Shopping/packing/to-do list for surgery + recovery....

mumito

How is everyone doing? Where are all the updates.  I still have my drains and now developed some underarm swelling thats painful so I guess I better get my ### into the doctors office.I hope I haven't developed LE.

mumito

Feeling much better today my drains were removed.Wish you ladies would check in now I am getting worried.

mradf

Bumping for Kendall...

Ihavehope

I hope you haven't developed an infection. 

I am still exercising and trying to get ready for my surgery.

barbergirl

I am having diep in dec. from bilater mascetomy

what should i expect pain wise, how did you sleep, how did you bath,

how long before you stood up straight

barbergirl

I  had my surgery at Northside Hosp in Atlanta, ga.

when I left the gift shop brought me everything I need, sports bra with pads, 2 camisole tops that hold the drains, a stufff animal to put under my arm, books about care after surgery and options and questions. I had a belt volunteers made to use when I shower that held my drains.

They were extra helpful, and very generious

barbergirl

has anybody rented a hosp bed for home recovery

if so, did it help?

CoolBreeze

Hi ladies.  I'm having a unilateral (right) mx with expander put in on Wednesday.  These tips are going to be very helpful.

Does anybody know how long this surgery typically lasts?  I haven't spoken to my surgeon in quite a while so have no idea.  It is scheduled for 2:30 and it'd be nice to know how long my husband has to sit and wait.

I also have no idea how long I'll be in the hospital.  I imagine I'll spend the night since my surgery is in the afternoon.  Anybody who had the same surgery as me -- how long were you in?

Thanks.

Ihavehope

Sorry coolbreeze and barbergirl.  My surgery is after both of yours.  I thought I read someone had rented a hospital bed and thought it worked well.  Most of the gals here used a recliner in which to sleep until they could comfortably get up.  I think most ladies started out with basin baths and using an extension shower head to wash their hair in front of them. 

 My surgery is in the spring and I will be in hospital for a week after my surgery as it will be a double mastectomy with DIEP reconstruction at the same time.  I only want one surgery and one recovery and they bvelieve I am strong enough to handle it.  However I am exercising to lose some weight and gain some strength to assist in my recovery as I have one weak leg from a break at a metasteses.  : )  I am happy to have the time to become stronger so I can have both surgeries at the same time.

 I hope your surgeries go smoothly and you heal quickly.

 

lvtwoqlt

CoolBreeze, I had bilat mast with expanders June 07, my surgeon and ps both said that it would take about 4-5 hours combined for the bilat surgery. I had a minor complication with low BP and I was in the hospital for 2 nights.

Patsy, I didn't have room in my house for an additional bed or recliner (my mom offered a recliner from her house), I managed to sleep at night (most of the night) in the bed with plenty of pillows, although I needed some assistance getting up. When I wasn't in the bed, I stayed in a large (overstuffed) chair and ottoman with additional pillows to help make me comfortable. I could push the ottoman to one side with my legs to make getting up easier.

Sheila

Bless

Someone just told me about a small pillow with a ribbon on it.  You hang it around your neck and put the pillow under your arm after surgery (lumpectomy) to keep the weight of your arm off the breast after surgery.  This woman said it worked great and helped.  Has anyone else tried this?

gelati1201

I know that a lightweight robe that zips or buttons down the front is very helpful. Finding them is another story!!  After getting lots of exercise combing through every kind of store and on line I hit the jackpot at the second sears that I went to. The first one had only one seersucker thing that was just so awful it ranked close to the dreaded hospital gowns.  I not only found a rack of  what my grandmother called "house dresses" but also a medium weight robe that zips all the way to the bottom. The house dress snaps all the way down. I am not saying that either of these are gorgeous by any means, but I believe they will work well and were reasonably priced.

I am  having a bilateral mastectomy and DIEP sometime in November. Waiting for a definite date. Our son is getting married Jan. 9th and I  just want to be in shape to walk down the aisle!!

Ihavehope

I hope its early Nov for you gelati as the more time to recover, the better a chance you will have to feel great for the wedding

CoolBreeze

I had my surgery the 21st and was in serious pain up until today - glad to be among the living again.

What I found the most helpful in the hospital (and at home)  was my iPhone.  If you have one and you can find a long plug-in cord for it, I'd recommend getting one as mine was too short.  It was pinned on my bed but I couldn't reach over to grab it.  A long cord where I could have kept it on my lap would have helped.

