No reconstruction- Happy w/your decision?

I had the fluid aspirated from my seroma today. I lost count of the number of syringes. I have no idea how much fluid she removed. Her instructions - "wear the binder" and "keep that left arm still". I went back to work part-time today. After 2 1/2 hours I was asking if it was time to go home yet and all I was doing was updating my caseload on the computer. I came home after 4 hours and took a nap. I'm doing 4 hours a day this week and will go back to full time next week.

Lilylady - If you need temporary foobs, try sea shore forms. You can find them on line. They're about $40 each. They're actually swim forms. They are foam with some kind of beads in them that give them a little bit of weight. Also get a Coobie bra. It's a soft 1 size fits most pull over bra that has pockets that hold the sea shore forms perfectly. It's not a mastectomy bra. The pockets are for modesty shields that come with the bra. You can order them from ebay (usually no shipping), Amazon or the Coobie web site. They're about $20. I wore mine today for the first time. It was the first time I had breasts in 3 1/2 weeks. I felt like I was playing dress up. I think I much prefer the flat look. 

I'm wearing more upper body garments then I've ever worn in my life. A soft undershirt, the binder, the bra and foobs. I asked my friends at work to give me a sign if the foobs were heading towards my chin. No need to worry. They stayed put.

Hi I went to see my PS and he said he thinks me kayaking sheared something. i didnt have radiation so dont think its LE. It is also located in the chest above and below the incision. He said not to use that arm for 1-2 weeks.

thanks for your advice as always insightful and caring

Kathy, drains are a pain, but they are your friend! According to my plastic surgeon, some folks are just "juicier" than others. :-) Hang in there!




Shippy, what does your PS mean when he said you "sheared" something? A tear or pull? Glad he doesn't think it's LE, but I would definitely keep an eye on it if the swelling doesn't go down. Oh, and about getting LE? You do not need to have radiation to get it. In fact, you don't even have to have any nodes taken to get it. I had one sentinel node taken on my "bad" LE side and no nodes taken on my "good" LE side (as if there's anything such as "good" LE!). No radiation or chemo. There are several women on the LE forum that developed LE without any nodes taken or radiation. Not questioning your PS, but just know that most doctors and surgeons know very little about LE since they only receive 15 min - 2 hrs education on the lymphatic system in medical school. I certainly hope you don't have LE, though. Just urging you to be attentive. :-) I am glad you have felt well since your decon and were up for kayaking! So good to hear.

Hugs, Tina

Help! I'm going out of my mind. Does anyone have any suggestions for dealing with the nerve irritation after my PMX a month ago? The itch I can't scratch is driving me crazy. Then there's the pins and needles and the sunburn sensation. For some reason, it's always worse at night. I slather on benedryl cream, which helps some, but not enough.

Hi Hauntie,

One thing that worked for me was wearing some old silk tee shirts (they were WinterSilks). This was a suggestion from my physical therapist. She said satin or silk glides over the skin and would help alleviate the ultra-sensitivity that I was experiencing. It did. I'm not sure it will do anything for the itch you describe, but might help the other sensations if you have access to any such garments.

My PT also recommended gentle massage (as crazydaisy already suggested)--so gentle that it's not really massage, more gliding your fingers gently over the sensitive areas, with minimal pressure.

It sounds as if your nerves are regenerating. Hopefully, the sensitivity will die down before very long. I remember thinking it would never end, but in my case it only lasted about three weeks.

Barbara 

My PT had me massage my chest, pressing just hard enough to move the tissue in a circular crosswise motion over the scar. I think this was to prevent adhesions as well as to gently toughen up the skin. I also used Eucerin Calming Creme, which really helped. It gets better—really!

Hi, CLC - I just responded to your post on the running thread, then saw this at the top of the list (no, I'm not stalking you!) and thought I'd add a little.

I had a left mast, no reconstruction.  As I wrote on the other thread, I have not noticed the imbalance in front affecting my back.  (I wear a prosthesis most of the time, unless I'm running or just lounging around the house.)

HOWEVER, I did develop pain in my shoulder at one point, and the physical therapist mentioned that she sees a lot of shoulder issues in women who've had mastectomies.  She attributed it to posture - we tend to hunch over and draw our shoulders forward - rather than to the physical imbalance per se.  Plus, in my case, I think that always carrying heavy stuff on my non-surgery side aggravated things.  I did a course of physical therapy to address the acute issue, and since then I've tried to be more conscious of my posture and do some basic maintenance exercises -- and I've been fine.

L

My BS mentioned reconstruction to me when I saw her this week. Not for apearance or vanity, but because of the physical changes that can take place when you don't have breasts. Lewing, she said the same thing your PT said - that we hunch and draw our shoulders forward. She said this can cause changes to our rib cage and the space our lungs have to expand??? I didn't think to ask her, if wearing weighted prostheses helps with these issues.

