Lumpectomy Lounge....let's talk!

PontiacPeggy

Poodles, not only "could" but probably SHOULD! That's really eerie.

HUGS!

queenmomcat

Pontiac: yep, I'm in the 'hook in front and turn the bra around' group'. Never been able to hook in back!

PontiacPeggy

QueenMomCat, some of us have it and others don't

HUGS!

Nash54

Creativevintage!!!!

Nash54

Mususgirl.....welcome home!   So glad LX is over and done!!   Take it easy and rest!!

Molly50

Qmc, a little giggle from one front to back gal to another. Muso, glad you are doing well but eeek about your wire placement experience!

queenmomcat

Sloan: still fuming on your behalf!

Creativevintage

Nash54 thank you

myajames

I can hear liquid sloshing around in my boob. Is that normal?

HappyHammer

Catfurr....glad the Colace has helped...I was nervous about it too. However, got in such a "jam"...yep, pun intended, in '13 when I had ovaries removed due to numerous cysts (prior to BC) that I have been almost religious about daily probiotics since then and the Colace and even daily Metamucil so that NEVER happens again.

Also, want to say that I got a horrendous staph infection mid way thru chemo last summer due to a small splinter in my finger that I got picking flowers in our garden...antibiotics, surgery, more antibiotics. Almost lost my middle finger and am still dealing with nerve pain and numbness and am 17 weeks out from original check/surgery on the finger after getting the splinter.....just trying to say that our bodies do so much for us that we have no knowledge of until we hit them with an illness and then the chemical warfare (chemo). PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE take care of yourself. Rest, drink flids, walk, take Colace and ASK FOR AND ACCEPT HELP AT EVERY TURN so your body can take care of your body.

HappyHammer

Awww, me too, QMC, me too.

april25

myajames-- Liquid sloshing has definitely been reported here a number of times! Liquid wants to fill the void where you had surgery. Usually it will go away on it's own, but if it gets swollen, red, painful or anything more alarming than sloshing, definitely call up your doc to get it checked out. Some people need to get theirs drained, and sometimes there are infections.

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Glad to hear all of you who just had surgery came through well. Rest up and recover well, everyone!!!

Ugh-- Sorry to read about the wire-placement experience! Sounds horrible.

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So-- the slight ache in my lower arm (top part towards my elbow--feels like the muscle or tendon is sore--mostly when bending it up) could be LE??? I don't notice swelling or other pain...! Geesh... the LE thing totally confuses me!

If it is LE, does that mean I should do PT or something?

HappyHammer

MyaJames....yes, it is....my surgeon said our bodies fill empty spaces with flid. WIll say I slept on the LX side every night and found flid on the sheets each night for several nights after surgery....which just meant it was draining. Then, again the next week had several more times of that. My surgeon said it was normal and a way to get some excess fluid out. I did later have a seroma but again...never had to have it drained or anything....lasted about 4 weeks and absorbed on it's own. Hope you are drinking lots of fluids and resting a LOT!

april25

I never had any seroma/drainage problem after my LX, but definitely had fluid (not enough to slosh)... and it got pretty hard during RT, and I still have a sort of hard area there, over 6 months later! Some seromas can take a year to absorb, they say. Anyway, none of my docs seem concerned about it, and I had a mammogram and it didn't hurt, thankfully (I worried about that!).

HappyHammer

Catfurr...what is EMla and I am praying that you get better and home soon...they had to delay my chemo once and Herceptin only once due to the staph infection I had but have to say the delay was worth it as I felt better and stronger whne it was time to move forward and I KNOW my body was able to do more with the meds when it wasn't having to deal with all of the infection etc. Sending healing mercies your way and reminders to rest, rest, and rest!

mustlovepoodles

Myajames,

Sloshing is pretty normal with breast surgeries and abdominal surgeries. It's just a collection of fluid your body produces. Sometimes they call this a seroma. Seromas are normal and usually the fluid collection doesn't need any attention; it reabsorbs on it own without intervention. They don't usually get infected.

Now, that said, I had a large seroma that gave me a fit. First of all, it was enormous, like 11-12 ounces. A pin hole opened in my incision, enough to let the fluid come out and it was a mess. It had to be drained a few times, and then it got massively infected. My surgeon was pretty horrified and she couldn't believe that everything that could happen, did happen.

Not telling you all this to scare you, but to caution you. Sloshing is normal and you don't need to do anything about it right now. Just keep an eye on it. If you feel wetness at the site, you probably have a little opening in the incision. This is not an emergency.Call your surgeon the next business day to report it. If the area gets reddened, hot, and tender, or you have a fever, you may have an infection. Call your surgeon right away or go to the ER.

Sloan15

Okay, what is the cutest, funniest, most luxurious, most clever, meanest, etc. Christmas or Hanukkah or holiday gift you are giving this year? POST!

