December 2014 Surgery Sisters

quiggy · January 2015

Hi issamarie;

Sorry you're here but glad you found the site. There's a lot of support, knowledge, shoulders to cry on and strength to draw from.

(((💓)))

knmtwins · January 2015

Just added to the bottom of the header post the abbreviation guide for newbies. https://community.breastcancer.org/forum/131/topic...

knmtwins · January 2015

Ladies, with Mx or BMx with TEs - I had a Skin sparing BMx, with reduction and TEs on Dec 2nd. The scar is ultimately an inverted T. I was 'filled' on the table and had an additional 60 cc's on the 17th. Did not fill on the 31st, as fluid build up under arms. (drains between alloderm and TEs were still producing 60 - 80 cc's a day, but they 'had to come out at 3 weeks) Left side's scar looks healed, the right is still dark red scabby looking, but not feeling. I'm only taking 1 Flexeril and 2 Aleve every 8 hours and don't wake up for one, so normally just 2 times a day. It hurts like the dickens when I bend over, the left side a pull that feels like it is in the chest wall, the right just a dull pain unless I'm bending and reaching, then it feels like an internal stick is tearing. If I bend over at all I must hold my left breast. If I bend more, I must hold both of them. This reduces the discomfort/pain, but does not totally stop it. Hummm..... is this normal???

Lmcqueen · January 2015

Scottiemom1,

Congratulations! That is great news! I go see the Onco tomorrow to find out if I have to have chemo or not. Guess he will start me on my hormonal therapy tomorrow as well? I still have 2 of my 4 drains in and they are making me crazy. Can't sleep at night now because of anxiety in reference to whether or not I have to have chemo. They did the OncoDX/Type test to decide. Has anyone on here gone back to work with the drains? Are you wearing any type of bra?

Thanks,

Lisa

knmtwins · January 2015

lmcqueen - Ask for a little something to take the edge off so you can sleep on nights like tonight. I had and Rx for 30 xanex, which have been wonderful since the diagnosis last June. I'd take one the night before chemo, or surgery. Towards the end of chemo, I'd start taking them Friday night in prep for chemo on Wed. Chemo was awful, but... it was no where near as bad as I thought it would be. The fear factor makes it worse than it is I think.

As to returning to work, I think most doctors say this is 6 weeks recovery, don't they? As to still having 2 drains, my PS said they had to come out at three weeks, because they now posed more of a risk of infection than good. You are on 5 weeks. My guess is, they will come out this week. AGAIN this is another one of those things where every PS is different.

Scottiemom11 · January 2015

knmtwins,

I would definitely discuss your pain with you PS. Mine told me last week that I should not be having that much. I can't tatake Fleering so switched to Tramadol last week. I think most of my residual pain (other than fills) is from my bad shoulder and chest muscles still pulling on that.

I did notice that when I over stretched yesterday that I had some painful swelling under both arms. Used ice packs and that helped.

Hope you get some relief and soon.

lmcqueen,

my onco explained the Onco type testing to me in detail. I really did not understand it before. I had resolved to get a second opinion if the recommended chemo however. Good luck tomorrow!

Scottie

Funclassygal · January 2015

Hi waitingtoex…, hope you are feeling stronger every day. I see that you got permanent implants - how did that go. It's my turn next Tuesday and I am beyond scared. Love to hear your experience. Thanks, VeraAnn

twolumps · January 2015

Hi, lmcqueen. I went back to work today for half days. I am 5 weeks post-op today. I feel great. Never had alot of pain and still have 2 drains. Doc said they were coming out next week for sure since he only leaves them in for 6 weeks tops. Doesn't bode well for the reconstruction recovery in March.

I'll be starting Arimidex soon and am awaiting the oncotyping to determine chemo possibility. I don't think I'll have to do chemo. I'm betting it's just going to be the Arimidex for 5 years.

See y'all around the boards

sandra4611 · January 2015

Twolumps, sometimes drains take their own sweet time. I had them for 5 weeks also, two weeks after my BMX and since I went in for another surgery at that point, another 3 weeks after. I assume you are on antibiotics like I was. Otherwise surgeons like to pull the drains after 3 weeks to prevent any progression to infection. Being on antibiotics allows you to push the envelope a bit.

