April 2016 Surgery

weimlover

I have my first fill on Wednesday and it will be 3 weeks post surgery. I broke down and took 1/2 the norco so I could make it to church this morning. I need to see people. I'm a huge extrovert.

My pain seems to be along my collarbone when I bend down and when I have to stand back up from crouching. My normal mommy schedule resumes Friday just me and 2 girls to drive to school, 4yo stays at home then pick up. My 4yo wears me out. She's at the nonstop talking moving demanding questioning age.

Will I make it or will I break down and be ugly to my sweet innocent children because I'm tired or in pain? I don't know. I'm praying for keeping it together

LRGO2016

Weimlover, is there anyone who can spell you with the children, once a week or as needed while you recover. This is the time to call in favors your family or friends owe you!. When you are overwhelmed, having someone to step in and help would be a godsend.

Sorry you are having you go through this.

raven4mi

How many of you April ladies have had your drains removed, how long after surgery were they removed, and what was the average 24-hour output when they came out?

I still have one drain at nearly five weeks post-op that is averaging around 20 CCs of output in 24 hours and I swear I'm going to cut someone if it doesn't come out at my next appointment tomorrow. Just curious when others are getting theirs removed and what the output was when they were removed.

Thanks, all.

LRGO2016

Raven 4mi - 30 mls per day is my cut off for removal. I had 4 drains to start, two came out after a week as they were both producing nearly nothing. The remaining two were left in at week two because output was between 40 and 50 mls each daily. Now both are slowing down. I was told output must be below 30 mils in 24 hours for 3 consecutive days per drain. Then they will be removed. My surgeon would remove yours tomorrow if he was your doctor, but your PS will make the call. Each has different reasons for deciding and I've been told the complications of early removal are far more serious than the annoyance of keeping them in.

I'm with you, after only two weeks, I'm READY for these things to be out. One of mine is resting on a nerve on my rib and can be extremely painful at times.

Good luck tomorrow! Hope you come home drain-free!

Reckless

Raven4mi - I had my drains for 3 weeks. The output from the left one was below 30cc for 24 hours, but the right one drained at about 40 for a few days in the row. The PS removed it because of the risk of infection beyond 3 weeks. This was 9 days ago, OK so far

Jr114

Hi Raven,

I had mine for 3 weeks as well. Like Reckless at 3 weeks the doctor didn't want to leave them in any longer due to infection. I can tell you I did have about 4 days of discomfort after the drains were removed until my body started to reabsorbthe fluid. I think because I was still producing fluid. But it was better than dealing with the drains.

Good luck to you....fingers crossed that your drains come out.

Mom2Winston

Raven,

I had one drain on each side after BMX. They were taken out after 6 days. One side was less than 20cc per day, the other was about 35cc/day.

LRGO2016

hey Ravin? Did you get any joy with your drains?

My blasted buggers are bouncing up and down - producing tantalizing amounts between mid 30's to mid 50's. I've named them after a former boss who was always a real pain in my a** (and side), Wayne....

They are officially now known as "Wayne Drains"!

Hang in there... I'll be at week 3 if they don't take them next Tuesday. ...

raven4mi

LRGO2016, I love that you named them after someone you hate! LOL! That cracked me up. Read on, though, for a warning!

Flotsam was removed Thursday afternoon about 4:00 p.m. By the middle of the night I was in so much pain I could hardly stand it, yet oddly enough there was no swelling or redness. I put a call into my PS office right away but because I wasn't reporting any swelling or redness they didn't seem too concerned. I checked the breast at 2:00 p.m. and it all still appeared normal, just extremely painful. Then at 4:00 p.m. I checked again and the only thing I can say to describe the changes is "holy shit". I immediately took a picture and e-mailed it to the PS and he told me to meet him in the ER, which I did. They then did an immediate operation to drain the fluid, flush/clean everything out, and insert Flotsam 2.0. I was told at first that I would be in the hospital at least overnight for IV antibiotics, but my RN in the morning was the first person to spill the beans that, usually, for something like this I could expect to be there for three days! The resident working the week-end said I would probably be there until Monday, but not to hold it against him if it turned out to be Tuesday. Well, evidently I must have responded well to the antibiotics, because they sent me home today – Sunday – on oral antibiotics and I follow-up with the PS on Thursday.

