When jumping off a boat at a party ends with the demise of Tati Santiago’s left breast implant, the time for replacing her big old implants with smaller ones arrives.
As the co-host of Star 94.1’s Jessie and Tati in the Morning, Tati already knew about her friend Laura Cain’s fantastic LJC experience and booked her consultation with plastic surgeon Dr. Hector Salazar immediately.
Though Tati was previously hesitant to switch to silicone because of the bad rap they had in 2005, she’s so glad she did. Going from 500 cc saline to 320 cc silicone, she says she feels like she was born with them!
Along with Tati’s surgery story, on this episode we hear the news about this winter’s upcoming collaboration between Better To Give SD, La Jolla Cosmetic, and Humble Design to collect furniture, housewares and other items for people transitioning out of homelessness and into their new homes.
- Better to Give SD
- Learn more about Jessie and Tati in the Morning
- Follow Tati on Instagram
- Find out what types of items Humble Design needs
Please request your free consultation online or call La Jolla Cosmetic, San Diego, at (858) 452-1981 for more
Transcript
Speaker 1 (00:07):
You’re listening to The La Jolla Cosmetic Podcast.
Monique Ramsey (00:14):
Welcome everyone to The La Jolla Cosmetic Podcast. I’m your hostess, Monique Ramsey. And today on the podcast my guest is someone very special. Many of you will already know her from radio. She’s on Star 94.1 and her name is Tati. She’s part of Jesse and Tati in the mornings. Hello Tati.
Tati (00:34):
Hi Monique. Thank you for having me. I’m so honored to be here. This was in the making.
Monique Ramsey (00:41):
Yeah, so she’s a patient of Dr. Hector Salazar here at La Jolla Cosmetic and she recently had a bilateral capsulectomy, an implant replacement. So in other words, you have-
Tati (00:55):
I’m so glad you said it.
Monique Ramsey (00:56):
Yeah, yeah, right. Tell me about that procedure. We’re going to have you talk about that in a moment, but we want to hear about something else that you’re involved with that we’re actually partnering up with in February. And so we’re going to talk about your work with homeless youth and what we’re doing with your Star 94.1 and iHeartMedia in February.
Tati (01:21):
Yes. So I am part of a group of moms and back in 2016 we started what is called Better to Give San Diego. And it started with us just kind of passing waters out to the homeless population that was in downtown San Diego. And after a while, after sharing our experiences and what we were doing, more moms started jumping in on this. And when I say we, we started with three moms, it was my best friend, myself and her friend. So it has grown to families serving the homeless population. And as we know, that has doubled. And I have not doubled the efforts of my, it’s a slow growth with my, I don’t have a 501(c)(3), so to meet other organizations who also help with youth experiencing homelessness or even just families and individuals, I love to do a collaboration and see what I can do with Better to Give SD and using Star 94.1 as a vehicle to get the message out.
(02:21):
So meeting Humble Design. Wow, I am just so honored. This is what I was looking for. I think it was described as the journey. When you think of children that are really children, we do something else that’s called GiveAthon. But when you think about children that are going through their journey of becoming healthy, when you look at it that way, in the homeless sense, and I think this is what, I think it was Laura who said this and she said what they do at Humble Design is like they’re at the point of that journey where they ring the bell. And I was like, I get it. Yes.
(02:59):
I actually see more of the homeless population at the very lowest, at the very beginning, at the very, they’re out there, they’re cold, they’re freezing, and even in the summers they’re so hot, they’re open to the elements. So I see them at their lowest. And so to see them transition out and Humble Design kind of just take over, it’s amazing to see. And I’m so glad that you made that introduction. I’m so glad that La Jolla Cosmetic Surgery Center and Med Spa made that introduction.
Monique Ramsey (03:31):
Yeah. And so we’re going to do a collaboration with Better To Give and iHeart, the station, Star is going to do, we’re doing a station takeover, I don’t know if that’s the right terminology.
Tati (03:44):
Yeah, I think so. Something like that.
