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One Patient’s Experience with Dr. Cohen

Each of Dr. Cohen’s patients comes to the clinic with unique concerns that require individualized care. Dr. Cohen’s approach differs for each case, but her main focus is always on helping her patients gain confidence and achieve their personal goals. The transformation that happens in Dr. Cohen’s care is not only visible on the outside, but also happens in ways that only the patient can feel. To better understand this transformation, read how one procedure helped a patient overcame years of insecurity and gain a stronger self-image.


As a kid, I was always one of the tallest girls in my class. Of German descent, I was always big boned; I still am. I wear a size 9 shoe and I also wear a size 9 ring. From head to toe, I have never been petite.

So as a teenager, when all of the other girls started developing, I, too, wondered when I would start to develop. All of the girls I knew were talking about it and wearing bras. They teased me because I still was not. I remember being so self conscious about it especially when I had to shower and dress with the other girls in the locker room after gym class. Everyone else already had breasts, but I did not. I was obsessed with how my body looked. I talked to my mom about it, but got the standard answer for the time, “give it time,” and “you are still young.”

When I was in high school, I had a crush on a boy who called me a “flattie.” Wow, I remember that hurting so badly it killed the crush, but my obsession festered. Not much could be done about it at that time. Plastic surgery was for the rich and famous, not for a teenage girl who felt self-conscious about her body. Apparently, all teenage girls experience those feelings, but I felt like I was the only one in the world feeling things weren’t quite right. I always bought the most padded bras available, and I also bought inserts for my bathing suits. The problem was that the bras were hot and uncomfortable and, on occasion, the inserts would “float” out of my bathing suit. How embarrassing!

Halter tops were popular at that time. So, I decided to try one on when I went shopping with a girl friend. Because I was flat as a pancake, it did not fit well and did not flatter my tall figure. My girl friend asked me to model it, but I didn’t want to. After some prodding, however, I put it back on and opened the fitting room door. She laughed at me. I cried. I couldn’t wear backless dresses, I didn’t want to wear bathing suits, and I felt uncomfortable going without a bra. Even pregnancy didn’t resolve my dilemma. I felt deformed and unfeminine. My husband, who was the kindest man I have ever known, would console me and tell me that I was beautiful to him no matter what but that did not help either. The final straw was when a complete stranger saw me in the locker room at the gym with my underwear on and said to me, “where are your boobs?!” I felt so dumbfounded that I didn’t know what to say. Sheepishly, I heard myself reply with, “they are there.”

I was 38 years-old and the mother of two children when I met a lady who shared with me that she had had breast augmentation for similar reasons and it had changed her life. We talked. She referred me to her physician and a couple of months later I, too, had breast augmentation. As I had been told, it WAS life changing!

For the first time in my life, I felt beautiful and sexy; I stood taller, I gained self-confidence, and I no longer felt deformed. I wish I hadn’t waited so long to do this for myself!

Our society places way too much emphasis on appearance and breast size. People can also be very cruel and demeaning. Although everyone will not look like a model in a magazine or on television, we still face the stereotypes set by others. It took me years to finally get help for myself and be able to feel whole. So if my story can help just one woman who has suffered similarly, then sharing it will be worth her knowing that there are others who have known the same pain.

Dr. Cohen helped me transform from the caterpillar into the butterfly. She shared my frustrations and worked with me to ensure my results met my expectations and made me happy.

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