Lumpectomy w/wire localization this week, no one to talk to

aquilegia - It's so nice to share and learn from others that are/were in the same situation. I also tend to pass out so when I had my needle biopsy they gave me xanax. I didn't feel a thing with that and was very relaxed so I will definitely have them give me something for the lumpectomy.  I'm waiting to get my phone call from the surgical team about the time I'm to arrive. I will mention the passing out thing and ask about what to wear. Paperwork they gave me in advance said it's best to wear a sports bra or one that hooks in the front. I can't imagine lifting my arms after surgery and pulling down a sports bra. Plus, I read here a post talking about things to bring and do prior to surgery and a front hook bra was on the list. I'm a bit large on top and hate going bra-less, mainly because I don't like to sweat underneath. On that same post some women commented that they wore those bras to radiation. I don't think they'll be taking a big area out. I bought one yesterday but will hold onto the receipt if I don't need it. I was surprised to see in your stats (or whatever they call them here) that you had several lumpectomies and a mastectomy. That's a bit worrisome to me. I am thinking I would do this once and be done. I know you may not think of yourself as a survivor, but I think you are a survivor and also a hero for sharing your thoughts here on this site. Thank you for sharing.

Thank you so much kowgiirl_up. Just had my lumpectomy yesterday. Left my house at 11:00 a.m. and didn't get home until 8 p.m. so it was a long day. And, since I couldn't eat anything from the night before, I was pretty hungry. The wire localization went OK. It's like having a million mammograms though because I was going in and out of that thing so many times. The wire part didn't hurt and I made sure everyone in the room talked to me about other things while it was going on. Like you said, the surgery was the easy part. I'm still a bit woosy from the meds and was out cold sleeping until others in the house had to get up this morning. So now I'm up. I have some gauze over the surgical area and then have two of these stretchy bands they wrapped around me. Looks like a tube top haha. Not sure how much, if any, pain I'll have later. I'm looking at this as a time to get healthy. I cooked a few meals the day before surgery so I just have to keep it up. Will you be having radiation? About when will you start that? I still need to decide where I'll be doing that. Sorry I'm all over the place blabbing away .. probably the meds. Have a great day.

kowgiirl_up - I got a script for Hydrocodone as well. They gave me 2 before leaving the hospital and I didn't feel any different. But, in the middle of the night I couldn't sleep so I took one and it wiped me out cold. I don't like taking this stuff so I will keep up with the ice packs they gave me and if needed they said I could use Ibuprofen. I have not met with anyone in radiology yet. I went to one hospital in the city for the surgery (he was my second opinion and I felt more comfortable w/him) but I will be going to a different hospital, more local, for the radiation. I'm not even sure what type of radiation person to contact (i.e. radiologist? radiation oncologist?) I have my followup with the surgeon in a week and a half and will ask. I'm sure they will help me with that. They may call me today to see how I'm doing and I may ask today, depending on who calls me. I don't know anything about seeding or really anything about the radiation process ... yet. Sorry to hear you have to go thru a reentry process. I'm not sure how I would handle that. At that point I'm afraid  may say "just take them both off"!!  I did not check if I had both of the girls haha. I was told I was only having work done on the left so I didn't even think to check. I still don't know what it looks like because I'm all bandaged up.  I'm feeling better emotionally now that the lumpectomy is over and from sharing here on this site. I'm going to go for a walk outside now and get some fresh air. I can feel my rear end expanding as we speak

Kowgiirl_up You have the right attitude by staying positive. The few people I told were surprised how calm I was. I didn't stress until just before the surgery. I have to wait a few days also to shower and even then they said to put my back to it, not wash it, just let soapy water run down it. Taking my walk yesterday was a big mistake. I got a little light headed and was by myself. When I got home I couldn't remember the code to our garage door opener and called my husband. I think he freaked a bit.

I did remove the tube top thing they had around me. It was wrapped around me twice and I had to keep pulling it up, it was digging into me. I put on a sports bra I had and it felt so much better. I also noticed they put this tape on me and the one end was pulling/ripping my skin. So I pulled it back a bit and have this big raised red mark from that, but again it feels so much better. I'm thinking all my pain was from all these darn bandages. 

I slept better last night. I have no idea how big the area is that they opened or how many stitches I have, but I'm not going to worry about it. It is what it is. I may shower later. I can see some of the iodine they left on my skin and just want to freshen up. I just don't want to get the bandages still on me all wet. Maybe a sponge bath.

Have a great weekend.

It's only been one week since my lumpectomy. I still have steri strips on so I can't see the incision or stitches yet. But, I have this strange weird orangeish color around the nipple area. I have showered so I know it's not left-over iodine from surgery. I haven't turned black and blue, just orange!! Around the incision area it still feels swollen and hard in areas. I am sore and going braless is a no-no for me ... very painful. I can see something very dark under the steri strips, but I just assumed it's the stitches or dried blood. I have my followup early next week and am supposed to get another mammogram. I can't even imagine having a mammogram at this point in time. That's going to be very painful.

Thank you octogirl. I will definitely go check that out!!

HAHA they'd probably pay me to NOT take my clothes off!!! I haven't seen the medical bills yet but I'm sure I will not be happy when I do. I have my post-lumpectomy followup next week with surgeon in the city. I also made an appt to see RO at a hospital closer to home. That appt isn't until 11/14 but that was the earliest they could get me in. Going to different hospitals wasn't ideal but I wanted a surgeon that was better known for doing breast surgery. Have a great weekend everyone.

Hi Liz1985 - I did not have a Sentinel Node Biopsy done. Hopefully someone else here can help and answer that for you. I did have a wire localization procedure done just prior to the lumpectomy. They couldn't give me any pain meds during that but they do numb it a bit. For that you pretty much are having a mammogram and at the same time they insert a wire into the breast going to the area where the DCIS is. This allows the surgeon to follow the wire and know where they need to go during the lumpectomy. All of that went great for me. I think I was more worried and stressed about the procedure than the actual procedure. I have since had my post-surgery followup and am meeting with the med oncologist tomorrow and the rad. oncologist next week for next steps. Good luck to you. Praying for good results.