Monique Ramsey (03:44):
In February, 2023. And we’re partnering up, so we’re having kind of a fund drive so that people can give to Humble Design and then also to Better to Give. But we’re going to have where people can buy, let’s say a dish set for a family or where you can actually have tangible items that go towards those items that you need in a house. These are families who maybe have transitioned out of homelessness, but they’re in a new apartment, but they have no furniture, they have no dishware. It’s great to have shelter, but you really need a home. And so that’s where we’re going to try to help fund as many families as we can through this drive. And then also we have a day at the station where people can come drop things off. And I think they said for Humble, the things that they need the most are lamps, end tables or bedroom, like a side table for next to a bed.
(04:44):
Smaller, more apartment sized things. TVs. So lamps, TVs, I think dresser tables next to your bed. Bedside tables. And certain things they have enough of and they don’t need more because they have a limited amount of warehouse space, which you guys, you got to tour the other day. It’s amazing. It’s like going shopping. You’ve got all these different departments and they pull and they do two homes a week, every week. And so it’s really amazing to see how the interior designers go through and pick things and all of a sudden it’s this beautiful HDTV remodel in four hours.
Tati (05:21):
Exactly. Yeah. Yes. That’s what it felt like. It was giving a dream home to someone who’s struggled for so long and this is now their home sweet home. And I love what home design does. There was also an art center there where the creatives, those who kind of take the furniture that you have, I think that sometimes people think, I don’t think they’ll like this furniture because it’s got a little nick here or a little water, when you put your cup down and it creates little waters. And it’s like, no, if it’s a smaller size apartment type of furniture, that can be repurposed. They actually have designers and artists that can repurpose those types of furniture pieces. So I think that the key is to always let people know, you can ask Humble Design this. Ask them, hey, is this what you need? And they’ll tell you. They know what their inventory looks like.
Monique Ramsey (06:14):
Yeah. And as we kind of go through that usual new year’s closet clean out and organization projects, what are the things that your group of people with Better to Give can use?
Tati (06:27):
So I think the focus and emphasis for January is jeans and jackets. That’s something that every time we’re out there, we’re passing stuff out because the homeless that are out in the streets are open to the element. They don’t have the place to call home yet. So yeah, they’re always asking for jeans and jackets, something to keep warm, blankets. But I think jeans, because of the toughness of the material, they’re always like, yeah, jeans. So I think that those types of items, when you are looking at Christmas, people are getting weighted blankets, they’re getting heated blankets, they’re getting all this new of something that they already have.
(07:05):
So I always appeal to folks that, hey, if you have two or three of something and you are just so blessed and you have a life of abundance and maybe give one of those three. Or if you like the second one that you’ve had this whole time and you’re ready to give it up, we’re looking for that. So for the most part it is things to kind of give temporary relief until they’re able to get to the space where Humble Design helps them, which is where they go into a home. And then that’s when Humble Design says we need furniture and those kinds of things.
Monique Ramsey (07:36):
And then, how the things will be ultimately collected: I think we are going to do on February, I think, is it the 24th?
Tati (07:44):
I believe that’s the date that we have. Yeah. But it has not been confirmed, but I think it is the 24th. Yes.
Monique Ramsey (07:50):
And we’re going to do it at the station where people can drive through and drop things off. So the jeans or the jean jackets or some blankets.
Tati (07:58):
Dishware, those end tables.
Monique Ramsey (08:01):
Right. And actually there’s a cheat sheet. Our producer Eva found a cheat sheet for what the kind of things that Humble needs and what things they don’t need. So we’ll put that in the show notes for everybody. So stay tuned on this upcoming fundraiser and donation drive that we’ll be doing in February with you. And you’ll be talking a lot about that. But you’re here in the office today to see Dr. Salazar. So let’s segue over to talking about that procedure you had. And breast implants, we know they’re not forever, they’re not a forever thing. You do have to have them replaced and removed. But the timing for you to do this was caused by something else. So tell us what happened.
