DIEP 2014

feeling pretty good - so far it has not been nearly as bad as I anticipated.  Out of bedding & sitting in a chair now.  I am very tired since they come in every hour for the 1st 48 hours to check the flap.  Also, hungry & thirsty - still no food or drinks.  I should be able to have clear liquids later today.  Still no nausea - yippee!  I am on a morophine pain pump, but I have not used it much.  Can't wait to get some of these things disconnected from me today - catheter, 4 drains, heart monitor, iv, blood pressure, another tube inserted in stomach for pain, clip to measure oxygen level - I may be missing some things.....

Donna- Way to go! Hope you have a speedy recovery!  Remember to start walking a little bit as soon as you feel up to it and doc says ok. It will feel exausting at first but will help you in the long term.

Thanks for the link Goldie!

Donna and jmb - glad to see you ladies doing so well.  Get used to being tired, that will stay with you for a while!

Jen I was red and purple in the radiated skin above my flap for quite a while. I think it didn't like being disturbed. My ps did a lot of work in my radiated area because I had deep adhesions so she had to do a lot of scraping to free the skin and tissue. It got better over time. Are you showing any signs of infection in the area along with the redness?

No other signs but on antibiotics,  its definitely not getting worse.  Thanks for your experience.

I just found this site. I appreciate all the information everyone has shared. I had BMX and Diep flap reconstruction at University of Chicago on 1/2/14 so I am a little over three weeks post op. I am getting around better, standing up straighter but I am still have a lot of nerve pain (numbness, tingling, extra sensitivity). BS put me on Gabapentin/Neurontin which is helping but it is still there. Anyone else experience this? How long until the nerve pain gets better? Any other medicines that work better?

Also, my new breasts seem so flat and wide. They go quite far under my arm. PS said they fix that in stage II. Did anyone else experience this? How did they fix it? Were you happy afterwards? I was hoping for as little follow up surgery as possible bc we have to travel a while to get into the city. 

Thanks everyone. These discussion board are such a great resource. 

Ada - where are you experiencing the nerve pain?  On your belly, breast or both?   Did you have lymph nodes removed?

goldie -I only had my expanders for 2 months and my body rejected them.  I had to start radiation, so was no longer a candidate for implants.  I wore prosthetics for those 2 years.  Happy with my decision to do the DIEP.

I will be having revision surgery this Thursday in NOLA.  We get in Wednesday evening and fly home Saturday morning, if all goes well.  Dr. Sullivan is going to re-do my tummy incision and look at my right breast.  It's still very big (2-3x) the size of my left breast and there's a lot of swelling under my arm, which is making it hard for me to put my arm down.  

Is anyone familiar with having the tummy line revised?  Not worried about it, just curious how it affected your recovery.

Ada - I was curious because I had all nodes removed on my right side and a few months after radiation my nerve pain started in my chest area and under my arm.  It's been there for about a year and 1/2.   I hope yours is temporary!

Beebop, glad it all worked out for you. I can't wait to get these implants out!!!!   Ada, I am sorry about your pain.  I to have unusual pain that leaves most, but not all docs scratching their heads.  I researched long, and hard and found out I wasn't crazy, and what I was feeling was real.  Now, I have a surgeon who is listening to me.

That is great Tberg. The fact that you already had your bmx, and you still have your expanders in should make the surgery a bit easier for you.  The pain from the bmx is in your past, and the envelopes created by the expanders can be used like you are having a immediate reconstruction.  My PS told me I will have the same scars as the immediate recon with the round crop circle in the middle.  So, even though I HATED this process I have been through, I might benefit from it in the end, and so will you!!! 

well it's been almost 48 hours since my surgery & I am feeling great today.  Eating regular food, wearing my own pjs, out of bed and walking the halls.  The nurses here said I do not even look like a patient.  They will probably remove 1 drain before I am discharged on tues, and I will go home with 3.  I am not in any real pain (and not on pain killers) - just exhausted & my stomach is extremely tight.  I can't picture walking without being hunched over for awhile.  I did feel a bit dizzy & nauseous getting out of bed this morning - but that passed quickly.  My stomach has a great contour already & my surgical team had said that it probably won't need any revisions during stage 2.  No dog ears & the incision is fairly low.  Couldn't be happier right now.  Hoping to get some sleep tonight because this afternoon they will start checking the flap every 2 hours, instead of every hour.  I got all of my tubes & things removed this morning except the 4 drains.  The anticipation of this surgery was much worse than the actual event.  Good luck to those having surgery this week! 

tberg,

I brought way too much stuff, but I am happy to have it all, in case I need anything.

Things that I've brought & have used so far:  hard candy, skin cleansing wipes, facial moisturizer, slippers & pjs, Chapstick, hairbrush, ipad & iPhone & cover for my eyes for sleeping.

The food here is pretty bad, but my stomach is so tight - if I eat too much it would hurt.  So, I am just taking a few bites here & there - drinking tons of water.  

Donna- Way to go, you sound great!  Glad you are not in pain.

I am 2 1/2 weeks out and have had a really bad weekend.  Thursday and Friday were great, visitors. A trip out of the house.  Then yesterday started feeling icky.  Last night I was shivering, then burning up.  No fever.   Today I am nauseous, achy, can't eat or get out of bed.  So discouraged!    Hubby is on his way to the store to get me some ginger ale.  Uggghhhh.