For anyone who is dealing with the discomfort of the drains, I hope my experience will help guide you. My left drain came out after 26 days, at the time of my nipple cleanup/excision. The output at the time was about 20 ccs in 24 hours. At that time they inserted a new drain on the right side. I had that an additional 8 days, until my next follow-up with the PS. The output at that time was also about 20 ccs in 24 hours so the PS pulled the drain. Within hours was when the fluid started building up. Why it happened on the right side at the same volume and not the left I'm sure we'll never know, although the right side is the one that had the previous lumpectomies/radiation. After an additional 2 days with the new drain I'm currently at 88 ccs for the day and I still have to empty it one more time tonight to get the total volume for the day. I anticipate having this new drain for as long as it takes, because I'll tell you right now, the pain from the seroma was horrendous. I have a pretty high tolerance for pain but at one point I told my DH that I'd rather lose the breast completely than have to deal with that level of pain anymore.

So even though you may be uncomfortable with the drains, trust me when I tell you that the drains are a walk in the park compared to the seroma. Be honest about your output and put up with them for as long as it takes. As of this last Friday, I will have had a drain (although actually 3 separate drains) on the right side now for 5 weeks, and I'm sure I'll have it for a lot longer. I'll never complain about Flotsam 2.0 again.

WenchLori

I'm so happy that you are back home Raven and I hope no more tantrums from Flotsam 2.0. 88 ccs! Wow! You've been through enough! I'll be following your warning about drains to a T with no complaining! (Gentle hugs)

LRGO2016

Holy Carp! As much as I hate Wayne the Drain, I don't want to meet Sherman the Seroma! Take care of yourself!

Here's to hoping no infections get going!

Wow! Thanks for helping me understand what these drains are protecting me from!

Betsy918

My PS doesn't like to leave drains in for more than 3 weeks, so even thought I was still putting out 40cc in each, he took them out, and I did just fine, no seromas.

raven4mi

Yeah, sorry, didn't mean to scare anyone about getting their drains out. Obviously what happened to me is some kind of rare anomaly - hell, the drain coming out on my left side didn't cause any problem at all. Just lucky, I guess.

LRGO2016

Raven, thank you for explaining your situation. I would rather be told about what can go wrong rather than coddled or left in the dark. It helps me accept what I must endure and better recognize whether my healing is on or off track. What you have shared with me has lessened my anxiety rather than increased it. By comparison, I'm doing GREAT and now I realize this.

I'm sorry you went through such a tough patch and am so glad you are back on the mend. Hang in there!

LRGO

WenchLori

Yes Raven, I agree 110% with LRGO. If it's out there the more we know the better we can get through all of this. Thank you so much for sharing!

Jacklin

Sorry to read what a difficult time you've had raven4mi, but glad there was something the medical staff could do to help you. Heal quickly. Guess I can add my story to yours, I had hemovacs, not JP drains, and had one removed 10 days after surgery, the other at 2-1/2 weeks. Where the last drain was removed, I now have super-granulated tissue, it looks like a slug without a shell on the drain site now. It is painful to touch and when I move, including breathing. A week ago, deep below the incision site, I developed an anaerobic infection and now have 2 weeks worth of antibiotics. In a matter of 2 hours, my chest went from normal skin-colour to huge red blotches that went down my left arm to my elbow. It was a fast-moving infection, that's for sure. Thankfully I had an appointment with my oncologist and she was able to diagnose and prescribe antibiotics for me. Tomorrow I have an appointment with my surgeon to take a look at the skin infection as well as the super-granulated tissue at the drain site. I feel frustrated, wasn't it enough to go through chemo, them BMX and now I have to add a skin infection and now super-granulation? Really????? This stinks!! I didn't have any issue with the other drain site.

WenchLori

Wow!I'm sorry to hear of your rough times too Jacklin! I didn't stop to think how many infections that are out there that I wouldn't know about if it weren't for everyone on here! I'm just sorry you are going through all of this

Well wishes of healing and smooth recoveries for everyone!

LRGO2016

Jacklin, please let me know how things work out. I'm not sure what granulation means in this context but it can't be pleasant! Ugh.....

Healing thoughts headed your way!

LRGO

raven4mi

OMG, Jacklin, I'm so sorry you're having post-drain problems also! Yay for everyone who hasn't had a problem, but I tell ya, when you do, it totally sucks. I'm with you - it's bad enough we're losing our breasts and have to go through so much shit - even worse in your case since I didn't even have to suffer through chemo - that enough is enough! We need a break!

