Exchange City
Comments
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Welcome, bebotx, you fellow Texan! The length between your final fill and your exchange will depend a lot on your skin. Most ps's allow that "breathing time" for the skin to relax before the implants are place - otherwise there's risk of the skin contracting and truly messing things up. So, just trust your ps - he/she'll be watching how your skin expands to your expansions and will base your exchange date on that. It's extremely doubtful that you'd have to wait more than 3-4 months, though. Congrats on moving so fast - Wow!
Lilah - my dad's a doc (retired), too....and my dh.....insurance is not something you discuss at OUR dinner table! When I looked at my bill for my last surgery - only received a portion of it, though - it made me mad how little they paid my ps......differing opinions, I know....
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Happy to help, Katey! Be careful, though, those latent anesthesia effects can catch up with you!
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Thanks val61. It's hard at this point to believe these half-coconuts will ever be soft again and patience is not one of my strengths!
In 2008, after my aunt was dx at stage IV we learned about the BRCA2 mutation which my mother, my aunt, my sister and I carry. Luckily my 2 adult daughters do not have it. BC took my mom, my MIL, two other aunts, and my BRCA2 aunt is struggling in stage 4. My sister was dx with stage I and is a 6 year survivor. I am so glad to find this site and so many strong women.
Betty
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Betty - Blessings on your family.....so much heartache......your daughters are indeed lucky.....you are strong to have taken the steps you have to beat that darn gene.....0
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Hi Katey - I'm here, that's about all. Trying to read all the posts, but too depressed to attempt to provide any advice or humor. Thanks for asking
xo, E
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((((((((Grakenmom))))))) - Please, please don't be depressed!! It is WAY too early to jump to any conclusions. I imagine many of us would have felt the same as you, but were "lucky" enough to woke up from surgery completely bandaged up...... Please let yourself rest and heal for awhile....0
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Colleen - I have had "sticker shock" first hand after my Dec. exchange/nip surgery. This was my 4th surgery for this journey and had the implants from the Oct. surgery removed and larger ones placed as the pockets had gotten too large. The hospital/surgeons bills were over what my insurance co. pays without going to a re-nsurance carrier. I was billed $34,000 by the hospital and the insurance co. has asked for letter of need, etc., etc. as well as all of my breast medical records. They have also pended the payments to the surgeon and anesthesiologist. It makes my blood pressure go up to think of it. My HR lady assures me that the insurance co. (we are non-profit organization with self insurance) is very well aware of my whole case and as soon as they get the info requested, they will pay. I hope this is the case, but my PS billing person is dragging her feet and I actually confronted her and asked what I needed to do to help push things along. Told her if she wanted PS paid she needed to get on the ball. The office staff is also trying to push her along. Hope so since I certainly cannot pay this bill. I only shudder to think what ins. co. would be doing had I needed chemo and radiation.
To everyone else having procedures in the near futures I am sending warm gentle hugs your way for good outcomes. To those not quite up to par yet, hope you are getting some relief and healing more each day.
Even after 2 months since last surgery, the cumulative effects of anesthesia from 4 surgeries are still catching up with me. Still tired and at the end of work day am very tired and have little energy. I am also overweight and the anesthesia is fat bound from what I have read so may be slower to get out of system. - Oh well, I am grateful for what has been a good outcome for me.
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Val - it just doesn't seem right to me that there is a sliding scale of payment. I don't blame you for being mad about how little they paid your PS! Speaking of having doctors in the family: when I was growing up what WAS discussed at our dinner table were symptoms of diseases (some of them very weird) between my dad and my brother (an aspiring doctor who became a gastroenterologist). I have a very strong stomach thanks to that sort of dinner talk!
Betty -- I echo Val's blessings on you and your family; so sorry that you have all had to endure this.
Grakenmom -- sending you HUGS as well... and sorry you are down. I hope you feel better soon.
As for me -- I honestly can't tell whether my increased forgetfullness is the result of anesthesia or chemo. I work through it and keep hoping it gets better. (And revel when I can remember something before my boyfriend can lol)
Lilah
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Grackenmom, I am so sorry you are disappointed. I hope you see changes soon that give you encouragement. It's frustrating, we go through a lot with bc, surgeries, chemo, and loss. Then we busy ourselves learning everything we can trying to make the best decisions for our changed bodies. It's hard, but with so many women with positive outcomes, I have hope for you and the rest of us.
