If working, best time for rad appt?

Allicat, good luck as you start rads. I know the rad techs said many women choose to do them in the morning, then head off to work. I substitute teach, so my work schedule was able to be flexible during my rads treatment. I did not free boob it...actually never have heard of that term, but I like it!. My skin did get very compromised toward the end, I am very fair skinned and I did blister the last few weeks, but I wore a cami most of the time anyway. My Radiologist had a few lotions that he only allows his patients to use, and do not apply the morning of treament, as they do not want the extra moisture interfering with the rads. I kept a constant layer on toward the end, and was pretty crispy, but...I found it all very doable. I hope you will too! The time involved is short once they get you calibrated in, so you get there, change into a gown, lay down on the table, ZAP, adjust the beam ZAP, adjust the beam, ZAP...you are done and out. At least thats how it went for me,in and out in fifteen minutes. your skin does not get hot, but will develop a burn like a sunburn which is cummulative as the days go by. Having the weekends off helps a lot for the skin to recover, and my rads doc jokingly said, "cancer doesnt grow on weekends." ! If you do wear a bra, yes, you will probably have discomfort with that. I had a mastectomy a few weeks before, and did not wear a bra but a cami. I hope my response helps you plan ahead, as I said earlier, I think you will do great.

I'm trying to figure out when to get rads in, too. I just went for my sim on Friday, and the technicians said that mornings were pretty hectic right now. I guess everyone is trying the "first thing in the morning" approach. I could do that, but I could also do rads during the 1:30 -- 2:30 hour every day. That way I'd get them done before I picked the kids up at school.

My appointments were at 3 pm.  The middle of the afternoon.  Hated the timing of everyone of them--too early to leave work, too late to be lunch, etc.  However, the treatment center wouldn't move them--wish I had pushed harder on that one.

Last thing of the day would have been best for me. 

One thing is you will have marks all over you and ruin whatever clothes you wear--so I went with a cheap bra from Walmart.  As Meadow said, applying the ointment right after treatment is advisable and may be best right before you go home, imo.

Overall the appointments are quick and painless-15 minutes tops if your center doesn't get behind.

We're all different--good luck figuring out what is best for you!!

I work in an office environment 5 days a week, and my hours are a bit flexible, so I scheduled my rads for 4:00 every day. That way I could go home and rest afterward.

The place where I bought my mastectomy bras and forms had a "radiation" bra that I wore throughout rads. It had a pocket for my breast form, and it was soft, had big bands and shoulder straps, and didn't rub on anything. At the time I was a uni-boober, so I wasn't comfortable with just a camisole or free-boobing.

For the Sharpie art they draw all over your chest, be SURE to use a mild oil--baby oil worked great for me--to get it off. If you use a cleanser that takes much rubbing of the skin, you'll risk a skin breakdown and a big, open sore.