Breast implant size is one of the first things you think about when you start considering augmentation mammaplasty. This is a very personal decision since you’ll be living with your implants every day. The size of your implants can affect many different aspects of your life including:

  • How you feel about your appearance
  • Your comfort and ease of movement during physical activities such as exercise
  • What position you sleep in
  • How your clothes fit
  • How other people react to you

Breast Implants: Too Big or Too Small?

There’s no one size that works for every implant patient. If you read online forums about how satisfied women are with their implants, you’ll see two main themes. Some women regret getting implants that are too big. They feel uncomfortable with the size and feel it is completely out of proportion to their body type. Other women like their implants but wish they had chosen a higher volume. These women often get revision surgery to go up a size. In fact, that’s one of the most common reasons for getting a second breast implant operation in the first few years after the initial surgery.

Each additional revision may increase the risk of complications, so picking an initial size that is large enough to satisfy your tastes is something you want to seriously consider. On the other hand, it’s often easier to go up a size than down a size as far as the complexity of the revision surgery is concerned. In the final analysis, women who have breast implants they think are a little too small tend to be more satisfied than those who went with an implant that is too big. A too small implant can easily be enhanced with a padded bra while there’s not much you can do to minimize a very large implant.

What Breast Size Is Really Attractive?

American beauty standards tend to be geared toward finding larger breasts more attractive than smaller breasts (as long as the large breasts are perky and nicely shaped). However, the size you find personally attractive may differ from these societal norms. If you’re not really sure what size of breast you find attractive, that’s OK. Give yourself plenty of time to think. It might be a good idea to expose yourself to images of breasts that are considered beautiful in other countries so you have a wider range of options to consider. For example, you can visit plastic surgery sites from the UK, France, or Germany to see before and after photos of European patients. This may help you determine what you really like size-wise rather than just what you are used to seeing in the media.

How Do You Feel About Extra Attention?

Let’s face it: women with larger breasts (whether natural or augmented) are the recipients of extra attention in many social situations. Some of this attention is positive and some of it is unwanted. You need to think about how you might feel and react in situations where people start treating you differently because of your breast size. This doesn’t mean you should avoid getting implants, but you might pick a size that you can play up or conceal with different styles of clothing depending on who you will be interacting with.

What Breast Implant Size Is Practical?

A modestly sized breast implant (300ccs or less) shouldn’t interfere with your ability to do all of your normal activities, including sports. If you are highly active, you may also be leaner and a smaller implant might look more natural on you. Many women with naturally large breasts say their breasts get in the way or interfere with finding properly fitting clothing. Talk to your well endowed friends to discover what daily (or nightly) activities they find more difficult because of larger breasts. Just remember that implants do behave differently than non-augmented breasts. They are somewhat firmer and won’t move around in the same way as natural breast tissue.