Tati (08:40):
Yeah. So I had already had breast implants in and I want to say 15 years, maybe? I had them for a while. But July 4th weekend a friend asked, “Hey, you want to come on our boat? We’re going to go to the bay.” And I was like, that’s going to be fun. And we did. And her daughter wanted to jump in the water. We were out closer to the deep and she said, I want to jump, but I don’t want to jump alone. And I thought, let me go jump with you. I jumped, and I really don’t know if this is when it happened, but I can only assume this is when it happened that one of my breast implants deflated. It popped on the left hand side. It’s not like a tire where you’re going to pull over on the side of the road. It’s a slow release.
Monique Ramsey (09:24):
And you had saline implants, right?
Tati (09:26):
Yes, I had saline implants. I had 510 CC’s on the left, 495 on the right to kind of even them out. And it was the left, it was the one that was more inflated that had popped.
Monique Ramsey (09:39):
Oh wow. So how long did it take when you said uh oh? Was it like a day or a couple days?
Tati (09:45):
It was about a week. Because I know my breasts were 15, I know that they were under the muscles so I can kind of lift them if I wanted to. You remember this thing back?
Monique Ramsey (09:59):
Yes, yeah.
Tati (10:01):
I noticed that the left didn’t move and that’s when I thought, wait, this is weird. And kind of looked at them again and I go, wow, the left does look a little, wow, okay, so something’s going on here. And at that point I said, all right, I think I need to see someone. And the first someone was-
Monique Ramsey (10:19):
The first someone wasn’t a fit, huh?
Tati (10:21):
No, the first someone was not a fit. They didn’t hear what I said. They weren’t listening to what my goal was. They had an assumption of who I was and why I got breast implants in the first place. It was like they thought they already knew my story and why I got them in the first place. So it was a very awkward and uncomfortable consultation. But then, wow, Dr. Salazar was so attentive and I was like, okay. I was like, I’m so glad that I walked out of that first office and didn’t call back.
Monique Ramsey (10:53):
You know, when you know you know. You have to pay attention to kind of your gut, right?
Tati (10:58):
Yes.
Monique Ramsey (10:59):
In these things if it’s not a good fit. So the pair of implants that were the one, the saline ruptured, how long had you had those implants?
Tati (11:10):
I got them done in 2005, I want to say it was? It was right before I moved here to San Diego and I got them done in my home state. I’m from Hawaii, so I got them done there and then I came over to San Diego, in the next couple of months from when I had received that implant. So yeah, I mean 15, is that 15? Maybe it’s 10.
Monique Ramsey (11:31):
17 maybe. Yeah. 2005 to 2015 is 10 and then another seven. So it’s been a while.
Tati (11:38):
So it’s been a while.
Monique Ramsey (11:39):
It was time.
Tati (11:40):
It was time. It was time. And I had heard from many other people who had had breast augmentations and some of them were like, ah, I’ve had mine this long too and I’m fine. And I always say, oh okay, not a big deal. I’d never try and question anyone’s decision on what they do with their body. But I knew that when I got the implants that they only had a 10 year on them. I remember being told that. I was like, you’ve got 10 years, they can last longer, but we’re just letting you know that the manufacturer is, if anything happens, you have to go and get them replaced. And I thought, okay. And that happened this year.
Monique Ramsey (12:16):
Whether it was your timetable or not, it was happening.
Tati (12:20):
It happened.
Monique Ramsey (12:20):
Did you have any worries going into the surgery, or because you’d gone through it before, did you feel comfortable?
Tati (12:29):
Well I think that after asking all my questions to Dr. Salazar, I just had so many questions about what my options were. At first I was like, I have one, I’m lopsided at this point. And I’m like, I mean, how long can I stay lopsided? How many months do I need or years? Can I get them out completely and just leave them that way? And I told them why I got them in the first place. And the reason I got them in the first place is I breastfed for over a year and my son had, like most moms, drained the life out of them.
(13:01):
So I kind of had all those questions. And as far as the procedure and the surgery, I think there’s always going to be a little bit of anxiousness about what happens. But I asked a lot of questions to Dr. Salazar and he answered every single one. I think he made me feel good about what was going to happen. And he did tell me, because this isn’t the first time we’re going in to do this, you won’t feel as tight, you won’t feel as bruised. You’ll probably feel that it is a much easier procedure. And he was absolutely right and he was like, I don’t want to assume, he said, but because it’s your second, it probably won’t be as. But the first time, it was very tight.
