DIEP 2013
Comments
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GASP......CREME BRULEE IS MY FAV!!!!!!!!! -
I can't say we woke him up, Nihahi, as he went back under before I answered...I think an anesthesiologist sneaks in and knocks him out every night. He doesn't sleep like a normal person.
yes! Dark chocolate.....Omg....getting hungry!
Earbleed, indeed!
Butterfleyez I think 3 weeks will be plenty. ...although we are all different with different experiences and situations before and after. I was able to care for myself most of the time after I came home. I couldn't care for my family (laundry cooking shopping etc) for a few weeks, but my kids are 14 and 17, so self sufficient.
Edited to add: CREME BRULEE IS MY FAVORITE, TOO! I want two of those. -
Starting to yawn here....heading to bed with plans to dream of past marching bands and yet to be eaten brulee's.....bailey...it is way past your bedtime!!!! Have good night's ladies....love you all. -
yup I am out, too, thanks for the fun, friends, ttyl! -
thanks all for your posts and your replies. You don't know how much this helps ( well u prob do know cuz you're here ..lol). 9 days till surgery and now I have a resource and support. Thanks -
Lucy - welcome to the thread. I ended up with too many button down tops because I ended up wearing soft tank tops that I could step into, but with not enough granny-style undies because my incision goes right over my hips so I needed them. I think it is impossible to know exactly what you will need - just make sure you have the essentials for the hospital stay, a few bits and pieces at home and have someone who can pop out to pick things up or return or exchange them as you need them.
Krissy - welcome to the other side. I hope the ab incision heals quickly and the new boob doesn't give you any pain. Rest, rest, rest. The tummy skin will stretch, very slowly. I know how hard it is, but we have to be patient.
Pattysmiles - back rubs were my favourite thing for a while there!
butterflyeyez - most women do sail through with no complications so try not to focus on what can go wrong. Do something nice for yourself every day to try to get your mind off it.
Goldie - re labour pain - why do you think my boys are seven years apart?! LOL!
Girls, I'll make crème brulée - it's one of my specialties and I always have really good double cream on hand. So, dessert in Switzerland!
My noob is feeling a little better in the 5 o'clock position where the drain/flush tubes are... but it's getting worse in the 2 o'oclock position where the redness started on Tuesday. Seeing another home care nurse today then back to the PS tomorrow, but I think it's another fistula developing, which would mean back into surgery. *sigh* Maybe it'll magic itself better. -
pattysmiles- glad you'll be back in NY soon!
Bailey-ever hear of magic bars? I always gave the ingredients on hand for them. Easy and good! Never tried making creme brûlée but love eating it ( hence my A1C concerns)
Butterfleye- I can't sleep either...combo surgery anxiety and menopause and a husband with insomnia!
Lahela- dessert in Switzerland sounds like a plan!
Love the band stories! -
Those posts last night had me laughing. I also like the idea of dessert in Switzerland.
Butter- 3 weeks and you can take care of yourself, but you will have weight restrictions for a few more. No vacuuming, lifting, housework, etc.
I will schedule that flu shot tomorrow! -
Butter - Totally understandable, and normal, to wake up with surgery on your mind. How could you not? The waiting is brutal. I had a whole bunch of things I relied on the weeks before surgery. Yoga, Guided Meditation (that I downloaded), massage, cooking, over-buying, and Ativan. I'm not normally a drug pusher but I strongly believe that stress is our worst enemy, and that the benefits of a good nights sleep outweigh temporary pill use.
Three weeks help is a good. Do you have someone that you can call after that, on a need-to-help basis? Everyone heals at a different rate, and as Cherrie said, there are weight restrictions. I found it really helpful to put everything at waist level. By that I mean, things that were in top cupboard, I put on the counter. I also have a lightweight step stool in the kitchen that I used to reach the wine rack (for example). It took a while to be able to stretch my arms. It also took a long while before I could open jars, lift a pot of water from the sink to the stove, or walk the dog. But so many of these instances are a question of adapting, and are manageable. I was also to vacuum as long as Jim lifted the vacuum from the basement, and then I just manned the hose and kicked the cannister around with my feet. And the dog is a stubborn basset hound built like a sherman tank, and his bad behaviour is entirely my fault - he's hard to walk at the best of times.
