May 2019 Surgery Support Group

christene502 I hope you can get some rest this weekend, I will be thinking of you Monday and hoping everything goes as good as p

Momoftwo and tiggie, I am glad your surgery is done and wishing you a speedy recovery. And thank you for sharing your experiences, it helps so much.

Happy birthday meeko, hope you enjoy your special day.

My surgery is less than a week away. I created a list of tasks I wanted to complete before the surgery and made it so long that in a away it helped with reducing surgery related anxiety.

Wishing everyone a nice weekend.

Hi Cmck1973, I wish you all the best with your upcoming surgery. Breast cancer just sucks. That's the reality. I recommend listening to guided meditations on YouTube to help with the anxiety. They have a bunch of good ones suited to your tastes. There are some related just to dealing with cancer, and some guided sleep meditations that I listen to to help me sleep when I'm stressed. Jason Stephenson does some that I like. My son bought me some headphones on Amazon that were cheap and they're like a headband with flat circles for headphones so nothing goes in your ears. Try and think of the cost of your genetic testing as an insurance policy for the present and future women in your family. At least everyone will know what your genetic factors are. I had to pay for my testing, too although I'm still waiting on the bill. Insurance sent me a letter that they wouldn't be covering it. But, at least now I know that I don't carry any of the genes for breast cancer and my granddaughter will know that she doesn't carry those genes on my side. Take care! Soon your surgery will be a memory and you can focus on your future. ~Mobetta

Day 5 since 5/1 BMX. Continuing to do well, manageable pain with Tylenol. I am now desperate for a good hot shower but my dr told me sponge bath only for the first week.... yuck!!! Thank god it's not summer yet.

My husband offered to help to wash my hair over a sink but I just couldn't imagine how that could work..... and how he would blow dry my hair I didn't even want to think about that! LOL. Then I remembered that there was a small Asian family owned nail/hair salon near by so I walked in to to see if I can get a shampoo and blow dry. They were so sweet, when I told them I had been unable to shower or wash my hair due to breast cancer surgery, they insisted that they provide the service for FREE as a get well gift / Mother's Day gift. Oh my gosh, I think I wanted to cry there for the first time, experiencing completely unexpected strangers' sympathy and love. Shampoo /blow dry was so refreshing!!!!

So ladies, if you can find a neighborhood salon that can help with hair washing/drying, I'd highly recommend!

Everyday, I feel like my movements are improving. I can brush my hair from top of my head without excruciating pain, I could also wear a T-Shirt today. Not limited to front-button shirts anymore.

I am planning on going grocery shopping with my family later today, so I can stock my fridge for the week, while I am home all week during the day by myself. I think I can manage to cook fine. so in terms of daily activities, I can do pretty much 7 out of 10 things, I'd say. I cannot carry heavy laundry baskets or reach high in cabinets. I'd like to seep the backyard but will wait on that.

I have had 2 C-section births and if I had to compare those surgeries to this BMX / Recon surgery, I would say C-Section surgery recovery was much harder. With C-section, the pain is in the abdomen so anything / everything you do hurts, where as BMX pain only hurts in limited movements. With C-Section, you are also getting zero sleep, having to feed / change new-born baby every 2 hours, while having to care for your wounds and bleeding "down there", and the focus is mainly on the new born baby's well-being and yours is secondary. I also had time with breastfeeding / latching /diet restriction, so there was added stress there too. With BMX recovery, you can completely focus on yourself. : )

Just my 2 cents, for those of you who have experienced C-section surgeries for a frame of reference

Post-of Appt tomorrow with PS tomorrow. I need to address with him the "dog ears" or "arm pit fat" or axillary bulge I am seeing above my expanders that are very unsightly.... Just learning that this is very common after BMX. I hope I can have them removed, reading various threads on reconstruction on this site now.

I'm glad to hear that Mumoftwo and Tiggie are recovering well. I have been scoping out salons for a hair wash after my surgery (I love my husband, but I'm not sure I want him washing my hair!).

Christene50, I am sending lots of good thoughts your way today. Check in when you feel like it.

Mobetta, in addition to the youtube videos, I have found the "calm" app on my phone to be very helpful to help me sleep on nights when my mind can't stop racing.