Monique Ramsey (13:39):
The muscle is really tight and when you put something under that, you’re stretching that muscle.
Tati (13:44):
That’s right. The pain, that was a little longer. So this time was definitely not much downtime for me. But I do know that everybody heals differently as well. And everybody goes through, everyone has different pain levels. And I think that after three children, there was meds that helped me too. But my pain level is pretty good, I think. So it wasn’t as bad. When I say as bad, it wasn’t as painful or as long of a recovery I should say. Not bad.
Monique Ramsey (14:10):
Yeah. And was there anybody on staff that you, did you have a buddy that made the experience easier? Either your nurse or your patient coordinator or was that Dr. Salazar?
Tati (14:22):
Well, it was definitely Dr. Salazar, but there was a nurse, and I am terrible with names, but she was amazing and she stood behind doctor
Monique Ramsey (14:30):
Carmen?
Tati (14:31):
Carmen is amazing too. I mean, Carmen is just like, she’s the first impression person I feel like. She gives such a good first impression. You’re like, ah, you’re relaxed once Dr. Salazar comes in and then Dr. Salazar is just your buddy smiling, so you’re even more relaxed. But the day of surgery, I was a little anxious as you’re counting down to a procedure. So I don’t remember the nurse’s name that was in there, but she was so amazing. We were cracking up and she said, I’m sorry if I’m talking too much, you tell me to stop. And I said, oh, we are in good company, you and I. I said, let’s talk each other’s ear off. And she did. She helped me pass the time before we started the procedure.
Monique Ramsey (15:15):
Did you have to take time off of work? I know you’re a very busy lady between being a full-time on the radio plus a mom and you have your people that you’re helping out in the community. So tell me about your downtime after the surgery.
Tati (15:30):
So the nice thing about it was it was scheduled closer to the weekend. So I didn’t take too much time off, I believe, I think I only took two, maybe three days off from work. And because I wasn’t in a lot of pain and the downtime, it wasn’t a long downtime, I was kind of right back to work. As far as lifting and all that, I couldn’t do any of my outreach stuff. I couldn’t go to the storage and try to organize that or do any type of lifting of anything, which is good for a mom of three because then I just lay down and let the grapes be fed to me for a while.
Monique Ramsey (16:08):
Now, how old are your kids? What’s the range of ages?
Tati (16:11):
So I have a 24 year old. I was very young when I had him. And then I have a 15 year old and then I have a 12 year old.
Monique Ramsey (16:19):
So they’re in the age group where they can help.
Tati (16:22):
They can lift, they can do the heavy lifting. I can say I’m leaving everything in the car. You go and grab it. Yes.
Monique Ramsey (16:28):
So in terms of your recovery, was it painful? Did you have to take a lot of pain meds or any at all? Or what was that first maybe week like?
Tati (16:39):
So that first week, I’m kind of a person who doesn’t like to take medicine anyway. I like to again just let it run its course. However, there were different medications that serve different purposes that I felt like I need to pay attention. And of course I had the Bible with me. I had the book where I can refer back to, okay, what is this for? And there’s things for inflammatory medicines, there’s pain medicines. And there were times where I felt like maybe I don’t need it, but I should take it because I know myself, I know my pain levels and I know I’m someone who would just go, I don’t need that stuff, but maybe my body does. Maybe my body needs me to stop, relax, take the medications and just sit down.
(17:21):
So I did do that. And I think that’s what really eased me into recovering is because I stopped being my stubborn self and I looked at the book and said, okay, let me just follow instructions here, Tati. Just do what you need to do so your souffle comes out real nice. So yeah, I did. I definitely adhered to the instructions.
Monique Ramsey (17:46):
I think with any surgery it’s so important, but I think especially breast augmentation, because it is something where after maybe the initial discomfort, then you feel like, well I should be doing stuff because I feel fine. And that’s the hard thing is to keep yourself from making that extra feeling guilty like, oh I should be doing this or that or the other thing. And just letting yourself just relax and take some time to heal. Did you binge watch anything while you were?
