DIEP 2014

-jmb5-  Vinnie in April?  I am going in April (the third) , as well, not having Vinnie do the tats but one of his coworkers who is supposed to be as great.  I am so excited about it and my PS is too.

I am so behind!!!!! 

Lovecat, you sound pretty good.  I can't wait to hear how you lymph node transfer works out.  I met a woman at my group therapy meeting who went to PRMA to have her nodes moved from her groin to her axilla.  She is wearing a precautionary sleeve and say she feels great.  Do they have you wearing a compression sleeve too?

Welcome, Wintersocks.  

Janet, how are you doing.  Don't keep us in suspense!

I was told no Neosoporin too.  Something about a lot of people react badly to it. 

 Tan, my tummy incision slowly opened up.  I went in for a debriding after a couple of weeks (didn't hurt at all) and that sped up the healing process after that.  I ended up having to do wet to dry packing, but it's not as bad as you would think. I hope it doesn't come to that for you, but if it does, don't panic.  I went about my business pretty well.  If you need a good protein drink and there is a Costco near you, try to get your hands on Premium Protein Shakes.  30 grams of Protein, no soy, and tastes pretty good.  I have one daily, sometimes two.  They are low in carbs and calories. 

Teacher, glad your friend made it through surgery okay.  I hope her stay in ICU is comfortable as possible.

 I am seeing a pain management doc next week.  After all the surgery and hopes of iron bra going away. No such luck.  Now I start a new adventure..ugh.  And, I still have stage 2b to go.  Three reasons for iron bra. Radiation, which causes tight scar tissue, Capsular Contracture, and nerve damage. Sometimes the pecs can't take the stretching from the implants, but that obviously wasn't my issue either.  So, now we look at nerve damage, which I kind of suspected from the beginning, but was trying really hard to be positive and optimistic that this all would work. The are varying degrees of iron bra.  Before my diep it was tolerable. Now, not so much.  I don't know where to turn anymore.  Post mastectomy pain syndrome is only becoming something that BS's and PS's acknowledge very recently, and God forbid you've got an old school doc.  I am hoping the pain management clinic is of the new school of thinking.  So, wish me luck.  Maybe the pain guy has an answer.  

Goldie - Still perky? Ha -  Don't you love it when one of your doctors tells you 'that's a first'?! And why is it only the 'first' when it doesn't go according to plan, and why aren't there more firsts when things go better than planned? 

Being awake wasn't nearly as bad as I thought. I did take an Ativin an hour prior to the procedure, and I popped an other half just before. I've never taken that much at once - but I've never had awake surgery before. But really - it was good. Just a lot of unchartered territory for someone as chickensh*t as me. As usual, the anticipation in my head was much more freaky than the procedure. Once underway, I was almost relaxed, and there was a lot of happy chatting and the time flew by. 

Good Morning everyone...

This whole stomach incision opening really sounds nasty, also painful !!!!I Do you stay numb there for awhile? I can't imagine having a hole opening up in my belly. How the heck does it heal correctly. I would think you would have a really thick scar to deal with.

Damn, this whole think is like a crap shoot.

I have to agree with annieb4 - damn, this whole thing is a crap shoot!  I am scheduled for DIEP/SGAP in NOLA on Nov 11 and boy am I getting anxious!  My last big surgery was the double mx on Jan 31 so it's been a long while since I've seen drains and wounds and $#!t like that. . .I will need support big time!

I am hoping to chart my recon adventure on the photo forum, but I haven't made the time to post yet.  It was really enlightening to see the other recon stories with pics, even the nasty necrosis ones. . .it makes it real and not just something I talk about doing.  Also makes it scary.

Congrats Janet, on your new sausages!  I am thinking I will want them too.  You are soooo right: this road requires great patience, exploration and commitment.   Glad to see you've hit yet another milestone. 

JMB, the consensus has been no mammogram after diep, just MRI or sonogram. I bet if you ask your PS he will back that up.  It has come up here fairly often, and it always comes down to NO mammogram after diep, unless you have one natural breast left, of course. 

Janet, so glad you were comfortable!!

Tummy wounds opening are probably the most common complication after diep, it seems.  Not that it happens a lot, but if you have a complication that seems to be in the top one.  Like somebody else said, as scary as it seems, and it scared the pee out of me, it was doable and not painful.  My PS is going to revise my scar since it is really ugly and if I wear a swimsuit it will be noticable. 

jmb--My appointment is at 1, but I am not sure if it is with Trent or Paul.  Maybe we will run into each other there. What a coincidence!

My PS would love to either have Vinnie come to Omaha once a month or so to do his magic or find one of our local tattoo artists who would like to learn from Vinnie so that we would have a resident.  Thirteen years ago the first time I got tats done (after the first set of implants) by my original PS; they faded to nothing shortly and never looked good to start with.  This year, I got the flap surgery I wanted originally and want the best "final touches" possible too.  

Dee, Goldie and everyone thanks for the reassurance on the separating abdomen. So far it has stopped spreading and is staying where it's at, I change the gauze three or four times a day depending on activity. I think I'll go to Costco this weekend and pick up the protein shake, for now I picked up boost from the local grocery store (to much sugar for my taste, but will work short term). For all who are going into this surgery, abdominal separation is scary to see, however, I was quickly reassured and comforted by this group and have no regrets and am happy I had the diep procedure.

Glad to hear everyone is doing well and strong happy thoughts to those who are working there way through the process.

Boobjrny, I'm almost 3 weeks out from surgery. During my hospital stay the only thing I needed was my phone & charger. Some have suggested taking an extension cord too. The hospital provided everything else, lotions, chapstick, toothbrush, toothpaste, tissues, ect, but you can take your own personal items if you don't want to use theirs. I just finished chemo, so I didn't need anything for my hair. I wore the hospital gowns provided, bottoms would have been really inconvenient with the catheter and surgical drains. They provided a compression bra and belly band, I woke up with them on after surgery and they gave me a clean set before I left. By week two I was allowed to wear a soft bra. I'm actually wearing two bras, one a soft, stretchy front closing, the other a lightweight sports bra, the extra compression feels good.

You will need to think about how you want to handle the surgical drains. My cancer center gave me two sets of homemade pouches that are worn around the neck and hold the drains. I used one set in the shower. At home I discovered a housedress worn inside out with the drains in the big patch pockets worked well and bikini underwear are better than my usual granny panties.

You will want big comfy clothing for going home, nothing that you need to pull over your head.

Good luck!

Gramof2, Sorry about your flap failure.  That's a hard thing to deal with, but it sounds like they are going to fix you up.  The tummy tuck you were planning to have anyway should feel pretty much the same as if you were having the diep originally from your tummy.  Did that make any sense?  Are you going to NOLA?  I notice you live in Louisiana. I have a question, if it's not to personal.  If you had the tummy to give for a diep, why did you do a hip flap first?  Just curious.  Usually, women have the hip flap if they don't have much tummy, or the tummy flap failed. 

edukes--sounds like your ready to face this thing head on ..go forward and kicks its ass. I think when you finally have a plan its a relief and you can just breath and let your doctors do thier thing.

I will say tho, I still have my little pity parties now and then and I was dx in May of 2013. I feel I am entitled to those and it makes me feel better. Especially since this whole thing just kinda sucks.