I don't think the length of time you have drains has much to do with how you will do with reconstruction. In fact, most of us don't get any drains at all when we go from tissue expanders to implants. Some of my surgeries I've had them, some I haven't. One surgery I got only one drain! That was a surprise but the surgeon said only one side needed a drain.

Funclassy, may I assume you are getting permanent implants right after your double mastectomy? I had "Direct to Implants" too and sure can recommend the "One and Done" method.

Funclassygal · January 2015

Hi sandra4611, yes direct implants is the plan as he said I am a candidate. How did you find the recovery after this procedure? Did you have to get radiation? Revisions? Thanks, VeraAnn

Bippy625 · January 2015

hi sisters!

looks like all are doing pretty well, glad to see that.

Just droppin in to say I am feelin good but still needing to baby myself alot. I drove yesterday for first time post surgery and was stiff and sore after. Will take it easy today. I start rads Monday, so am waiting about a year after for recon, so cannot speak to any other surgery questions, but I am glad that some are doin it right away. i would have too, but my PS is adamate about healing from rads before she does anything, even fat grafting.

Be well everyone, see you soon

farmerma · January 2015

Bippy - you are not alone. My PS won't do anything until at least 4 months AFTER rads are done. I only had partial mastectomy with oncoplastic reconstruction. So, I'm looking at minimum of fat grafting, but possible implant, depending on the size and shape after rads.

I am just frustrated about the slow move onto the next step. Oncotype testing cannot be ordered by the surgical oncologist, that order has to come from the medical oncologist or insurance won't cover it. I know WHO that will be, just waiting for them to get the authorization and schedule the appointment. So until I see her I can't start any hormone therapy and won't know about chemo, or what the rads cycle will look like. Aaarrrgh! Just want to move on and get things going!

pinkninja9560 · January 2015

I'm still waking up in the middle of th night in pain, it's so frustrating. I'm not in horrible pain during the day so I'm not sure why it's waking me up at night.

I've been taking dilaudid every six hours and Valium every six hours so today I tried to skip the dilaudid in the morning. I took the Valium so my chest wouldn't be so tigh but around noon, everything hurt so bad that I ended up taking the pain pill. I'm trying to wean off them. I also have fibromyalgia so sometimes my pain can seem a lot more intense.

I'm going for my first fill Friday and I'm excited and scared! I'm worried about soreness afterwards.

Have any of you stopped Rx pain meds completely yet? My surgery was dec 10

Scottiemom11 · January 2015

pinkninja,

I have transitioned to Tramadol, since Motrin didn't help. I can't take the muscle relaxers either though. It seems most do well with fills. I have very tight chest muscles so should have done smaller fills or biweekly. I did have to take pain meds for a couple of days after each fill. Check out the beginners TEs thread for more info on fills.

Good luck with your first fill.

Scottie

sandra4611 · January 2015

Vera,

Direct to Implant is the way to go if there is a choice. It's kind of cool to wake up with a surgical bra on and little mounds on your chest. Recovery was actually easier than after my second surgery when one implant was taken out and a TE put in. I had big-time muscle spasms after that even though the TE was empty and the muscle was used to having an 800 cc implant under it. No, I didn't have radiation and had no revisions. However since I acquired an infection in the hospital that destroyed muscle and soft tissue, I ended up having five more surgeries to do repairs. It had nothing to do with the BMX or Direct to Implants.

sandra4611 · January 2015

PinkNinja & Scottie,

There are doctors that specialize in pain. After a month, the majority of people have been off of all pain meds for awhile. Sounds like something else could be going on. What does your doctor say? Can you get an appointment at a Pain Clinic? Pink, you shouldn't be waking up in pain at this point.

Mecsmama · January 2015

Hello, ladies, I hope you don't mind if I join you all. I had a bmx with tissue expanders on December 24. Today I had my drains removed and my first fill. 50ccs on each side. Overall, I feel good and am very pleased with how recovery is going. I do not like the expanders. They are terribly umcomfortable. I try not to let it bother me, but some days it is very frustrating and I just want to be the person I was two weeks ago. Last week I got my final pathology report. They found a micro-met in one of the nodes, so now I am waiting to see what other treatment I will need. The doctor has ordered an oncotype test and the tumor board will meet to discuss what they think the best course of treatment will be for me. For now I wait and heal. I have been reading this thread for the last two weeks and decided it was time to reach out to women who know what I am going through.

quiggy · January 2015

Hi Mecsmama;

Sorry you had to join us but glad you found the forum. BC sucks.