Tati (18:17):
Oh, I watched way more. I think I caught up on the Crown. I think it was the first season of White Lotus. I watched so many streaming shows that when I came back, Jesse was like, please stop talking. Because I wanted to catch up on all the shows that he had been able to watch and I hadn’t. So yes, it was definitely a time to catch up. But also a lot of reading. I have a book club, so I met with my book club and they were like, let’s see it. And I said, it’s not ready.
Monique Ramsey (18:47):
So what are you reading for book club, just as an aside?
Tati (18:50):
Right now, we are rereading The Four Agreements.
Monique Ramsey (18:53):
I read that a long time ago. It was a very good book.
Tati (18:55):
I think it was probably on Oprah’s list and I think a lot of people read it a long time ago. And so was A New Earth, I think that’s Eckhart Tolle, and those are kind of books that people have read a while ago, but I never read them. So I have women that they’re like, I read that, but I need the refresher because man this ego, or yeah, I need that because I take things way too personal. That second agreement, we’re going to have to go over that. So it’s funny that we are doing books that maybe some have already read, but for me it’s new and I’m like, no wonder. You just really get insight on yourself.
Monique Ramsey (19:33):
So now what kind of implants do you have now? Did you keep with saline or did you switch?
Tati (19:39):
I did not. I switched. And Monique, I’m going to be honest, that one was probably the decision that I was most worried about. Because when I had my first implants, it was a long time ago. And the common consensus back then was you don’t do silicone. And this time I got silicone and I’m so happy I did. And it’s come a long way from all the questions I asked. And with Dr. Salazar, he showed me the implants and how they are now as opposed to back when I thought that they were bad and not the right choice. So yeah, I switched up. I went from saline and now I have silicone and they feel like I was born with them.
Monique Ramsey (20:27):
Oh, that’s good. So do they feel different in your body?
Tati (20:31):
Yes, yes.
Monique Ramsey (20:31):
In terms of when you move around or I don’t know, jogging.
Tati (20:36):
Jogging. So we’re on a beach right now, so we could totally jog. But yeah, no, the first time I had saline and I got them really big at the time. I felt like I needed big because I had breastfed and I had big then, but I started small before I breastfed. And so now they are more true to my body, more true to what they were before I had my son and had breastfed. So yeah, I mean they don’t get in the way. My old implants kind of got in the way. And back then, getting them big, it was the thing. And so now it’s like, when people say, well, let’s see them. And I go, well here’s what’s weird, is this time around it’s not a grand reveal, it’s more of a put them away now.
(21:25):
I’m older now, I don’t want them to be the focus. I feel better about myself inside. So I’m a little more, I don’t even know how to say, I don’t need the outside to be so much for everyone else. I needed it just for me. So now this is very low scale reveal and everyone’s like, when are you going to show? It’s been a while. And I’m like, I know, but there’s no, I don’t know. It’s not like I’m like, whoa.
Monique Ramsey (21:55):
So before there was 495 and 500 or right around that. What size are you now?
Tati (22:02):
I want to say it’s about 320.
Monique Ramsey (22:04):
Okay, so quite a big difference.
Tati (22:06):
Yeah. Yes. And I actually tried to go even smaller than that, but because of my frame and my body and the skin that I do have and the fact that I had a bigger implant before, I think just going small would’ve drowned. It would’ve looked-
Monique Ramsey (22:25):
Not quite right.
Tati (22:27):
Not quite right.
Monique Ramsey (22:28):
And Dr. Salazar, he’s done some podcasts with us talking about breast implants and remove and replace and all these things. And he said, you have to respect the footprint of the patient, the breast of that patient. And I thought, that’s such an interesting way to say it because everybody’s frame is different. It’s not just the implant and not just the breast, but your chest wall and the width of your torso. So we as lay people don’t think about that stuff. But I thought that was such an interesting way to talk about respecting the footprint of that.
Tati (23:01):
He showed me what that was, the measuring, and he measured from here to here and measured across. And I thought, what are you measuring? I just thought we needed to figure out just what was going in. What are you doing? And he’s like, no, we got to map it out. We got to, and I thought, oh, I love this. Thank you.