I was able to update people via facebook that I was fine. 

I had put a movie on it to watch but it turned out I didn't have that kind of energy. I had a book on kindle to read but my pain was pretty intense to concentrate on a book.

I do have a "white noise" program called Ambiance which has some amazing sounds, so I turned it to ocean waves and went to sleep listening to that.  The sounds helped block out some of the hospital noise (including the home shopping network which my roommate had on 24/7.)  I helped soothe me to sleep - I  would not have slept near as well without it.

Hope you all get nicer nurses than I did.  My first one didn't even know what medication she was giving me.  Then she said I was allowed to have a sleeping pill and I asked for it, and she never brought it to me.  My next one was supposed to bring me pain meds at 6:00 - she had them in her hand, went off to do something and didn't come back until 7:30.  By then I was crying in agony but couldn't reach the call button.

I was stunned to find out that nurses aren't there to help you and will not come in to check on you except for vitals twice per shiift.   They wait until you call them for everything.  Keep that call button handy, even if you have to pin it to the bed!   Don't be afraid to use it because they won't come without being summoned!

Ihavehope

I'm sorry you had such a bad experience in the hospital coolbreeze, glad you are feeling better now though.  I gather the nursing shortage must be causing too much work and not enough time to deal with paitients properly.  My experience in the hospital a year and a half ago was much better than yours.  I can say I noticed they would make me wait for my pain meds.  I tested them and they kept trying to stretch it an hour or two but no more than that.  I had a broken leg and was in the hospital for 12 days.     I was so glad to get home because they checked up on me every hour and it took 4 months to get out of the habit of waking every hour.  eek! 

 I went to a cancer symposium and tradeshow today.  Some good seminars, one I missed but I was able to ask some questions about what to wear right after surgery.  They advise a compression bandage that looks like a tube top cut up the middle with velcro.  Then later no bras but a specially soft fabric camisole with some support but not too much as it could cause scarring issues.  They also advised massage for the scars to prevent them from becoming too tough and unmanageable and uncomfortable.  That was the advice they had for me.  : )

I hope you continue to improve coolbreeze.  God Bless.

Cathy

kle

I wanted to add one pre surgery suggestion.  Make sure the Drs and hospital have your cell phone number.  The week before surgery I came home from work one day to 8 voice messages. from Drs, pre -op stuff, hospital and insurance.  And of course by the time I got home it was to late to call anyone back.  If they called on my cell I could have answered the questions quickly, and I would not have ended up in tears!

kle  

Ihavehope

Good point kle.  At my hospital, I have to call after 3 pm the afternoon before my surgery to find out the time I need to be there.  I have a nurse navigator that I can call to ask questions about pre and post operative stuff and I still have one more time to visit with the surgeons to ask other questions and sign the consent forms. 

RunswithScissors

Something to do pre-op. 

If there is any chance you might need chemo after your surgery (swollen nodes), and you would like to have your tumor cells tested to see which chemo drug kills them -  you have to tell your doctor BEFORE surgery, to arrange for the test!!!!

  I didn't know this and although I really wanted chemo sensitivity testing, my tissue samples were dead before I could send them to the lab... 

josybee

Has anyone had mastectomy with tram flap surgery?? If so has anyone had radiation after??  I had the surgery in May and finish 8X chemo at the beginning of October, starting rads 2nd week November. Any info would help.

Ihavehope

I did radiation and chemo last year to shrink my tumours.  I am glad to be done with that and now I have curly hair.  I had straight hair.  I tell you, it was nice in the summertime to be bald with no hair, no shaving the legs and no hair elsehwere, including my eyebrows and eyelashes.  I looked so funny without anything to define my features around my eyes. 

lunapoli

I found the nurses to be totally insensitive to my condition, one nurse even started to test my blood pressure on the  lymph node removal arm.

Ihavehope

I'm sorry for your experience iunapoli.  Everyone has bad days perhaps it was one for your nurse.  Any nurse should know that someone with breast cancer may lose the ability to use an arm for blood pressure or taking blood, and giving iv's.

Grakenmom

Hello - I don't post here much, but wish to thank everyone for the list of things to pack before surgery. Your lists and experiences helped me so much for my surgery (bilat mast with TE's on 11/11).  I just wanted to express my gratitude to each of you who took the time to help others along the way - and I hope I am able to return the favor in some way.

