Today, I had my first breast implant expansion. I was in the capable hands of the gentle and efficient Nurse Jenna in Dr. Lee's office.

I really didn't know what to expect, but I was prepared for pain: first from the removal of the tape that Dr. Lee had applied to my stitches during surgery, second from the insertion of the needle to introduce more saline into my expandable implants.

Before the procedure, I asked Jenna what it would feel like. She said that the prick of the needle would be akin to getting a flu shot. She added that if the introduction of the saline solution created a sensation of pressure, she could slow down her depression of the plunger. The pain would depend on how much sensitivity I had in my breasts.

First was the removal of the surgical tape. I could feel Jenna gently pull it away from my chest, but experienced no pain. She's a pro.

Second was the expansion. Jenna used a small plastic device with a magnet to find the little metal disc in the expandable implant. The plastic device included a tiny crown-like protrusion, which she gently pressed into my breast to help serve as a target for the syringe. "Like making an imprint in a cookie before baking it," I suggested. "Exactly!" agreed Jenna. "Like making a thumbprint cookie." Then she inserted the syringe through my chest muscle and into the expandable implant until it just touched the metal disc. "Did you hear that?" she asked. I had. Next, she slowly pressed the plunger to introduce 50 mL of saline solution into the implant. When the procedure was done, she withdrew the needle and had me hold a piece of gauze over the insertion spot. Jenna repeated the process on the other breast, replacing the two pieces of gauze with two small bandages. In both cases, I experienced no pain whatsoever. Jenna truly is a pro.

Jenna noted that I may experience some discomfort this evening or tomorrow as my chest muscle adjusts to the increased volume in the expandable implants. However, an expansion of 50 mL, which is just over 3 tablespoons, is not a big jump. My next increase is likely to be 100 mL in each implant. That will come in three weeks, and every two to three weeks thereafter until I reach the desired size.

When I undergo medical procedures, they are sometimes more painful than I expected, as I expected or less painful than I expected. I'm thrilled that this one turned out to be less painful than I had expected.

Dr. Lee popped in long enough for me to give her a gift bag containing homemade cookies. (I had given the same token of appreciation to Jasmine, her very competent and kind assistant.) I was happy when Dr. Lee said that she would share her cookies with the staff in the office, as Jenna did a fabulous job today.