Monique Ramsey (23:17):
Yeah, yeah. He’s very precise. And it’s funny because sometimes it feels like the marking and the measuring is going to take longer than the surgery, but it’s measure, what do they say? Measure twice, cut once when you’re cutting wood? So same thing.
Tati (23:31):
Yes.
Monique Ramsey (23:32):
Now, do you remember how you heard about La Jolla Cosmetic?
Tati (23:36):
Yes, it was Laura Cain.
Monique Ramsey (23:38):
Oh my gosh. Yeah.
Tati (23:39):
So I work with Laura Cain at Star 94.1. Not with her every day, but she is part of the Star 94.1 home team. And she’s a radio icon. She was on with Jeff and Jer, like she is. And we played more variety from the 90s to now. She is the 90s to now. And so hearing her talk about her journey with La Jolla Cosmetic Surgery Center and Med Spa, I thought, why did I go to that first place? When everything happened, I wasn’t quite thinking about who do I know was more, well, let me just go online and Google the best or something. And sadly you can pay for your search.
(24:19):
I didn’t really even know that too, but with Google. But yeah, I came in the next day and I was telling Jesse and Shelly about the visit I had and how it was not good. And then here’s Laura Cain talking about on our station. I’m like, what is wrong with me? She’s in my ear every morning talking about this, how do I not? So I texted her and I said, do you mind if I go there and go meet them? She was like, do I mind? I said, well, I mean, that’s your thing. And she’s like, my thing? She’s like, I want you to. Of course, I’m telling people to go. And I was like, okay, cool, I’ll be there.
Monique Ramsey (24:57):
Yeah, I don’t want to step on your toes. No. Yeah.
Tati (25:02):
She’s like, what are you talking about? And so I seen her in the hallway and she looks amazing.
Monique Ramsey (25:05):
She does, she really does.
Tati (25:07):
Oh my gosh.
Monique Ramsey (25:09):
It’s that little edge of confidence. If something’s bothering you and you fix it, you no longer have to worry about it. And I just love it. She’ll go on Instagram or Facebook and she’ll put like, okay, I’m going to be going out for this night. Should I wear this or that? Or now she tries the clothes on and she does the whole little video and it’s like, she feels so good in her body. And I love that. I love that it was something that bothered her whole life. And she was really small and she’s a tall lady. And her proportions now, she looks amazing.
Tati (25:42):
She does look so good. And I always tell people, I didn’t get these for anybody else. And yes, I wore tops that folks could see, but it was for me. It was for me and my confidence. It’s to feel like myself again. And so I think sometimes people forget that, that it’s not so much about the look for you to see, it’s more the look for me to feel good. We have to be in this body, we have to walk day to day with this. So it’s all about feeling good. And you can see it with Laura. I can feel it with myself.
Monique Ramsey (26:16):
For you now, how long has it been since your surgery?
Tati (26:19):
Oh my gosh, I think it’s been more than eight weeks I want to say. Is that right?
Monique Ramsey (26:24):
So a little bit. So you’re still in that recovery period for sure.
Tati (26:29):
Yeah. It doesn’t feel like it, but yes.
Monique Ramsey (26:31):
So did anything surprise you or was there anything you weren’t expecting about this journey the second time around?
Tati (26:38):
I’ll be honest, I thought, okay, I’m just going to do this because one deflated and whatever I get, I get. Whatever. For me, I might just be happy with anything, right? Because at this point it’s like I’ve had them so long, I think that I thought I’ll just be cool, but that’s not what happened. I was like, I love my new boobs. These are, I just thought it would be like, eh, whatever. But it wasn’t. And I think that was unexpected for sure. I think the other thing was I thought that I could just keep my old bras. And when Dr. Salazar says you can now go bra shopping, I was like, I’m not going bra shopping.
(27:15):
Do you know me? I’m frugal. And so I was like, I’m just going to wear what I had. But I definitely had to get tighter brass and I don’t like anything with wire anyway. So that was fun doing that. And I think my husband too, I didn’t think he would react to it to my new breast. And he was like, you love it, huh? I said, I do because he saw me staring at me. So he’s like, you love it? And I was like, I do.