I am nearing the end of my fills, at 650 and 710, trying to get to 800cc which is 200cc overfilled per my PS instructions. I only saw him post op and will see him again when my fills are complete so I depend on my nurse for guidance. I am torn with trying to get all the way to 800ccs for an exchange to 600cc's. Seems big for where I'd like to end up, I feel huge right now. But with so many reporting that they are somewhat disappointed with the initial exchange, maybe going bigger is the way to go? My PS says 550/600cc's will make me a small C which seems big to me from a small B. I guess I'll go for it.
As much as I hate these hard TEs, I like the fullness and projection, strange as it is. I can see that it could be a shock after exchange when much of the projection is reduced. When I told my nurse I like some upper pole fullness with the implants, she said that I wouldn't get that since all my breast tissue has been removed. "So it won't be like augmentation"-her words. I said I was only looking for some fullness. She indicated that there would be a significant slope even w/ a round, high profile implant.
Wishing all of you post op ladies the best. deekaay
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Hello all-
I've got a question for the post-exchange ladies. I'm wearing the Warners Elements of Bliss bra, but I'm having trouble with tightness along the tops of my foobs, since they are still pretty high (and I get red groove marks where the bra digs in). Do you have any recommendations for underwire bras or bras with good support? It seems like with my Allergan implants (style 15 with 397 ccs), I'm around a 36D, a step up from my previous 36B. Perhaps I should go to Nordstroms to get fitted, but my PS told me not to spend a lot of $ on bras right now b/c my foobs will be changing in the coming weeks.
Still tired, but the pain is better. Katey and Grakenmom, I hope that you are feeling better! Kimberly, I hope that you had a fun day today! Good luck to those of you with TEs - the implants are really quite lovely and soft.
Kristen
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deekay: Does this mean you did not have a simple mastectomy? Why can't you have upper pole fullness? I've seen other women end up with a lot of upper pole fullness. It depended on their implants and/or whether or not they had a simple mastectomy. Deborah may be able to help you more.
I am also liking the fullness of my TE's. I already have more than 600 cc's. I thought I was going to look like a monster, but they kind of look good under clothes. So now I'm thinking will 550 cc implants be sufficient?
While I was having my fill the other day, I asked my PS if he ever reconstructed a stage IV patient. He said, "No, but I had to repair someone's flap yesterday. It was not a cosmetic job, her cancer had spread all over the chest wall."
I must have looked really shocked, so he added, "So you are right in doing everything you can to beat this - so it won't come back."
The reconstruction part of this journey has made me forget about the deadliness of cancer, but my PS's anecdote jolted me back to the possibility of another recurrence or worse, metastasis. And then I felt a little better because chances are the cancer will not come back. The odds are for me. I'm still lucky because I DO get a chance to reconstruct what the beastly disease managed to destroy.
Thanks for allowing me to share.
Take care.
Brenda
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Kristen do you have some good sports bras
that's what I wear 80% of the time
just sharing Feb 27th will mark 2 years since my mastectomy
looking forward to saying 20 years someday : )
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Sandy... As Feb 27th comes and goes.... you will not..
.. ( sick Laura Humor)... YOU BEAT CANCER Sandy!!! YES YOU DID!after mucho pain myself... I want to extend a great big.. " I AM SOOOOOO SORRY YOU HAD TO HAVE A MASTECTOMY".... The reason we remember this day is that it was sooooooooooooooo hard for us all... in different ways..
Love you Sunshine!
Ladies... prayers for all!
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Hey Kristen!
I had a great day - thanks for checking. Hope you took a good nap and did something for yourself!
I am sorry your bra is digging into your skin... that isn't comfortable... Maybe you're going to be a DD? never know!
My friend and I were talking about going to Nordstroms to get fitted at lunch today. I have tried on so many bras and look forward to finding a soft everyday comfortable bra. I will have to keep an eye on the coverage and see where it rubs - thanks for the heads up.
Brenda - it is a reality check when a recurrence of cancer is noted. Tonight at support group we found out that one member has decided to stop treatment. In 2007 she has a bi-lateral mastectomy with reconstruction (implants) and in 2009 she had inflammatory breast cancer come back and had all her reconstruction removed, did the chemo etc. Now she has chosen to stop treatment. I think she is leaving the hospital tomorrow.
It scares me to think after all I have done to be aggressive in my treatment choices, that I may face her choices too. I know it's rare, but makes me appreciate the little things all the more.
