My breast reduction surgery made me realise I should have got it done earlier

Voices

For years, Ms Rebecca Ng endured judgmental comments and chronic pain due to her large breasts. After undergoing breast reduction surgery, she realised just how much her breasts had been affecting her life. 

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13 Nov 2026 09:30PM

I've had large breasts since secondary school, but a growth spurt after I gave birth to my first child in 2017 saw my bra size rapidly increase from a B cup to a D cup. By the time I had finished breastfeeding my second child, I was a 36E.

I did not realise how much my breasts were affecting my everyday life until I began thinking about all the things I had stopped doing or learnt to work around.

For example, I gradually gave up many physical activities.  

Swimming? Maybe next time. Running? Absolutely not. Golf? I couldn't do it at all because my chest literally got in the way of my swing.

Funnily enough, I had never thought of myself as someone with a medical problem. I was simply a woman with very large breasts who had learned to adapt to them. 

ENDURING JOKES AND JUDGMENT

The teasing began early and never really let up. 

In secondary school, the boys in my physical education class had a Hokkien nickname for me: dua neh bu (big-breasted girl). 

I learnt fast that laughing along drew less attention than getting upset did. If I showed them that their jokes were upsetting me, the teasing would only get worse.

Even in adulthood, when I started working in the insurance field, colleagues would make comments about my chest when I wore blazers. 

As a young insurance agent, I worked on a lot of roadshows. 

Whenever I closed a case in a roadshow, my colleagues would joke and say things like: "Is it because your boobs were on the table? That's why your clients became distracted and signed the plan."

Again, I just brushed them off. I wasn't too affected by these comments because, fortunately, I've always been someone with high self-esteem. However, I still felt like I was getting attention for all the wrong reasons. 

Teasing aside, there were also practical issues to contend with. I realised only recently, as I was looking through my old photos, that I was dressing conservatively all these years in an effort to hide my chest. 

Naturally, I wound up looking more mature and older than my age.

And if finding clothes that didn't emphasise my chest was a struggle, finding bras was even harder. 

I needed the structured "auntie style" bras because ordinary bras didn't come close to supporting me. 

I had to look for imported bras since local brands didn't cater to women my size. Even sports bras were uncomfortable because wearing them left grooves across my shoulders from the thick straps.

For years, I just accepted that this was the lot I had drawn in life. It never occurred to me that I could actually do something about it. 

CONNECTING THE DOTS

After my first child was born in 2017, I started getting neck, shoulder and back pain. For years, I sought help from traditional Chinese medicine practitioners, but the pain never went away.

Looking back now, I think it took me so long to realise that my breasts were the cause of my aches because of a lack of awareness. After all, you don't know what you don't know. 

It was only when I began researching my symptoms online that I made the connection between my back pain and the size of my breasts. 

At first, I tried to fix the problem myself. I dieted. I exercised as much as my body allowed. Much to my disappointment, the size of my chest remained the same even after I lost 8kg, and the pain didn't go away. 

Eventually, I started considering surgery. I had done enough research to know that in breast reduction surgery, incisions are made around the breasts. Fat, skin and breast tissue are removed from the breasts to reduce their size. 

Finding out all of this information gave me some hope. Finally, there appeared to be a solution to my problem. 

But I found myself out of my depth. I didn't know anyone who could refer me to a plastic surgeon. 

The only person I knew who had undergone breast reduction surgery was a colleague. She told me that the pain from her procedure in 2016 had been "worse than childbirth" and that she was left with very pronounced scarring. 

Hearing about her experience made me put off surgery for a few more years. 

ENOUGH WAS ENOUGH

Another reason I put off breast reduction surgery was that I was planning to have more children. I knew pregnancy would change my breasts and that surgery could affect my ability to breastfeed.

After my second son was weaned in 2021, my sagging, also known as breast ptosis, got worse. 

My husband and I wondered for a while if we should expand our family, but eventually decided to stop at two children. 

So, it was in 2024 that the idea of getting breast reduction became more concrete. That was also when the discomfort from my breasts finally made me say: "Enough is enough."

