Drains, oh how I loathe thee!

Drains definitely are a pain in the patootie, but isn't it great that we feel well enough for drains to be the biggest problem. I just had mine removed and booyah!

I just had one, stonking, big one. It was on a very long piece of tubing. I could throw it around my neck, or carry it in a cloth shoulder bag. I hated that thing and occasionally, at home, I would just let the darn thing, drag behind me. I would pin it to a lanyard in the shower and sometimes I would wake up with it wound around me, because I had turned over in my sleep. It was definitely the most irritating part, of that surgery, especially, if it got caught on anything.

Fortunately, I didn't have it for long, but It was very weird, it came out of a circular hole in my side, but the interior drain tubing, was square and covered, in small drain holes. It really wasn't that easy to remove, but the relief when it was out, was just amazing!

I just had TE placement surgery Jan. 29 and I have the drains too. Hate them with a passion at this point!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Can't wait to get them out, miss sleeping on my side! At first the fluid levels looked like they were dropping but had 2 days filled with stress and the drainage output numbers went up. Is this normal when dealing with stress?

No kids to chase but a dog and kitten. Output total is down almost 20 cc's from last night. Was just wondering about if stress was causing it because we had to deal with a major problem with our car.

I had both removed and 4 drains (2 for the reconstructed foobs and 2 abdominal from the DIEP flap). I slept in a recliner for a couple of months in order to not turn in any direction I shouldn't. I also had considerable pain in my right arm related to the removal of 24 lymphnodes on that side..... propping that arm up on pillows helped quite a bit. Unfortunately, I suspect my left breast drain was removed too soon, after round 1 of chemo I developed a serious infection in the left DIEP flap and ended up in the hospital for almost a week after they drained 500cc of infected seroma on that side with 2 antibiotics being pumped in via IV to kill the dual infections (I'd developed cellulitis with the internal fluid)...... so as big a pain in the foob as the drains are, don't push for their quick removal -- let them do their job. I ended up with a drain again for a few more weeks, and had they been in another week initially, I might not have needed a new one and the ER and 6 days stuck in the hospital.

I dealt with mine by buying a couple of inexpensive house dresses that snapped up the front with patch pockets and then just cut slits on the inside of the top edge of the pockets pockets, then dropped the drains through the slits into the pockets and safety pinned the slit so that the tube was inside the safety pin (being careful not to stick the pin through the tube), that kept them in place and not bouncing around, then I just snapped the dress closed -- it worked very well. They weren't exactly attractive, but they weren't the ugliest dresses I've seen either and to alternate washing one while wearing the other for a few weeks was not a big deal -- and you don't even have to mess with them when you go to the bathroom.

Ruth-don't worry about the removal-I've had them a couple of times and truly never felt them pulled out. I was all prepare for the pain and looked and she had them out! 4 drains at BMX  but only one couple weeks ago for revision-and PS didn't happen to mention I would be waking up with one-hummm. I really do like to know EVERYTHING before hand and PS doesn't share well.