DIEP 2013

Ridley....that is great news! New Foobs under the Christmas tree!

Goldie....I did ask PS about leaving Marena on 24/7 for a while....he looked at me like I had lost my mind! I will be allowed to shower 24 hours after surgery, but MUST MUST MUST keep surgical sponges dry....for obvious reasons, so will be locating those big plastic shower sheets that keep water off of dressings and wounds......fun times.......

Deb....I thought our Whole Foods did a pretty good job......I just had to warm turkey for an hour....easy. I figure if I don't have to cook it, then it tastes fine.....if someone else in my family thinks it is not good, well, they can cook the whole darn dinner the next year!

VERY excited about having a surgery date for uni diep - even if it is not until Jan 2014!

I am a big time planner and am already looking at recipes that I can make & freeze ahead of time for my family of 4. I love to cook, so I am looking forward to this. We try not to eat a lot of canned items, meat or anything processed. So, I found some vegetable lasagna recipes made with whole wheat pasta, homemade sauce, tons of veggies & very little cheese. I am looking to make things like this.

What type of underwear should I make sure I have for after the surgery? I am thinking of either small bikinis, where the waist band would be very low - right at the hair line. Or, should I get ones that go way up over the belly button? All of my current underwear seems like the elastic will hit right where I anticipate the incision will be. Any thoughts?? I think I am good with bras, since I have 3 that I wore post-mx & they can all hold drains.

Yay for all the dates for new boobies and touch-ups! Goldie and Movie, honestly, my abdominal/back lipo was more like bruising and didn't keep me on my back for long. I had dog ear repair on one side and that settled down quickly, too. The ab incision revision didn't hurt at all. I only took the big drugs for a couple of days. After two weeks you should be good to go, if not before. As for the leaking, it only lasted a couple of days for me. I wore old jammies and sat on a towel. This was my experience, at least. Movie, hope yours is even better than mine!

I almost giggled out loud at the PS office today, thinking of you all in my pockets. The appointment went really well! Both the resident and PS, who examined me separately, thought I looked really good and the boob imbalance was "within the range of normal." My PS even thought my belly looked good enough to wear a bikini at some point, LOL. I reminded him that he didn't lipo my butt or thighs so it would have to be bikini pants...I will have nipples made and my left boob lifted at the same time in his procedure room, no OR, no IVs, no BP, I will be awake and chatting with him. So happy about that. I can do that because I won't have fat added or withdrawn at that time or fat necrosis broken up. So no compression! He will do the lift right through the flap so there won't be a new scar, yay! He just tightens the skin to get the lift. My flaps are round and the nipple will be made out of them. If I want to tweak with more procedures/surgery later, I can, but honestly, I hope and pray I will be done except for the tattooing. The docs notice things about my boobs I don't even notice, like flatness here, fullness there, but there is still swelling and we won't really know what they'll be like until three months have passed. He said I could have revisions a year from now if I want to. He said my irradiated breast will not droop as much as my other one because the skin has just changed and is tighter. He will lift the other one but it won't last forever as gravity does its thing. He could lift it repeatedly, but who wants to do that? He says after some years if my boob is down to my knees (gulp!), he can still lift it for me as part of the recon process if he calls it a "revision." I feel so blessed that my incisions have healed so well. The ab scar looks good, healing-wise. He advises ordering ScarFade online and using it for a month, 2X day and then deciding if I see a difference or want to use it longer. It is silicone gel, which he prefers over strips because, in his opinion, it allows for better healing and less complications from fungal infections, etc. The downside is it is not reusable like the strips so once the gel is gone, it's gone and you have to reorder the $$$$ stuff again. I am still pretty swollen along the ab incision where he revised it so he suggested putting a piece of foam between my skin and the compression garment, just to give that much more compression. I did it but it now looks like my belly is back. Just temporarily! He was also sympathetic about the LE in my arms. I asked why I had little scabs at the very top of my arms and he said it was probably from where they STAPLE towels to me. Hello, did you not notice the felt pen all over my upper arms saying, NO POKES/BP???? A staple is a definite poke!!! Just another factor in why my arms are more swollen. I think I have covered the appointment pretty thoroughly. Now I'm waiting to get the appt. date. Oh, yeah! PS suggested I soak my stinky garment in vinegar to get the rotten meat locker smell out of it.......Hydrogen peroxide did nothing.

