Exchange City

Hello to long-time friends and welcome to newer ladies! I've not been posting much as there's so much stuff going on with my family.

LRGO: good to see you. I'm so sorry to hear of your rotating anatomicals. Please explain more. Your first exchange was anatomicals in August 2016. Righty was replaced with another anatomical in January 2017. Righty rotated again and both were then just (4/28) buried with fat grafting? Or was Righty replaced again?

I'm pretty sure that my Lefty has rotated about 30 degrees, as the top of the implant is pointing to 1:00 o'clock. It started gradually, but now I am aware of Lefty most of the time. It is uncomfortable, heading towards painful. Righty is starting to feel a little tight, almost like a TE again. I see my PS tomorrow afternoon for a looksee and find out my options.

I would like to hear more about rotation and treatment options.

Keiki: you look GREAT for 67! Kudos to you.

Hi ladies I'm coming here now because I will be having my exchange next week and I visited with the plastic surgeon today and I'm not very happy first of all I wasn't happy with the incisions from my double mastectomy because it wasn't as I was told it would be(skin sparing)u and now they have to extend the scar even further to take care of some puckering that occurred and I won't be able to have origami nipples I'll have to have tats due to previous radiation on my right side in 2008 and I have 800 CC expanders. I weigh a hundred and seventy pounds so they don't look very big and he said they're not going to look any bigger when he's done well at least he was honest but I'm sad that I feel like I'm not getting anything I wanted after all the pain . I just got done with chemo and I certainly have the blues today hopefully it feels better to have these expanders out and implants in thanks for listening

Linda, I hope the blues pass soon.

Yes, there's a lot of disappointment there.

Some good news: many ladies here say they like tats better than reconstructed nipples. I don't know about origami nipples, but many ladies say their reconstructed nipples flattened out. Lots of ladies like the tattoo nipples, especially Vinnie's or other professional tattoo nipples, not medical grade nipples.

My native breasts were 38 DD, large and ptotic when I was 190 pounds. After loosing 55 pounds, my breasts were still 36 D or DD and still droopy. I am 5' 2" and currently hovering around 160 pounds (boo-hoo, gained some back). My implants are 450 and 495, around a C cup on me. I like my implants. I am now wearing 36 C and I am very happy with my smaller breasts. My clothes fit better. Many people have commented that I look great, even though they don't know I had BMX and reconstruction. I just look like I lost weight and got fit. I don't miss the larger breasts at all.

Good luck on your exchange. It will feel better to exchange TEs for your implants. Also, the implants will have a better shape than the TEs.

Just got back from my one week post-op appointment after my exchange on 4/26 and got my drains out. Woohoo! That feels so much better. I'm still a little sore at the incision site on the one side, and a little itchy, but I'm planning to head back to work tomorrow. I had a nipple sparing double mastectomy back in December, and I'm very happy with the results of my exchange. If anyone has questions about the nipple sparing, feel free to ask. It definitely makes me feel more like "me".

My PS was very up front about what HE wanted to do as opposed to what I wanted to do. He wanted to use latissimus dorsi tissue to make my boobs larger to match my size. I want him to just replace the tissue expanders with implants. He tried to talk me out of it, since I'd probably end up as a C cup. I told him I had considered not doing any reconstruction at all, but I didn't think I would be happy with prosthetics, and if I went flat my husband and I would have the same profiles...

Hopefully I can lose some weight and my foobs will stick out more than my stomach, but if I don't I can live with it.

Thanks, Leslienva

(I was posting late last night but forgot to refresh my screen.)

The lump in Lefty is very uncomfortable today. It already had been becoming more uncomfortable over the last few weeks. I suppose PS was pressing on it a lot yesterday may have aggrevated it more.

Still trying to be patient in the waiting game.

Thanks for the encouraging words! Do you know where Vinnie the Tatoo artist is?

Came across this list of other tattoo artists that do 3-D nips...

http://www.pinkinkproject.com/Links.html

OG56: I have pre-pectoral TEs so they're 100% encased in alloderm. It will be the same with the implants. No problems...

You are always so helpful, thanks!!

mominator, you are in my thoughts and prayers . Please post an update as soon as you hear anything.

Prayers Mominator

Scottie

Breast MRI done this morning. Doctor called late afternoon.

Reminder that Breast Surgeon thought this was the implant and she sent me to Plastic Surgeon. Plastic Surgeon says it's too hard to be the implant and he sent me to the MRI. I called both offices to let them know the MRI was done and to look for the results.

Breast Surgeon called to say that she got the results: everything is normal! Report states that implant is intact, there is minimum fluid, and no evidence of abnormality. Report also indicates that the MRI included the marker where the lump is located. She says that Breast MRI is the most sensitive of imaging. If there's something going on, it should have shown up on the MRI.

However, there is still the lump, which is hard and seems to be more noticeable over the last several weeks.

She's ordering an ultrasound "to see what's going on."

Thank you for your support. I put your names on an index card and kept it in my pocket during the exam.

Mominator, so relieved the MRI was normal!

diane

I have exchange surgery tomorrow and PS will determine if I need a lift on other side after placing the implant. How much does that second procedure add to recovery? Is it worth it? Also curious about people's experiences with fat grafting.