PBMX - April 20... help me prepare!

Dear LRGO2016,

Sorry to hear about what you are going through right now. Post Surgery can be a stressful time and particularly worrying when you don't know what to expect in the aftermath.

We do recommend you spending some time with your surgeon and asking him/her the questions you brought up in your post.

As well as that, you may also find it helpful to joining the: Surgery Ladies: April 2016 support group

Here is some information including; what you can expect to happen after the surgery, as well as at home recovery from mastectomy.

Mastectomy: What to expect

Thinking of you,

The Moderators.

I learned a lot by joining the surgery group for the month I was having surgery. Maybe read back a couple months to see how those ladies did. I had very little pain from surgery. I came home with a pain ball around my neck. My insurance didn't cover it but the $200 extra was very worth it. I was off the narcotics within a few days. The hardest part for me was the stretching of the pecs. That gets better, but until it does it is no picnic. Take care and best wishes for an uneventful surgery and boring recovery.

The fills are no big deal. Aside from waiting for the plastic surgeon it takes only a few minutes. I recommending going low and slow. Some ladies get 50-60 ccs every other week. I had 200 cc at surgery and one more at 150cc that one was incredibly painful so I said "we're done". Many ladies don't have a lot of problems with the pain. My pecs were really strong since I work outdoors a lot so there may be a correlation between strong pecs and pain.

The absolute greatest feeling in the world will be when you wake up from surgery and realize you've outrun the beast.

I had 3D tattoos from Vinny Myer in Baltimore. They are the best part of all of this.

You'll get through this. It is going to be a big surgery and many people will question your motives BUT you and I know the fear of living under the Spector of the beast. If you can prevent it I say "why the h@// not."

PM me anytime if you want to. We're all in the boat together. Hugs!

Edited to add - just saw where you're braca pos. Oh heck yeah no brainer.

You might talk to your surgeon about the whole node issue. I did not have nodes taken so after they found the surprise IDC it was a scramble to figure out the node status. Angelina Jolie had the dye put in and the node marked but not taken

So sorry about your need for the surgeries. I too only had a single mastectomy. I am 3 weeks out today and feel good. I had very little pain which is rare but not unheard of. Everyone responds differently. I cannot comment on a double mastectomy but will say that I still had minimal use of my left arm. Enough to brush my teeth and put my hair behind my ear. After your drains come out which for me was a week, I could move more. The less you move the quicker the drains come out according to my dr. So I did as little as I could. Keep small bottles of water on your counters and small snack packs close to you.

Mentally this is really hard but I have come to accept that we all have obstacles to overcome and this is ours. Every day you will move a little better and feel better. It takes time. I needed to sleep propped up on a few pillows. I also put 2 under my left arm to prevent swelling. I am down to one pillow under my arm and 2 under my head. I found these shower pockets on Amazon.com which helped keep the drains out of my way and I didn't need to pin them on my clothes. If you get them make sure you order based on single vs double mastectomy as they will come with a pouch for each drain. I've only had 1 expansion so far. It didn't hurt at all except for when she touched my skin. I will ask her to skip the bandaid next time. Taking that off hurt a lot. Feels like a sunburn. I'm ready to have that sensation go away but I guess it takes time. My TE sticks out a bit on the sides (can only see it when I have nothing on - in a bra even after just 1 fill I look no different than before and I was a c cup). So as the TE gets filled the ends will naturally come to the center. I did notice this after the first fill and it felt better. It is uncomfortable but not unbearable. I remind myself that it beats the cancerous breast any day. Wish I could help more. Give yourself time. You will get there. Good luck.

Yes the TE fill was quick and easy. I was in and out in 10 min. My husband was away so I went solo and it was fine. Actually felt liberating to go somewhere on my own.

You know, a decrease in strength was a fear for me too, but I can do everything I did before the mx. You can always feel your pecs flex if you think about it but four years in I rarely do and it is the new normal.

