Who Is a Candidate for a Breast Lift?

Hands in the air if you could use a breast lift!

A saying you'll hear a lot at Amelia Aesthetics is if you raise your hands above your head and like the placement of your nipples and the shape of your breasts, you may be a breast lift candidate.

In general, the obvious candidates for a breast lift are those in generally good health with low nipple placement, unhappy with the shape of their breasts, or experiencing sagging breasts due to skin laxity. 

Skin laxity can be caused by a number of things like:

• Aging
• Weight gain
• Weight loss
• Pregnancy
• Breastfeeding

However, for some women, whether or not they’re a candidate isn’t as black and white. If you’re on the fence about a breast lift, you’ll lean into the power of your one-on-one consultation, an examination, and your plastic surgeon's expertise. 

Other factors like overall health and BMI are also a part of candidacy. Keep in mind, each board-certified plastic surgeon will have unique requirements for BMI, recovery procedures, and scar protocol.

Doing your research ahead of time will ensure you aren’t caught off guard if the term, “lift” comes into play. 

We know research sounds boring, but the Bustmob Academy app makes plastic surgery research easy and binge-able right from your couch, nursery, or break room. 

Is the pencil test really a thing? 

You may have heard about putting a pencil in the crease of your breast and if it falls out, it’s a tell-tale sign you need a lift. But, unfortunately, that is a bit of a myth. 

Mainly because breast lifts address a lot more than just low nipple placement. Breast lifts can also: 

• Address breast shape
• Resize & reshape the areola
• Remove damaged, stretched-out skin 
• Create perkier, more youthful-looking breasts

Though breast lifts can do a lot, they cannot add volume to the breast (that is a silicone or saline breast implant’s job). 

Breast implant surgery is easy to combine with breast lifts to add volume to the breasts, but it isn't required. If you’re happy with the volume of your breasts, a lift may be all you want. 

If you'd like to keep the size and density of your breasts, auto-augmentation may be an option. Auto-augmentation doesn't add volume. Instead of completely removing the breast tissue at the bottom of the breast (like in a traditional breast lift), your plastic surgeon can move that tissue to the middle of the breasts, behind the areola, to maintain your original volume.

Keep in mind, we haven’t actually added volume, only a breast implant can do that. We've just moved things around a bit. 

What is a breast lift anyway? 

A lift is a type of breast augmentation that moves the breast tissue up, brings the areolas back front and center, and reshapes the breasts.  

At Amelia Aesthetics, your board-certified plastic surgeon will also reshape and resize your areolas (if that’s something you want) and includes bra line liposuction to create even more shape and “side boob”, all at no additional cost. 

There are 2 common types of breast lifts: 

1. Anchor lift: an incision around the areola, down the middle of the breast, and under the crease 
2. Lollipop lift: an incision around the areola and down the middle of the breast 

Your surgeon will guide you on which type is best for you based on your anatomy, breast tissue, and the amount of damaged skin that needs to be removed. 

What should I do before my consultation?

The best way to prepare for your consultation is with research done beforehand and your goal photos ready. 

This gives you more time with your plastic surgeon to focus on your surgical plan and goals, not just learning the basics. 

Goal photos are crucial for ensuring your surgeon understands your goals, looks you love, and looks you want to avoid. Be sure to have yours selected and handy during your consultation.

Need a goal photo or two? The Bustmob GoalFinder is our unique collection of thousands of real plastic surgery after photos. 

You can search by your height, weight, age, complexion, and procedure(s) to get an idea of what a breast lift could look like on your body type. 

Save your favorites to a personalized collection to keep your goal photos organized and accessible for your consultation.

Did this answer your question, but spark a few more? 

The free Bustmob Academy app has over 150 videos just like this one to educate you on everything you need to know about breast lifts and breast augmentation.

Learn the basics, FAQs, myths, recovery, costs, and risks through fun, quick videos all in one place. 

Jenny Eden, founder of Bustmob, and Gretta Nance, lead educator at Amelia Aesthetics, break down your plastic surgery research into bite-size, binge-able pieces.