UCSD or San Diego Reconstruction Girls?

Well, most of those questions are for the plastic surgeon. I met with her and disliked the physician's assistant who was supposed to answer all of my questions before the doctor came in. I forgot I started a different thread called "Why Tissue Expanders?" where I explained that visit. Basically, the plastic surgeon at UCSD Moores Cancer Center I am using, Dr. Amanda Gosman, says that the safest method that achieves the most uniformly good results is Tissue Expanders followed by implants. I've heard from all of the women on here that plastic surgeons have their favorite methods and that is what they do; so if we go by that theory, this is her favorite method. She doesn't like to do skin flaps because it is a huge surgery where they attach the artery from the grafted area (tummy or gluts) to the mammary artery in your chest -- like it is a big deal. I didn't get a chance to ask HER why I can't do direct to implant -- I asked the PA who gave me a stupid answer (meaning she didn't know and she was guessing). The problem with sending the PA or the Nurse Practitioner or the Resident in to answer the stupid questions most patients have, is that I don't have any stupid questions. I've done all the reasearch, and I have the advanced questions that only the doctor doing the procedure can answer. So I will be calling her office to ask some of the questions I don't feel I got answers to. However, I'm okay with the TE's: I really do feel that it is the best way to get a uniform appearance and gently stretch the pecs and the skin. The implants are put in a couple of months later, when we like the size my boobs have stretched to. I'm planning to take two months off work.

My grad dinner is being put on by the school: it is at Eleanor Roosevelt College at UCSD (UCSD has six colleges, giving you a small town feel in a big university).

I'm having a party. The graduation isn't until June 13th, this is just a dinner for academic achievement or something. I still have papers and finals etc. My sister in law and my brother's friends all graduated from CSUN. hmmmmm... I can't remember how old you are...

oh just found it -- you are 39 and my peeps are all older. but nice coincidence, huh?

I do!

How is everyone doing? Tangerine? Panthrah? Kimberli? I met with my bs and we're going to do skin sparing but not nipple sparing. She was willing to do ns, but I'm like if I'm going through all of this hell, let's not leave even one breast cancer cell if we can help it. I am the saddest about the nipples, but "in for a penny, in for a pound" my mother used to say. I'll get 3D tats I think; my goddaughter will think that is hilarious, since I have groaned with every new tattoo she has gotten. So my bs then threw me for a loop by saying "Are you SURE you want to do PBMX?" and I'm like aren't you???? And she was like "well, I'd like you to try tamoxifen...." and I said "and the way we would find out the tamoxifen didn't work is I would get bc, assuming I don't already have more of it which we may find with the PBMX, it might not be caught in time due to my dense breasts..." so we went back and forth with her being devil's advocate (hilarious since PBMX was her idea!) and in the end I said "I thought about this for solid week," and then she said "okay. I just wanted to make sure you were sure." I forgot to remind her that in my lumpectomy to remove DCIS, there was ADH in the margin; no studies on what to do in that case, but most surgeons consider it a "clean" margin. Now that something new has grown in the last six months that has to be removed, maybe those margins weren't so clean after all. Anyway, this is all more evidence that no one has a crystal ball, and there are decisions in this bc game that require taking a position (just pick one) and seeing if you can defend it. I am happy with my decision and so is my bs or she wouldn't be doing it, she was just making sure I understood the magnitude of my decision, and believe me, I do. Anyway, that's what's up with me...

I did kind of panic haha, but I think I'm back on course now. Thanks for the support. Yes, def send me the nipple tatt guy info. I think after everything I'm not going to want pretend nipples fashioned from skin that are always standing at attention; 3D tatts are more my thing I think.

Good for you on pursuing your dreams! and getting the rust off! If I went to try to speak French right now (I have an AA in French) I think I'd have trouble, but it does come back pretty fast.

Ok so I learned finger spelling in 6th grade cuz the mean girls were using it to talk to each other (no one was deaf) and I wanted to know what they were saying haha. So on the plane a couple weeks ago, the woman next to me was deaf and she was wondering what the pilot was saying over the loudspeaker and I spelled it to her. I was very proud of myself except that it would have been faster and more accurate to write it down and show her, but I wanted to use my 6th grade skills.... anyway she was appreciative.

Hi Kimberli!! Thanks for checking in. You know I bet we live about two miles from each other. I live right by Mesa College off Genesee, if you know where that is... about a mile from the corner of Genesee and Balboa. If you get your nipple tattoo before I do, and you go for a consult, maybe I'll tag along (although I don't have to look when he's examining you haha). Or maybe we can all meet for a tattoo consultation. If I'm getting a nipple tattoo maybe I should get an actual tattoo for the first time in my life; not a pink ribbon but maybe .... actually maybe a pink ribbon haha. How is your foob holding up with the radiation? I go back and forth between worrying I am overreacting with the PBMX and worrying I'm not doing it soon enough and there is invasive cancer growing and I will be getting chemo and radiation after my surgery. Don't they normally wait to do the exchange surgery until after the radiation?

Hahaha pringles. Okay well I like the idea of a pink ribbon actually. I don't know, it is like if I have to go through all of this crap, can I at least be part of a club? I hope I am getting nipple tats in October, so maybe we can get tatted together.

And as far as the half marathons: I'll wave as you guys go by. Even when I was in my 20's, skinny, lifting weights and working out hard three times a week, I could NOT run. I don't know why -- I'm just not built for it. I definitely want to get back to doing cardio as part of my recovery from surgery, but I think the hard cardio will have to wait....

yes so many choices!

Hi Kimberli -- understand on the lack of modesty. The bs surgeon was like "Can I do a quick exam?" (the nurse had forgotten to have me change) and I just whipped off my shirt and sports bra all in one move in front of the bs and the male Fellow that was there haha. She goes "wow you're fast" and I'm like "yea, at this point...." hahaha.

Just got a notice in the mail that I'm being audited by the IRS for 2013 -- seriously? great timing. And it is the same agent who audited me for tax year 2012. Clearly out to get me. I'm self employed and claim expenses on a Schedule C, so I'm prime meat for a tax audit. But geez, let's attack the small business owners cuz that's what's wrong with the country, right? I have tax audit defense through Turbo Tax, so someone will represent me at the audit, but it is sooooooo much paperwork and collecting records and mileage logs etc etc. I sent the audit letter to the audit defense people and I'm like "does a double mastectomy matter? do IRS agents have a heart?" we'll see....