Glad it went well. The other thing I should mention is that the thought of surgery and the weeks leading up to it were much worse psychologically than the actuality. My first thoughts when I saw myself was not shock or sadness at all, instead I thought , huh, that looks pretty good, and it was with only filled to 200ccs.

.

A back scratcher was suggested--although I used my husband, kids and the wall. I also bought something called the Brobe. It was a bit on the pricey side but I wore it nearly non-stop, until it walked itself over to the washing machine. Their shower belts were also quite handy. I wore those everywhere. Not just in the shower. I probably found those even more helpful than the robe. The bra it came with wasn't my favorite. It was just a tad loose for me. I liked the bra the hospital sent me home in. And then I lived (and still do) in Yummie Bras by Heather Thompson. One of the Real Housewives of NY people.

Say yes when people offer to bring over food. I was heroic and always said no. When I had my implant exchange I started saying yes. And that was easier.

Honestly, one of the biggest reliefs, is not having the MRIs anymore. I never minded the mammos. But the MRIs and biopsies sucked. I was able to keep my nipples. Although, I can barely feel anything. Some people have certainly been judgmental but they weren't living test to test. I felt more peace going into my PBMX than I did going into MRIs or MRI biopsies. My BS offered me xanax and I didn't even take it. I did do every single bit of laundry in the house before the surgery though. I almost felt like I was nesting.

Good luck to you! I did experience some pain with the TE fills. But I felt like my PS was really rushing through the whole MX and implant exchange. I have a new PS now following my foobs. I like him better. (I was using my mom's doctors before.)

Oh and everyone says stay ahead of the pain. I had an app on my phone that reminded me to take the meds. Also, stool softeners. Before the surgery even starts. And, if you don't already, maybe a probiotic. I think the antibiotics do a number on your gut. Or plenty of yogurt or Kefir or something.

LRG, you sound like you are on top of things! One thing to find out about is exercise. My PS said none for 6 weeks. That was a big mistake and wound up in PT for ROM issues. Memorial Sloan Kettering has exercises on their website (a video even) that you can start right in the hospital.

I may have been the story of what not to do. But could be what I would do if I could do it all over again. Thank goodness you can only do a BMX once!

So glad you are getting slow fills. My PS wanted 100-150. She really wanted to cram it in there. When I said no to 100, she said how about 90. I was like, are we negotiating here? I am so glad I have a new PS!!

Keeping you in my most positive thoughts!

I suspended my gym membership too. And, sadly, my personal trainer was one of the judgmental people in my life. She was very much against the surgery. And we have parted ways both in the gym and as friends. Crazy.

I am now doing gentle yoga and water aerobics. A bit different than weight lifting and TRX but I am really enjoying it. I think, if my ROM issues hadn't gotten so out of hand things would have been different. And I take an exercise class for people that had MX and that is nothing but laughter. I love it.

It's all different from before but it's really a lot of fun.

Your PS sounds wonderful! And the staff as well. Keeping you in my best thoughts!

Thanks Katydids, most appreciated.

HI LRGO2016, thank you for your encouraging words. I also wish you the same, and let us all be done with the cancer treatment soon with NED for everyone, wouldn't that be awesome?

I think of you many times every day, we're both waiting for our surgeries and you're right, the waiting game is hard. I try to keep my days filled/busy so that I don't watch the calendar and go "only x day before my surgery". I do find myself checking the girls in the mirror, wondering what it's going to look like post-surgery, but rather than get sad, I keep reminding myself that the cancer will be out of my body. Last night I attended a Breast Reconstruction seminar in a city close by and I got to meet the PS's who do the reconstruction surgeries and they were wonderful, so encouraging that it really helped me realize that I can feel more 'normal for me' again after treatment is done. I am not comfortable with the idea of prostheses forever, it's just not me. My husband doesn't understand why I'm thinking of reconstruction but I told him that I'm doing it for me and nobody else. I need to have it done, period. I don't want to look in the mirror every day and be reminded of the BC that is going to be a part of my past, hopefully soon. Sorry for babbling here girls.

Have a good night everyone.