Grackenmom - Hope each day you are getting fuller! I am in a sports bra today and feel so smooshed flat... I can't wait to be able to wear a real bra and see what the new girls really look like! I am focusing on the soft squishy comfort! LOVE THEM!!!! wish they were a little bigger!
deekaay - the implants are so soft! and so comfortable! you will love the difference between them and the TE's. I have had mine for almost a week and they feel so natural to me. It seems like the TE's were so long ago!
Welcome Betty!
Deborah - I copied your >800 implant post and sent it to my PS and asked him to check on them for me! He asked me a few weeks ago if I would be interested in being bigger if they made a gel in a bigger size. I was so excited to see that info. You are amazing with all your research!
Kimberly
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Today was the day, according to the paperwork from my exchange surgery, that I have my final bra size. Quite by accident, since I had to go down in implant size, I wound up exactly the same size as I was before breast cancer. Tomorrow I see my PS and will ask her about a lift on my prophylactic side to match the rad size, and a couple other miscelleneous fixes. I have a permanent suture sticking out of the skin on the rad side, for example, that needs to be addressed. Also a fold near my underarm on the rad side that's not disappearing on its own. But overall, I'm growing happier with what I've got.
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Kristen, it sounds like you're still swollen. I wore the velcro surgical bra, and started with large barely fitting to a few days ago not enough velcro to close. So in 2 weeks I shrunk close to 2" in width. I found the velcro comfie cause I could adjust in front, closer or looser on top and bottom thruout the day. Same with you Kimberly, I would think even tho you're feeling so great that it's a little early to be fitted. Tho a trip to Nordstom's sounds fun!
Love my size and fill in the c better than before:) Last implant left a gap, not these nice high profile ones! I just lived with my uneveness for years, it got to me at times, but mostly just wore the molded VS bra which helped even me out. In the big picture it wasn't that big a deal. At times thought maybe I should have gone with the tissue type of recon, but the hours of that surgery scared the heck out of me!
Grackenmom, I wish you were near so I could give you a huge gentle hug. It's so difficult going thru all that we are. Know that we are all here for you and each other!
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Hi Katey!
I picked up 2 pretty bras this week, but asked the clerk about returns. I told her I had to get my plastic surgeon's approval on them. I have 60 days to return them with the receipt.
I have them in the bag with the tags on - for now it makes me happy to just look at them. I am not supposed to wear under-wire for 2 more weeks. I did try them on again today just to feel good!
They were not properly fitted, but it was 5 days post op when I bought them... I think if I go to Nordstroms each time I get measured it will be a bit different right now.
I am still wearing Velcro front surgical bras, but had not done laundry yesterday so I pulled out a few sports bra tank tops. I am not sure which ones I like better, but now at least I can go 5 days in between doing a load of whites.
Grackenmom - big hugs to you!
Kimberly
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Katey, I'm with you on the flap surgeries. I just can't get my mind around doing that even though I've seen some awesome results and I know many women who are happy they went that route.
I haven't bought a new bra since I was diagnosed, except for some really soft ones to wear after the drains were pulled and I was really sore/swollen. I suppose I should wait until after the nipples are done?
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Grankenmom, Huge hug to you! Hang in there, I'm a little over a month out and still going back and forth day by day (sometimes hour by hour) weather I'm okay with my results. It's an adjustment, be open to the possibility that it's better than you think or you'll never see the possibility. Hang in there!
Deekayy, I kept hearing that I should go larger than I wanted to for the exact same reasons. I must say I wish I had listened but my PS and DH talked me into smaller (it'll look more natural is what they said). I look good naked and look awesome in a bra. When I was fitted for a bra they sized me as a C but I have to wear a D and I look like a B in clothes. My biggest complaint right now is that I want to look good in clothes (that's where I am most of the time) and while looking like a B looks ok, it's very average, I don't want to look average after all this junk! So, my advice is go a little larger than your instinct, these things look a little like a running bra in clothes so you'll need the extra umph. If naked is your priority than disregard that advice. Just my experience.
Kristen, My PS told me not to buy bras too early either. But one pretty bra feels so good, I had to wear ugly ones the whole time I was expanding so I think spend the money if it makes you feel good even if it's only a temporary bra. I have found the Modern Movement and Wacoal both have wire free bras with good support. Both are at Dillards. I had no luck at Victoria Secret. But found a couple at Soma but wasn't as impressed with the support in those.