I haven't read all of the posts here, but for anyone preparing for or recovering from surgery, please know that my thoughts and prayers are with you. You are stronger than you think.

All the best,

E 

Ihavehope

Thank you for sharing Grakenmom.  I hope you are recovering quickly.  My double mastectomy isn't until spring and this thread has been a godsend. 

amy_c

I had DIEP (unilateral) 2/25/08, and here are some things I found really helpful to bring to the hospital:  

(Keep as many of your items in a small basket or box on your bedside table.  It keeps everything organized and within reach, and the housekeeping staff won't accidentally place anything out of your reach.)

1. ipod

2. cell phone

3. pictures of loved ones

4. lavender mist (I thought the room smelled stuffy, so it helped)

5. a few family photos

6. dried prunes, bran cereal and "smooth move" tea ( the hospital menu was very low on fiber)

7. pen and paper

8. lip balm

9. books & magazines

10.  2 small travel-sized pillows for propping under my arms

11. pillow and blanket for the drive home 

Grakenmom

I'd also like to add a scarf to the list.  Just by chance, I threw a soft, light scarf in my hosp bag - when I switched rooms, I was right next to the AC unit with no way to change the thermostat. The staff can always get you another blanket, and my hubby put towels over the registers but it was still cold in the room & my little scarf was perfect to wrap around my neck & up around my ears - soft, lightweight and warm. Every little bit of comfort helps in the first couple of days after surgery! 

Philips Milk of Magnesia and Colace on hand at home (or as soon as you can take them). Oh, and Cepastat throat lozenges -if you don't have some, ask one of the nurses.

All the best, E

sparkyhammerjigsaw

Uggh...it sucks to take your wife christmas shopping for supplies for an upcoming MX....Anyway, we've both poured through this topic and think we have most things covered but surely not...so here goes what we have...what do we need for upcoming SNB, MX and immediate TE recon?

GOT

satin pajamas

front closure bras

more sports bras

art/notepad & pens

cell phone

mp3 player

chapstick

Phillips MOM pills

Riccola lozenges...she likes these, will they be enough?

afghan and pillows

Got to find a wedge pillow for home because we don't have a recliner and I doubt she would be able to get out of it anyway

what's missing?

thanks all....

lvtwoqlt

Sparky - I don't have a recliner at home and I didn't get the wedge pillow, I just used 5-6 bed pillows to prop me in the bed (2-3 under my head/back, one under each arm and one under my knees). make sure that when you get her post surgery meds that you request NON-CHILD-PROOF caps on the meds. I had bilat and got the usual child-proof caps and was unable to open them. My husband had to go back to the pharmacy to get the easy open cap bottles for me. Keep the note pad by the medicine and write down the times and dosages to take to check off when the meds were taken. Also ask if you can get the scripts before she goes into the hospital and get them filled prior, that will prevent a stop after you leave the hospital. Make sure that you have a small pillow or two in the car for the trip home. The lozenges are just to help soothe the throat after having the tube down your throat (it can leave your throat scratchy). I also had problems picking up the gallon milk jug and juice, so purchase liquids in smaller sizes (half gallon).

good Luck to you and your wife.

Sheila

Bless

I used about 15 pillows   My husband calls me the pillow monster.  They did shift around a bit, so a wedge might have been nice, but totally doable with a bunch of pillows.  I did see that Ross had pillow wedges with the little arm things on the side and I think I saw them at Walmart too.

The doc told me to get some over the counter stool softener, because pain meds can bind you up. 

Also, I only had multiple lumpectomies not mx, but I found my skin to be sensitve after surgery and it was much more comfortable to wear a very thin light weight, very stretchy t-shirt under the post operative bras.  The elastic from the bras would irritate the skin without them. 

Good to ask for anti nausea meds from the anestesiaologist.

Also sometimes the surgical tapes that they use can cause irritation/blistering to the breast skin, I had a problem with that from biopsies and because I mentioned it (many times) they only used surgical glue no steri strips or tape of any kind and I didn't have any irritation.

zippered hoodies are great for when you want something other than those pjs.

Good luck and God bless you and your wife!

klml4

another must have for me was a back scratcher!!  My dad bought one for me while I was in the hospital.  Turns out I have an allergy to morphene which made me extreamly itchy and I couldnt move my arms enough to scratch my back.  I had other people scatching for me, and thank goodness my dad bought me a back scratcher!!  it was GREAT to have!!