Exchange City
Comments
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Frostecat, I went back to work at 3 weeks, and ended going home early, and missing another day of work. At four weeks, I'm feeling better, but the nerve pain is horrible! I left work after an hour and a half today cause my breast feels like it did after radiation. Feels like a very bad sunburn and is so uncomfortable! I'm fortunate to have a supervisor whose sister went through BC treatments, so he understands.
Sandra, it's so easy to overdo it when we think we're feeling better. No more opening the sliding glass door! Rest up and heal.
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I only had the exchange as my reduction and lift on the other side was done at the time of UMX, but my PS had to do a lot of pocket work and clean up a lot of scar tissue I had formed while I had my TE. He wouldn't even let me drive until 3 weeks and would have released me next week at the 4 week mark but he will be at a medical conference next week and wanted to see me one more time before releasing me. While I feel good overall, I am still sore where my "mudflap" was removed on the implant side and can feel the results of the pocket work if I reach too far. So I'll be back to work at 5 weeks and will start mid week.
I need to go for a good bra fitting and think I'll try to do that next week.
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How long does it usually take to know that your swelling has gone down after exchange? I had a lot of pocket work done to make sure these Allergan 410s are tight in there and only had pain the first night. It was a 3 hour surgery and I had drains for one week. My right upper is a little fuller and I think that is due to it being my non-cancer side and my PS wasn't as aggressive as my surgeon for the cancer side. I'd like to get fitted for bras but don't wnt to do it too soon and then have to toss them later on. Any suggestions for me please?
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Grammakathy, I am sure it varies for everyone but I have heard 3 months is a good amount of time. Although the lady at Von Maur told me 6 months! I am sure someone will come along here who is farther out than I am who can tell you their experience. I am only 4 weeks out myself.
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At three months all the swelling should be gone plus the 410's, like other implants, take a few months to smooth and round.
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Thank you Sandra! I do still feel a little blocky - like someone needs to iron the seams in the darts in my top. I had a couple of small lumps in one of my seams and Scar Away looks like it has helped settle them down. So far so good!
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Grammakathy. I like "so far, so good."
Hope you are taking pictures. Nobody believes you when you end up with beautiful results but tell them you had square mounds that were crooked. I'm one week out from surgery #5 and this set of implants looks much better than my last set. No flat spots, no rippling. I do have a weird dent at the sternum, but if it doesn't go away, I'll learn to love it.0 -
I am about 2 1/2 weeks out of exchange surgery and already my non cancerous side is so much smaller. I had lat flap done on left cancer side. It is very noticeable. Are there any options to fix this.
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I am taking pictures but want to wait to post them! They aren't horrible looking but I know they will look more settled in a few weeks. I'm still wearing tight bras 24 hours a day and I have lines from that adding to the overall effect.
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Yesterday marked one week out from surgery #5 and surprisingly I had the worst night of the whole week. Although I was tired, I couldn't sleep. Everything hurt, the drain entry site throbbed and both sides of my chest were suffering from phantom limb syndrome. I could FEEL pain in my breasts...but they aren't there anymore. The nerves on one side had started to wake up earlier in the week since the electric "zots and zaps" had started. Last night both sides were wide awake and setting off fireworks. I couldn't get comfortable in bed no matter how many pillows I had. Couldn't get comfortable in my recliner either. Couldn't be on either side...it hurt. Couldn't be on my back...that hurt too. I finally sat on the edge of the couch with three couch pillows stacked up on the coffee table and my forehead holding them in place. Pathetic.
I finally said to hell with it and took another dose of Tylenol even though it had been only 2 hours. Great...I sacrificed my liver for sleep...dumb choice. Upper abdomen decided to complain and cramp up. The pain became ferocious that I broke out in a sweat got dizzy, and slipped to the floor. I considered going upstairs to wake up my husband to take me to the ER but upstairs was SO far away. Well, obviously I wasn't dying...the cramping went away. After a while I was able to go back upstairs, prop myself up with every pillow I own so that I wasn't on my back but wasn't on my side either - and finally fell asleep about 4 a.m.
Today has been better. Having football on t.v. to distract me has helped. Recovery from surgery is such a pain sometimes. Literally.
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Turtle, did you have a mastectomy on only one side or are your implants different sizes? If not, it is certainly possible to have lots more swelling on one side. I also have noticed that each side has it's own healing schedule. Sometimes one would look weird and the next day it was the other side.
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Oh Sandra, what a night! I'm glad you didn't get hurt when you fell! I hope a night like that doesn't happen again, and you can get your rest.
