It's been a long time coming and not a decision I took lightly to actually deciding on. You see while I was breastfeeding my first child, I had more confidence with bigger boobs and when I finished that journey in 2009, I felt a little 'deflated' but I eventually was ok with that for the most part. Over the next few years, I had 2 miscarriages and ran 2 - 5k runs. In 2011, my husband and I made the decision that I could implants. I decided I wanted the most natural look and to make sure I could breastfeed when we got pregnant again. I chose under saline under muscle. After the consultation with the doctor we were set for March. So in March of 2011, I went under the knife for the first time ever and got my saline under muscle Mentor implants. The recovery was a lot harder than I expected. I remember sort of seeing Elmo with my son and some friends, pretty sure we had dinner after, the other few days of recovery, I slept.....a lot! Pain pills were my friends during those days which is why I don't remember much of anything. Slowly but surely I started back to work but could not lift anything over 5 pounds above my waist. Then about 4 months after surgery, I ended up getting pregnant with my second earth bound baby. Thankfully, I was able to breastfeed her. A few months after she was born, my husband and I made a way for me to stay home with the kids. It was amazing!
Close to 2 years in, she had been done breastfeeding for about 9 months, and then everything started to change for me. I was still doing all the things I needed to with the house, son being in school, being home with my daughter, running a photography business, but I was exhausted. I don't mean just "mom" tired, which I initially thought it was because you know, mom of 2 and business owner, makes sense, right? I was so tired that I would fall asleep on the floor in the middle of the day or anytime and my daughter would line up her toys around me and play. I would fall asleep on the couch and take a nap with her. On top of that, in a span of 3 months, I gained whopping 20 pounds!!!! No, I was not pregnant again, I was not overeating, there was just no reason for it. I initially went to my OBGYN and he prescribed me phentermine. Not only did this not work, but it gave me heart palpitations and jittery inside feelings. I quit. Not worth the extra symptoms on top of not working.
Well, these symptoms went on for a few more months and then I found a female doctor who would be on my side of how I was feeling. She did my bloodwork and hormones, we talked about birth control, which I didn't want to do, and we talked about all my symptoms. When I went back for the consult to review, she said I was estrogen dominant and didn't need birth control. She then diagnosed me with Hashimoto's Thyroiditis as my thyroid antibodies were so over 1000 the lab value just read >1000. That was in April of 2015 and we went with a more natural medication called NatureThroid.
That day I went home and started looking up what their weird diagnosis I've never heard of was. I came across Hypothyroid Mom's website where she had a list of 300+ symptoms. Majority of the symptoms I was having matched up even ones I didn't realize were symptoms. So over the course of the next few months, I researched, found blood markers that I had my doctor run to see if I was deficient in and then I would substitute with quality supplements. One of the markers I found was the MTHFR gene mutation, which as most know helps or hinders detox. Had my doctor order that and I have a mutation, which means I don't detox well or convert B vitamins very well. Ok, cool watch the toxins I take in and substitute my B vitamins for methylated ones. I was also deficient in other vitamins and minerals and I took other supplements that others have said help with autoimmune thyroid. I would also take supplements that others used to help symptoms and immune system support.
Later that year, I took my toddler to a mom's expo. We checked out all the vendors, but one stuck out as having a natural way to help the body heal. She offered a modality I had never heard of called Nutrition Response Testing, which is a form of applied kinesiology that gets to the root causes of health concerns. I signed up to be contacted. I didn't know what to think, what to expect or anything but I had not been getting anywhere with symptoms with the medication and dosage changes nor the supplements I put myself on. I had my first appointment and was completely in shock of the findings, but I was ok with that and was willing to give it a shot because nothing else allopathic medicine or "natural" was working and my kids needed me and I needed me to be at my best. I signed up for her program and took the supplements I was recommended through the testing. THREE months! That is what it took for me to start feeling some relief. I continued. I am still continuing today!! What started out as just trying to make me not so tired, not so cranky, and more energetic became what is my life to this day. What seemed like several months was actually a year after becoming a patient I started the journey of going back to school and also started the training to do what my practitioner had done for me. It took me 2 years of school and training and working for her and at the end of 2018, I completed both. I received a Master in Applied Clinical Nutrition and became an Advanced Trained Nutrition Response Testing Practitioner and have since gained a few more titles and more trainings.
Through some of this training, I started to hear a little about breast implants being a problem due to mold, chemicals and other toxins they contain and are made from. I was naive and figured I could just be muscle tested and take supplements needed to help with the problems that came along with it. Through the years I would do and feel good and then I wouldn't. Very much a roller coaster of health. Now knowing what I know about natural health, healing is not linear and of course you will have your ups and you will have your downs. I continued to work on the symptoms, the organs that were stressed, diet, deficiencies and change my supplement protocols as needed. In 2021, I had made the decision that I wanted to have my implants removed, that I was done with the highs and lows, BUT the bigger question that plagued me was "How was I going to accomplish that when I now own a business doing Nutrition Response Testing?" I didn't have a business partner to take over things for me while I was recovering and I really didn't want to be down and out like was when I first got them in. I continued on believing in God's plan that it will work its way through.
