NOLA in September?
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Good luck tomorrow, Heather!
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Heather, wishing you lots of luck tomorrow. You're my "advance man" (I go in for Stage 2 in 3 weeks ...so I want to hear EVERYTHING!)
Stephanie, I had to pay too. But it was worth every penny!
Nordy, glad you didn't have to stress on that line. Looking forward to seeing you again soon.
Sandy, I will say your hello's to everyone and will try to make to the EnCourage meeting. I'll get the details when we get closer. Also, forgot to give you $ for the necklace! Thanks for the encouragement for Stage 2. You all made me feel great about my breasts!
Cider8, I have 7 year old twin boys and it was and is so hard to leave them...but as everyone else says it is worth it to be good to yourself. These days will long be forgotten by your kids, but the effects will long be remembered by you (you'll have perfect, warm breasts to remind you.) When I went to NOLA for Stage 1 I wrote a letter to the boys for each day I was gone. I figured out where I'd be in my journey (travel, pre-op, day of surgery, getting out the hospital, etc.) and wrote and printed the letters out before hand and left them in a pile by a jar of Hersey's kisses. There was one his for each boy for each day I'd be gone. At night after dinner they'd get a "kiss from mom" and a letter to read. I also skyped when I felt up to it (which was not every day - because of the time difference.) I think it really helped them (and me) a lot. The last letter said, that tonight they were getting a chocolate kiss from me and tomorrow night they'd be getting a real one! Maybe you can do something like that and it will make it a little easier on everyone. Also, looking forward to seeing you there!
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Heather may be done by now!
Healther, the DOM won't be so bad, honestly! And the lipo, the first 3-5 days are not a party, but you'll heal fast. Don't worry! Soon you'll be done!
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Thinking of you Heather and hope you are resting comfortably by now in the RR. (If not I'm sure you are resting comfortably in the OR:) I was worried about feeling stuffed into the DOM too, but it was ok. Maybe all the drugs help!
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(((Heather)))
Sally - I think we got a hold of the infection. It is still a bit painful but seems better (less red, ec) today. Good luck with starting back at work on Monday!
jeskachi- thanks for the words of encouragement.
I guess I had "sailed" through the previous 4 postop recoveries without issue. I definitely don't think it was related to the surgery itself (19 days ago!), I think I was probably doing to much which caused an iritation at the IMF which was then an entry point for the bacteria.
Here's to hoping I don't get c dif on the clindamycin!
Keep us posted when you can Heather!!! hugs to you!
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cider...I just found out that I will also have my diep on may 10th also with Dr. D...did they give you a list of what to bring? I just found out a few hours ago as mine surgery is kind of a rush as my MO wants me to start chemo asap ,so I was able to get in very soon..I know the feeling about leaving my kids (I have 3 boys) but I know grandma will be here taking good care of them...maybe we will run into each other on the 9th ! Dawn
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Dawn, I will add you to the listing, baove, okay? Let me know if there is anything else you want me to add?
There are a ton of you down there that week!!! It'll be like a party, well, nearly.
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Well just got a call from Katie and my date is now May 11th not 10th...sorry springtime
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ok... I have a question... How many surgeries do they do in a day... we have three women from this thread alone having stage I on May 11th... If the surgeries take 6-8 hours, how does that work??
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Good question.....I don't know and I am one of the ones having surgery on May 11th. I guess I will find out. I know at the moment i am scheduled to be at the hospital early on the 11th.
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I forgot to add that May seems to be a jumping month in NOLA. See you all there!
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Kathryn, they informed me today that the EnCourage meeting will be on May 17th, so I'm thinking you'll be in NOLA or on the way and you'll miss it! It's about lymphedema this time. Nordy, maybe you need to come back for the meeting....and I'm not playing catch up. New stuff comes up every day and I'm still working on getting my site fixed after I entrusted it to a company that fell short of what they promised to do for us. I was lured by a weekend of free webinars that were really helpful and a 20% off redesign coupon. The site looks great, but there are lots of bugs to work out in the advanced features we've added over the years. Today I finally contacted the genius programmer who did our last redesign. Every engineer I've spoken to at Yahoo has spoken so highly of him....I'll never stray again. Never settle for second best, never settle for second best....that applies to plastic surgeons too!!!
