Is the Tissue expander pain I’m experiencing normal?

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Timeisnow
Timeisnow Member Posts: 4
edited March 2021 in Breast Reconstruction

I had a bilateral mastectomy with tissue expanders four weeks ago. I have had no fills. I have pain in the lower outer side of my right breast where the edge of the te is .In order to move or walk I have to hold the bottom of my ribs on that sideand apply pressure. The only time I am not in pain is when I am sitting or in bed. My ps says this is normal . No medication from opioids to muscle relaxers or Valium touches the pain. It isn’t getting better. Has anyone experienced this?

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  • MinusTwo
    MinusTwo Member Posts: 16,634
    edited March 2021

    yes it's normal. As they start the fills, you will likely find some relief. When do you you get your first fill? Things will move around for the entire time. But be careful of filling too fast, then you'll have pain from the skin stretching. Maybe start off with a small amount

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  • Timeisnow
    Timeisnow Member Posts: 4
    edited March 2021

    Thank you! I had to have a second surgery on an incision that had slightly opened which had delayed my fill. If all is good my first fill should be in a couple weeks. I can deal with the pain as long as I know it’s normal and will eventually subside. Sometimes when you’re in the the thick of it it seems like it will never end.

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  • OnTarget
    OnTarget Member Posts: 447
    edited March 2021

    I think it is sort of normal.

    When I had my mastectomy and my first TEs, I had a lot of pain. I had cording, which apparently runs down your rib cage under the TRs. I also had tight skin, which pressed I'm TEs into my pecs and tissues. This is what I think causes the pain.

    Jump forward 10 months, I had an infection in my right implant and had it removed. I now have a new TE in and no pain! My skin is looser and I'm getting smaller fills.

    The pain could be mastectomy related, but for me, I think it was related to my TEs digging in and blocking stuff from flowing correctly.

    My doc told me the same thing "everyone hates TEs", ""TEs are so uncomfortable ". Nope, they don't hurt and they aren't uncomfortable now. I don't even notice them.

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