I've found lot's of support and great advice here.

Gentle hugs

Scottiemom11 · January 2015

Welcome Mecsmama,

I also waited until after surgery to join this board. Great support here. There are a couple of threads on TEs especially the beginners board. Very helpful info. It seems like the discomfort mostly decerases with time and fills.

Best wishes,

Scottie

Gingercake · January 2015

Hi Mecsmama,

I joined this board in November as well and didn't post anything until after my surgery. Like you, I had BMX with TE's but my surgery was December 18. I just had my second fill of 50 cc's yesterday and agree that the TE's are very uncomfortable. Welcome to the board. As many have stated, there is great support and information to be found here. I hope your recovery continues to go smoothly.

Mecsmama · January 2015

Thank you for welcoming me to the group. Of course, I wish none of us had to be here. Finally took a real shower today since the drains were removed. Felt wonderful!

My undarms are still very sore. They sting and it almost feels like I can't put them all the way down by my sides. Anyone else feel the same way? It is very frustrating. Today is one of those days where I wonder of I will ever feel like myself again. :-(

Chloesmom · January 2015

I went to PT today convinced that I was swollen and couldn't get my arms down. She measured them and Saidit often just feels that way because the nerves have been affected. They were fine. Still feel swollen though, and tingle/ burn where nodes removed

Bippy625 · January 2015

i think the stuff is normal......my right side had 13 nodes removed, and still feel swollen, numb, sore in a variety of places. Underarm mostly numb, swollen too, though that is decreasing. All the docs say it is normal so...okay. It is worse if I overuse the arm.

I start rads on Jan 20, so i can heal up a tad more. Ok by me.

Seeing onc today, first time post bmx and findings of NED. She is gettin a big hug. I am lucky to have a caring and brilliant doc. Plus she looks like Tina Fey, how cool is that? Then I am takin hubster to lunch and home. That is it for today, very exciting life.

Hope all my sisters are doing well today

hopefulmomof3 · January 2015

Hello all!

I'm just checking in. I'm about 3 weeks post surgery. I can honestly say that my surgery wasn't nearly as bad as I had imagined. My pain is pretty much under control. I usually only have to take the muscle relaxers.

I still fatigue easily but I guess that's expected. I really like to keep my home clean (I'm a clean freak lol) & it's hard not to overdue it. But I definitely pay for it the day after.

I will be getting my port on Monday and start chemo on Thursday. I'm nervous but trying to not worry myself over it.

I've been reading everyone's posts and praying for us all for speedy recoveries. HapPy New Year's to all! God bless us all

sandra4611 · January 2015

Ha ha, Bippy. Tiny Fey! My plastic surgeon is a Chinese Doogie Houser, at lease that's what he looks like. He's really in his early 40's but looks like he's about 20. Asian people have the gift of endless youth, I think, as I have a friend who is 28 and looks about 16. She get's carded everywhere she goes and they think she has a fake ID. My PS is a magician who was born in Hong Kong, raised in Canada, has an undergrad degree from MIT and went to Harvard Medical School. Smart guy! Cute too, which is a win-win.

knmtwins · January 2015

Welcome SA8PG - BMx, nipple sparing, with TEs on 12/18. She just got a fill and feels it. SA8PG make sure you stay on your muscle relaxers to help with that and if still taking the narcotics, don't wait, take them when it is the right time.

Lmcqueen · January 2015

twolumps,

I still have 2 drains in and they hurt/irritate me to no end. Neither one of my docs will let me go back to work with the drains. They say the risk of infection is too high. I also have RA and am taking a low dose of steroids so maybe that is a factor in my case. Still on antibiotics bc of the lovely bags. I c the PS again on Monday and I am praying they come out then. Sigh.....

knmtwins · January 2015

Mecsmomma - Welcome - I've added you to the 'header' post.