Monique Ramsey (27:39):
So do you have any advice you would give to somebody who’s thinking about maybe they’re like you, maybe they’re not the ones jumping in the water and having a deflation, but maybe they’ve had their implants for a while and they got them in their 20s when they had different reasons for getting them or different goals. And now that you’re a mom and to the ladies out there who might have implants and be thinking about, is it time for a change and that whole thought process?
Tati (28:04):
Yeah, thank you for asking that because in my book club, there’s two other women, we’re very close, we’ve been close for many, many years and they also have breast augmentation. And I can’t tell you how many times we’ve talked about it because they say, I want to switch mine out or I want to go smaller or I want to just not have them at all. And I think my biggest advice is do you. Do something that makes you feel good. Don’t worry about other people’s opinions. I have a lot of opinions. I do a two cents on my show, but those opinions are because of me, not for anybody else. When people tell you their opinions, that is for them, it’s not for you. So don’t go inward and say, oh, I can’t do this or I shouldn’t, or I shouldn’t even be thinking about me and my body.
(28:46):
I have other things I need to think about financially. And it’s like, the consultation is free just to see what it would look like. And then I came here and I was like, yeah, financing’s available. You really shouldn’t stop. Because I think for a long time I would always say, Monique, my kids have to go to college. How selfish would it be if I went and just replace these? I should just be thankful with what I have. And I just kept the big ones even though I didn’t like the big ones for a long time before they popped. So sometimes I think as women, we don’t put ourselves first. We put ourself aside.
(29:19):
And I think that’s why now in the last few years, it’s all about self-care, self-care, self-care. Yeah, some of those things are the choices and decisions that you need to do for you to make you feel good sometimes. And if you’ve been feeling like I need to replace these, at least just come in for the consultation. I mean, see what that entails for you. Whether you walk away feeling like I’m going to do this ASAP or I’m going to do this in a year or two. At least you owe yourself just answering all your questions.
Monique Ramsey (29:48):
Yeah. And they do. They have different ways you can try things on or vectra imaging. I don’t know how much when you already have an implant in what they can do with that. But I think there’s a lot that they can help explain. Your implants were 15, 18 years ago, whatever it was. They’ve changed a lot. So you think you know what a breast implant’s like, but you don’t really, because there’s so much technology that’s gone on in that interim period. And so I think that’s, like you say, there’s no charge for the consultation. And then you could kind of know, okay, what would it be per month or what does that take in terms of downtime? And so you can fit it into your schedule. So last question is, what would you tell somebody who’s listening about how to look for a surgeon? Because you said that first consult you had at another office was just, it didn’t feel right. And so tell us a little bit about what your advice would be.
Tati (30:43):
I think the biggest thing is really finding out what it is you want, what your goal is. And not, like I said, not because of other people’s opinions and what other people have told you, your sister, your cousin. No, don’t worry about them. Think about what your goal is. Have that goal in mind when you’re telling that to the doctor that may be the one who’s going to do the procedure. Really see how they are listening to your goals and how they’re taking in that information. Because I think that was the clearest difference. When you feel it in your gut that someone’s not really looking to help you with your goal. And not that all surgeons are like the first one I went to. I don’t want to put that out there, because I just want someone to know that whatever you feel, whatever feels good, what feels safe, they’re listening to you, that’s what you want.
(31:33):
And you don’t want to feel rushed either. They’re taking their time with you, even from the person checking you in. You’re not feeling weird with that person checking you in. They seem happy to be there and working there. That’s the other thing too is I feel like when I go to places and people aren’t talking and that’s the environment. And so you look at the environment and the culture of the place, people are happy to be there and they’re chatting up with each other. I love that. I love when people, the office chatter, it means everyone likes each other. It’s a good place to work. You want that vibe going into your procedure. You don’t want people who are not trying to be there. So I think it’s right, it’s a feeling. Really listen to your body when you go in there and you have your consultation and know your goal.