My surgery is Thursday, and I think I have all my ducks in a row. I am working up until surgery, so that helps to keep my mind off of everything.

Here's wishing everyone a wonderful week!

Irishlove, hope all went well today.

So, today I had one of my two drains taken out. Based on everything that I had read I had not expected it to hurt, but it hurt a lot! I’ve also had pain all day since. I really hope having the second drain taken out isn’t this bad.

I can’t wait until both are out. I also looked down at my chest for the first time today while they were changing the dressing. It looks horrific with all of the staples in, but I didn’t freak out the way I think I would have even two days ago.

Good luck to everyone having surgeries this week

Hang in there meeko. Honestly, the day before my surgery was also my worst. I felt sick all day. I didn't want ot talk to anyone or do anything. I was in hiding by myself. Once you wake up from your surgery tomorrow, you'll be surprised at how much better you feel not having the dread of it hang over you.

I'll be thinking of you tomorrow. In the meantime, try to get some solid sleep tonight. I didn't sleep at all properlywhile I was in the hospital

Thanks Katie. I hope my second one is painless. I could definitely feel the drain hitting bits of my body on its way out

Hi Ladies!

I was diagnosed with Invasive Mammary Carcinoma last month in my left breast, and during the many tests they found cancer in the right breast as well (ILC). They don't think it is in my nodes, so that is great!

I'm really happy to be at a great comprehensive cancer center- everything has been integrated and they are happy to do all the tests I've needed. I feel like I'm in good hands- although I have had to push to keep things moving quickly.

My double mastectomy with reconstruction is scheduled for May 15th. I'm currently feeling relieved to be doing something about it, the waiting and worry about cancer spreading has been pretty awful. I like both my BS and my PS, so I feel like that's really a plus.

Good luck to everyone else having surgery this month! Fingers are crossed for me!

Good luck tomorrow JulieSim. I was the same way the day before surgery. I wanted to be alone. It helped me get into the right headspace. This time tomorrow it will be done!

I had my second drain out today. It was not at all painful. The nurse thinks that Tuesday’s was painful because the tissue had started to grow around it. I believe it! I thought I was going to pass out. Glad to have the drains out, but I’m really swollen and sore. Hoping to get a good night’s sleep though

I just wanted to post a positive experience. I had a lumpectomy and sentinel lymph node biopsy on May 1. It was day surgery and I was back home by 5:30 pm. After 48 hours, the pain was easily managed with extra strength Tylenol and by day 5 post-op I had stopped that as well.

I was surprised at how much mobility I had from day 1. Now I'm struggling to remember not to lift anything heavy on that side. I do have discomfort but nothing excruciating.

I went for genetic testing yesterday and my follow up with the surgeon is May 27 for next steps.

I just wanted to post to let others know that it is possible to come out of the surgery and have an okay recovery. I know I'm lucky and hope others are doing well in their recovery.

Hello, all!

Surgery on Thursday went well (single MX with sentinel node bx and direct to implant). I wish I could have gone home the day of surgery, but they kept me overnight.

I am post op day 3. I am obeying the restrictions on arm movements, but have been doing a fair amount of of walking with my arm in a sling to keep my arm from swinging.

I haven't needed any narcotics today.

I only have one drain, but I am getting a fair amount of bloody drainage around the drain site. I will call PS tomorrow and make sure that isn't anything he is worried about.

The new breast looks great from above, but from the front it is a little jarring (frankenstein type scar and the swelling makes it look mishapen. It still makes me cry a bit when I see it. I know it will get better, and I know this is my new normal and it is better than cancer.

I should have pathology back when I see BS for postop check on Tuesday.

Thanks to everyone for checking in, and I continue to keep all of you in my thoughts and prayers.

Irishlove I am so sorry you are dealing with bowel issues. It sounds like this is not new to you, so I am sure you have already tried things like oatmeal and over the counter laxatives. Our pediatric GI docs here have their constipated kids use 3 capsful of Mralax in 32 ounces of Gatorade for bowel clean outs. Again, you have probably tried everything, so that probably isnt helpful to you. I hope you find something that works!