March 2014 Surgery

sandra4611

Tommorow we have to get out the BIG Pink Bus. Six of our members are going in for surgery.

Luppie  will have a left mastectomy, Tarot will have a right mastectomy and get tissue expanders. Alisaandjoel, Blueberry, and Juliecc are having bilateral mastectomies and all three will get tissue expanders too. Jbdayton will get her tissue expanders removed and will have DIEP reconstruction on both sides. How are all of you holding up?

Since I live in San Antonio, I'll bring breakfast tacos. If someone brings orange juice and someone else brings champagne, we can have Mimosas! Woo hoo! Please take a minute to wish our surgery sisters well.

SpecialK

luppie - glad to help. I have learned through this process, that it is indeed a process. There are often surprises and/or forks in the road!

Blueberry4

Hi ladies, thank you for your thoughts on nips. I think if they can both be spared, I will spare, if not they will both go.

I have begun to focus on the small stuff to keep the anxiety at bay. What is for dinner tonight has been a matter of great deliberation. My mind is avoiding the most pressing issue of course, that surgery is tomorrow. The waiting was so hard and now that it's almost here, I'm not ready, yikes. I'm going to go pack in a little while, although I am very actively trying to avoid it. 

Thank you for all your support. You will be in my thoughts and prayers, surgery sisters. We can do it!

linda505

Bringing fresh Florida Strawberries on the bus for  Luppie, Tarot, Allisandjoel, Blueberry, Juliecc and Jbdayton - positive thoughts for all and a fast recovery for all.   

VintageGal1111

All the best to you Ladies tomorrow!!!! I hope you have a relaxing evening & sleep well.

You will all be going or already home by the day I go in!

jbdayton

Thank you for the support for tomorrow.  Yes, I am also anxious for tomorrow.  I think I would rather be on the bus.

My prayers and thoughts will be with the entire group of supporters and fellow patients.  I am praying for perfect uncomplicated surgeries for everyone and quick healing.  

I feel like I have an advantage as far as the fear of the unknown.  For those having their mastectomies tomorrow I can fully understand your anxiety.  You will prevail.

For our support team, enjoy your mimosas your specialty coffees and your delicious snacks.  We will join you on the bus shortly to support the rest of the March sisters.  

I just finished a nice warm whirlpool bath.  I will sure miss my baths for a while.  Now to finish packing before church.  Decided to eat light for dinner tonight.  

See you guys on the other side.  good luck to everyone.  Hope no one has bad weather to contend with.  

Gramof2boys

I'm in the March group too! My surgery is March 14, I'll be doing a left MX with ALND and temporary implant until I finish rads. I am getting a little nervous but this is the small stuff compared to the reconstruction that will follow some time over the summer. I have planned a trip to Disney World in November with my hubby, daughter, son in law and my precious grandsons(3 and 5)! I can't wait! Hopefully this will all be behind me. Good luck tomorrow ladies! 

iwannaseeyoubebrave

Luppie, Tarrot, Blueberry jbdayton, and juliec,

I'm happily jumping on the pink bus for you tomorrow .  I'm already getting stir crazy at home!  I'll be in your pockets with some bright and cheerful flowers to help you smile upon recovery.  Deep breaths....pull those shoulders out of your ears.  You'll feel so much better.  You've got this!  If you can, please have someone stay with you overnight in the hospital. Not only does the company make you feel better, it's a good idea to have another set of eyes on you at all times. It's ok to be pampered. You deserve it.   Also, try and walk and move as soon as possible. Your body will thank you for it later.  Try and get some rest tonight but don't fret if you can't fall asleep. I couldn't sleep the night before either but now I have plenty of time to rest! Take care ladies. You've got this!!!!!

SpecialK

Tomorrow is a busy surgery day for so many of our March ladies! Try not to be nervous, I'm sure your docs and your family and friends will take good care of you. Remember to ask questions, follow instructions, and take it easy. Don't overdo! Ask your surgeons about a referral for physical therapy, preferably with a certified lymphedema therapist, to help gently stretch and preserve range of motion after your surgery.  Even if this is an exchange or revision surgery some therapy can really help so that you don't have a setback on this. This is particularly important for those having ALND. Good luck tomorrow!

melisden

I think I'm 6 days post surgery now and today since it was so nice outside I took a walk by the park.  Every day is a step forward for sure.  Those first few have you kind of going back and forth wondering about your progress - but it's happening!  I'm also way down on pain medication.  Just my back seems to be getting more tired today and yesterday.  It also seems that since I'm back on my feet, the emotional side of things is kicking in a bit.  I'm having a little bit of a hard time with the tightness and numbness.  Yesterday I was very close to calling my ps and making an appt to just take everything out and be flat.  Has anyone else felt this way? 