Monique Ramsey (32:16):
And they say, you can feel the emotional temperature of a place when you walk in. I heard that once and I was like, that is so true. Wherever you are, where you could go in and you feel it’s like you got to listen to that. And I think that’s a really good point. And Dr. Salazar, I think he really enjoyed being with you on this journey of taking it from yeah, we definitely have to do something to now over into a new future with a size that you feel better about.
Tati (32:52):
I feel so good. I feel like me.
Monique Ramsey (32:54):
So I know you weren’t going to do the big reveal on the radio, but you’re doing it right now, right? Like the jacket?
Tati (33:00):
No, so no, I do. Look, so it’s funny you say that. No, but really I wore this because I’m going to see Dr. Salazar immediately after this. So I wanted to wear something that I could kind of show him that, listen, I don’t wear this tank top every day. I’m pretty much a turtleneck or a shirt. I don’t usually do this, but I feel good today doing this. I was like, so on this jacket, I should have taken it off. I’m actually sweating.
Monique Ramsey (33:27):
Oh, they have it hot in here, don’t they?
Tati (33:30):
Well, it’s nice and cozy and I came from outside and I didn’t take off my jacket, but yes.
Monique Ramsey (33:35):
For those of us post menopause, I just call it hot,.
Tati (33:38):
I’m post as well, so yes, I know it.
Monique Ramsey (33:41):
Okay. Okay.
Tati (33:42):
But yeah, on my Instagram, two cents Tati, I have yet to post my journey and I think I was waiting for the post operation to do that, but I told you it’s not going to be this big woohoo. But it’s definitely going to show the journey from the time it popped. I have pictures.
Monique Ramsey (34:02):
Oh really?
Tati (34:02):
Not of the breast, but the before, the silicon, the saline and how they looked before and how I feel about these more.
Monique Ramsey (34:10):
Yeah, it would be neat to have a picture of you in a bathing suit or something before and then maybe.
Tati (34:15):
Well, Monique, you’re pressing it. You’re pressing, you’re like a bathing suit?
Monique Ramsey (34:17):
I don’t know. A tank top. Okay, a tank top. No, but just to kind of see the difference on your frame.
Tati (34:23):
Yes. Oh yes, for sure. I am definitely going to, yeah. I think there’s some people who do know already, obviously, because I’ve been talking about it on the radio and they watch my stories and they go, oh, they do look good. So it’s some people already know and they can see it on my day-to-day and my stories on my Instagram.
Monique Ramsey (34:41):
So your Instagram, is it two, the number two?
Tati (34:47):
T-W-O.
Monique Ramsey (34:48):
Okay. Two, T-W-O, cents, C-E-N-T-S.
Tati (34:50):
C-E-N-T-S.
Monique Ramsey (34:52):
Tati. T-A-T-I.
Tati (34:53):
Yeah.
Monique Ramsey (34:54):
Awesome. Well, everybody should go follow you. We’ll put links in the show notes. And thanks so much for telling your story and talking to us about that unexpected jump in the water, what that led to.
Tati (35:08):
4th of July weekend. Thank you so much. Yeah, thank you for giving me time and space here. And I love that we got to go to Humble Design together. That’s why I said the, aw, that was the best part, the introduction to such an amazing organization. So thank you for that. And I’m following them on Instagram too, so everyone should.
Monique Ramsey (35:26):
Yeah, yeah. Humble Design San Diego is the handle. And they’re just a wonderful organization. So everybody stay tuned for February. We’ll be giving out the information about our little co-branded fundraiser and I look forward to that and seeing you again in the new year.
Tati (35:44):
Thank you so much.
Monique Ramsey (35:46):
Thanks Tati.
Speaker 1 (35:53):
Take a screenshot of this podcast episode with your phone and show it at your consultation or appointment or mention the promo code PODCAST to receive $25 off any service or product of $50 or more at La Jolla Cosmetic. La Jolla Cosmetic is located just off the I-5 San Diego Freeway in the XiMed Building on the Scripps Memorial Hospital campus. To learn more, go to ljcsc.com or follow the team on Instagram @ljcsc. The La Jolla Cosmetic Podcast is a production of The Axis.
