Going in for bilateral mastectomy and recon on Wed

Courtney31

I'm 31 and have a 17 month old daughter. I am scheduled for bilateral mastectomy on Wed the 20th. I know that I am making the right decision but I am very scared and nervous. Can anyone please tell what is in store for me when I get out of surgery and the recovery period. Thanks so much!

ake

what kind of reconstruction are you having? i'm not sure about the recovery from implants, but i had the diep for reconstruction, so i could help you if that's what you're having. i think the recoveries are different. let us know more info

-amy

Nan72

When I woke from surgery I had expanders for recon already placed with minimal saline in place. The thing I remeber was that I had bandages over the incisions , was wrapped in a ace type bandage , had four drainage tubes (two on each side) and a surgical bra on. It felt like I had been in an auto accident and my chest had hit the steering wheel but the pain meds worked great don't be afraid to speak up and get those. I was instructed by physical therapy to begin slow stretching exercises the day of surgery and the days forward to keep motion in arms and shoulders. Be sure and do that it helped a lot. You may want to take a look at the web site



http://medicalcenter.osu.edu/pdfs/PatientEd/Materials/PDFDocs/exer-reh/upper/mastecto.pdf

You may feel off balance until your body adjusts . I noticed that my shoulders felt like they felt like they wanted to roll foward for lack of better term. Take one day at a time and don't be afraid to ask lots of questions. I hope this helps answer some questions .
Good Luck let us know how you are doing.
May the Lord touch you and guide your doctor's hands and treatments for a speedy recovery.

The_Cyber_Cat

I had a right masectomy. Not a bi. (wish I had though). Surgery is always scary.

Today, they have so many people/machines watching over/monitoring you during surgery that it's extremely very very very rare that anything will go wrong.

I had no pain after masect. Used not one pain pill. The staff was so kind and caring. I think they hire 'people loving' folks for surgery patients.

You will do just fine. Really you will! You'll be in good hands!

wallycat

HI and I am so sorry you are dealing with this and on top of that having to worry about a small child!!

I had a bilateral mastectomy at 7:30 wed., 13th. I did not have reconstruction. Please know that we are all different. At noon, I begged for food. I have always exercised so to me, maybe that helped (I do situps and pushups, etc..). The nurses were shocked that I walked to the bathroom on my own 2 hours post surgery and that I was able to whip myself in and out of bed to have them listen to my lungs every few hours. I ate 3 dinners and 2 breakfasts. I was RAVENOUS. That on top of the snacks I brought with me because I knew my doc would not allow solid food till dinner!! He caved in to let me eat my snacks.
I went home the next day. I have not taken a pain pill yet.
They offer a pain pump and lots of pain meds if you need them. I am a wussy-girl and complain A LOT, so I would not hesitate for a split second to take pain meds if I needed them, I just didn't need them. The doc just shook his head and offered them and said make sure you stay ahead of the pain.
I think the worst of this for me is knowing I am a cancer patient and those stupid drains. They don't hurt they are just THERE and in the way. I know reconstruction is slower going all the way around and there is a section here for gals who reconstruct who may offer more precise experiences.

I wish you the best. It is not nearly as scary as I thought it would be. I was beyond terrified. I was worried about the surgery, I was worried about looking at myself after surgery...none of it is as bad as I imagined--which is what many of the gals posted when I asked .
I am anxious about pathology for the healthy breast and hope there are no surprises.
I wish you equally speedy recovery and no pain.
I admit there are tender areas, but doing every day things is not painful at all. I can even reach most of my high stuff, though I don't push it and if DH is around, I ask for help.

BEST to you!

Editing to add that I just turned 50 and you are young and spry and vibrant and will probably do even better!!!

catherine7273

Courtney,

I had a bilat mast with tissue expanders last year. After the surgery I had an On-Q pump attached to each side, along with two drainage tubes per side. The On-Q pump sends a local anesthetic to the site on regular intervals for the first few days or so. It helped a lot with the pain. My experience was that the pain was certainly not unbearable. I spent one night in the hospital, but was up walking around my floor almost immediately after I was brought to my room. I was 36 at the time, and in decent shape. Plus my breasts were an A/B cup, which may have made a difference for my recovery.

I agree that the exercises are a must - - it feels a little weird at first but they really help you get your range of motion back.

Best of luck to you, Courtney. You WILL get through this!

Catherine

BettyeE

I had very little pain from my mast. In fact, I think that was the easiest part of this whole DX.
Bettye
I will be praying for you. Get help with that little one. Don't be picking her up.

