DIEP 2011

Del11

My doc's recommendation was about 6 weeks, if I'm remembering correctly. Your flap is delicate, you need to not squish it, jostle it or make any movements that might damage the vessels. 1 week is too soon, IMO.  You should ask your doc though.

NotAfraid

LadyM, I was cleared at 1 month - but I waited for the doctor to clear me.

 Cheryl/Laura - I'm glad they caught it and got more blood vessels in the flap.  I had the same thing happen - DIEP on Tuesday, back into emergency surgery on Wednesday at 7 am.  But, all is fine now.  Apparently I have better veins on my right side than my left side.

Re Ovaries:  I've been told throughout the years - ever since my first BC 7 years ago - that my ovaries were the next possible place cancer might show up,  The cancer my body produces eats estrogen for dinner (I have pic man images of cancer cells).  My ovaries are home to more estrogen so the cancer cells would be drawn to my ovaries for nutrients.  Because I can't tolerate Tamaxofin - which is an estrogen blocker - I have no protection against cancer cells "eating" estrogen.  However, since I'm not even close to menopause (at 49) and my ovaries are still doing the job they are supposed to do, it is better to keep them and watch them than take them out.  However, when menopause starts and my ovaries become obsolete, it's best to take them out as a precaution - especially since my body seems to like to produce ER+ cancer.  

I also try and stay away from substances with Xenoestrogens and synthetic estrogens, which is NOT easy! I never use products containing mineral oil, baby oil, petroleum products (hard to find), I try and eat pesticide-free foods and stay away from chlorine (althoough I find it difficult to resist a pool).  And, I don't use plastics to store food.  But, I also live near the largest shipping port on the West Coast, and I'm SURE there are lots of toxins floating around in the air I breathe.  I just do what I can.

grdnslve

cheryl/laura--thanks for the update & so happy things are going better. 

got my pre-op call this morning--so at this point she said it is a go & no rescheduling.  cross my fingers on that one.  admit to some nerves, but mostly just excited to finally getting on with it.  my poor papillon is going to have a breakdown though with me gone so long.  dh is already whining about being on his own with the dog.  says he is going to take him to the taxidermist & i will return to a perfect dog.  he's kidding!!!  he loves the little ankle biter too.  seriously, the dog trainer says my little darling has 'issues'. 

so who else is scheduled next????

c8ndygr1

So glad to hear that all the DIEP girls for this week have made it through and are now on the other side of surgery. My surgery was 10-1/2 hrs and I came out with two perkies, a smooth flat tummy (slightly swollen) and 6 drains. I am so relieved my PS team were able to get two breasts from my abdomen area. My doc was concerned I didn't have enough fat.For me, the first night in ICU was miserable. I couldn't move, all the beeps and buzzers, nurses checking everything every two minutes, wires, monitors, urine catheter, automatic blood pressure cuff, air mattress repositioning, air leg squeezers to prevent clots, IVs, six drains - I felt like an octopus.Weds two drains came out, catheter removed and I got moved to a regular room, Much, much better. Like everyone tells us, it gets better by leaps and bounds. Take your pain meds whether you think you need them or not. It helps you move and the more you move, the easier it gets to walk around and get to the bathroom, etc. Will give more details later. Got to eat my lunch. Thanks to all for your encouragement and well wishes. I felt them, believe me.

nowords

Hi All,

Good wishes to all going in soon. I was so nervous until the last few days and then I was very calm.

I am four weeks out today. Last of 3 drains removed two days ago...YAY!  Dr. Massey thinks I should stay in the compression garment at least three weeks after the last drain was pulled. My ab scar, where the scabs etc are gone is a barely visible line near the hip...not sure what the rest of it will look like. Stacked uni diep boob is good. I had alot of radiated scar tissue with delayed recon (almost 2 years) There are hard areas near the underside, closest to the arm pit...I am sending pics to Dr. Massey this week-end; scheduled Sept. 2 for stage 2 as of now....

Feeling good...up and around and about...light cleaning and laundry and light cooking...feel good but am being careful not to overdo it...down a few pounds and my pants fit okay.

For me the pain and experience overall was so much easier than I was anticipating. Wishing the same for all those in waiting.

mscal02

grdnsive: Looks like you are the last for June , if my notes are correct.