I keep thinking of all the wonderful women who have been through this and live healthy, happy, productive lives.  I just wonder when all of this will become "normal" to me and I'll stop feeling and thinking about the "new me."

Lakegirl1

I'm on the pink bus too, I'm bringing the small Solo cups with lids and long bendy straws!!!  They have been a life saver. I can't tell you how many ice water showers I got until we figured it out!!!  Also, anything much bigger is too heavy!!!

SpecialK

Acrylic insulated cups with screw top lids and a hole for a straw were a lifesaver!

On the subject of feeling normal, or not feeling consumed by dealing with your situation, time helps. I am much further from diagnosis that most of you on this particular thread. I think it is common to have a "fight or flight" response in dealing with certain aspects of treatment, and recovering physically and emotionally can be a challenge for many. Take advantage of counseling or therapy, anti-anxiety or anti-depression meds, support groups, or whatever you think will help you. I did not personally require these things, but I know that they have been so helpful to lots of the folks who post on this forum. I found that exercise was beneficial, as well as trying to maintain normal activities - shopping, lunch with friends, trips, and doing routine things like laundry, cooking made me feel like my old self. I participated in a research study that focused on mindfulness based stress reduction. Through meditation I came to understand that you can't change the past and you can't control the future, and this allowed me to live more fully in the moment. You may find that your diagnosis opens a door to doing something new - take a class, change jobs, whatever the case may be. Or, it may allow you to step away from wasting time or energy on things that don't matter, or are negative in your life. I found that looking through the lens of cancer allowed me to clarify how I wanted to live my life from that point on..

Pattysmiles

greetings, I am dropping in to wish you all luck.  My first surgery was last March.  I just wanted to share a little info.

When I went in for my lumpectomy and SNB the surgical staff had me out ice on my breast...it was like an ice pack, and I had to cover my aerola/nipple.  They said to keep it on, even if it felt "too cold" as it would totally numb the are for when they did that dye/radioactive injection. It worked!  I don't know why more docotrs don't offer that!

For those having DIEP, TRAM ,  I recommend bringing a small pillow to be able to clutch to your abdomen when you cough.  It helps to alleviate the discomfort.

Use small pillows for between your breats and the seat belt, same for the lap belt portion of your seatbelt if you do a DIEP or tram flap surgery.  (The small pillows I used were about 8 inch square, made by my Girl Scouts)

I wish you all the best, before you know it this leg will be done with.

Pat

sandra4611

SpecialK, I just realized you were diagnosed over three years ago! No wonder you are so wise! I really hope I am able to make peace with this situation like you have. I have good days and bad days where tears are very near the surface. Sometimes I'm so angry because cancer has made such a mess of things. This wasn't the way it was supposed to be. I'm only six months from BMX and three months from exchange, so I know it's normal to feel this way, but some days I can't help wishing for the day when I don't feel the implants or don't have those sudden zings of pain. It does help to hear that it will get better. It's also been comforting to know that many women go through an emotional time after the "big stuff" is over and now it's time to get on with life.

I agree that people may feel better talking to someone. My husband is an angel and my grown children are so supportive, but I can't share my insecurities because it will scare them. They've been wonderful so far but I still have two surgeries to go and don't want to wear them out with my feelings which may seem trivial to them since we are past the critical stuff. Plus, unless you have gone through this yourself, I don't think you can properly understand. I saw a counselor for several months, but haven't seen her since my last surgery. Perhaps it's time to make another appointment.

sandra4611

Pat, so glad to have you here with us. I appreciate it when women who are further out come back to give us tips and support. Please stay and share more.

Gramof2boys, welcome! I'm going to add you to our list at the top of the page. The 14th will be here before you know it. Can you post and explain what ALND is? You are going to have so much fun with the little ones at Disneyworld.

Gramof2boys

ALND is axillary lymph node dissection. I'm excited about the trip, we have been so many times, but never around the holidays. I want to see it decorated for the holidays! We just went this past summer right before my diagnosis! Seeing it at Christmas is on my bucket list so now is the time.

sandra4611

Ha ha! That reminds me of a friend who relocated to Orlando from New Jersey to be closer to Disneyworld. Her two little boys loved it that much and her husband had a job opportunity. They got season passes and went at least twice a week.

SpecialK

gram - did you have a pre neo-chemo SNB or are they seeing nodal activity on imaging that is causing the ALND?

