks. Possible complications include bleeding, infection, anesthesia reactions, poor scarring, persistent pain, altered nipple or breast sensation, asymmetry, implant displacement, visible rippling, fluid accumulation, rupture, and the need for additional surgery. Capsular contracture can occur when the scar tissue surrounding the implant tightens, causing firmness, distortion, or pain.
Breast implant-associated anaplastic large cell lymphoma, known as BIA-ALCL, is a rare lymphoma that can develop in the scar tissue and fluid around an implant. The FDA reports that the condition appears more frequently in clients with textured breast implants. The FDA has also received reports of squamous cell carcinoma and other rare lymphomas or tumors arising within the capsule around breast implants. These risks are uncommon, but they must be included in an informed discussion rather than omitted because they may feel frightening.
Some clients with saline or silicone implants report systemic symptoms such as fatigue, joint pain, memory problems, rash, or brain fog, sometimes described as breast implant illness. The FDA states that the causes of these symptoms remain poorly understood and that research is continuing. Some clients report improvement after implant removal, but there is no single test that confirms breast implant illness. Dr. Fisher can discuss what is known, what remains uncertain, and how symptoms would be evaluated.
No responsible surgeon can guarantee that you will never experience a complication or need another operation. The FDA requires implant manufacturers to provide a boxed warning and patient decision checklist so clients can review the benefits, risks, and long-term responsibilities before surgery. You should read the information for the specific implant carefully, ask questions, and take enough time to decide without pressure.
Breastfeeding and Pregnancy After Augmentation
Pregnancy is possible after breast augmentation, and some women can breastfeed successfully. However, breast surgery may affect nipple sensation, milk ducts, or milk production, and no technique can guarantee future breastfeeding. The incision, implant location, natural anatomy, and whether a lift is performed at the same time may all influence the outcome.
Pregnancy can also change the appearance of augmented breasts. The natural tissue may enlarge and later lose volume, while the skin can stretch around the implant. Some clients remain satisfied after pregnancy, while others eventually consider a lift, implant change, or another procedure. Discuss future family plans openly so Dr. Fisher can help you decide whether surgery now or later makes more sense.
Why Choose Dr. Elysa Fisher for Breast Augmentation in Wilmette?
Breast augmentation requires technical skill, but it also requires restraint and an understanding of how women’s bodies change over time. Dr. Fisher completed her undergraduate, graduate, and postgraduate education at Northwestern University and has been board-certified in plastic surgery since 1992. Her practice brings surgical, non-surgical, skin, and wellness care together within a setting created around women’s health, healing, and restoration.
Dr. Fisher believes that a surgeon should be accessible and serve as a resource of information. That approach is important when choosing a medical device that may remain in your body for years and could require future imaging or surgery. She will explain why a particular size, implant, incision, or placement is being recommended and what tradeoffs come with that choice. You should understand the plan rather than feeling that you simply selected an implant and hoped for the best.
Women’s LifeCenter Aesthetic Surgery and Medispa also offers a perspective built around different seasons of a woman’s life. Your reasons for augmentation may be connected to naturally small breasts, motherhood, weight loss, aging, asymmetry, or a personal desire you have carried for years. None of those stories should be reduced to a trend or standard package. The goal is to help you make an informed choice and create a result that feels right for your body.
