Lack of Concentration: Brain Drain after Dx

Welcome Danavice! I absolutely agree with Mountainmia.... If you didn't have worry and stuff swirling in your mind at this point it wouldn't seem as reasonable as having these things. Our diagnosis is similar than different. I was diagnosed with DCIS Grade 3 with comedo-necrosis as well and extreme breast density. Initially a 3 cm area by diagnostic mammogram, then near 5 cm by MRI which ultimately reduced to 1.2 or 1.5 cm of Grade 3 DCIS with comedo necrosis upon surgery pathology. The other 3+ cm was a mix of lots of benign and precancerous stuff. Diagnosed July 21 and surgery August 31.

Your worry about worry.... I am quite grounded and though I can get rattled I've been through too much in my life to get rattled for long by much. Getting my diagnosis by phone while out of town and in a large entry way of Cleveland Clinic with a 4 hour drive back - welp - that was a lot.... The next couple of weeks was a myriad of gathering information about my diagnosis - I had no idea what any of this stuff meant. I also was starting to have related appointments, deciding on a 2nd opinion and making those appointments, figuring if and how I could be alone right after surgery and what were the (limited) options there due to COVID, etc. all while working half-time and dealing with several other medical conditions due to autoimmune issues. It is a lot to wrap one's head around - we all have other things we are dealing with or managing when getting news like this, or possibly other buttons getting pushed by such a diagnosis.

Give yourself a chance to take it all in, breathe, take some walks, stick with sites that offer information relevant and helpful to you about practical and coping measures and most of all take it one step at a time. The latter could mean do your best just to focus on one appointment at a time, or one morning/afternoon/evening (or less) at a time, etc. This is pretty much the most difficult part. You will see on this site in other places once you make a decision about surgery type and have these other initial appointments behind you, you will just follow the plan and be able to do so.

Obviously surprises can arise for some. Fortunately I did not have any - my sentinel node showed no cancer. Recovery can vary for folks though again if you read on this site most do well. I was overnight in the hospital just for a night. Pain was minimal though present along with other weird discomforts. I developed cording a few weeks after surgery or so and am still dealing with that though it is much better and I keep perspective on that. My range of motion is not limited - it's just tight with certain movements and feels weird. The surgery will leave some side effects like that even without cording. Much of that likely improves for most and some will likely remain - that is big surgery. I chose no reconstruction as well for reasons you'll see in other posts. I go flat as well. After being fairly large for so many years I love the freedom - I actually rarely even think about being flat anymore - it just feels "normal" at this point I suppose..... Please keep us updated on your process.

It's possible that if you take time off work, you'd worry more because you'd have fewer distractions. Try to do some fun things! It's tougher with Covid restrictions and possible bad weather, but you can still watch silly movies, or get tickets to live-stream concerts, or, if the weather cooperates where you are, go to a park for winter walks. It'll help the time pass and relax your mind.