In case you or any other pre-surgery girls are interested, the meditation I used was Belleruth Naperstaks's 'Guided Meditation to Successful Surgery'. Of all the things I tried, it was one of the most calming and helped me get comfortable with the idea that the operating room is nothing to be feared. Rather, it is a safe and kind place fully of highly skilled individuals who want the same excellent results that I do. I was a mess before my first surgery two years ago, and by the time DIEP rolled around, I had a lot more tools to help me get through it and I was okay. I hope you are too. -
10/8/13 Krissie42 (BMX with Diep)
Just one name on the list this week. Must mean lots of healing and recovery going on for others. Safe surgery and gentle healing to you.
Beautiful sunrise again this morning....It's a wonderful day. "Appies" are laid out for everyone here, currently packing my bag for fajitas in Michigan and creme brulee in Switzerland, I think we'll all have to join sbe on the trail in SoCal just to work off the calories!....gosh, wouldn't that be something special!!!
Have good days ladies. Love to all. -
I have three pages to catch up on since I was offline all day yesterday.
Naahi- It didnt go down per se, it just didnt swell up as big as it normally does. Ive noticed my feet look sligtly swollen also, kinda like when I wzs pregnant with my twins. -
Does anybody know anything about blisters? I'm 3 1/2 month out, and I just noticed a blister on my incision, near-ish to my bellybutton.
Has this ever happened to anyone? -
I havent Janet but I would call my PS right away for something like that. -
weird Janet....My blisters were with 24 hours of sx. Are you still wearing compression or some new panties or pants or a belt or anything that would rub that spot? I had what looked more like a pimple on my incision that turned out to be an ingrown hair (sorry for the graphics) because my incision runs right across the top of my hairline. How big is the blister? -
Sweetpickle - You'd think that I'd call my PS right away - but I checked in here first. My safety net. So I called my PS second.
Bailey - The blister is about the size of a kernel of corn. Like the fat ones in the middle of the cob, not the teeny ones on the end. I've since talked to my PS resident, and he said it's likely a suture absess. By now, he said, my body should have 'eaten' all the stitches, but such is not always the case. He said to keep an eye one it. It might burst, and get reabsorbed. But if it grows to head to the clinic. My incision is quite high, so I've been wearing low-rise stretch jeans, but maybe there was a bit of rubbing. I'll keep a closer eye on things.
By the way - it would take more than the graphics of an ingrown hair to 'gross me out'. WAY more. Although I do hate them. When I get my legs waxed and have to have one of those suckers plucked I get pretty squeemish. I'm not a fan of tweezers. -
lmao Janet, habit, darling, habit....My momma would be MOR-TI-FIED if she knew I was talking about my ingrown hair (pubic or otherwise lol) in public. Imagine her face when Wilbur made me show her my breast right after surgery! -
My mom would marry Wilbur. She was a nurse, and couldn't wait to look under my bandages. -
janetm....my body does not "eat" the usual type of dissolvable sutures...just festers them and spits them out. My PS used a different kind of dissolvable sutures for my internal stitching...have only had a couple issues. Can you think of anything since your return to work routine that could be irritating that area????
sweetpickle...it sure sounds like you are retaining fluids for some reason, if your feet are also in on the swelling thing. Aren't you supposed to be getting your thyroid checked??? Something is going on, it is NOT your imagination!!!
bailey...I can ALWAYS find something else to do besides housework....yucko! -
Miss a day miss a mile! You ladies crack me up sometimes!
Spent much of yesterday in bed due to pain! Bring tears to my eyes pain! Haven't had that problem all along, got lucky I guess!
So I have a tunnel from my belly button. It was being packed before I got sewn up. Since surgery on Monday, if we don't put a seal around belly button, my drain doesn't work and you can hear air leaving my body via the belly button hole. Yesterday my belly button and tunnel were causing me a great deal of pain and I don't know why. Could it have been from overpacking? Or too much manipulation? It's still tender today but not quite as bad. Any of you nurses have any ideas as to what's going on?
I'm heading out soon to help with grocery shopping and to go for a car ride, but will check back in later. Thanks in advance for any advice you may have.
Sherry -
Sherry- I don't have any advise, but I just want to wish you well. It's not fair that your in so much pain
DebDylan - Your post made me laugh out loud. Highly unlikely that you look like a man, but lipstick makes everything better. -
I have not been in here for ages, or hundred of pages, depending on how you measure. There is no way to keep up.