I found my surgeon almost by accident. A friend was seeing Dr Lee Hanjing at Argent Plastic Surgery about her breast ptosis. 

I tagged along to one of her appointments with no intention of doing anything for myself. While waiting with her, I wondered if it was time to consider the procedure for myself too, so I booked my own consultation.

Dr Lee and I clicked immediately. I felt confident enough to proceed with surgery in December 2024 without shopping for a second opinion. 

My colleague's cautionary tale was still in the back of my mind, but Dr Lee was very reassuring. 

She explained to me in detail what the surgery would entail and told me about the potential tradeoffs. For example, if I wanted smaller breasts, I might have some scarring. The choice was a no-brainer for me. 

Two other things made the decision easier. 

First, I learnt that a substantial reduction was medically necessary to relieve the chronic neck and back pain I had been enduring. I eventually had about 800g of tissue removed, reducing my breast size from a 36E to a 34C. 

Second, because the surgery was considered medically necessary rather than cosmetic, my insurance covered most of the bill. The surgery would otherwise have cost me an eye-watering S$50,000 (US$38,895). 

There was just one small hitch. I'd already booked a holiday to Guangzhou, China before I went to see Dr Lee. 

I thought about postponing my breast reduction until after the trip, but eventually decided to go ahead with the operation. I felt like I had waited years for this. I wanted to do the surgery as soon as possible instead of dragging it out across the new year.

A WEIGHT OFF MY CHEST

The physical relief from the procedure was almost instant. 

I remember coming around from the anaesthesia after the five-hour surgery and noticing right away that the weight on my chest was gone. 

While I felt freer and lighter right away, it took about six weeks before I felt fully ready to get back to my daily routines. 

The first three days post-surgery were spent in the hospital. And for about a week, I had surgical drains placed on both sides of my chest. These are small tubes that help to drain fluid following a surgery.

I remember coming around from the anaesthesia after the five-hour surgery and noticing right away that the weight on my chest was gone.

In the first few weeks, I also dealt with discomfort from my tight surgical garment, which was meant to accelerate recovery, and itchy scars. 

About three weeks after surgery, I flew to Guangzhou despite my doctor's warning that sitting for hours on a flight could increase the risk of developing a blood clot. 

While I advise any woman reading this to listen to your doctor, I'm a restless person by nature. Sitting around doing nothing was boring for me.

Naturally, the flight was exhausting. But I forgot all about my tiredness when I went shopping the next day. 

For the first time in years, I could choose clothes because I liked them and they fit me, not because they could hide my chest. 

A NEW LEASE OF LIFE

My day-to-day life is now a far cry from the years before surgery.

I run now. I've taken up golf, with a swing that now has room to follow through. I've gone back to taekwondo, a sport I had given up due to other commitments. I've also started Pilates. 

There have also been some unexpected changes. Being comfortable in my own body appears to have changed the way I carry myself at work too. I've started getting invites to give motivational talks at events for my company.

I don't think I've ever struggled with my confidence. But I think the people around me are seeing the change in my dressing and demeanour. I hadn't even realised that this was yet another way my chest size had affected my life. 

To any woman considering breast reduction surgery, I would say this: don’t overthink it. 

I think many women hesitate because they worry how they may be perceived. Some feel that breast reduction might be seen as cosmetic rather than something they genuinely need. 

I wish people would be more aware that often, women who choose a breast reduction are not doing it out of vanity. 

For me, the reasons I went under the knife were simple. 

It was about no longer living with pain. It was about having greater mobility and being able to exercise without discomfort. 

It was about wearing clothes without feeling the need to hide, and getting through a normal day without carrying that constant physical burden. Looking good was a bonus.

Of course, there's also the assumption that it will be very expensive. Others worry about the pain, the recovery time, or whether they'll have enough support at home. These are all valid concerns and I'm lucky that I had medical coverage and a supportive family.

I don’t have any regrets, except that I wish I'd done it sooner. And by sharing my story, I hope more women will realise they don't have to suffer in silence.

Rebecca Ng is 38 and works in the insurance industry. She lives in Singapore with her husband and two children, and is now enjoying an active lifestyle.

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Source: CNA/kl