Meet with an Expert Plastic Surgeon | Tulsa, OK
Breast Lift: Restore Your Youthful, Confident Shape
Let's be honest—gravity is relentless. Combined with age, pregnancy, breastfeeding, and weight fluctuations, it's no wonder your breasts may not look quite the way they used to. If you've noticed your breasts have begun to sag, lose their upper fullness, or sit lower on your chest than you'd like, you're not alone. Every year, tens of thousands of women restore the youthful position and shape of their breasts with breast lift surgery, also known as mastopexy.
At South Tulsa Plastic Surgery, board-certified plastic surgeon Dr. Brenda Schiesel understands how changes to your breast appearance can affect your confidence and how you feel about your body. A breast lift raises and reshapes sagging breasts, repositions the nipples to a more youthful height, and creates a firmer, perkier breast profile, helping you feel comfortable and confident again. Whether you're dealing with mild drooping or more significant sagging, Dr. Schiesel's meticulous surgical technique and artistic eye for natural-looking results ensure your breasts will have the lifted, feminine shape you desire.
As one of the few female plastic surgeons in Oklahoma, Dr. Schiesel brings both technical excellence and genuine understanding to every consultation. She knows what it's like to navigate the changes that come with motherhood and aging, and she's here to help you feel like yourself again, just with a little lift.
Ready to restore your youthful breast shape? Contact South Tulsa Plastic Surgery today to schedule your complimentary consultation and discover how a breast lift can help you look and feel your absolute best.
Understanding Breast Lift Surgery
What Is a Breast Lift and Who Is a Good Candidate?
A breast lift, or mastopexy, is a surgical breast procedure that raises the breasts into a more youthful position. Over time, age and gravity can diminish the firmness of your breasts. When this happens, the nipple may shift downward, and the upper part of your breasts may lose their youthful volume as breast tissue begins to sag. This is a completely natural process that happens to many women, especially after pregnancy, breastfeeding, or significant weight changes.
Breast lifts correct these issues by lifting and reshaping the breast tissue, elevating the nipple, and giving the breast a youthful, natural-looking appearance. The procedure removes excess skin, tightens the surrounding tissue, and repositions the nipple and areola to create a firmer, perkier breast profile. Breast lifts are ideal for women who have drooping breasts due to aging, weight fluctuations, or pregnancy, suffer from mild to severe ptosis, have breast asymmetry, have nipples that face downward or drop below the breast crease, want a perkier and more youthful breast shape, or simply want a better fit in bras and bikinis.
Meeting in person with board-certified plastic surgeon Dr. Schiesel is the best way to find out whether a breast lift is right for you. Generally speaking, you may be a good candidate for mastopexy if you're displeased by the appearance of your breasts, are in good overall health, don't smoke or are willing to quit prior to surgery and throughout recovery, are at or near your ideal weight, have realistic expectations, and are willing to follow all of Dr. Schiesel's pre and postoperative instructions.
It's important to understand what a breast lift can and cannot do. As a standalone procedure, breast lifts improve the perkiness and firmness of your breasts by addressing ptosis and providing a more lifted and youthful appearance. However, a breast lift alone will not significantly change the size or volume of your breasts. Some breast lift patients actually experience a reduction in breast size by one or more cup sizes after recovering from surgery due to the removal of excess skin and tissue repositioning. The best way to determine which approach is right for you is to discuss your goals with Dr. Schiesel during your consultation.
The Breast Lift Procedure & Incision Options
What to Expect During Your Surgery
Breast lifts are performed in an operating room under general anesthesia, which means you'll be comfortably asleep throughout the procedure and won't feel any pain during surgery. It's an outpatient procedure, so you won't need to stay overnight; instead, you'll go home the same day. The procedure usually takes about four hours or less, during which Dr. Schiesel will reshape the breast gland, tighten excess skin, and reposition the nipples to the center of each breast. She can also reduce the size of the areolas if needed.
Dr. Schiesel carefully plans your incision pattern to minimize visible scarring while achieving optimal lifting and reshaping. She'll discuss which incision option is best for your specific anatomy and goals during your consultation.
Preparing For a Breast Lift | Tulsa, OK
Setting Yourself Up for Success
With any surgery, proper preparation is key to ensuring a smooth, safe procedure. By following Dr. Schiesel's preoperative instructions, you'll reduce your risk of complications and heal more quickly. Patient education is a cornerstone of Dr. Schiesel's approach to care. She'll thoroughly discuss everything you need to know about your procedure and provide you with detailed preoperative instructions. Here are some tips to help you get ready:
Two Weeks Before Surgery
By making certain arrangements well in advance, you'll alleviate last-minute stress and ensure everything runs smoothly. About two weeks before your surgery, arrange for someone to drive you home on the day of your procedure, someone to stay with you for at least the first 24 hours after surgery, and help with childcare or pet care if needed. You'll also need to stop taking blood-thinning medications, as well as certain herbs and supplements. If you're a tobacco user, you'll need to quit at least four weeks before your procedure, as smoking significantly impairs healing and increases complication risks.
One Week Before Surgery
About a week out from your procedure, consider cooking and freezing meals for simple preparation during your recovery. Because breast lift surgery requires a brief recovery period with limitations on activities, prepare a comfortable rest area and stock it with entertainment and supplies. Make sure you have comfortable robes and pajamas, comfortable shirts that button in the front, a grabber tool to help you pick things up without bending, a stool softener or laxative to address problems that may arise from pain medication, antibacterial soap, entertainment like movies and books, and easy-to-prepare food items. Choose low-sodium options to avoid increasing fluid retention and swelling.