The CUTEST gift we are giving is this Little Tykes kitchen to our 2-year-old granddaughter. She loves to watch me cook. Ohhh, it's soooo cute. It comes with little pizzas, so we will make real homemade pizzas, cook them, and then we will pretend cook in her kitchen. I can't wait!

Here's a picture of little kitchen in front of my tree. (My boys decorated my tree and hung the wreaths and decor for me! Awww) Hubby put together the kitchen. I'm getting some work out of everyone!

PontiacPeggy

Sloan, Love the tree and the present. Nothing that exciting this year.

HUGS!

Sloan15

April - My arm hurts there, too. My surgeon told me the feeling was nerves in my arm re-connecting, BUT my PT said it was stage 0 LE. So, to answer your question, yes, you ask your doctor to take measurements of your arms and ask her to fax a referral to a PT for you. I have stage 0 (no swelling) or maybe stage 1 (slight swelling) LE. The PT measured me and got me a compression sleeve and a gauntlet for exercise and flying. If it is LE, you want to treat it early. It may be nothing, it may be LE, or it may be your body learning to re-route the lymph fluid. Swelling is gradual with LE, so you often don't notice it for many months. (Some people get a flare or quick swelling if they overwork their arm or burn themselves or harm that arm). I always chime in when I see posts wondering about LE because I want you to be your own advocate! Ask your surgeon or MO or RO to measure your arms, ask for a referral, and find out what to look for. It is very controllable in the early stages, and can be managed in the later stages. If it's not LE, then you have nothing to lose!

Sloan15

Peggy, This is our first grandaughter and the first year she is "aware" of things. It will be so fun! I said she is 2, but technically 20 months. What a fun age. I loved it when my boys were that age. This grandbaby belongs to my stepson and DIL. My husband's kids were older and out of the house when we got married, and I wondered if I could love other babies like my own. Then she was born.... Oh, I do! Do you have grandchildren?

queenmomcat

Sloan: oh, my. Isn't that first Christmas of which they're aware fun, now?

PontiacPeggy

Sloan, Lucky you. I have no grandchildren and since my sons and DILs are late 40s and early 50s, not much chance of them. I'm so envious. My brother has youngish children that have been almost like grandchildren to me (imagine being 67 and having your youngest a freshman in college - me neither).

Good advice on the LE. I never had any measurements done and don't think I've had a problem. Just tightness when I don't stretch regularly. Keep reminding everyone about it!

HUGS!

Nash54

Sloan....beautiful tree! And what a cute little kitchen. Your granddaughter is going to love it. We have a teenage daughter and it's hard to surprise her. She's interested in going to a fashion design college so we bought her a sewing machine.

Sloan15

Nash -- I looked at the picture before I finished reading your post and thought your daughter was getting a GREAT dog! haha! Love the tree and the dog!!! A sewing machine is a great gift! I used to love to sew. Then, it got cheaper to buy clothes than to make them. Now, I think the trend is going back to the cheaper AND better fitting clothes are the tailored ones!

Queenmamacat - Oh, yes! Do you remember your kids at that age? I LOVED 18-22 months. My favorite....verses 12 when they are little turds. haha Do you have grandkids?

Peggy - I don't know if my boys will have kids, either. One might, one says he won't. So, I'm thrilled to have this little girl. the are expecting another little girl in April, so I think the kitchen will be a big hit for many years around here!

Sloan15

Nash - I looked at the dog again, and he's posing perfectly! Even his little paws are crossed! What a cutie!!!!!!

PontiacPeggy

Nash, love the tree and the dog (not camera shy; Goldens are so photogenic anyway). Great idea of the sewing machine. Like Sloan, I used to sew all the time but haven't in recent years - a combination of no time and then really NO time. Maybe I'll start up again. I love to sew. Certainly no talent for design. DH could never visualize what the fabric would look like when I would show him patterns. I like to work with wool. Forever ago I splurged on the softest, best navy Pendleton wool and made a blazer from a Vogue pattern. I wore it out. Now I'm not even sure what size I'd wear. Sizing is so screwy. My kids aren't going to be surprised with their gifts, but the DILs sure will be! (I'm hoping one will arrive in time for me to send it back across the country).

HUGS!!

queenmomcat

Pontiac: (staring at the heaped bedspreads I inherited from long-gone grandmother, and the stacked skeins of yarn) Don't even tempt me with the idea of sewing garments from woven cloth.

Molly50

Beautiful trees ladies! Sloan, I have a 3 year old grandson. He will be 4 in March. He is absolutely the best thing to ever happen to us. We went to his first Christmas performance at preschool tonight. He's really into super heroes. I bought him a remote control Hulk.

Molly50

in the picture he's the little guy front and center with a tie on.

Sloan15

Awwwww! What a cutie in a tie!!!! How adorable!