When breast implants are newly placed, they generally look firm and tight, sitting high on the chest. Breast massage can be a powerful tool for ensuring proper healing after an augmentation procedure. Through a simple, at-home technique, women can encourage supple, natural looking breasts. Routine massages, performed over the 12 months following a breast augmentation, will also help to avoid the formation of scar tissue, which can lead to poor healing and a possible capsular contracture.
Why perform the breast implant massage?
Breast implant massages, sometimes referred to as implant displacement exercises, are performed for proper healing of the breast after surgery. The exercises help to maintain the implant pocket that is created during the procedure. An appropriate pocket is vital, as it allows the implant to sit well within the breast, looking natural, moving organically, and feeling soft.
For those receiving breast implants, routine massage will:
- Keep breasts naturally soft
- Move the implants into their proper placement
- Reduce the chance capsular contracture, or the formation of scar tissue
Breast implant massage should be started as soon as your cosmetic surgeon gives the green light, normally after the first follow-up appointment. These massages should then continue for up to a year. Initially, the massage may be uncomfortable, although this will improve over time. Breast implant massage should be performed three times a day. After three months have passed, patients can decrease their massages to twice a day. Between the four and six month mark, as long as the breasts are soft and supple, a single daily massage will be adequate for proper healing. At about 12 months post-op, the breast implant massage can be stopped altogether.
How to Properly Perform Breast Implant Massage:
Step 1:
- Place your right hand underneath the left breast and press the implant upward.
- Alternating from your left to right hand, ‘walk’ the implant as high as possible within the implant’s pocket.
- When the implant has moved as high as it will go, hold it in place for 30 seconds.
- Repeat on the right breast.
Step 2:
- Put both hands on the left breast, immediately above the nipple.
- Steadily push the breast implant downward.
- Hold all the way down for 30 full seconds.
- Repeat on the right breast.
Step 3:
- Put your left hand along the inside of the right breast.
- Push the implant gently towards the outer body (in the direction of the arm pit).
- Hold the implant as far as it will move outward, for at least 30 seconds.
- Repeat with left breast.
Step 4:
- Place your hands along the outside of each breast, the right hand on the right, and the left hand on the left.
- Gently push your implants towards the center of the chest, so they touch at the midline.
- Hold the breasts together for at least 30 seconds.
Your surgeon will discuss the pros and cons of massage during the breast augmentation consultation. He/she will demonstrate the correct technique and review the frequency of massages necessary. It is important to ask for clarification, if needed, once the implants have been placed. The breast implant massage may not be recommended for some patients, such as those with textured implants or those who received a breast lift.
Breast Augmentation at Vitenas Cosmetic Surgery:
Dr. Paul Vitenas is one of Houston’s leading cosmetic surgeons. If you would like more information on the importance of the breast implant massage, after a breast augmentation procedure, contact Vitenas Cosmetic Surgery at (281) 407-7428. Remember, all consultations with Dr. Vitenas are complimentary and can be performed in-person or online. Contact a patient coordinator for more information.