I FaceTimed with DH last night using our iPads. It was fantastic, so much better than a phone call!

Movie, of course you can call me any time!

I would like some of Nihahi's energy, too! I need to get moving! I would much rather walk outside than do the elliptical but the weather is not cooperating. I am still tired from, let's face it, everything I have been through in the last year or really, two. I'm looking forward to having more energy.

Deb - this is def not lunchtime lipo - those procedures are usually done with machine to "melt" the fat. This lipo is often referred to as tumescent lipo (the tissue is flushed with an anesthetic before a cannula is inserted via a tiny (1/2") hole to suck out the fat cells. It takes lots of strength for the surgeon to preform the procedure and it is not "kind and gentle". Thankfully we are asleep when it is preformed.

Donna - before you buy undies it would be good to know more about what your surgeon uses post surgery. For example, some gals (like me) are put into a compression girdle that goes from the under bust to the thighs. Others get a binder. And others no compression. I was quick to get the one size larger colorful panties (the color was supposed to remind me I was wearing them and to pull them down in the potty). I rarely wore them. I have varied the underwear over the course of the past year. Wait til after your surgery to shop. You will most likely be okay with what you own, but you won't know what to buy til you know more about post surgical expectations.

Movie - I am confused. You mentioned that your PS will put a stitch in the lipo incisions, but that he liked to let you leak. How does that work? I had the stitches, but don't remember any leaking after the first day.

Hooray for the good outcome for Jeannie and Christine! I'm way behind but trying to catch up. Christine, did I miss the kitten pictures?! I hope you got your orange kitten you wanted. Marmalade cats have a special place in my heart too. My first kitten was one named Scorpian!

Goldie, such cute grandkids! I want some of that sauce too!

Nihahi, LOVED the circle article!

Hoping to catch up on the nipple talk. I'm most likely getting a small implant as well at some point. Wishing I could have been done this year, but looks like I'll be going into year two.

jeannie.....CAN YOU SEE ME JUMPING UP AND DOWN, WAVING THE POMPONS AND DOING CARTWHEELS!!!!! I was grinning ear to ear reading your message about your PS appointment today!!!! I haven't "heard" you sound this happy for a long long time!!!! Woohoo!!!!!! However....WTF....they stapled towels to you!!!!!!! Guess that explains the change in your arms.....I cannot believe that was done to you!!!

I had crotch drains, and a swollen tummy....I went commando until the drains were out, then searched allover southern Canada for underwear that I could tolerate for more than 5 minutes. Solved that issue, when I decided I wanted to be in a bit of compression, and found a garment that fit my compression needs, and also had "built in" panties.

christina....did you get a kitty????

mammalou.....sorry, didn't see your post. YES, there IS an end to all this. When we decide we want it to end.....hang in there....you have come through sooooo much...just think how much closer you are getting to have your tummy and breasts becoming less and less "front and center" in your life. I truly, 100% believe, that will happen for all of us.

Hi all, Just thought I would check in and see how everyone was doing. Jeannie it seems like you were really detailed at you appt and you seem happier about what comes next. Movie, I just got my nipples done and got to see them for the first time yesterday. I had the same thing you described, the little round bandages surrounding the nipples for 6 days, my ps said I could shower but try to limit the water over the area. They could get a little wet, but he didn't want me to just run water over them and soak them.

He took the bandages off and while they are exactly where they should be 1 week out of surgery I was a little bummed, they looked like they need time to fully heal (scabs, a little bruising, etc). I would have rather kept the stitched bandage on until they looked pretty, but No such luck, I just have to be patient. The one surprising thing was when he took the packing off, there was like a little moat or dip surrounding the nipples. He said that would go away, it was just from the bandages being stitched into the skin. I just have to put a little vasaline around the nipples to keep them soft until everything heals up.

Overall I am very happy with the results even though I have to be patient while everything heals, it seems to be going good. I go back in a month to have him check that everything is on track. I don't have any real pain, but now I have like a soreness in my chest where the nipples are positioned.

Nipples, nipples everywhere!!! It's so awesome because that means lots of happy gals too!

Bailey, you are too good making all those frozen meals. I waited for other people to feed us, but I have no kids in the house.