Night Before Surgery
Some of the most important preparation steps happen the night before, including thoroughly washing your hair and showering with antibacterial soap, avoiding all food and drink for the final eight hours before surgery (including water), and getting a good night's rest.
Day of Surgery
On surgery day, wear comfortable, loose clothing with a shirt that fastens up the front, and don't wear contact lenses, makeup, or jewelry. Dr. Schiesel will provide you with detailed preoperative instructions prior to your procedure. Following her guidance closely will help speed your healing, avoid complications, and improve your comfort throughout recovery.
Recovery & Results After Breast Lift Surgery
What to Expect as You Heal
Breast lift recovery is typically quite manageable. A certain level of discomfort and tenderness is to be expected during the first couple of days after surgery, but this can be effectively managed with pain medications. Most patients find that the discomfort is less severe than they anticipated. Breast lift surgery is performed under general anesthesia, so you won't feel any pain during the procedure itself. Following surgery, some tenderness, bruising, and swelling are normal and can generally be handled with medications prescribed by Dr. Schiesel. A compression garment may also help relieve discomfort and support your breasts as they heal.
Since this is an outpatient procedure, you won't need to stay overnight in the hospital, but you will need to arrange a ride home from your surgery. It's a good idea to ask a friend or loved one to help you around the house for the first 24 to 48 hours of your recovery, especially if you have children or other responsibilities.
While everyone heals slightly differently, patients can usually resume light household tasks after the first few days. You should be able to return to work and engage in gentle exercises, such as walking or using an elliptical, within the first few weeks of your recovery. Avoid strenuous activity, heavy lifting, and overhead movements for at least a month. After 6 to 8 weeks, most patients can begin lifting weights or resume aerobic exercise.
You may experience bruising or swelling during the first few weeks of recovery, and you may even have residual swelling for several months. Once all the swelling has dissipated, you'll be able to see your final results, and they're worth the wait. Your breasts will have a lifted, youthful appearance with improved upper pole fullness and nipples positioned at a more attractive height on the breast mound.
Frequently Asked Questions
Will breast lift surgery leave visible scars?
Breast lift surgery requires incisions, and all incisions create some degree of scarring; that's simply part of the healing process. However, Dr. Schiesel strategically places incisions to minimize visible scarring as much as possible.
Depending on the technique used to lift your breasts, incisions are often made around the areola, where they can be hidden in the natural transition between darker areolar skin and lighter breast skin. Some incisions may extend vertically down from the areola to the breast crease or horizontally along the crease, but these are typically well-concealed beneath the breast or in the natural fold.
Following Dr. Schiesel's pre- and postoperative care instructions will help encourage proper healing and minimize the appearance of scars. It's important to avoid blood thinners and vasoconstrictors like nicotine, as these can encourage thicker scars. Most patients find that their scars fade significantly over time and become barely noticeable.
We also offer Biocorneum, an advanced silicone gel scar treatment with SPF 30, to help soften, flatten, and fade scars during the healing process for optimal results.
Will a breast lift affect my nipple sensation or ability to breastfeed?
During breast lift surgery, the nipples are repositioned to better suit the newly formed breast mound, which can temporarily affect nipple sensation. In many cases, nipple sensation returns over time as nerves heal and regenerate, though some changes may be permanent. The degree of sensation change often depends on the extent of lifting required and the incision technique used.
As for breastfeeding, breast lift surgery can potentially impact your ability to nurse, though many women are still able to breastfeed successfully after the procedure. The risk to breastfeeding depends on the surgical technique and whether milk ducts are affected during repositioning.
For this reason and others, Dr. Schiesel generally recommends that women who plan on having children in the future consider waiting to undergo breast lift surgery until after they've completed their families. This allows you to achieve your aesthetic goals without concerns about how future pregnancies might affect your results or how the surgery might impact future breastfeeding.
Do breast lifts require implants, or can I get a lift without changing my breast size?
Breast lift surgery does not require breast implants—it's a completely separate procedure. A breast lift focuses solely on lifting and reshaping your existing breast tissue to create a more youthful position and firmer appearance. No volume is added. In fact, many women are perfectly happy with their breast size and simply want to correct sagging or improve their breast shape, making a lift alone the ideal solution.
However, if you've experienced significant volume loss in addition to sagging (which is common after pregnancy, breastfeeding, or weight loss), you may want to consider adding implants to restore fullness at a later time. This is entirely dependent on your anatomy, goals, and personal preferences.
During your consultation, Dr. Schiesel will evaluate your breast tissue, discuss your desired outcome, and help you determine the best approach for achieving the results you envision.
How do I schedule a consultation for breast lift surgery near me?
Scheduling your complimentary consultation is easy and straightforward. You can call our office directly at (918) 518-5144 to speak with a member of our friendly team who will help you find an appointment time that works with your schedule, or you can request a consultation online.
During your consultation, you'll meet with Dr. Schiesel in a private, relaxed setting where you can discuss your concerns openly, ask any questions you may have, and explore your options without any pressure. Dr. Schiesel will evaluate your breast anatomy, listen carefully to your goals, explain the procedure in detail, show you before-and-after photos of previous patients, and help you determine whether a breast lift is right for you.
We look forward to meeting you and helping you achieve the confidence you deserve!