Scared about radioactive injections for SX

My radioactive injection (I think I just had one) didn't hurt more than a flu shot. For the wire placement they numb you up like before your biopsy. For the wire placement, if something hurts let them know!!!

You just happened to come along here when one person is talking about the seed or wire placement being very painful. Most come back and say it wasn't painful. Mine wasn't.

I had the shots on the morning of my surgery. It's going in a sensitive area with not a lot of muscle/tissue but its a few seconds. You'll forget about right after it's done.

I had the opposite experience of most people. The radioactive injection did not hurt at all. I asked the tech ahead of time about it and she said it would feel like a bee sting. Well, I kept bees for 5 years and that was not reassuring to me. But when she did the injection I couldn't feel it at all. I asked why it didn't hurt and she said because I have "great" skin. Translated that means I am old and have very thin skin and she was just too kind to say that! The needle placement for me, however, was a different story. I was supposedly numbed for the needle placement but the first needle hurt a lot so I said something but the surgeon continued and each needle hurt big time. After it was over the surgeon apologized. My take is that the surgeon was in a hurry because we were running behind and she didn't want to take the time to redo the numbing. This numbing failure is undoubtedly very rare.

Thanks for the post Nurzrobin!  I have heard the same and have been feeling very anxious!  I also have to have the radioactive dye injections and wire placement before surgery on January 8th.  How did it go for you?  I hope it went very well!!!  All of the responses and advice help SO much! 

Thank you for the update Nurzrobin!  So glad it well and turned out to be tolerable!  Hoping for good reports on your pathology!!! I agree with the waiting, the not knowing is the worst!  You have completed a big step though and I hope your healing and recovery will be fast!

I was FREAKING out about it. It was the most anxiety I had of all of this. Reading comments made it worse.

I assure you, my experience was nothing to be worried about. I was all worked up and went in and the worst part was a little prick for each needle but I didn’t have any pain. It was seriously the smallest of all the prep pain. Don’t get psyched out. Tell them you are nervous.

My hospital did use lidocaine and helped calm my nerves by telling me what was happening. Don’t get yourself upset.

Nurzrobin,

Welcome & I'm glad things went well on your surgery day! Waiting for results IS tough, but hopefully you should get some results before the Christmas holiday. Funny story(now) about my LX/SNB day. I've never had anesthesia so I was super nervous (I'm in medicine & I see people put to sleep and I see surgeries every day, but this time it was me)plus the isotope injections & needle local were giving me anxiety too. The nuclear med tech was SO sweet & explained things well that morning so that went just fine. Then I go for the needle local & the radiologist is a man I see often in the doctor's lounge and we lock eyes & I say "yea, it's me" & it was so awkward seeing him with my breast squashed in the mammogram machine! But he was great & didn't let the resident touch me & now I get hugs & good wishes from him like we're best friends! ThenI got to tell him how vulnerable & scared we ladies feel & I think he gets it. I'm a month postop & feeling great. A tiny bit of LE in my breast onlybut no big deal, I wear a sports bra 24/7, and almost pain-free now. Every weekthe numbness and swelling have gotten noticeably better. Be patient with your body and take it easy on yourself for a while. It is worth the investment so that you heal properly.