XRAYestInMA

@ladym13 Good for you, Mo, that you are feeling sexy enough already to be all over your BF. I'm 17 days post-op (whew, where does the time go ???) and don't think I'm ready physically to resume any knocking-boots with my DH. My DH mentioned asking my PS before my last visit (2 weeks post-op), and I told him if he wants to ask him, to go ahead - but I wasn't going to ask. He noticed there was no mention of any sex instructions on my discharge paperwork. I told him it was probably a non-issue since the PS figured *SEX* would be the LAST thought on my mind after the sx - and he was right on that one.   Instead of asking about S*E*X, my DH asked the PS about clothes ???Get a load of this one....

My PS , "Do you have any questions ?"

DH, "Well, yes, what about clothes ?"

PS, "Hmmm, yes, she should wear them, ha ha " (Which was good because I was wearing clothes and had been wearing some type of clothes since I was discharged from the hospital)

Me: not saying anything during this little exchange, but thinking  *WTH* ??? and wondering if the "clothes" my DH was talking about was sexy bras, a garter, and perhaps some fish-net stockings ??? I didn't get it....and I still don't. Perhaps it was a "man thing" just to be shared between my DH and the PS. Weirdos, LOL.

I figure another week or so and I might be good to go. Right now I can't imagine any pressure on my abdomen and try to baby my flaps, so there will be no "man handling" of the twins until they are good and permanent. Plus I still have one drain, and there is NOTHING sexy about that, IMO. I suppose you and your BF could do some sex-like things (TMI back at you, and not the "home run" for now - just a thought (and I hope my DH doesn't read this and get any ideas of his own, HA HA).

@grdnslve WOW, so Monday it is! Well, try to have a relaxing week-end before your big day. Are you having a bilat? Mine was delayed on the right and I think that noob is fuller and better than the fresh one (left side) which had a PMX and DIEP. I'm cool with it though since I know my PS can match them better during a Stage II revision. In clothes, no one can tell and even without clothes, you really have to look to tell the difference. Of course I notice it, but it is my body, so I think I know it pretty well. 

@Cheryl So happy to hear that you are doing better and your flap was saved. 

alexanjb

Drains are out!  Nurse said probably not, because I was still getting too much fluid, but then the doctor said yes!  It feels so great.  Still have to wait and see about the breast.  He seems to be leaning towards me going back into surgery in a couple of weeks so he can clean it up.  Also there is a new piece of equipment in the hospital on trial for determining tissue health/life and he will probably use that.  He said obviously something went wrong with blood flow but it is almost unheard of at 10 days out, like I was.  He called a collegue in Chicago and he said it is probably worth writing a paper on....but he doesn't care about the paper he cares about me...The PS wouldn't tell me what he is really expecting when I asked should I prepare for loss or still fight for saving?  He said I should be prepared for either.

c8ndygr1

@Alex - I wonder if it's the same machine my doctor used on me. It's also a trial. Some type of white light spectrometer. Two lighted 'headlights', one on each breast, worn for the first 72 hours. It gives a constant numeric readout of the circulatory activity going on in the breast. They compare the readout to the doppler's. If the number drops, then they can tend to it quicker. But it sure looked strange at night when the room was dark and my two bright headlights glowing under my gown. It must be a wonderful feeling to finally get rid of the drains. I can't wait.

treesprite

XRAY: my DH & son are now wondering why I was laughing so loud & long . . "what about clothes" . . . LOL x 10! Maybe he meant what about him taking your clothes off?

LadyM: Yes, 'sex-like' things  . . . always a good call!

Grdnslve: wow - Monday already? I'll be thinking of you!! 

Alexanjb: Must be hard being somewhat in limbo. Keep us posted. 

c8ndy: An octopus is a good description with all the tubes and wires coming & going. 

grdnslve

xrayestinma--i'm having uni..perk the surviving member up in stage II to match.  reading an ann rule book to keep my mind off this--now i'm having a different kind of nightmare!

alexanjb

c8ndygr1- your test equipment sounds interesting but I don't know if its the same thing they might use on me.  It sounded to me like they use it in the OR, not for monitoring afterwards, but I'm not sure.  The RNP mentioned it at my first follow up and then today the Office Manager/RN asked the PS if he wanted it scheduled when he mentioned having a tenative date set up for me to go back and get cleaned up in a couple of weeks.  Whaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!

