February 2012 MX

Maryellen, good luck tomorrow! Wishing you a peaceful recovery.



I am on day 4 after bmx and have stopped taking the pain meds. I am taking ibuprofen and it is tolerable so far. The only issue I have had since stopping pain meds is that I am nt sleeping well. I see others are having the same issue. I was also up at 3am, thank goodness for Netflix.



I am hoping to have hubby wash npmy hair today. He is nervous to do it over the sink, but I think I have convinced him. I know it will make me feel so much better! Looking forward to my first post op at the ps on Wednesday. I have 4 drains and hope that they can at least take out 2 of them. These things are the pits. Going to sit outside for a bit to try to keep my spirits up, fresh air and sun can work wonders at times. Be well everyone.

I am on day 26 of having drains and no shower. I still have all the 3 drains i started with. I am pretty sure i am near the top for getting the glorious grunge award.

I am going to doctor on wednesday it will be almost a full month since surgery i am thinking once she gets to see me in person i will be able to shower and have drains removed.-i hope

I have come to the conclusion that the drains finish when they are good and ready. I tried being lazy doing next nothing -still draining lots  then i tried being more active- still draining lots  then i tried a combo of both active and relax- still draining lots.

So it appears that this is our body's way of saying when its ready and it has nothing to do with anything else. I have heard it is important to let your drains drain as much as they can it is better for you so i am trying to look at it this way. At least they are only annoying and not painful.

Good luck to all

Maryellen, good luck tomorrow! Wishing you a peaceful recovery.



I am on day 4 after bmx and have stopped taking the pain meds. I am taking ibuprofen and it is tolerable so far. The only issue I have had since stopping pain meds is that I am nt sleeping well. I see others are having the same issue. I was also up at 3am, thank goodness for Netflix.



I am hoping to have hubby wash npmy hair today. He is nervous to do it over the sink, but I think I have convinced him. I know it will make me feel so much better! Looking forward to my first post op at the ps on Wednesday. I have 4 drains and hope that they can at least take out 2 of them. These things are the pits. Going to sit outside for a bit to try to keep my spirits up, fresh air and sun can work wonders at times. Be well everyone.

Welcome mmswarowski (PBMX) to Feb. "fun" club.  Your lsurgery matjes tomorrow are Susanes(BMX) and Joannweb(BMX).  Don't think we've had three BMXs scheduled on the same day.  You ladies are the trifecta ticket. Remember to take your relaxer pill if anxious and know that it is a huge relief to get the surgery behind you.  

Dear Pelicangirl,  so far you and mma59 both had to go back in the same month for the same deal.  Need to take an additonal node after final path from surgery came back positive.  I'm going to be frank here.  I think you are near the top of the list of our group for the most surprises, complications, side effects etc.  Girl, stop it already with the bells and whistles!We care about yourwell being. Naturally, we appreciate and learn from your details. 

Beth1965, I have same train of thought regarding the drains.  It's good to get all that liquid out and it didn't matter what I did or didn't do (activity level) to affect production. 

Now for anyone who may be offended about intimacy- just skip this paragraph.  Beth, I added skin contact up one notch from just a gentle hug with DH. It too had zero effect on drain output. I found the best garment for an MXer.  Wrap around blouses- the kind that have the hole in the side seam where the tie goes through and has a diagonal front opening!  Let me repeat that.  A diagonal front opening!  They cover and hide the under construction side, yet the remaining side can actually be exposed easily.  Depending on which side your wrap around blouse opens and side of MX, you may have to use a safety pin for assistance. The humorous part is don't forget to rotate that surgical drain to the rear of the garment!  Easy for me as I purchased that handy-dandy elastic drain belt with the velcro loops.  It was really good for my psyche.  I had been feeling "broken, damaged, in need of repair".  DH has been afraid of hurting me in any way when I'm rigged with all these gadgets. I just said, let me take the lead, I'll do all the moving.  It made me feel like I can have close human contact, am still desirable, can resolve feeling "skin hungry" and reminds both of us that this is not a permanent deal. We thought I looked pretty darn good in one of those diagonal wrap around blouses!  We both had a good laugh about it all.  If he doesn't say something stupid (cuz' you know husbands have been known to do that) we might try it again soon.  Maybe, I'll even be able to get rid of the blasted drain and aquarium tubing. 

Galsal I am trying to get back to work this week, too.  I am shocked you're even trying at the stage of your particular recovery. I don't have permission (I agree) to return at all at least until my drain is out.  I too will go back part time at first to see how taxing or what I'll feel up to.  I think I saw a thread that is titled "dumbest things people have said about BC".  Hopefully I won't need it. 

I was sent the funniest picture.  If I can figure out how to upload it as my temporary postin photo I will do so.  Three ladies are sitting on a sofa and wearing rice hull filled long rectangular neck .  "scarves". For those of you who may not know, people purchase rice hull filled "bean bags" in various shapes and sizes, place them in the microwave and wrap them around their sore backs,necks etc. for warmth/therapy.  They are re-usable. These ladies have super long ones and when wrapped around their necks, the ends look like saggy boobs complete with nipple art and hang exactly over their chests where breast would be.  Now, that's my kind of sore neck warmer! The picture is hilarious!  It's one of those visual jokes.