Julie
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JULIE & KIMBERLY - I heard back from my ps nurse today - Nipple technique my ps used was the "modified skate". Hope that helps you out. Good luck in your quest for the PERFECT NIPPLES.
HUGS, Dawn
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Hey Dawn!
Thanks for the nip procedure name! I see my PS next Friday for my exchange post op visit. I am sure we will talk bras and nips!
We definitely need to go bra shopping when we get together in Fredricksburg!
Big Hugs!
Kimberly
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Kristen: I was just going to tell you "sports bra" and that is what Sandy suggested above. That would be the best for you right now and it will be something you can still wear after the implants have done all of their "stuff" - settling, fluffing, dropping, etc. The Moving Comfort Maia would be nice for you because it fits higher on the chest and does not cut into the upper pole. It does encapsulate the breasts, however, which is what you want!. Amazon.com carries it and if you can find the right size on Ebay, you can save money. I think it is $35.00 on Amazon.com.
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Deekay - unless there is some surgical reason (result from your mast) for the ps's nurse to say that, she is wrong - reconstructed breasts can ABSOLUTELY have upper pole fullness! Now, there is a slope, as she said, (which is desirable, IMO) but not many people really want that Betty Boop look anyway! If you have access to the pic site, you'll see lots of us who do. Might be worth a little discussion with your ps......
Kristinka - I'd stay away from VS - at least this early. Their bras just don't offer enough support, which is what you really need for the next couple of months. Like Julie, I wasn't impressed with Soma, plus they don't really make one that fits me anyway. Both Nordstroms's and Dillard's (or some dept store equivalent in your area) should have experienced fitters. That's probably your best bet. The thing to remember about underwire is that it needs to fit completely around the base of the implant - too small a cup size and the wire will push on the lateral aspect of the implant and could displace it. My ps chose a Chantelle bra - I'll find out the exact style for you - for my friend. Wacoal is also good.
Sandy - Two years, girl!!!! WOOOHOOOO!!!!
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I had my last major checkin with my PS yesterday before exchange surgery in March and he asked if I wanted to do a nipple at the same time as my exchange. I had assumed that would be later, so I didn't have an answer. It seems to me like I should wait a bit because my implant size/placement is likely to shift some after the exchange based on all I read here, so a nipple done at the time of exchange might end up asymmetric (I'm a uni-MX and trying to match my other side). I'm not quite sure I even want to do the nip anyway, so I'm doubly inclined to wait. Those of you who've gone through all...does waiting make sense or am I being overly cautious?
Warm thoughts and hugs to everyone who is recovering from recent procedures!
cs
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Kimberly: I am trying to find out WHO has those Sientra cohesive gels in clinical trials here in the U.S. Someone has got to have them.....but why are women not getting them? Perplexing to me. Perhaps your PS was referring to Sientras when he mentioned this to you....
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Thanks so much for the bra advice! My PS said I had to start wearing a bra with good support and defined cups just two days after surgery - so no sports bras or surgical wraps for me. He doesn't want anything squishing me down... The Warners Elements of Bliss is feeling much better today - I think some of the swelling has gone down and it doesn't cut into me as much on top. Maybe I can make it a few more days before going to Nordstrom and getting fitted for another.
How long does it take these foobs to settle, in your experience? I've heard several weeks to several months. I don't really want mine to settle or drop or fluff that much!!! I like them right where they are, which I didn't expect.
Kristen
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Foreveryoung bras by Kathleen Kirkwood available at QVC.com are soft, beautiful, soft wire, lift and separate and great colors and linings. I've even used one for exercise. Worth a look.
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Purportedly, Dr. Steven Teitlebaum has access to all three mfr's in clinical trials with gummy bear implants, e.g., Allergan, Mentor and Silimed/Sientra. [Sientra purchased Silimed] and on his webpage is a link to others who have all three in clinical trials. I believe there are more, but perhaps they are connected to Dr. Teitlebaum in some way....which is why only certain states are represented on this map.
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Kristin~
If you want to find something comfy & very reasonable for now ..I found a sports bra at JCPenny...their brand called Underscore was perfect for me. It has a zipper front closure & give good support. Although it was recommended to wear a sports bra for at least a month post exchange, I still wear mine to sleep.
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IMO:
Nipples and Exchange... BAD IDEA... things will shift and drop..move for a few months.
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