Hang in there, girl, and let us know how things progress. So sorry you're in so much pain.

WenchLori

((((((((Everyone)))))))

I hope everyone is starting to heal with no complications in the future!

LRGO2016

chanting my new mantra.... heal, heal, heal......

LRGO2016

Doc says I'm doing great, but drains stay a little longer :-(

My levels are not low enough yet... thus begins week 3..... come on body, heal, heal, heal.....

:-)

Ps, fills today, 50 mls... starting to look like I have boobs again!

raven4mi

LRGO2016, boo for drains, but ya know.....they're doing a job!

Yay for boobs!

LRGO2016

After coaching from you and Jacklin, I'm quite fine with letting these "suckers" stay in place!

My PS PA is AWESOME! She is letting me dictate the rate of my fills with a word.... She starts with, "I'm aiming for 60 cc today"...but when I let her know it was begining to ache, she stopped the fill process at 50cc.

At the moment I feel like I have DDD boobs! Wow! This means I'm only at 190 cc in each and they feel tight. As with the previous fill, I expect this sensation to ease some by tomorrow and to become almost unnoticeable by next week. This is a very strange sensation and process to watch.

My left breast, let's call her Lynette...is performing beautifully. She is plumping up and taking shape with the promise of being a beauty.

Now my right breast, hereby named Hope, is struggling a bit. She is misshapen and starting to swell in two separate places. Toward the left edge she has a bulge that looks like an over-squeezed balloon with a weak spot so there is this squishy bump poking out. The rest of her expansion seems to be happening on the right side, as if there is a belt strapped vertically across where the nipple used to be. Guess I'm forming some scar tissue in there that must be stretched. I'll work more on the stretching this week since these drains don't appear to be leaving me any time soon! (Little helpful buggers!) ;-)

georgiaredskin

LRGO,

I'm so happy you feel like you have boobs again! Thank you for detailing this experience. Although it is further off for me, I really appreciate it.

Sorry the drains are still in!

Lynette and Hope!!!! Love it!!!! 😀Hope Hope starts feeling better

LRGO2016

Headed to bed soon. Struggling to get comfortable enough to sleep. I think I'm going to try some ice packs as suggested by other TE-experienced ladies in this forum. I'm finding some relief by wearing a jog bra! I can't believe I'm saying that! I HATE bras.... but the bra is providing support to the spot that was sticking out irregularly on the left side of "Hope". The support is not only reducing the TE bulge a bit but is also reducing the ache.

Unfortunately, the bra puts pressure on the drains so that pain is back.... rats!

I finally broke down and took one of my stronger pain pills - ahhhhh...much better.....

What a balancing act! I'll update again tomorrow. Rest well my friends and fellow surgery companions...

Paulinek

LRGO I wear a bra to bed every night with my TE. It just seems to help with some of the aches. I know what you mean by DDD's. I had my last fill almost 2 weeks ago to put me at 400cc each side. They feel and look enormous!!! Because they are hard see if my shirts don't fit right and I know it's in my mind but I feel like it's all people are when they look at me.

Jacklin

I agree, drains are not fun, but having other problems post-drain removal are definitely worse! LRGO, hang in there, yes, they're frustrating, but they are doing a job and it's much better to have them in, promise. Soon they'll only be a distant memory and you'll be able to say 'oh yeah, they were annoying but it's all in the past now".

I saw my surgeon yesterday and she put some silver nitrate on the super-granulated (basically means overgrown tissue) tissue and today it's much smaller, albeit a tad more painful because it's being reduced in size by a chemical reaction. I know that in a few more days I might need another treatment of silver nitrate, but if this gets rid of it all, I'll do it. Thankfully the antibiotics are working and the skin infection is starting to clear up!!! Yes, those healing mantras/thoughts are working, keep on saying them, repeat, repeat, repeat.

Hopefully soon we'll all be saying that same thing "oh yeah, I had________ and that was annoying, but thankfully it's in the past".

So thankful for good pain meds too, where would be without them???

LRGO2016

Jacklin, glad you are improving! Hang in there!... heal, heal, heal, the chanting continues. ..

LRGO

raven4mi

Jacklin, glad things are getting better for you!

Bummer we had to learn the dreaded drain lesson the hard way, but I'm with you - a year from now all this will all be a distant memory (read: shuddering nightmare)! LOL!

Heal, heal, heal.................(tm LRGO2016).