Exchange City
Comments
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Val--Congratulations. I hope everyone of us on this thread (and bc.org and the rest of us bc warriors for that matter) can join in your five-year celebration someday! You truly do have something to celebrate.
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Val! Congrats! Happy for you.
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Val, I'm so happy for you!
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My exchange was last Thursday - 4 hours but also involved fat grafting so that took longer. Had my first postop today. Got all stitches removed and got out of the horrid Velcro bra. Still very swollen and black and blue, but so far liking how they look. And for sure liking the feel of them.
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cjc1961 - Hooray for you - no more Velcro bra! I know how much you hated that thing... So glad you like how they look and feel, too! (I'm still waiting for mine to look like something I can live with - still so lopsided and mismatched - I look like a science project gone wrong!) Not having had fat grafting myself, I'm assuming that's what all the discoloration is about because I didn't have any bruising at all... Anyway, I'm very glad you're so happy and done with the itches and stitches!
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Val, congrats! The 5-year mark is very special! Wishing you can put BC behind you - forever!
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Val congrats!!!!
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Andrea, hope you kicked that cold/sniffles to the curb.....if so, my hope, my heart, my hugs will be with you tomorrow....may everything come out Perfect!
Love,
Di
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Andrea623 - Good luck tomorrow!
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Thanks for the good wishes! I'm supposed to be at the hospital at 6 am, so we'll be leaving in half an hour. I didn't get much sleep last night. I'm more nervous than I was before the exchange! I worry about my radiated side having healing problems. Can't wait for this to be over!
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cjc - congratulations on your arrival on the squishy side! What a relief,huh? I'm glad you're happy with the feel and hoping you continue to be content with the look too!
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Congratulations, Andrea! I hope you are feeling fantastic. Sending up prayers for quick, happy, healthy healing!
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andrea hope things are going well. Cj glad you and your foobs .are free!
Purple I hope you heal fast.
Much live to all
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Moon..... - Your last line made me smile. I think you meant to type "Much love to all" but it came out "Much live to all". I like that just as much!!!
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LOL. I kinda like that line too!
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Just stopped in to say hello. Glad to see you are all still coming along so well. I am making plans to get my diep done. I am taking several months off from cancer and surgery. Even though I am so uncomfortable I just needed some downtime. I met a woman on another support site that had the same exact symptoms as mine (extreme iron bra), and she went as far as to have her implants removed and tried to go flat, but still had the iron bra. She finally found a doctor who told her what was wrong. When the did her bmx with expander placement the cut your muscle away from your ribcage and put implant underneath. On some of us the muscle kind of rolls up a bit and makes it very tight and inflexible. She lived like that for 6 years till this PS put all her muscles back they way they belonged and then did a diep. She has happy, pain free and has beautiful breasts. So, I pray that is the ending to my long ordeal too.
I am telling you all this story incase other women come through here with the same problem, and you can steer them in the right direction. I might get one more opinion from a PS that is pretty well known in the area for implant reconstruction and ask him if he thinks he can reposition my muscles so I can still have implants, but much less tightness. But, the way things are going it will probably be the diep. Quality of life is most important. Isn't that why we are doing all this in the first place?
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goldie - Just curious - was your implant reconstruction done with or without a support sling (Alloderm, etc)?
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Yes, I had alloderm, why do you ask?
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Hi goldie - I have slings as well. If I understand correctly the severed pectoral musles are attached to the slings. You mentioned that the PS told you that the edge of the muscle can roll up and possibly be the cause of the "iron bra" pain that some women develop. I hadn't hear this before. I was just wondering if that would be more or less likely to happen depending on if the muscle is attached to a sling or not.
Please take care...
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Hello, ladies! I'm sorry I can't read through all the fantastic posts...but can a few of you let me know how long your PS put you on disability for your exchange surgery? I was out 6 weeks for my BMX and assumed the exchange would be the same...but I read somewhere that it's typically only 10 days! My company subsidizes my CA SDI so I'm not out any money...therefore I'd like to take as much time off as possible so I can hang with my toddlers. TIA for the info!
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Mine didnt care, I put in for 2 weeks off. Probably more than I need, at a sitting/computer 911 job. The surgery and recovery have been a breeze compared to my bmx.
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Mine required 2 weeks but probably would have been willing to order more if I had asked for it. It was also no driving for those 2 weeks plus continuing weight restrictions for another 4 weeks. (I didn't obey the no driving order
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So, I just had my first shower since my exchange a week ago. Had a chance to really examine myself and take a long look in the mirror. I know it is way too early to judge, but I had me a good old cry! Of course, I am still swollen and black and blue from the fat grafting, but I am seeing something I wasn't prepared for. When I raise my arms up the implant wrinkles/ripples show through my skin. Does anyone else have this? Will this eventually go away? I am thankful I was able to have NS BMX and overall they look really good. I guess I wasn't expecting to see the wrinkles/ripples through my skin. I suppose as long as I look good in a bra and shirt I need to be thankful. Could use some encouragement this morning. These are definitely NOT the Baywatch babe implants I imagined.
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cjc1961 - Awww, Cheryl, please don't cry. It's way too early to be upset about the look of your new foobs. (Although I did the exact same thing.) Step away from the mirror and give your body a chance to heal before you judge too harshly. I'm a month out today and still waiting for mine to line up. You'll be amazed at all the changes in a week, or even a few days. Try to be patient and give it some time. Hugs to you!
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cjc - Give it time sweetie! Are you sure it's the implants that appear to be wrinkling/rippling and not that nasty extra leftover skin/tissue/flab we call 'mud flaps' or 'dog ears'?
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Yes, it is the implant because it is right on the front of each breast not under the arm. I will give it some time.
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just got back from my first post-op visit. The PS lipo'd off a big fat pocket on the upper part of my breast, cut out a lot of scar tissue and replaced the implant with a slightly smaller one. Although I have pain from the surgery, that side looks and feels better already. I can't wait to see how it looks when the swelling goes down.
I'm off work for 2 weeks. Guess I'll catch up on my Netflix shows!
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Cheryl, if I flex my pecs, you can see weird ripples in my implants. Remember, we don't have any breast tissue to cover them, so they won't look as smooth as an augmentation. When I'm dressed, no one can tell, and quite frankly, if they did notice, I'd wonder why they had their face in my boobs anyway. As the other lovely ladies have said, they will continue changing. Gentle hugs for you!
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Yes, the lack of breast tissue and also sometimes there's not much fat left under the skin either. I do occasionally notice slight rippling in a couple of spots but it's not too bad and it's only when I'm nekkid that I can see it.
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Cheryl - The BS has a very tough job trying to decide where the breast tissue ends and the skin and underlying fat begins. If you are slender and don't have much of a fat layer to begin with there is the potential for rippling. I have rippling in one particular area on my cancer side. The skin has been a bit patchy/darker in that area since MX. My BS remembered "having to take it down pretty close" in that area so I know there is less fat there.
As everyone else wrote, try to focus on healing right now because things will be changing and you're not "done" yet
Take good care of yourself!
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