Sandra - there are points along the treatment spectrum that are more stressful than others - revisiting some talk therapy can be helpful. The beauty of this forum is that we all "get it" so it is good to come here and ask questions, and share info, fears, hopes, plans!  I tend to be a very pragmatic person so I have dealt with my diagnosis by separating the emotional component out for the most part. I felt it did not serve my purpose of gathering information about how to proceed, and it sapped my energy, but I know that is a very unusual response. I think I am the exception rather than the rule in that regard. I think what you are feeling is very common, but I do think distance from treatment will help - I don't know if a day will come that you don't feel the implants or the zings, but I think you will eventually feel less anger.  Sorting out your feelings regarding how unfair breast cancer is can be tough. Two weeks after my exchange surgery my husband and I flew to Virginia to attend the funeral of a good friend lost to this disease. We had known each other for many years, through the military. She and I exchanged notes, phone calls, and cards of support with each other during chemo, and even though I understood that this would eventually happen to her due to the advanced state of her disease, I was unprepared for how deeply I would grieve her loss.  The swiftness of her passing shocked me, but I was comforted and inspired by her strength and grace. 

melisden

I'm not sure where to post this - I'm having a hard time with how this physically feels.  6 days post bilateral mastectomy with spacers.  I feel like I'm wearing armor.  It's a heavy type feeling and yet a thick numbness across my chest.  It's like I'm "feeling" this all the time.  The first few days up until now seemed ok.  Today I'm very aware of the tightness and heaviness and numbness.  I feel like I want to call the plastic surgeon and have everything (the spacers) taken out because everything feels so foreign.  Would I feel the same if I'd have just healed flat?  I decided on bilateral although I didn't have to remove my left side and now I'm not sure I did the right thing.  Has anyone else felt this way?

SpecialK

melisden - totally normal for the stage you are in, and it will probably last longer. You have hard backed expanders behind your pectoral muscle, this is not natural, so it feels tight. Some people get relief from this as they start to fill, but I also found that things felt more normal about four weeks after surgery. I am unusual in that I had no fills until almost a year after BMX because i had the left expander removed temporary, so I can't speak directly to that. You might ask your PS for a muscle relaxant - Flexiril, Soma, Skelaxin, or  Valium - this helps with the tight feeling, and also right after fills.

faerywings

Hugs to all of you both recovering and on your way to the hospital. Flowers and chiken soup too!

SpecialK

faery - Oh man, chicken soup would be awesome! I was craving soup yesterday. How are you doing?

Juliecc

I hope everyone is hanging in there. We are almost at the hospital and I'm ready to do this!

bobogirl

I am still throwing up -- four days out of sx, and I think all the meds and antibiotics are making me queasy -- so I will be bringing these great cookies I found.  They are belgian, they are almost like a zwieback cracker.  I know it's not exactly party food!  Sending all my sisters a big kiss.

sandra4611

Melisden, you are in a hard place when the full weight of what has been done to your body becomes so real. The first days you are wrapped up in immediate concerns like getting out of bed and pain control. Just about the time you have conquered the first hurdles, "buyers remorse" sets in. I don't know if everybody goes through it, but I've read enough stories by our surgery sisters to know what you are feeling is very common. Fortunately I knew it was coming so I wasn't surprised, but it was still hard. The tightness and numbness you are feeling is something I know well. The nerves have been damaged. Some will never come back, others will start "complaining" as they wake up.

Bobo, so sorry you are still having nausea issues. I bet you are right and it's because of pain meds. Once you get off them and onto over the counter pain relievers, you may feel better.

sandra4611

Sueal1, it's your turn for the Pink Bus! Good luck with your lumpectomy tomorrow.

iwannaseeyoubebrave

gurgle, gurgle...anyone feeling this weird sensation in their tissue expanders? I'm trying to figure out if it's drainage or saline from the TE, or if an alien has taken me hostage. 

sandra4611

Ha! At one point I could hear the saline sloshing around.

linda505

IWANNASEEYOUBEBRAVE    I vote alien!! lol  we should at least get something really interesting out of this

melisden

I don't know what I would do without this site!  You ladies are great!  I had a bad night but things are better today.  Thanks for your responses. Also, I talked to the nurse at the ps office today and found out that they staple the expanders to your chest wall - so this might cause some poking/stabbing at times.  She reminded me that I will be swollen for 2-3 weeks and once that goes down and the drains come out, things will become more "normal."  She told me of one patient who had her last fill and went to try on bras and swimsuits only to decide she wanted another fill.  She's looking forward to summer and is having some fun with this.  Good for her!

Someone mentioned aliens invading your body - haha!  It definitely feels like something other than you is in there.  I think that is the hardest part for me.  When I tap on my chest I can actually hear where there is more fill than in other places. 

Thinking of everyone - pre and post surgery!  Best of wishes, lots of comfort and peace, and always remember a sense of humor!:-)