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Has anyone else gained weight and is having a hard time losing it? This year I've put on 12 pounds that doesn't want to budge. My pants are all too tight and I can only squeeze (barely) into two pairs. I'm still feeling a lot of fatigue, and feeling rather discouraged about it all. Sorry for the complaining.
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Andrea, you've had a tough time of it with lots of trauma and recovery time. Many of us gain weight in those situations. I sure did...and then some. Also people like me who self soothe with food are even more likely to gain weight. (It hurts even though I took pain drugs so maybe a cookie will make me feel better.) In Janaury 2013 I was a fit, just turned 64 year old woman, working as an accountant all day and kicking butt by teaching two hours of Zumba and Pilates classes every evening and weekends. My husband and I were also ballroom dance instructors, teaching Friday/Saturday evenings. Then it all came to a screeching halt when I had a moderate brain stem stroke and couldn't see or walk straight. A month later I was diagnosed with a large aneurysm in the ascending aorta of my heart and told open heart surgery was the only way to fix it...unless it burst first and killed me...but it probably wouldn't burst this year so we'll just wait and see. In the meantime, keep blood pressure down and stay calm. Four months after that I had a regular mammogram and you know the rest. Three life changing events in 6 months! Stay calm? Oh sure. I'll have a BAG of cookies, thank you. Through the next five breast surgeries and recoveries, I've continued to gain slowly but surely. Even when I've made a conscious effort to eliminate carbs (which always used to work) the best I can do without exercise is a piddley 1 lb after two weeks. In 19 months, I've gained over 30 lbs. I feel your pain, girl.
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Gained 15 lb in a year. Sucks is right.
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Today at work, I had my pants unbuttoned by 9:30. Thank goodness for long shirts!
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I gained close to 20 pounds since February. I had to buy new pants but I am determined to get it off.
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After being diagnosed in January, I lost 15 lbs in three months due to the stress of it all. I was 30 pounds overweight at the time so I felt great and thought I could keep the scale moving downward with the hope of losing another 15 lbs. It is now six months since my BMX and I have gained all the weight back. It is just so discouraging. I am determined to lose at least 10 lbs before my exchange in a month and hopefully keep the scale moving after the exchange. It was a beautiful fall day in PA today so I took a three-mile walk.
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Even after 4 pregnancies Ive been the same weight since 2000. From January until June I gained 20 pounds! I was like Wth is going on?!
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I've gained weight too. I think it's a combo of being inactive during all of the recoveries and too sore to move too much. For me after being diagnosed it was a combo of sympathy and a what the hell I don't care attitude to my eating. I felt like it was something that couldn't be taken away from me since I was losing control of everything else.
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I've heard others describe it as "eating your feelings."
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I gained 20 pds.
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via Juliecc
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me too since January 24lbs,,,,,, I was also feeling great and working 5 days a week, bartender and waitress, lost 15lbs the first 3 months I was back to work,,,,started back in August 2013 DX November 2013. Been out of work since,,,,, can't wait for this reconstruction to be done with!!! And get back to work,,,
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Frostcat, I totally see how you feel. In my case, I was already overweight and had been trying to cut back and had actually lost a little and then in June, this all hit. I remember early on before I had my surgery, being at the grocery with my husband and him saying he thought he would get ice cream and what kind did I want. I said oh, I don't want any and he said you can eat some. I said sure I can, I can eat anything I want, I might not even be alive much longer. Of course, he just looked at me as if I had lost my mind and said why are you talking like that but its how I felt. Then, July, surgery and having to lay around for 4 weeks didn't help. I finally said I have to go back to work before I can't even get up. But I have another surgery for the exchange coming up and due to my meds, I am stiffer even than normal and not sure what I can and can't do, since too much arm movements cause pulling in my chest. I know I need to exercise but its hard to know what to do what not to do and I've had knee replacement so walking doesn't work for me.
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my exchange surgery will be october 29, 2014 on the mast. side, with fat transfer/lipo from tummy, plus reduction of left side. dr. said i don't stay overnight, but hubby worried.
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I thought I had the 410 implants, but it turns out mine are Sientra shaped high profile 320 CC. Am I the only one with them?
This weekend I am going to break down and buy new pants. I can't keep unbuttoning mine at work!
Scary, while I haven't had a reduction or fat grafting, I came home the same day after all my exchanges. I'm sure you will too. Your date is just a little over 2 weeks away! Are you getting excited?
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Andrea, yes, getting excited, and a bit nervous. but i am most excited about the left side reduction.
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Andrea623, there are a few that have Sientra shaped. I am one of them.
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I'm getting the Sientras on Friday!!!!! That's my exchange date
Babs
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