XRAYestInMA

Re: monitoring of the flap My "twins" were monitored in the hospital from my arrival in the PACU until the day before discharge with a monitor called "Vioptix". It was some machine with two probes that were attached somehow inside (and I don't really want to know too much about the "hows") of my breast flaps. The probes measured the amount of oxygen in the tissue and output a numerical value to it. My rightie (and current favorite of the two) measured between 70 and 80%, while the leftie was between 69 and 75% - whatever that means. All I know was that the numbers were good for flap survival. I had that device and the constant doppler monitoring as well. The tips of the probes were in the flap and did not have a light on them - although that sounds pretty cool.

@grdnslve I LOVE Ann Rule books and all types of forensic-type books and murder mysteries. There is nothing better than passing time with a book, IMO. My DH knew I was not myself immediately after my DIEP when I had no desire to break open my Kindle. I can happily report that my joy of reading has returned with a vengeance. I know you'll find that the true crime nightmares that Ann writes about will be way worse than the DIEP. You'll be totally fine. Enjoy your book !

@alexanjb CONGRATS on getting the last of the drains pulled! I still have my one, and had to name it since it's still sticking with me. I call it "Jack" for short - short for "Jackson Pratt" as it is that type of drain. I'm still putting out greater than 30 mls per day ...if this keeps up it will not be pulled on Tuesday at my next appt. I'm getting along just fine with it but can't wait to say farewell to it hopefully soon.  

momtomygirls

Hi Everyone,

 Thank you so much for all of your thoughts and prayers!!!

As my sister mentioned, surgery went well monday.  It was 5 1/2 hours long and the doctors were happy.  Tuesday evening my nurse felt that the flap was getting cooler.  She called my PS and he decided to go in to see what was happening.  Turns out I had a blood clot.  He was able to fix it and two other vessels.  That surgery was about 3 hours.  I stayed in ASU (a step down from ICU) and was monitored very closely.  Today at 5pm I went to my own room (with the internet...yay).  My PS uses an epidural for pain management so I have felt really good.  Today they took it out so I've used the PSA pump a bit.  Overall, I feel good but I am very tired and have  little nausea. I've walked to the washroom twice.  I have 3 drains but their output is very little.  Dr. said I will probably stay until sunday.  Thank goodness for "on the ball" nurses! 

Hugs & Prayers,

Cheryl

alexanjb

Cheryl,  I am glad you are doing well and that they found your problem so soon. 

 My doctor has pretty much theorized that the same thing happened to my flap but at 10 days out.  I guess that is very unusual and not as fixable.

I concur on the getting lost in a good book.  I was too googly eyed and bobble headed at first for my Kindle but that was over soon enough.

I don't know why they decided to pull my drains.  I was still getting over 30 cc per day (that sure isn't much).  The nurse said no after looking at my list but then the doctor said yes.

I found out I was wearing the binder too high.  Hello...this was my third follow up, but a different nurse.  She put it on me low enough to cover my butt crack.  It actually feels better this way.

momtomygirls

good morning everyone,

I'm feeling stronger today.  I was able to eat breakfast sitting in the chair.  I forgot to mention in yesterday's note that I have been on a blood thinner called heparin.  They are still poking me for blood (which has been the worst part of this whole experience).  My viens aren't too great after chemo but I'm still bleeding so I guess that's a good sign (LOL).

Hope everyone has  a great day and all the girls who are recoverying are feeling better.

Cheryl

c8ndygr1

Yesterday, 3 days out, I was up out of bed for 12 hrs, either in the chair or hobbling laps of the floor, all IVs out, had my requisite BM the day before (ta-da) thanks to stool softeners and laxative. I expect more drains will come out today. Doc hasn't been in yet. Percocet really helps with any pain plus doesn't make me drowsy. So far, so good.