Deborah2012

farmerlucydaisy- Glad you are feeling better; good luck to you

Maryellen-Hope everything goes well for you. Let us know how you do 

Whoohoo....congratulations on wrsmith2x...I know how you feel...wonderful.

Beth/Deborah...I hope you both get your drains out this week!!

Good luck to the girls this week!!

Just squeaking in. My surgery will be Wednesday, February 29. BMX, no reconstruction. I'm doing really well, not nervous about the surgery itself. A little nervous about the sentinel node biopsy. My family will know before I do, if the lymph nodes are positive, I think. My surgeon will talk to them right after surgery, while I'm in recovery.

I think I'm ready.

Hi Ladies, it is so great to have all of you to compare notes with. I am three weeks post BMX. I went to work for 3 hours last Thursday and 3 hours today. I am a secretary so most of my time is sitting at a computer desk. It is not strenuous. I did drive myself today; it is only a 5 minute drive so I felt ok doing that. My boss is letting me be very flexible with what hours I want to work and I will work back slowly to a 20 hour week (my usual schedule). I take a nap every afternoon. I have found it helpful to silence my cell phone and unplug the house phone because inevitably someone will call to check on me.

 How are you feeling about the tissue expanders? My right one (the cancer side) is very uncomfortable. It actually feels tighter and fuller than before. I am scheduled for my first fill this Thursday, but I am so scared to have it done. I am going to go to see the PS or her PA and tell them how I feel, maybe they will agree to wait a week or two. Hopefully I don't have some fluid in there that needs drained. The swelling under my right arm seems more than before as well, which is probably what is pulling it all so tight. Is anyone else feeling this way?

 How about the arm that you had lymph nodes taken out of? Mine is still very tight and sore. My range of motion is not good. I am doing the stretching exercises, but I don't feel like I am making any progress. I have to make an appt. with a PT who specializes in lymphedema. Is anyone else having this same issue?

Tomorrow I see the radiation oncologist. I am praying that I don't have to have radiation. I was under the impression that if I had a mastectomy and all the tissue was removed, in addition to a clean margin, that I would not need radiation. Now the PA says that new research shows that premenopausal women benefit from radiation in addition to chemo. I am not sure if I can continue with this reconstruction with implants if they have to give me radiation. Let's hope I don't need it and it is just a precautionary visit!

Good luck to all of you who are in recovery and to our last two February date ladies who are yet to have their surgery!

I have some range of motion issues....just "pulling" and I didn't have any nodes removed.  Mary, my TEs actually felt better when I started getting fills.  I get 60cc in each every week....they are tight for a few days afterwards then level out and feel as normal as they can feel.  I am at 470ccs now.  The fills aren't too bad.  I just close my eyes so I don't see the needle.  My husband is completely entertained with the whole process...he likes to watch them grow.  Men?...ugh!

Maryellen -- No...different PS do things differently.  There are several on here that were allowed to shower within 24 to 48 hours.  I was SO jealous of them :-)  I went to my local beauty salon to have my hair washed twice a week.  I have long, thick hair and only wash it every 2 or 3 days anyway.  It was kinda nice to have someone do it for me for a couple of weeks.

Hey girls! Less than 12 hours and I will be at the hospital for my bmx and reconstruction. I'm starting to get a little nervous now. Thank you to ALL of you who have posted about your experiences, pre- and post-op. It helps to sorta know what to expect! I'm keeping my fingers crossed for no problem with the nodes. Will post back as soon as I can to add my 2 cents' worth to this discussion

Thankfully, BS permitted showers  as soon as I got home although only with white dial antibacterial soap.  The first couple I had help from a girlfriend.  I'm thankful she was around to help on and off since it's hard to do some things when you live alone. 

Work today - well, spoke with my Supervisor and told her I didn't really want to speak with people or have them coming up to me and wanting to talk.  She went around to the various departments and let them know to say welcome back in passing but to leave me alone for a few days.  My department is quite accommodating about the hours for the part-time schedule.  Today was 10-2.  Tomorrow I'm aiming for 9:30 for four hours.  I'm working on getting myself in there a bit earlier each day to get back on track to my regular 8-5 schedule.

Some are shocked I'm back already.  What will sitting at home accomplish?  Drains have been out since Wednesday, I'm able to shower by myself, do laundry by myself (although restrict myself to only a handful of items to carry at a time), lean forward enough to put things in the dishwasher without feeling like my chest was going to fall off, etc.  My vehicle is an automatic transmission or BS wouldn't have let me drive yet.  He doesn't know that it's a Blazer though.  The squishy pillow between me and the seatbelt is still needed.  The scary thought I'd had the other day is OMG, what if I were in an accident and the airbags deployed?  That would hurt like HELL, if not cause one to pass out from the pain.

So many have made great strides and my hat's off to all of you!  Next stop, Oncology on 3/21.

Welcome dreniger....As a 4 days post op UMX gal, I have to say that I found the waiting for the surgery to be the most difficult.  Even though I am now sore and physically hurting from the surgery (I can't take any pain meds due to my easily nauseated stomach), the emotional relief, for me, has been tremendous.  I was lucky to discover that none of my nodes were positive, so that was a huge weight off of my shoulders, but even if they were, I still think the waiting is the worst part.