I am doing the low carb thing right now to take off the "sitting around on my butt" weight off. Not too much, about 8 pounds. But, this is the first time in my life that I went to put my favorite jeans on after a long hot summer, and they feel awfully snug.

If anybody is interested in some motivation to get moving there is a great thread on here where the women help each other stay accountable for getting out, and moving. One lady just ran the NY marathon after a couple of years of bc and treatments. We can all get ourselves back, or even better! It's a fun, no pressure thread, and there is no talk about being sick. It's a lot like the Moving on thread you guys have, but with exercise rolled into it.

bluebird and bailey, no kitten yet. I did go to look at one on Monday but I want a female and this kitten was a male (I was a little surprised at this as he was at an animal groomer's - you would think an animal groomer could tell the difference!). I have everything ready, food and litter box and toys, but no kitten yet. I'm sure she'll come to me when it's meant to be...

mrtw, I'm so happy that you got perfect positioning for your new nipples (boy, there's a sentence I've never said before). Seems like that is a real challenge sometimes. Did you PS say how long it takes for them to look "pretty?" I have seen some pictures online and the difference after time passes is amazing. I don't have much patience so I know this part will be frustrating for me.

lahela, that is disappointing about the fading, but I will tell you what, when my new boob is finally done I am burning my Balis and anything else that I had to use during treatment and reconstruction and getting all new! New bras, new panties... I'm hoping to be done by Victoria's Secret semi-annual clearance sale, which I think is late January... I don't know if that will happen but I'm hoping. (Wow, I seriously sound like I have a major shopping addiction there, don't I?) LOL

I slept for 10 hours last night! I was tired and didn't take a sleep aid or even melatonin. I haven't slept well since DIEP surgery! Could the DIEP insomnia curse be ending finally?

Deb - You can't rush the 'new normal'. It takes a lot of time for your body and head to get re-aquainted. I felt like the TIn Man for the longest time, completely disjointed with lots of stumbling. And you're still in chemo, so it takes time. But good news that you're not going in pissy. (I love the word pissy. Sums things up perfectly)

Deb, she posted last night, I think, on the other forum "Moving on"

Hi all,

Sorry that I have been MIA, but I've been kinda depressed since my bilateral mastectomy and just laying low. I have tried to keep up with everyone's progress (ups and downs) though and have been with you in spirit. I'm glad to hear many of you are onto your stage 2 revisions. Deb, I'm sorry that you are unhappy with your recon and hope that they can fix it to your satisfaction. Glad to hear that you are close to finishing chemo. Jeannie, I'm glad that you were happy with your latest PS appointment and that your upcoming revisions can be done in his office. Bailey, thanks for the cookbook suggestion--Once a month cooking is the kind I need. Also have a teenager and pre teen who eat so much!

Since I haven't posted recently, I'm the one who had BMX, was expecting an immediate DIEP, but that got changed to a delayed one. I have a TE now, which is being expanded, and at some point in the next several months, we will schedule the DIEP. What I wanted to ask you all, is whether there is a lot of numbness in your abdominal area, for those of you who are a few months out of your DIEP. I still waver a bit now between DIEP and an implant, and while I would rather have the more natural breasts that the DIEP will give me, I'm concerned about the additional abdominal numbness. I kind of hate the numbness that I already have on my chest and I don't really want to be numb all the way down my abdomen too. So, would a few of you mind letting me know if that seems like part of the DIEP deal, or more an exception. My PS told me to expect some numbness around my belly button, but it sounds like some women have a lot more than that. I think, I hope that this is the last piece of info I need to help me make my decision. And I understand that everyone is different.

I wish you all the very best in your ongoing healing and revisions. Thanks for any input you can share. Have a good day everyone.

Deb

NYTX.....sorry you feel so "rejected". Did they give any reason why you were denied access? I am thinking it has nothing to do with how "valid" your BC/Diep history is, but in your history on the BCO site. I looked at your profile, and it only shows 9 posts, so I am thinking that is probably the reason. Other than that, I'm just going to have to say I'm sorry that you feel hurt.....try not to take it personally...it's likely just a "numbers" thing.

Nytx, yes, they rejected you because you have so few posts. Sorry. Keep writing. Maybe they will change their minds. Don't take it personally. Did they say something specific that hurt your feelings, or was it more like a form letter refusal?