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bdavis, trying to figure this one out, myself. I asked specifically and they said that both docs are not in the OR together the whole time. One may start, harvesting the donor site or other stuff that is going on -- mastectomies,implant removal --, and the other joins in later while hooking up the flap. Left me kind of worried, though...
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Well, with three women on this thread all having surgery the same day, it makes one do some math.. I was thinking there would be 3 doctors in the room... one BS and 2 PS.. but i guess it only takes one to harvest?? And that is while the BS is doing the MX... But still seems like a busy day.
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Hi Sandy. Yes, I'll be doing my pre-ops on the 17th. But hopefully I can make it to the next meeting. Sorry to hear more troubles with the website, but it sounds like you're getting it resolved.
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don't be worried! they have the timing down to a science. you'll have all the surgeons you need when you need them.
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bdavis - Outside of the BS - the way I think it goes is that one PS harvests from each side (whether it is the hip or stomach). Then they switch sides and stay with the piece (is that what you'd call it?) that they harvested. So if they take the tissue from your right hip then they replace that in your left breast, and vica versa.) Now, how they do so many surgeries I don't know. I'm guessing with so much going on on May 11th they must have DellaCroce, Sullivan, Trehan and Massey. So maybe the first surgery doesn't need a BS (since maybe it is delayed?) and they can get started while the BS starts on someone else. Then they switch to that room when they're done with their first surgery. All guesses but it could work. Anyone have other info or thoughts?
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Ha! As one of the May 11th ladies, I am a bit disconcerted, too! Last I heard, I was still scheduled for Dr D, assisted by Dr S. But they have been doing this a long time, and I imagine they have it pretty well coreographed. (Hope) Mine is a delayed, Kathryn, so you may well be right. I don't need the BS, just the PS. Implants out, whatever is in there fixed, then tummy moved to boobs, all done! Easy peasy! My daughter is laughing at me because the whole thing is so weird to her - I am freaked out about the belly button stuff, and she keeps saying, "Mom, your belly is going to be your boobs, and you're dwelling on the belly button?!" She has a point!
Aside from all of us worrying/wondering about what surgeon is going to be where, is anyone else getting a little freaked? I am trying to be calm, but as each day goes by, the anxiety gets a little bigger. The whole thing still seems a little surreal. I am going to New Orleans and when I come home I am going to have breasts??? Weird. I will be so relieved to get these dang implants out, though, that is for sure. The right one (the good side) has gotten more and more painful since January, and the 4th doctor I have seen in 2 weeks (that is a whole other story) has said "they have GOT to go". So at least that re-confirms my decision to do this. But it also leaves me worrying - what is going on under there? I think at this point they are wondering too. My cancer was found incidentaly during a breast reduction, so I guess it just worries me even more what he will find when he takes the implant out. I still have to learn that lesson about not worrying about things that haven't happened yet. I'm sure my husband would be quite grateful if I ever mastered that skill.
Anyone want to come and pack for me?
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Oh Kaitsmom, I am more freaked by the millisecond! I am having my implants out and bilat diep, also -- one day after you. Not only am I walking around in circles trying to get in gear with packing for NO, but shortly after we get home I need to pack up the house that I have lived in for 18 years, raised my family in, etc ( imagine all the crap one accumulates in that time...) and move it to a new house. Ack. Don't know how Im going to do it... Wish I could pack for you and you for me. ( We'll make it fair... just the NOLA part!)
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I am feeling like I can't wait to wake up on May 25th and have breast!!!!!! I will go next week and have my labs done. i can't believe this is really going to happen real soon..... I wish some ladies from the board would be there around the 24th--
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Rogam - It is magic! Honestly it is!
Now I know I can't say anything that will make all the rest of you stop worrying. Just try to have faith in your doctors. They have everything perfectly choreographed and staggered so it all works out. There are lots of different stages in each surgery - you're right about that. There are also various prep procedures - like when they have to turn some of you over, for example. When you're turned over, it involves re-sterilizing and re-draping, and that takes a lot of time. And the surgeons don't have to hang around for all of these things. You also have the anesthesiologist doing his thing and the breast surgeon, too, depending on what's being done. And as you say, different docs working on different parts of your bodies at different times. It might make our heads spin, but it's routine for them!