Re - my nerve issues. I've been dealing with these sensations since my original MX almost 17 years ago, but they come and go and are usually brief episodes. This has been weeks of constant discomfort. All of my usual remedies, which have all been mentioned here, haven't really helped. On the plus side, the area that's affected is getting smaller. This kind of nerve irritation is not something I even considered when I made the decision to have a PMX. So far, it's the only down side of the surgery. Hopefully it continues to get better and clears up - before I completly go out of my mind.

I decided not to have reconstruction for my own personal reasons and my original BS didn't have a problem with it but I have now switched BS because of my insurance and she was ok but she was really pushing for reconstruction and I really didn't like that about her. Its not for all people and I am very glad I didn't do it from what I have been reading alot of women have a lot of problems which I don't want to deal with . I am happy with my decision.

Nancy

I am so with you!! My BS (lovely Dutch lady) also pushed for me to reconstruct. Don't think she believed me that I was HAPPY to be flat. She gave me name of PS, but I never bothered making appt. I must have convinced her though, because she told me she took extra time during surgery to ensure no "dogears" (hate that term!) were left under my arms.  However, she then told me I would probably want to get fitted for foobs a.s.a.p. so that I could go out in public with confidence..I feel bloody confident flat!!! It is just not a big deal, is it?? I have better things to think about and am still feeling GREAT....I am sure some of my friends are waiting for me to break down and cry over the loss (?). I have recently started jogging every morning, and what a relief to have no bouncing boobs to slow me down!!

My posture has also improved since my BMX. I was small, 32B so it wasn't the weight. Maybe I was hunched over trying to hide headlights. The running thing-having my breasts squished against my chest with an athletic bra is not something I miss. The swimming thing-competive style swimsuits are much more comfortable without breasts when I swim laps or do master workouts. I'm thin & wasn't prepared for the appearance of my ribs though. Very prominent, could play them like guitar strings. Either this area is filling in or I'm getting use to it.

On occasion when I wanted to throw myself a pity party, I'd look down where my breasts once were. Instantly realize, it doesn't look bad or bother me. So I have to look for something else. Usually the ongoing frustration with being a BC patient works 

I'm getting a bit discouraged here. I've been wearing the damn binder at least 22-23 hours a day and today I noticed some fluid build up. My prosthesis fitter noticed it also. I thought I had this licked and the skin had adhered to the chest wall. I had a near melt down this afternoon - ready to kick, scream and just throw a temper tantrum. Thank God for xanax and a nap. Things always look better after both My BS keeps telling me I have to keep my left arm still. Easier said than done. It doesn't hurt, so it takes a real conscious effort not to move it. She tells me to keep my left hand in my pocket, yeah right. I think the only way I'm going to keep this arm from moving is to strap it down.

On the plus side, this has probably been my best day so far re nerve irritation.

Barbe - She just wants me to keep it still until we can get the skin to adhere to the chest wall. I have full range of motion in my arm. I didn't have any node dissection. I don't think it's LE, but I'll check with her. I think it's because the skin hasn't adhered yet, so there's a space that fills with fluid. It's right under the incision. I know others have had this problem and have had to have multiple aspirations. Today my nerve irritation feels like a very itchy nipple - a much smaller area than before, but still driving me crazy. Of course, it really started up since my last post saying this had been my best day yet. Go figure.

CLC - I'm a D/DD cup, I had MX of left breast only, I'd heard and read that you needed to have a weighted prosthesis or recon or you would develop balance issues, so that's what I got.  I found that it was too heavy, it caused more shoulder issues.  Two CLT's told me that wearing the weighted prosthesis can actually make LE worse, they recommended lighter weight prosthesis, this helped some, but the 2nd CLT said that most of her patients actually get the feather weight swimming prosthesis, if they wear one and it doesn't cause any balance problems and they have less LE issues, so next time I qualify for a new prosthesis I'm going for the lightest weight one.  Also, I hardly every wear a bra around the house and have no balance issues, it's actually much more comfortable.

Erica - My BS had me wear a binder for about 5 weeks, basically 24/7, he said that the MX heals faster (not sure why) and you have less fluid build up, not sure it was true for me, but that's his thinking, he  now allows you stop wearing the binder if you wear a compression bra. He also doesn't let you raise arm above shoulder level for 6 weeks, you should be moving it, but that's all.

No binder for me either. When I go to the PS's office I'm never wearing a bra either and he hasn't said anything. I'm sooo enjoying that part (although I'm having reconstruction so I'm probaby on the wrong thread).

Just curious about the nerve thing. My chest area including my foobs have no feeling, however the slightest touch from a shirt seam or a ribbon from my nightgown touching my chest feels horrible. Is this from the nerves regenerating?