Exchange City
Comments
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Lisa Jayne, there's about half an inch around the incisions with little to no feeling. On my right side, which was redone on Wednesday, I have a large numb spot. I wonder if any feeling will come back there?
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DiZZyMom - My PS gave me the choice. She gave me a list of pros and cons for each and I went with silicone. I'm only a month out from exchange, but so far so good. I wish I could be of more help, but I don't have anything solid, I just didn't like some of the things about saline... Someone will come along soon with more factual information on this, I'm sure. Good luck to you!
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All I know is I didn't have a choice. I needed saline. Because you need an MRI every 2 years to check silicone implants I can't do that as I have a pacemaker. So by default Saline implants. So far I like them.
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DiZZy - I think you'll find that the majority of women on these threads who have implant reconstruction have silicone. But, those who have saline seem happy. Saline will tend to ripple more, but apparently are warmer. Also, the silicone are only made up to certain sizes so if you need or desire larger than what's offered saline implants are available. There are different silicone implants available now than there were years ago, there have been improvements in the shells as well as the filler itself. I have silicone implants and have some minor rippling due to thin skin so I imagine my ripples would be worse with saline.
Hope your surgery goes smoothly!
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I have silicone rounds, and I've heard they can feel cold. Mine have sometimes felt cool to the touch, but never cold. And I'm one of those women who thinks 70 degrees is chilly! When my PS showed me both silicone and saline implants, I preferred the feeling of the silicone. So did DH. Although part of me thinks he was enjoying playing with them just a little too much!
The silicone implants used today are not the ones which had leaking problems in the past. They're a cohesive gel. You can cut one in half and no fluid comes out. It's like tough jello. Because I have thin skin, my PS thought they'd be better for me; less rippling.
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thank you all for your feedback! I have pre-op appt tomorrow and want to be armed with good info
How was your recovery compared to MX? I had complications with mine,had to go back into surgery and didn't get rid of my drains for 8 weeks! I'm so ready to have a matched set but not excited about another surgery.0 -
No comparison to bmx, the exchange recovery for me has been a piece of cake. Took pain pills for less than 24 hours, range of motion is the same as before, no pain at all since few days after the procedure.
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Dizzymom - I had the same post-exchange experience as Aviva. Very little pain, total range of motion, and hard to obey weight and driving restrictions because I didn't feel the least bit physically incapable. I figured I'd want to sleep the rest of the day but nope, I got home about 3pm and was still wide awake at midnight! Not everyone sails that smoothly through exchange. A lot depends on if there's pocket work or anything else to be done in addition to the TE/implant swap.
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I believe there is at least one person who had pain after exchange. But for most of us it was fairly easy. Like any surgery things can and will go wrong for someone. But usually things will go fine.
So far so good for me! Almost 7 weeks for me still ok.
Everyone stay warm and Much Love.
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I can't remember how much pain I had after my exchange. However, I had a revision last Wednesday; fat lipo'd off the top of my breast, scar tissue removed, and a smaller implant put in. I felt great the next day, but now have a lot of fatigue, and am quite sore, even from easy chores. I wish I was one of the lucky ones who felt like running a marathon the next week, but I'll just have to be patient and take it easy.
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My exchange was two weeks ago this Thursday and the pain I did have came from areas where fat grafting was taken and put in. No pain from the breast incisions or the actual exchange. My stomach is still very tender as that is where the lipo was done. Other than that, VERY easy surgery compared to the BMX.
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Yes, fat grafting would make a big difference in initial and residual pain. I did not have that. Mine was a basic swap with very minor pocket work to release just a bit more muscle so lefty would settle a little lower to match righty. I had just a bit of internal ache where the muscle was released. It's just another one of those things where there's no 'rubber-stamp' experience for any two of us. We each have our own unique experience with every single thing that comes along.
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I had pocket work at the exchange and pain medication was effective but needed. I scaled back my activity level even more than after the MX (I think I was too ambitious to get back to "normal") but at 2 months post exchange, I've now gradually begun running and working out again.
Cjc I'm sorry you are tender but glad you're doing well! My PS has suggested a revision and fat grafting and I'm very appreciative that you are sharing your experience! Thank you and continued healing!
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I hear a lot of people talk about how they are going back to have their "mudflaps" fixed (I assume lipo) sometime after the exchange. At my last appt, my PS and I were talking about exchange surgery and what was involved. He said he would likely do some liposuction on the sides to remove the "extra fat" (mudflaps). I was surprised to hear he would do this AT the exchange surgery, not after. Is this typical? I told him I've heard from many who have had this done, but not typically at the time of exchange. He was surpised to hear this and wondered why you wouldn't do it all at once. Does anybody know why this would/wouldn't be a good idea?
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My PS did it at time of exchange. He did not do it by lipo though. He surgically removed the mudflap as part of the incision.
