Sam Myring

So I'm Sam. I live on Romney Marsh. I had a breast reduction on the 19th of January 2024 because they prevented me from taking part in sports and dancing that I love. My confidence was at a low. I had some money saved up, and I was at that time of life when I could take the time for me to actually think about what I wanted.

I have been a member of the society since 1989, so I know what a wonderful hospital it is. I didn't look anywhere else because I knew how good it was. That was my major choice. The wider staff experience should anything not be right, and that was why I did. I had heard stories before and decided that a hospital would be the best option.

The journey began with Kate, the cosmetic nurse, who spoke to me, interviewed me as such. Then I met Mr. Macdonald, the consultant, and he was really supportive. He gave me really good clear guidance. So initially I made the phone call, had the booking made. The whole journey took a year, but that was basically down to myself because I had to lose weight. I thought I would just come in and it'd be done. But there was a little bit of a kickback for me with Mr. Macdonald. We sort of locked heads and we do joke about it now, but he was right and I am so grateful for him saying, no, we've got to do this this way. I have become a better, more confident person because of it.

When you walk into Benenden Hospital, it's so calm and the staff are so lovely. Doesn't matter who you meet, they always greet you. The appointments, if they're running late for any reason, they're always apologetic, which very rarely happens. But it's just an amazing place to come. It's so relaxing.

What I like now is when I initially came for the first consultation, I was in one part of the hospital, but now there is a dedicated cosmetic suite which is quite nice because you actually know where to go straight away and the rooms are lovely. It's another relaxing situation. It's not stressful. Like any surgery, you're really nervous, but just walking in, it was early in the morning, which was great. Came in and the staff was so good, they had everything ready for me. From the moment I walked in, I think it was about an hour and I was ready to go down for the surgery. So rather quick but great because I didn't have time to think about it. I was calm. Even down to the anaesthetic room, we were laughing and joking. So, yeah, it was brilliant.

I was lucky because Mr. Macdonald is so good with his explanation of everything. I didn't have any concerns or worries. He talked through it all prior to this, so I was just coming in and I couldn't wait for the new experience. The care of the staff is fantastic throughout the day and the night because I stayed overnight. I hadn't thought about it, but my compression bra that I needed had to go to the operating theatre with me. That was found and put on me without any concerns. When I came round, they couldn't do enough for me. It was enough care without being too intrusive so that I could relax. That was just the fantastic bit about it on the day. Couldn't have been better.

After my initial two weeks, I had a check-up with Kate looking at my dressings and everything was going fine. Unfortunately, about a month later, there was an issue where it didn't heal quite well, but Kate was amazing. I was on the phone with her. I sent her photos. She could then discuss what to do. She consulted with Mr. Macdonald about it, and all of this without the added worry of it not healing properly. I didn't have to worry because it was included in the price, which was lovely because I know that was one concern—how much more is this going to cost me?

My life has improved so much. My confidence, which is something priceless. My posture—people notice that I actually walk properly, not hunched over. I can actually take part in sports for once. I can do a mountain climber without almost dying. So, yeah, honestly, I would recommend it to anybody. If you're struggling yourself and it's something that you're considering, then it is worth having a consultation just to talk things through. Then it is down to you and you alone. I was embarrassed to tell people I was having it done, but people reassured me that if it made me feel better, then that was the main thing. I would definitely recommend coming here. If you decide that you want to look here and then go to other places, do your research. But honestly, I couldn't fault this place.

Angela Miller

My name is Angela. I'm 52. I live in West Sussex. I underwent breast reduction surgery at Benenden Hospital in April 2024. Prior to surgery, I never liked changing in public changing rooms. It was very difficult to find any swimwear or lingerie in my size. I'd have to go to specialist shops which were always a lot more expensive. I never liked looking at photographs of myself because of the disproportionate size of my body.

It was at Christmas that I went for a bra fitting and I'd increased in size by another cup size. My husband wanted to buy me a dress at Christmas time and I got very frustrated in the shops because I couldn't find anything that would fasten at the back. It fitted me on the bottom. So I elected at that point to say this is enough. I really want to have the surgery.

I've been a Benenden Health member for over 20 years and when I was looking for reputable surgeons, Mr. Mackey appeared. As a member, I explored further and he was a very reputable surgeon. I also knew Benenden Hospital would provide excellent post-operative care over a clinic or just going to a cosmetic surgery clinic. So I decided to investigate further and book my initial consultation.

At my first consultation, I met Kate Comrie, and she's the specialist cosmetic nurse. She immediately made me feel at ease. She was very friendly, very professional. She took me through to meet Mr. Mackey and again, he made good eye contact. He didn't use medical jargon. He made me totally feel at ease and he explained the procedure. He also explained that I may require some liposuction under the arms, which would certainly help with my overall frame after the procedure. He was exactly what I was looking for in a surgeon, very personable and professional.

So after the first consultation, it was explained to me that I would require a second consultation so that I'd had time to process all of the information that I'd been told. If it was something I definitely wanted to go ahead with, at the second consultation, I would sign the paperwork and a date would be agreed when I would be coming in to have the surgery.

The drive through the countryside is just beautiful, especially in spring coming along in April. On arriving at the hospital, the car park had lots of free spaces. It's directly next to the main entrance. I was greeted by a very friendly receptionist who directed me to the cosmetic suite which was very clean, bright, and very calming. The feel of the whole hospital is the cleanliness. All the staff you encounter from the porter to the nurses are very, very personable and friendly.