Last October, 3 of us had surgeries on a Friday with Dr. DellaCroce. Not stage 1's, tho there have been other times when 3 of us have had stage 1's on the same day. Anyway, first Sandy from Paradise went, and then Springtime, and then me. Sandy had this huge list of things poor Dr. DellaCroce had to do for her, because she always has to have everything perfect, and wants to spend as much time sleeping with Dr. DellaCroce as possible. She was going for the record number of times, but I think I've at least tied her! Anyway, we all came out just great and had a ball being there at the same time.
And Sandy was in recovery (while I was waiting for Springtime to be done - I was last!), across the room from her. So she was complaining that I was "cackling" - that's actually the word she used - "cackling" too loud! It was pretty hilarious! Then we both were wide awake in the middle of the night and we talked for a couple of hours!
Be sure to put your screen names on your doors so you can find each other - even as soon as you put your stuff in your room when you get there (or whoever is with you, if they go up first). Take advantage of the pepsi and pina colada icees! And whoever is with you can have all the snacks they want from a very well-stocked snack area by the icees (and u can too)! And wait until you see the menu you get to order off of for your meals! They have a chef! And when you feel up to walking, you can trot over to each other's rooms and visit! And stroll around the hall loop, pausing to gaze down at the streetcars making their way down St. Charles Avenue and see the beads still hanging in the trees from Mardi Gras!
So focus on all the good stuff (not to mention your new breasts, for gosh sakes! Oh, and when they put the white stuff in your IV tube and you feel the most wonderful sense of relaxation ever!) and try to minimize your worrying about whether the docs (who are the best in the world - literally) know how to schedule their patients!
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Thanks Minnesota. That helps. This is my last full weekend at home before I head to New Orleans. I have so much to do here. Packing won't be bad for me. I have all my clothes ready, Just need to put them in a suitcase. It is getting all my work complete and my staff ready for my abscence and getting my place ready for me when i get back that will push me over the edge,
I booked two spa treatments for Friday to relax me before my flight on Saturday. I figured it will be my last one for awhile until my reconstruction is totally complete so I am going to enjoy it.
A facial and a body treatment.
i can't wait for the body treatment. I need a vacation in hawaii but since i can't do that this will be my substitute.
"Hawaiian Sea Salt Coconut Ritual The blend of Hawaiian Sea Salts and warm Organic Coconut Oil cleanses and purifies pores while revitalizing the skin."
OK off to clean my kitchen. Since I am up in the middle of the night I should accomplish something.
One more day and it will be May. Closer to surgery.
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1. I think it is normal to be nervous and get more nervous by the day. I did anyway! But at some point, I felt so much like CAN WE JUST GET THIS OVERWITH?? Focus on the fact that you will wake up and it will all be behind you!
2. What others said above, they seem to have the surgery and how many and who does what down to a science, and I bet you everybody goes through the same thing, we just don't always know all the ladies having surgery at the same time. This time we seem to know most on May 11!! If you are concerned CALL AND ASK about it. That's what I did. The thing is, they do it all the time, and it works!
Spring.
BDavis, I tweaked your entries, I hope they are correct now!
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Aaaaaw, THANKS Minnesota and Springtime. It really helps... My pulse just went down 10 beats
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Minnesota, and Spring, Thanks for the amazing words of support. Minn., it especially helps to hear all the detail as you wrote it. Now it sounds like a great girl's weekend away! Every time I start to get nervous, I will just re-read your posts, ladies, and think about the pina coloda icees! xo
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Well ladies, be sure to label yourselves so I can find you
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i have a few questions for our "big sisters"... I am starting to think about what to pack and what to have ready when I get home and I am wondering about clothes. Do you get dressed at all while in the hospital -- undies, pj bottoms, nighties, actual clothes? What sorts of things work best for leaving the hospital, hanging out during the days before post-op, traveling home? I know it is already hot in NO, so Im wondering about what tops can go over the hospital issue bra, and how bulky the bra is and same for the abdominal dressings and binder. Do abdominal drains stick right out in front or are they off to the sides? Also wondering if it is better to have bottoms that go below the abdominal incision or above it? As for undies, bikini panties or granny?