Courtney31

Thank you everyone for giving me some more information. It is just pretty scary not knowing exactly what will happen. To me I know it is the right thing to do, but still the idea of waking up without any breasts or nipples I am afraid will be more of a shock than I think. I know the hardest part is going to be not holding my daughter. I had two miscarraiges before her and 1 after, so she is pretty much my whole world (and my husband too)! You all seem so caring and quick to respond I really appreciate it. And I will keep you all updated post surgery. Thanks again!

wallycat

I know just how you feel. I didn't have kids to worry about, but the thought of waking up to no nipple/breast...I was a 34D cup my whole life. I couldn't imagine that much tissue gone and not reacting....but it really was more unremarkable than I thought! If you are going for reconstruction (which it sounds via your subject line that you are), it will be even less stressful within a few months.
I wll keep you in my thoughts, as others have done for me here.
I am wearing a cute, tight little camisole now..(surgery was wed.) and have to say I LOVE the new flat look.
Yes, I will miss the attention that big boobs brought me, but at 50, I wasn't fooling myself....and the flat look is now very appealing to me!!!

Best to you young lady, you will do just fine!
We need to remember we've sacrificed our boobs to live long, healthy lives!

The_Cyber_Cat

Hello Courtney
I wish you lots of good wishes in a very quick recovery so you can hug your sweet little girl.

I couldn't look down at my missing breast for over a month. Just turned my head in surgeon's office and looked away when showering.

I am used to it now. And I have to agree with 'wallycat' -- around home I don't wear a prosthesis and I like the feel of the flat side! I really do!

I told my husband that God should have made boobs appear only to feed children and then disappear!

My other breast has the usual aches from cysts - more noticiable now since there are no cysts on flat side!

Meagan

I am 32 yo and now 2 1/2 weeks post-op from bilateral mastectomy and tissue expanders. What a rollercoaster I have been through! The pain wasn't bad just the charly horse feeling around my chest and the aching muscles and the sleeping on my back! But, ROM exercises have helped. I was out to the movies after a week and a half. I had a tough time the day after my bandages were removed. I finally had to be face-to-face with what was happening to me and I just collapsed. But now I can look at my chest and not even care. I was a B cup and now look like a teenage boy but it's not so bad. I am expanding every week now, which is uncomfortable but not awful. Good luck with your surgery and just know everyone is different so take care of yourself and take your time healing.

Courtney31

I had my surgery yesterday at 11:30 and came home today around 2. It was not at bad as I thought. Of course I am sore, I had the expanders put in also. But today I showered and even washed my own hair. The good news is,
frozen pathology showed no cancer in the sentinol node, but I should find out the size and stage tomorrow. Thank you everyone for your kind words and support.

ksingh0

So glad to hear it went well and to see that you were at the computer so quickly after surgery. I have my surgery in about 6 weeks so glad to hear it went well for you.

Kelly

catherine7273

Great news, Courtney. You must be relieved to have the surgery behind you. Best to you for your recovery.

Catherine

wallycat

CONGRATS!
WOW, a shower already. I wasn't allowed to take one till my drains came out...yesterday.
Continued speedy healing!

maiolo

wowzers Courtney31, showering already? you go girl!

i'm glad your surgery went well. just let us know if you need anything. maybe have someone else type for you for now though? it may be too early for you to do so.

for me, my comfort was pretty darn important after my surgeries. before having them, i logged on to Amazon.com and Costco.com and bought a bunch of DVDs. Sherlock Holmes series w/ Jeremy Brett (he's the coolest!), Quincy (the '70s tv show), Crime Story ('80s tv show) and Will & Grace.

i had a ritual of watching 1 or 2 episodes (if i can keep awake) every night. it was totally relaxing for me and fun 'coz i was able to keep-up with the shows i've long forgotten or haven't seen yet.

it kept me happy and contended and occupied and kept me off my husband's back from griping about this, that and the other, since i'd be in pain from the recovery. this way, he had his peace and quiet after work and so did i.

oh, and not to say that my husband was horrible during my recovery. on the contrary, he had to go home from work 2x every day to change my dressings and take the dog out to pee. Plus walk him at night, besides laying out all my food and water for the day before going to work. he was completely non-gripey about it and was fantastic support. i figured i'd cut him some slack in the evenings so he could have 2 seconds of rest, hee hee the whole set-up worked out very well.

just recently, Will & Grace seasons 5 & 6 were released, and i also bought Elizabeth Gaskell's Wives and Daughters so i'm back with my movie nights! quite addicting, ha ha!