I was really impressed with the room. I had a lovely sized ensuite and then very shortly afterwards, once I'd had time to settle in, I met the anesthetist and everybody that would be assisting me throughout the day. Kate Comrie, the cosmetics nurse, was there. She came in with Mr. Mackey and immediately it was nice to see a friendly face. Mr. Mackey then had to draw on my breasts where he'd be making the incisions, which did make me feel very nervous, but he assured me that that wouldn't be the scarring and that it was just to assist him throughout the surgery. I was concerned about the nipple area because I knew it would have to be removed. Mr. Mackey assured me that they would keep the blood flow and the nipple area attached if they could. So it would ensure that the tissue would survive when reattached.

Mr. Mackey came to visit me probably around an hour after I'd come round after the surgery. He explained that everything had gone very well and that he took the compression off to show me the scars. I was quite apprehensive at first. However, I became quite emotional when I saw my shape in the mirror and I just had feelings of regret that I hadn't had the surgery done a long time ago. They looked perfect to me. Although obviously I had tapes on where the scars were. It was such a vast improvement.

I thought I would be in a lot of pain, but surprisingly, I could manage the discomfort with paracetamol that I just was recommended to take every four hours. I had two compression bras that Kate had before the surgery recommended that I bought and then I changed them to help with the recovery. I had tapes on the scarring which were removed after six weeks, but they stayed on for the entire time. Every time I would catch my reflection in a shop window or the mirror at home, I just couldn't believe I kept smiling and couldn't believe the new shape. My posture improved, my clothes fitted better. People commented that they thought I'd lost a lot of weight, but they weren't quite sure that I'd had the surgery to reduce my breasts.

At my six-week post-op, I was again met by Kate Comrie and went through to see Mr. Mackey. He was very pleased with the results. The scarring was symmetrical, very neat. After the initial surgery, they did appear very high and quite firm, but I was reassured they would drop and be more natural, which once the swelling had subsided they certainly did look a lot more natural. Mr. Mackey was very pleased with the results and the tapes were removed and I was told that I could go for a bra fitting to find out my new size.

It has totally changed the way I feel about my body. I used to be an H cup prior to the surgery. Then I went for a professional bra fitting and was measured as a 34 D. Now, all the underwear in the regular stores are accessible to me. I purchased two swimsuits that fit perfectly. My body's in proportion. I go to Pilates regularly. I go on the trampoline with my eight-year-old daughter wearing a regular bra and it has totally changed my confidence and the way I dress and the way I feel about myself.

If anybody is struggling with the side effects of having extremely large breasts, I would totally recommend that they come to Benenden Hospital, meet Mr. Mackey and with his friendly professional team, it's a painless surgery and six months down the line, I can sit here and say it was the best thing that I did. I regret not doing it earlier. However, it's improved my life in so many ways that I didn't think possible.

Mandy McDonald

My name is Mandy Mcdonald. I'm from St. Leonard's, East Sussex, and in September 2023, last year, I privately paid for a bilateral breast reduction. So, a reduction was something I wanted for a very, very long time because of the impact on my everyday life. I remember coming to see Mr. Macdonald and talking through with him and bursting into tears and explaining to him why. Obviously, you know, when you go in for something like that, your Consultant wants to know why you want it done. And it did impact, I had huge breasts that I had to carry around every single day. I had dents in my shoulders. I had pain in my neck and my back.

It's seen as a glamorous thing, sometimes, to have big breasts, but I can honestly say hand on heart, it's not very glamorous, carrying them around and only someone that is in that position, that has those, I think, can truly empathise. I wanted to look for somewhere locally and I know somebody that had used this hospital and she recommended it to me and it's perfect, because it's literally 40 minutes' drive. After meeting Mr. Macdonald, it just put everything at rest, you know. I'd saved a long time for the operation and I just knew then this is where I'm going to come for that operation. It's just set in stunning grounds, isn't it? It's beautiful, absolutely beautiful. You know, I think, you know, it's your ideal place for coming for an operation and sort of having that space around you is lovely. And the facilities, it's just clean, it's well kept, everybody is so welcoming.

Kate and Mr. Macdonald both came in to see how I was. And I remember saying to them, am I flat chested? And they said "No, no, definitely not flat chested!" And again, you know, just checking out how I was, am I comfortable? And then, you know, spending the night in hospital; the food was lovely, really, really well looked after. And then it's the start of, I remember, Mr. Macdonald saying, well, it's your job now. You've got to go home. You've got to sit just for a couple of weeks, literally with your arms by your sides, not doing much at all, watching plenty of Netflix, getting waited on hand and foot. Because that part of the recovery is really, really important. The really lovely thing was Kate was just at the end of the phone, end of the email, you know. I remember sending her pictures "Are they meant to look like this. Is this ok?" And she was just there, giving me reassurance the whole time.

I went from wearing compression bras after the op for six weeks. And then once I didn't have to wear the compression bra anymore, it was invigorating. I can wear, you know, just a little sort of sports bra now or a crop top even dresses. I'm wearing dresses, backless dresses with no bra. I've never been able to do that. It's absolutely amazing. I absolutely would recommend the hospital to anybody. And I already have, you know, I've got a couple of friends that are looking to have a breast reduction. Don't look abroad, come here. You get so well looked after, you know, all the reassurance before the surgery. You come in on the day of the surgery and again, so well looked after and really looked after after the surgery. And Kate, you know, the breast nurse is there to help you, answer any questions, reassure you. It's just such an amazing service. It's made such an impact on my life. I just, again, I can't begin to name everything that is different for me.