I had joined a growing Facebook Community of women suffering from unexplained symptoms potentially related to Breast Implant Illness. Later I had found a more local group just for Oklahoman women who were suffering. I read posts, saw who they were using, price estimates and more. After reading several posts and reading things on the internet, I became more convinced my autoimmune thyroid was not in remission don't the constant threat of my "foreign objects" still residing within my chest. On the outside I looked completely normal and healthy except the extra weight. While I didn't spend a ton of money on specialized lab tests and doctors, thousands of hours reading book after book, or trying every food program (Paleo, Keto, Autoimmune, Bulletproof, Juice Cleansing, Raw), or exercise program – there are many that did. I was emotionally and physically ready to have them removed.
Years went while I kept the thought in my head still pondering how. Late in 2022, my husband decided to join me in the clinic offering muscle testing and going to school for Massage Therapy. We made some sacrifices and big decisions but it worked its way out. Then in 2024, we made even bigger decisions one of which was to sell our house, buy an RV, ask the church in conjunction with his parents to buy the property they lived on and eventually build our permanent home. I also made the decision that year to at least have a consult with the doctor I wanted to have my implants removed. I wanted to know the process, the expected time I would have to be down and the price among other questions. After our consult in late September, I knew Dr. Kunkle and his team would be who I wanted to take care of me through this process. His schedule for surgery was going to be well into the next year so I had time to think and talk to my husband.
We both agreed to go ahead and schedule, it would be roughly early Spring so that gave us time to sell the house and get situated through the winter. Then.... I got a call early October. Dr Kunkle had an appointment open up in the middle of November. Talk to my husband as we were set to close on the house at the end of the month. We agreed we would make it work so I called the doctor's office back and took that appointment.
For the next month, not only did we prep and do the things we needed to do for closing but we also had to prepare my patients at the clinic for me being gone or on a slower pace. Also with us being able to do telehealth, I knew that was going help. I’m not ashamed to say that I was down with being drugged up even though I hate the feeling of being on any pain meds. I was more praying that I would be free of pain for the most part and that my healing would be easy. The weeks leading up I created a questions list that I had my husband muscle test what supplements that I would need for preparing my body 2 weeks before surgery and then another protocol for post-op. These questions and supplements included things like ligament support, bowel movement support, detox and liver support, cellular support and more. That was my 2 weeks before surgery pre-op protocol and I followed it up until the night before surgery. No, I did not stop any of my supplements weeks or days before for 2 reasons: they are supplements that are made from food and if I had to stop those I might as well stop eating too and two is because I wasn't taking anyone on the "no" list from the doctor.
Dr. Kunkle is in Tulsa, Oklahoma so my husband and I drove up the night before and stay in a hotel near by and then got up early the next morning and went in. Doctor and nurses wear awesome! I got drawn on and waited to be wheeled back. Next thing I know I was back in the room in a chair. I was still droggy so they let me sleep a bit more and my husband got to take me home. Much to my surprise getting in and out of the car wasn't horrible. I slept a lot the next day and got up and around the next day. Sleeping was uncomfortable cause I couldn't lay on my sides. Showering was a trip cause washing and working around my drains. Same with going to the bathroom! By the 3rd day I was out on the property, cause we were cleaning up a lot of the dead trees and chopping them down before my surgery, and I was walking around moving the smaller pieces of wood and just planning things in my head. By Monday, I was back to the clinic, tender some soreness but overall good. I couldn't reach high fast but in an assisted (puppy toe) slow stretch. However, by Tuesday evening, my whole body hurt as if I had the flu but no other symptoms. I cried, my husband suggested taking some of the pain pills that I was prescribed but I refused and decided to get both heating pads out, one to lay on and the other on top of me and went to bed. You see I had not taken any of the pain pills or the antibiotic up to that point because I knew I could do it and with my MTHFR status, I didn't want to hinder my ability to detox. The only thing I was taking was my post-op supplement protocol that my husband tested previously. I was honestly doing and feeling better than I expected until that evening. I woke up with no pain but my menstrual cycle decided it was here. That was even more fun to deal with along with my drains . Later that week or first part of the next week, we had to add another supplement in high doses because I was starting to come down with something bacterial.