I just wanted to say MY INCISION IS FINALLY 100% HEALED and I am swimming today!!!!! Fro background, my DIEP was 5/24/2013. I am a very slow healer. The major healing was done in weeks. However, I had stubborn spots, mostly surface scabs, but one very deep "hole" at the center of my abdominal incision. It just would not heal. Well, finally...................I missed the whole summer.
As Stage I only, my new breasts are a bit saggy, but I'm promised nip/tuck in Stage II will take care of that. Follow up appt. is Dec/Jan, surgery probably in Jan/Mar, 2014. OMG more surgery.
You all know I had days I was not sure I did the right thing. You encouraged me along saying to give it time. It's true. I know I did the right thing. So, to new / recent surgery ladies, let me just say, there may be days you may question, or even regret, what you have chosen to do. It can be a tough road. But, there is a lot of support and a beautiful ending. Some fly through, others struggle. Hang in there either way.
♥ -
sherry, I am frustrated on your behalf! I hope the doc gets this sorted out soon and that you will be more comfortable each day.
Jlbloom, there is a big organization called Casting for Recovery that might be in your area if you want to have a fun fishing experience where you are treated like a queen.
Nihahi, I have been to Sanibel Island ---beautiful!
Bailey, yes, Vegas is the most UN-natural place I can think of. We took a helicopter to the Grand Canyon and had lunch on the canyon floor when we were there. Awesome. I know you'll have fun--hope those parks open soon!
I enjoy Creme brûlée, too! Chocolate is always good ......
Nihahi, thanks for the posture tips. I have friends--she's a massage therapist and he's a pt--- so they are always surreptitiously checking me out and then kindly commenting on my shoulders not being pulled back.
Butter, you will do great!! We've all been anxious beforehand. I like Janet's advice of imagining the OR as a kind place where everyone is taking good care of you and has the same goals as you do.
Good healing, everyone. -
What I learned about my wigs was that most people do not know it's a wig. People who know me well obviously did, but not strangers. If you feel like it is looking fake, try pushing it back a bit....I think most people tend to wear them too far forward. And they are HOT! You will find what works for you, Debdylan. I rocked a bandana and baseball cap most of the time. I used some kind of very gentle baby shampoo on my scalp every day after my hair came out. Oh! How is your mouth? Doing ok I hope! Hugs!
just so you all know, I am doing ok with the incidentaloma ....worry is not allowed....prayers gladly accepted.
I choose happy. I choose peace. I choose fearless. I know I am in God's hand.
Have a good day, sisters! -
oooh Sherry no advice from me but I do hope you are healing well. The tunneling sounds rough to deal with.
deb I remember being shocked at how many people did not notice when I wore a wig; to me it was so obvious but to others I guess it is not. But I also felt more comfortable in scarves and hats and that was what I wore most of the time. Used chemo as an excuse to buy a bunch of new earrings, too.
shechirple - hooray for being healed! That is great! I bet you enjoyed swimming.
bailey you have such a great attitude.
Went to Walmart and tried on a couple of bras. To my surprise, after DIEP (including reduction of my "good" breast) and after losing 15 lbs I think I am still the same bra size (36C). My noob is not too far off from the size of my "good" breast but I had way too much side boob overflowing out the top side of the cup. Yuck! I hope during stage 2 my PS can target that area? When she does the lipo does she have control over where she sucks the fat out, does anyone know? -
Christina - yes, your PS can control where the fat comes from with lipo. Sometimes, though, with side boobage they will excise (cut out) the fat. Since you are just a bit over 2 months out, things can and will still change. -
Christina, congrats on losing fifteen pounds!!! -
Wilbur wiped out all my post-op inhibitions--not that I had many to begin with! Anyone who walked into the room, whether it was my nurse or physician, or just a kind visitor, was greeted with "hey, you wanna see?" and I would fling up my gown. I thought one of my sons was going to faint.
Sherry, my usual mantra is "if the pain is getting worse, it's infected." I was glad to read the pain was better today, but keep an eye on things. I'm not quite following the belly button/tunnel/air leak scenario. A tunnel sounds like a setup for an infection, though, with deeper tissues open to bugs.
Debdylan, don't let BC make you ashamed of your head. People are naturally curious, but they're also usually genuinely kind. A scarf sounds delightful. And yes, lipstick is a must. Something glossy and girly.