Though getting dressed may surely be the least of my problems, at least it is something I can control!! Thanks, ladies
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Don't worry about jammies or anything while at the hospital. You'll get a nice robe and footies for walking the halls and you seriously don't need anything else while you're there. I totally overpacked. I had a bilateral SGAP so I was discharged with a hip drain on each side. They give u a handy velcro belt thing with pouches hanging off of it that hold your drains. Picture a holster like the wild west. Lol. Diep girls... Aren't yours more in the front than on the side? Anyway ... After discharge, what worked for me were yoga pants and zip up jacket but it wasn't this hot. You want comfort ... Slip on pants or capris or shorts and a blousy or baggie shirt to cover drains and slip on shoes. Maybe a loose fitting sundress might b the thing and slip on shoes. If you can find something that zips or buttons up the front so u don't have to take it over your head, even better. But you'll be fine with a tee shirt. The bra is just a bra...hooks in the front... Not padded or bulky ....the undie question I cannot answer because I went commando i think once i was in the Dom Lol you need only pee in your pants once to make that decision (you'll understand that if you ever wear the Dom) lol Don't overpack and they are going to send you back home with a ton of supplies so leave room in your suitcase. Wow, lots of May girls. Good luck to all of you..... Enjoy your Icees!!!!
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I wish I would have taken just one change of clothes instead of the big suitcase for stage 1. I learned by the time I had stage 2. I took a couple t's, tanks, hoodies, lounge pants and flip flops the second go around. Nothing major. It's all about comfort. Also, for stage 1 I had no DOM at all. I myself am not a big fan of undies in general so I just wore my loung pants. The best thing for the drains for me were the nice thick ABD pads from the center. I put one of those over the drain and put the waist of my pants on them or taped them over it lightly. My drains were on each end of the belly incision so right on my hips.
Question for you ladies.... I'm trying to get in, in May or June to get the nipples done. What's the recovery like? What can I wear, when can I shower, swim etc....? I really hate to do it before Summer but with insurance I want to take this opportunity.
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Nipple recovery...hmmm... Well you'll have on the "nipple guards." They are these plastic things that protect your nipples that you tape on. Like something Madonna would wear! So that is why I always have used my "Big Bra" with really huge cups that will not press on the nipple guards, but that I can wear any top with and not look like I have large protruding nipples (tho it makes my breasts look 2 cupsizes larger. LOL!). But that's just me.
Also, they have you put bacitran ointment in the guards, and that will stain your clothes. You can tape guaze over the open ends, but it isn't fool proof. Be sure to have a top that you won't care if it gets stained. Then you could have another loose blousy thing that you could wear over that, that would kind of puff out so it disguises the nipples. So in the heat, you could wear a tank top (black would probably show the least stain) and then a sleeveless cotton poufy blouse over that.
For drains - you can move the pockets on the "holster" belt all around. So I have always just adjusted them for what I'm wearing. - toward the front or toward the back. I've also always brought a blouse that hangs long enough to cover the drains and tubes - like a maternity kind of blouse, but like are "in" now - I'm blocking on the name. You know what I mean. (Oh! Is it empire waist?!) And I also always bring my long-sleeved black sweater that I can tie around my waist. It totally covers the drains. In fact, you could even wear a short blouse, and then have a long-sleeved sweater or shirt to tie around your waist to cover the drains. Make sure this cover shirt is big enough that when you tie the sleeves around your waist, the shirt comes around your sides and preferably a little to the front - a man's cotton shirt would work really well for this! A sun dress also would be good, with something to tie around the waist to cover the bulk of the drains.
The bra they give you is not that bulky. It's pretty thin material and just provides some support - like a really loose sports bra. It's pretty and black. With the fashions today, it can totally show and it's okay. If you don't want it to show, tho, bring a top that isn't super low-cut. Also the straps are a little wide, but so what!
The dom comes partway down your thigh. Really, it looks like short leggings or tight shorts. I wish I knew how to post a picture here so I could show you my last year's Easter attire after stage 1 GAP! I totally wore the dom as lacy black shorts! If you aren't as daring, capri pants work too. I wore white cotton ones, and the black didn't show thru at all. Get shoes you don't have to tie, if possible. If you have DIEP, you don't want to have to be bending over to tie them - tho it's a wonderful opportunity to ask your helper to "please tie my shoes? It hurts to bend down..." (with a tinge of 'poor me' and then they rush over to tie your shoes for you!
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