By the end of 2 weeks, I had my follow up call and with my drain amounts I was given the green light to either go to the doctor's office to remove them or do it myself. I opted to do it at home for lack of time to take off and I was thoroughly annoyed with them by that time and wanted relief. So that evening with the aid of my husband and some scissors we removed the stitches and pulled out the drains but not before a good laugh and begging to not vomit or pass out. These are the things you don't read and no one tells you. Here goes: the stitches to hold the drains in can be painful and annoying and itchy and leaky. It's touch "thread" so be prepared to give some pressure. Neither of you hold your breath while doing so through any part of it! Now once the stitches are free and you go to tug the drains out....be prepared for some pull back! Felt like I was in a tug-o-war with my inner boob tissue. Finally I won which is where it felt weird and gross and the "pop"' of the tug-o-war I was in felt awkward too! One down one to go. Pause to breathe, laugh and make sure the husband is ok from watching it. Then tell him to video the next one! I finally was free!!! Both drains left behind long clots to which I'm rolling with the story that it was parasites. Don't freak out, everyone has them but I'll save that for another day.
Now, the goal was to continue healing and wait for the OK to be able to get a chiropractic adjustment which was going to be so needed. Which I was finally able to get at the end of January. It was the most work he had to do on me since I had started with him over 8 years ago.
Fast forward to April, I ran my lab panel on not only my general but my full thyroid panel to see how my thyroid and antibodies were doing. May of 2024 (6 months before surgery) my antibodies were over 600 (lab doesn't read higher than that). Then in April of 2025 my antibodies were 395! In all the years of doing the natural route with no synthetic meds I had never gotten that low!! Complete shock! It was amazing and I felt it too. To this day, nearly 16 months later (March 2026), my numbers are still low as for my antibodies BUT my thyroid markers....all of them except antibodies are in normal functional ranges. Remember natural health is not linear and I will take one step at a time with this cause I'm on the right path not that those implants are out. The other thing I did recently was a Dutch test to check in on all my hormones which are all finally doing fantastic as well!
To truly know the depths of your health, you have to dig, learn and research and know that if you feel off....so does your body and that is it's way of saying "Hey pay attention, something is happening and we don't like it." Between the muscle testing, the lab work, learning and research I have done all because I was labeled with an autoimmune disease I knew nothing about has helped me grow as a person and even more importantly a practitioner. Yes, I am working on getting to that remission "healed" status of the autoimmune world but now that I'm not fighting my body is letting go and showing the deeper stuff that I couldn't battle because of the surface level of toxins I had to constantly deal with. When I get there, I will very much be sharing that story and journey!
If you are still reading this and have breast implants or considering breast implants please keep reading. You might be thinking – this isn’t me, this won’t happen to me but what you don’t realize is there are hundreds upon thousands of women out there including ME that thought the same thing.
Breast implants are a ticking time bomb. They do not last regardless of their "expiration" dates. They rupture and over 50% rupture within 10 years. I have helped women who have had several sets and didn't feel well after each one. I've had women who have taken them out and still didn't feel good but the time they got to me and that's ok, I got them feeling better. I have women who still have them and are just not ready to take them out.
My concern is for the women considering breast implants to correct undeveloped or misshaped breasts, women with small breasts who want to boost self-esteem or just have their bra not ride up when their arms go up and more importantly breast cancer survivors who “need” breast implants to regain their confidence and normalcy after a double mastectomy. My concern is that everyone reacts and responds to chemicals differently. If you are any of the above and would like some possible answers to questions or are seeking an alternative help to feeling better, please reach out no matter where you are our clinic can help!
chemical soup of implants
BREAST IMPLANT ILLNESS RESOURCES
The Implant Truths Survivors Committee
Healing Breast Implant Illness (where I found my explant surgeon)
Finding a Plastic Surgeon to Remove Breast Implants
Not convinced the FDA approves dangerous and toxic medical devices? Watch The Bleeding Edge on Netflix…
BREAST IMPLANT FACEBOOK SUPPORT GROUPS
If you are in need of more information, these are the best groups to ask questions, find answers and support!
Healing Breast Implant Illness by Nicole (Over 58,000 members)
Breast Implant Illness Rejuvenation and Education With Christina (really great group of women!)
Breast Implant Illness and Explant
Breast implant illness healing and information. by Erin Elizabeth
BREAST IMPLANT ILLNESS IN THE NEWS
Johnson & Johnson’s Mentor sued over silicone breast implants
Can Breast Implant Illness Trigger Hashimoto’s
Medical Medium Podcast Breast Implant Illness
Are Your Breast Implants Poisoning You
FDA-reported breast implant injuries kept hidden by summary reporting
Breast Implant Illness on Dr Axe
The Breast Implant Illness Epidemic
Doctors, patients raise alarms about cancer linked to breast implants:
https://www.facebook.com/nbcnightlynews/videos/1191481710992532/
Disclosure: The above referenced post is purely informational purposes and opinion only. If you feel you are sick and have a health issue, please contact your doctor or other medical personnel. If you have breast implants or are considering breast implants PLEASE do your research!