Hopeful - see if there is a topic for the month you start chemo. Pink and I were part of the July one, and I'm on so many topics now, with so many of you, others may have as well. We both were HER2+, so were on Taxetere, Carboplatin as our chemo drugs and Herceptin and Perjeta as the antibody drugs specific to HER2. We were at our chemo centers every 3 weeks for about the whole day. I know our chemo group helped me bunches, as we would all share what our MO's were telling us on how to deal with the symptoms. Tell them EVERYTHING, down to a twitch in your nose and there might be a remedy for it. I say remedy, because not all the solutions were meds, some were saline for the nose, Biotene toothpaste... I think both Pink and I will agree that chemo was yucky, to the point after the first one you question if you will do cycle 2, but honestly, in a bat of an eye, it is over. Also, some things were worse than I thought, but the overall experience was NOT worse than I thought it would be. Oh, and both my husband and I thought we would be in a room with people throwing up the whole time (that was our thought on chemo) but... I have never seen anyone throw up in the chemo room. One thing someone wrote that I almost keep as a mantra is: Breast Cancer is not a race, it is a marathon. Somewhere in the middle of chemo, I resigned myself that the next year to year and a half, I had to dedicate to healing myself of cancer. If my kids had to eat sandwiches for dinner one night, they would not starve. You know what, somehow, dinner was always made, but knowing that they would live with just sandwiches, took a lot of pressure off me. BTW - the port is odd. I still have issues when I take a shower and put my hand over it. Just feels wrong and was uncomfortable for about the first month, but such a nice thing to have. They pop something into it and you are 'hooked up'. They take blood from it, then hook the chemo lines into it and you never know. So easy to walk around the chemo room, to and from the bathroom (I would drink about 60 oz of water while there so tons of to and from the bathroom. None of that odd feeling of an iv in your arm, but remember, they will haved to access it, so don't wear a turtleneck and a crew necked top. I had to go to the bathroom and remove the turtleneck shirt. Yep... silly me...

Mecsmomma - Welcome - I've added you to the 'header' post. You sound like you are doing great. Oh, and you can't put your arms down normally, as there are TEs under them... the joys... So sorry you are in the 'holding pattern' waiting for tests, doctors and tumor boards. I'm 5 1/2 weeks out and still hurt. I didn't start driving until the kids went back to school on Monday. YIKES getting the seat belt... pull, bite with teeth, pull, bite, pull, click. That is my solution.

Pink - I stopped narcotics sometime around Christmas, because I wanted to get my lower GI track back and working. Oh, I know you have heard that from me before, probably every cycle of chemo I would complain... smiles to the memories. I take my Flexeril when I wake up and 8 hours later. I no longer take it during the night. I have just started to sleep on my side some. Yes it is uncomfortable, but I hated sleeping propped on my back, then on my back. I wonder if some of the pain you have at night is you are trying to roll to your side and that is causing it. I also wonder if maybe something other than vallium for the muscles might help. My PS first had me on robaxin 750mg every 6 hours, but I can't take big pills so switched me to Flexeril 10mg every 8. I wonder if a change would help you?

pinkninja9560 · January 2015

I'm writing in so many boards I can't keep track of what I'm writing! I had my first fill in my te today and it was only a half fill, 30cc's, because my chest is so tight.

Knm, I asked my ps today how much longer did I have to take the Valium because it makes me so sleepy all day and he said only take it when you need it. I laughed and told him I was taking it every six hours because he never told me differently. Anyways, I told him a Robaxin for my neck which I hardly took and he said he actually liked it and there's no side effects like drowsiness from it. Glad I asked! I'm trying to wean off the dilaudid and will start Motrin during the day in a few days because I'm really sore from my fill.

Just when I got my bowels in perfect shape after chemo and all those meds, now I have constipation again because of the pain meds.

It's so nice to talk to everyone on here again because I've missed everyone!

quiggy · January 2015

Hi BC sister's;

Looking for your input please. I'm 30-days post surgery. (6 nodes + lumpectomy above nipple)

Having continued pain in node area and to my elbow. Increased pain from nipple to tumor bed and into my chest. No fever, swelling is reducing.

Went to work 20 days post op.

What's the deal? I don't want to be a baby but this is pretty uncomfortable. Anybody else have this?

December 2014 Surgery Sisters

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