Glad to hear Cheryl & Lynn's flaps were caught and fixed so quickly and that AlexJoy will have hers back in the pink very soon. Alex, it's funny you call your last remaining drain 'Jack' after the manufacturer Jackson Pratt. I'll have to name mine 'Dave' after Davol. LOL

c8ndygr1

UPDATE:  Barring any changes, I get to go home tomorrow Sunday. PS visited, took out both breast drains (thank God!), everything looks good but I lost my new belly button (turned black). Doc said he can easily fix in his office next week. I asked when I'd be out of the woods for necrosis and he said something like 95% of all necrosis happens in the first 24 hrs. After that it's pretty rare but happens - but he's never lost a flap yet. Feeling pretty optimistic now that I know I'm going to be discharged tomorrow. Woo-hoo! This is doable, pre-op ladies!

Wishing Grdnslve all the best for her surgery on Monday. Will be sending healing thoughts your way, girl. You can do it too! {{{{Hugs}}}}

momtomygirls

great to hear c8ndygr1

I had my 3 drains pulled today.  I'm looking forward to my shower in  a few hours.  I still have my IV line but I am only taking regular tylenol for pain.  It's so funny how we are happy to have a BM! (I've already had two!)

Dr. said I could go home tomorrow but I asked to stay until monday.  I have a 2 and 7 year old so I am enjoying the quiet.

Hugs,

Cheryl

misszed

grdnslveCheryl - Im so glad you are doing much better..smart of you to stay an extra day, l have a 6 year old..know exactly what you mean....wish you all the best going forward.

 Xray- You had me in stiches! That is one interesting conversation...lol...lm not ready for that either...maybe when the last drain comes off on Monday...DH will probably be asking about this topic too.....so funny!!

c8ndygr1 - Glad to see you doing good!! Your ICU experience sounds so familiar....what kept me asleep was my ipod and noice cancelling in-ear head phones....the nurse said l never even woke up most times she checked my noob..

grdnslve - Enjoy your book and best of luck oon Monday, will be praying for a smooth surgery for you. ((((hugs))))

blondie45

It is great to read that so many of you are doing great so soon. I am going in this Wednesdy for my stage 2. I am not anywhere near as nervous or worried as I was before stage 1.

ladym13

xray- you had me in hysterical laughter...hope your DH didnt get any ideas...lmao!! too funny.

I am feeling SO good, hard to belive surgery wasnt even 2 weeks ago, other than this darn binder you wouldnt even know I've had surgery.

So boyfriend and I have decided to try and do the nasty tomorrow..'carefully' (sorry if TMI)

I dont regret this surgery at all, the only thing I'm a little worried about is the difference in size of my breasts, but my PS said this will all be fixed at stage 2...I LOVE having cleavage again.

Question- anyone notice dents in the new breast...I have a couple where the incision is and I hate it, hoping this can be fixed too.

Mo

alexanjb

You go LadyM!  But be gentle with each other....

c8ndygr1

LadyM, all in the name of medical science, right?

ladym13

c8ndyg1- absolutley

Ondagrow

Hello All...

I am so inspired by your post...  I am so happy to hear about uneventful surgeries and speedy recoveries...  Prayer is powerful...

I am ready to have my surgery and get MY LIFE BACK...

NotAfraid

There are 3 of us that have close calls with flap failure and, so far, it's all been fixed or fixable.  I simply wasn't getting enough blood so I got an additional vein added,  This is why the do they annoying 1 hour doppler monitoring.  Annoying as all hell, but oh so necessary!

momtomygirls

My flap had a bloodclot but because of my nurse the doctor was able to save it!  He ended up fixing the clotted vein and then added another.  I love hearing the doppler sounds.  The stitches on the other hand are too pretty (lol).

Hope everyone is feeling good today. 

c8ndygr1

Feelin' good. Beautiful Sunday morning. We have cleavage! And I'm going home today after doc gives final exam. Woo-Hoo!

Momtomygirls-I love to see the smiles when the nurses turn on the doppler and hear my strong whooshing sounds.

 My noobs aren't so drum tight anymore and I'm seeing some jiggle. Stitches? What stitches? lol

canarychick

I was scheduled for Diep July 14, but when I went back to PS for questions, he told me I don't really have enough fat to fill breasts and talked me out of it. So now I am scheduled the same day for silicone implants. I am keeping my skin and nipple. I am BRCA positive, no cancer that I know of. What do you all think of my new reconstruction. I am struggling with the two options.