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Yes, Alaris, hope all is going. Waiting for my meet the tattoo artist appt. Now let me see...what color shall I paint my chest?!!! Good grief.. maybe we should store all this at the MyLowes....lol
Seriously tho, has anyone seen the Chevy Purple roads World Cancer day campaign. Its awesome. They want to set aside a day at the beginning of Feb to celebrate survivors and encourage people to volunteer to help those in treatment. I think its awesome.
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Dizzy, I had saline first and just two weeks ago had exchange surgery to silicone. Silicone is softer and squishier. I also went from 650cc to 500cc which has helped with the constant pain I was experiencing. I'm only two weeks out so need to wait for my final evaluation but for now, wish I went with silicone in the first place.
mnmbeck I had lipo at the same time as my first exchange surgery from TE's to saline implants, last September. Frankly I don't know why anyone wouldn't do that at the same time. I wasn't awake for the lipo, obviously, but from what I've seen, it's quite a violent procedure and judging from the bruising, I can't imagine doing it any other way.
Amy
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Amy, how was your pain this time around? It seems when people have fat grafting, it's the lipo spots that are painful. Are you still bruised at 2 weeks out? I'm such a big chicken!!
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My Z P'S removed my left mudflap during the 2nd TE placement. He removed the right during my exchange. Long incisions!
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I had lipo/ fat grafting ...no fat from tummy since I had tummy tuck and 10lbs of skin removed 12 years ago after losing 129 lbs...PS took my fat from my both side butt cheeks...with just one poke on each side @ the bend in my leg...never really hurt unless I sat on something hard or not cushioned very well.
I had my mud flaps cut out as part of my masteoplasty as I had a lot of skin, post skin sparing after my BMX which was NOT removed during exchange, but a separ
Call me odd but I do have feeling all over my foobs and even on new nips....just not as intense as before BMX.....my BMX incision was vertical....and so was masteoplasty.
Di
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Di, congratulations on your weight loss! You're amazing! How are things looking now? I know you weren't happy with the position of your nipples. Will you have them redone? You have been through way too much not to have a pleasing outcome!
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Andrea,
nips are still hi/lo....foobs are hi/lo.... one nip bigger than the other but not longer, both just little nubs now, (would not win a wet tee shirt contest since they are tiny......even thinking I can ditch my cami bra --->which I am most comfortable wearing) since having thumb artroplasty 5 months before cancer, I have trouble hooking a bra....
I see PS tomorrow. I don't think I will redo nips....I think if cancer foob is fixed, lifted, they will even out.....My real nips were not even but they were pointing to the floor, low beams.
My cancer foob need MORE fixing...trying on swim suits for 10 day cruise to Sea of Cortez/Mexico in March.....and dents shows through, not nip.....will need to sew in bra/or into swim suit
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The cruise was fine. The weather wasn't so great but it was nice to be away, especially during the ice storm last week. Unfortunately in a nature preserve in Belize, a monkey decided to jump across a room and land on my chest. Of all places! Ouch! The guide said, "Oh, he just likes boobs" which was hysterical because I don't have any anymore! I found out that foobs are not fond of having 10-12 lbs of monkey launch himself from 5-6 feet away at the speed of sound and nearly knock me over when he landed on my chest. It was fine the next day, but sure did hurt for awhile.
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sandra - Oh my goodness - you couldn't have made up that story if you tried! I bet your PS would love to hear that one
Joking aside, so glad you're OK and glad you were able to get away even if the weather wasn't perfect. Yikes!!!
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mnmbeck - I had lipo on September 16th when I exchanged TE for saline - the pain wasn't awful. I had epic bruising but really that wasn't bothersome. It was nice to lose the back fat. The surgery on January 13th exchanged saline for smaller silicone and there was minimal pain with that. I don't know if I'm just a big baby but I am still feeling like my chest is in a vise. I feel constant pressure and pain, definitely not as much as before. Maybe I'll go for some more myofascial release. I see my onc tomorrow so if I ask, she'll order it.
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sandra4611 - OUCH!
You poor thing. Sorry you had to go through that, but so glad the pain didn't last too long and the little critter didn't do any real damage. Sorry the weather wasn't better for you, but as you said, you got to get away... 0 -
AmyQ, my exchange was Dec. 6th and I still have pain issues, so don't feel so bad. It takes more time for some of us, but it sure is hard to deal with pain for such a long time.
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Mnmbeck - my PS did lipo on my mud flaps at my exchange. She suctioned fat out to make them smoother and less bulky. They are black and blue and even a bit purple and were pretty sore the first week, but doing ok now. They are stil swollen but I'm not quite 2 weeks out so I'm sure they will go down a lot more. Hoping the fat she placed in my sunken spots above my breast doesn't reabsorb. If it does, she will do more fat grafting a few months down the road. Overall I am very happy with how I look. Once I am healed I do plan to get my nips tattooed darker. I had nipple sparing and they lost a lot of their color and are extremely light.
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Sandra. Only you could be felt up by a Monkey! LOL Sorry it hurt but it sure makes a great memory for you! LOL
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My exchange won't be for a while so I'm living vicariously through you....here's the million dollar question: after the exchange, can you lie on your stomach?
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