determinedmom

Noticed your situation was similar, had my implants 3 wks. ago and was wondering how the fill is going? I had 200cc to start, 100cc last week w/ no real problem, 80cc this wk and really felt it - still tight after 3 days. They were hoping for a total of 600cc + 100cc during the final stage. Thanks for the info. This is a great forum.

con_kemp

This is to all you women. I cannot believe such caring testimonies. You are all fantastic. I am having a bilateral mastectomy on May 30th. I am 62 years old and am not particulary frightened. I have faith in my Lord and the doctors. I need to know the recovery time please. I am expecting a visitor from Europe two weeks after my surgery and need to be able to drive???Please let me have your comments and advise. I am also going to Europe five weeks after the surgery, I hope I'm going to be OK. I had planned on the surgery being completed in early May giving me time to recover but that wasn't to be. God Bless you all, you are in my prayers. Con

con_kemp

I have a fear of waking up and finding large nipples (crazy) this would be abhorent to me. I've asked the surgeon to make them small I sure pray he listens.

hofffazio

I had a bilateral mastectomy with minimal pain.  The one thing that bothered me the most was the feeling of a tremendous heavy weight pressing in on my chest.  I believe it had something to do with the severed nerve endings.  I was told to rub the entire chest area with 100% aloe vera gel which reduced this feeling by about 80%.   The drains on each side were a bother but it wasn't any big deal and they weren't in for very long (two weeks if I remember right).

Having an incredible breast surgeon will make all the difference in the world.  Dr. Marion Johnson at Evergreen Hospital in Kirkland, WA is beyond fabulous and then some.  If I lived in Japan I would fly to Kirkland, WA to have her do my surgery.  Her suturing technique is amazing.

I was a 38D and have not opted for reconstruction.  I swim alot and bought the TYR suits which are great as you don't have the clunky bra inserts you usually find with a Speedo suit.  I was told that I looked younger and healthier as before I looked somewhat matronly with the larger breasts.  Who needs that?

Mel-4

I had a bilateral mastectomy at age 42 on March 12, 2008.  I had dcis in my left breast but due to a family history I went ahead and had both removed.  I have not regretted it at all.  I started reconstruction on that day and that has been hard sometimes but now I am waiting for my last six weeks before I have the implants put in on July 7.  The only thing now is being so big so that the muscles can stretch properly.  I have only been remarried for a little over three years but he has been so great.  I have four boys and they have had a hard time with all I have had to go through but I let them know that God has a reason for all things in our lives.  I was blessed not to have any treatments afterwards.  The only thing hear lately that I have been dealing with is feeling like crying.  Has any one else dealt with this?  I know I should be glad that all is well but for some reason I can't shake this feeling.

Mel 

Doreen4447

Mel-4

I am 49 now.  I just finished my nipple reconstruction, it took less than 1 year for the whole process.  My bilateral was July 24, 2007.  While I am happy, the crying comes and goes all the time.  It took all my strength to have the bandages taken off, just yesterday, not to break down in the office.  Even knowing God has a reason for this, I still don't understand.  I don't know if you can ever shake the feeling, I find myself looking at women's breasts all the time wishing I had mine!  Good Luck, physically you'll be fine.  There are no guarantees emotionally, I'm still having a hard time.

Doreen4447

heatherof5

hi there,

 i am 31 and going to the plastic surgeon on July 1st and having a bilateral mast. shortly afteward. can anyone please email me as to what to expect during, after the surgery,  i have 3 little ones.  Has anyone opted for chemo and radiation to be on the safe side after the dr feels that he got everything?  I have family who has done this,  Just wondering if anyone else did this?  Thanks for the support on this website.  

clsyrose1

Hi

I am 40 and on June 5 2008 I had a bilateral Mastectomy with tissue expanders surgery went well and I believe I had all the normal pain that is expected. I felt pretty good about myself with the expanders in place I had some what of a form which helped.  What I didn't expect was to get a bladder infection which then spread to my tissue expanders unfortunatley they ended up remove the expanders because of the infection so now I am faced with the reality.  I did go purchase foam breast that go inside a bra which are helpful, but just not the same.  I have to wait 6 weeks before I can go back to have the expander put back in, but now I face the fear of this happening again.  Never in my life did I think that the most important thing in my life would be to have breasts that stick out further then my stomach. 

BethNY

heather you can find great tips for preparing for surgery at www.breastreconstruction.org

Rojaski

Great to get some positive feedback about this.  I went through lumpectomy and radiation last year and am having an mri biopsy on the other breast this week.  It looks like I may end up with a bilateral mastectomy.  I am concerned about the outcome of my radiated side, since the tissue may be damaged from treatment.  I am concidering reconstruction with implants.  Anyone have this same situation?  Thanks.