SheCchirple, how wonderful to hear from you, and that you're swimming again! Heck, sister, it's California...it'll be summer until Thanksgiving, so get in there and splash.
Jeannie, I have to constantly remind myself to pull my shoulders back. I probably had bad posture even before BC, but now, with my wonky shoulder, it's important for me to make good posture a habit.
Christina, 15 pounds! Wow! At my age (and apparently almost everyone else's age on this thread), losing weight is like trying to jackhammer granite. It just doesn't want to budge. To lose I have to be vigilant at controlling my carb intake and exercise every day. As the hours of daylight get shorter, we have to be out on the bikes the SECOND we get home from work or we'll be pedaling in the dark.
Aubrey's dedication at church this morning! She wore a beautiful old-fashioned dress with puffed sleeves, a Peter Pan collar, smocking at the yoke, and a fluffy, crinoline-ed skirt. It was white with a red rosebud print. I'll post a photo. Her hair is turning more and more strawberry blonde and my son calls her his little orangutan.
It's back to the office tomorrow morning! I'm packing a bag with all the wound care and IV antibiotic paraphernalia, which is a lot of junk. My "home health" nurse will need to be an "office health" nurse tomorrow, where I'll lock my office door and lie down on my desk for her to work!
Let's have some gingerbread cookies this afternoon. They taste like fall is here! -
SheChirple- so nice to hear your "voice" again. Glad you are healing, finally.
Katy- what a wonderful day you must have had. I will finally see my grand baby in a week. We try to go every two months or so.
Christina- #15- yay! -
Yeah, Shechirple
Glad you are back and feeling so much better.
SBE: What a special day your family had with little Aubrey. Can't wait to see the pics -
Hi ladies,
Have been missing in action for awhile....due to my Mom ending up in ICU. The day I took her to emergency she was not herself, confused, weak, not eating, her eyes looked like she was "stoned". The ER doctor was young and "on the ball". She took bloodwork and came in to say that it was all abnormal and my Mom was very, very sick. It escalated to shoving an IV in her arm and moving her to the first room right by the nurses station where she was hooked up to every monitor under the sun. I called my hubby to come to the hospital and be with me. I was a mess as this is the same way that my youngest sister died due to kidney failure, only difference is she had breast cancer and Mom doesnt. Mom has been a diabetic since 1986.
They ended up transferring her to 2 other hospitals that night until she ended up in a hospital that had space in their ICU department and a very good kidney specialist available. They determined she was in kidney failure and would need to be put on dialysis. She had dialysis 3 times in the past week - last Sat, Monday and last one was on Wednesday. She was transferred out of ICU on Monday night to the Renal Rehab floor. She is doing 100 times better, has got her appetite back for the first time in months and looks very healthy. The kidney doctor said her kidneys are now working well, no more dialysis needed. She has been put on blood thinners, switched from Metaformin (oral med for diabetis) to straight insulin twice a day, increased blood pressure meds. She is also on a special Renal diet which limits foods high in potassium, etc. We are hoping that she gets released tomorrow after the doctor sees her and pulls the port out of her neck that was used for dialysis.
I have aged several years in the past week, I am so very thankful that my Mom is still here....I couldnt bear to loose another family member so close to my other losses in the past 1.5 years.
Should be hearing from PS's office in the next week to give me more surgery details and a pre-op appointment.
Really looking forward to vacation in a little less than 5 weeks....need to unwind from all this stress!
All this talk about deserts...anything chocolate will do...gotta be careful though as my Dad was a diabetic and my Mom as well as my older sister, just diagnosed about 3 years ago.
Speaking of sugar, I watched this show about the effects of sugar and how bad it is for you - it was on W5. Quite the eye opener, it talked about how much sugar is in alot of our foods including tomato soup, ketchup, etc....it showed this one family how much sugar they consumed in one week by what they were eating and it was astounding!
Christina - kudos to you for loosing the 15 pounds. It gets harder once you hit menopause.
Bailey - continuing to hold you in my thoughts that everything is okay.
Debdylan - rock the bandana. Actually I just reached a point where I didnt care who knew what and ditched it all before my hair grew back! I felt it was my way of saying F*** you cancer and showing others that it too can happen to them....
Goldie - happy to hear that your results are not cancer!
Healing thoughts you are having surgery this week:)
Michele
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