NOLA in September?
Comments
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Rosemary. Let us know when you'll be down for your consult. I arrive on the 14th of June and leave on the 21st. So if we overlap we should get together! I can do a "show and tell" for you
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so cool! cos the 20th is one of the dates am trying to put together if not before...thanks for letting me know, it would be wonderful to meet up Kathryn!
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Rosemary - hope this works out!
Dragonfly - what are your dates?
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June 18 - June 24! Yours?
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June 14th - 21st
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Where are you from the 18-21st?? I think we'll get a hotel the 18th through the 21st, or after surgery. Haven't decided, probably before since my friend has never been to New Orleans
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Louis13,
I did go for a consult. I could not imagine having such a huge surgery without checking the Dr. Out. I wanted to know exactly what was doing to be done. I also had to go home and really think about it. I waited three years after having a single mast. I hated having one breast. I was also always afraid there was cancer. The other breast and sue enough there was cancer in that breast. I am very pleased with both breast.
Bettye0 -
well, first glitch is that Dr D only available on the 13th or the 27th...both are problematic for me, but doubt will go the 13th and still cross paths with you since this is day 4 after last chemo and that is not pretty....waiting on insurance for now and then seeing what i can sort..
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I guess I have a much more laid back approach to it. Funny because every single aspect in my life I analyze the he*& out of it! This, I got diagnosed, said lets do what's best and went with it. From chemo, to MX, to rads. I found this thread, talked to a few ladies, met Nordy, and was sold. I didn't give it a 2nd thought as to going there, or doing a consult. I wish the rest of life was this easy for me.
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thank you BettyeE, and very reassuring to hear that everyone is so pleased with their results too..
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Dragonfly - we are going to be at the Homewood Suites while you are there.
Rosemary - we arrive in NO around 5PM - so we can meet around 6:30PM. Not to dissuade you from seeing Dr D, but I was originally set to see him and he had food poisoning the day I was there - so I met Dr S instead. I could have stayed with Dr D but I didn't have any strong opinion about one over the other. In fact, I've tried to find out if there is any big difference and no one here or at the clinic has owned up to it. Someone did say they thought Dr S made bigger ones but I'm proof that that's not the case (I'm a large B and was hoping for a C...although I haven't had stage 2 yet!) Anyway, it's just a thought for you. Hope we can meet up.
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I had Dr S, that's just who the center set me up with. I didn't have a preference either way like you said Kathryn. I know Dr S said he'd make me a C+. I finally bought a bra the other day and had to buy a DD so not sure where the C+ went, but... I had plenty to work with too
What's the rate for you at the Homewood Suites?
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I think the Homewood is $139/night. We also stayed at the Bienville on our first trip for $99/night.
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So funny about Dr S making bigger ones! I actually requested Dr S based on my conversations with another patient who had him. So my breasts were F cups and I told Dr S I wanted C. And he said maybe a C+. Well I wake up and my breasts still seem huge! I asked him if I had much swelling and he said no... 10-15 percent. I haven't compared to my old bras yet. I am smaller, but not by much! My non cancer side is already shaped beautifully. I have some flap skin on my cancer side, but Dr S says he'll be able to get rid of it stage 2.
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Thanks Kathryn I'll look at the hotels this weekend and pick one!
That's funny Cider8, I know I woke up and was like WOW, these are huge. But I went a hear with nothing at all. Remember the scene from look who's talking, where she's pregnant and busting out of all her shirts because her breasts have gotten so big. That's what I felt like
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Rosemary... We have spoken about this, but wanted to reitierate my reasons for going down for a consult... I knew I was a borderline case for having enough fat and I wanted them to put their hands on my fat and say I have enough (or not as the case may be)... I did not want to get down there in July and find out I didn't have enough at all or that I would need a stacked DIEP and hadn't mentally prepared for that... It is all one's own comfort level... The perk is, I also got to see the rooms and meet Dr Stolier for a consult. I had a 9am appt with Dr D and a 1pm with Dr Stolier all on a Monday... I do recommend an early appt with Dr D cause I didn't wait at all and another woman Rhonda had an afternoon appt and waited for well over an hour... so I'd fly down Sunday and have the two appts on Monday and fly back Tuesday.
As for bi or uni... I am choosing bilateral for the following reasons:
- No more mammo/MRI/US/biopies
- They are already watching something in good breast
- I want symmetry
- I don't want to worry anymore
- And since I need to spend time recovering, I don't want to decide next year to do the other side and then have to recover again
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Oh.. and about ports... my last chemo was May 10 and my MO said I could get it out at 1 month, but i will wait for NOLA (July 21) cause they can pretty it up for me... and then its one less surgery as well.
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Okay - what I am learning is that these doctors can't be categorized!
BTW, I thought mine looked HUGE right after surgery (I have pictures from when I was still at St Charles and they were quite bodacious) but the swelling has definitely gone down a bit. They are still awesome but I'm hoping for a little more size in stage 2 if possible.
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Glad everyone is doing well.
Betsy - yes, I had had an hour and a half wait to see Dr. S. I agree a morning appointment is probably better. Still, for me, it was worth doing the consult. It helped me to see that Dr. S was confident that he could do a flap procedure on me, although it does seem like it will need to be stacked. Glad you were able to speak to a bunch of the stacked ladies. They helped me make my decision.
I have been out of town for my daughter's graduation this week so have been able to be distracted from my surgery coming up on Wednesday! Heading down to NOLA on Monday and have my pre-ops on Tuesday. Definitely nervous but will try to focus on packing instead of obsessing about how this is going to turn out. Stress level high!
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Bettye, How are you doing girl?? Nice to see you here, thanks for piping in.
Rosemary. given what you describe, it would not surprise me if you ended up needing a stacked on both sides. If you want to Stay a 38 D cup and you don't have a ton of fat below your belly, they may need to also use fat from your backside/lumbar - This is what happened to me as a 38C. This is getting to be more and more common down there! It is a more involved procedure, but they seem to be doing it all the time (I had mine back in 2009!) and one benefit is you get "attention" to your front and back in terms of slederizing and lipo. Oh and about the "throwing away a flap, yes, each side of the abdomon goes to a breast, unless you are only doing one breast and don't have enough fat, then they can do a stacked DIEP where both sides of the belly go into one breast. If you go down for a consult, all this will be explained to you!
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Springtime, believe me, have been holding stomach roll with one hand, and a breast in the other and trying to evaluate.. thanks for the explanation, am getting it now, one breast per side or area unless stacking it..surely i got that before? guess went back to just thinking in terms of fat! well, i do have a ton of fat that around my belly for sure, guess will find out if enough when i go for my consult..
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Rosemary, you are welcome!
All: I just got this feeling that somebody asked me to post a surgery date above and I didn't.
If I missed your date, pls let me know. I try to keep up!0 -
Betsy, thanks for getting back and suggestions ...and interesting reading all the posts about the different docs and who does what...increasingly sounding like breast designers that we are choosing from!!
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Well my daughter just had her graduation and my last day of teaching yesterday. Now to get through her Grad party on Firday and college orientation on the 6 and 7th of June all will be good.I'm staying at the Bienville house on the13th and the 14th and I hope the Hope Lodge after anyone else staying there?
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Louis13 that truly is a good description "breast designers" I can remember Dr D right before my stage 2. sitting in front of me with his hands on my breasts with his eyes closed! lol Said he was seeing it "in his minds eye" That impressed me!
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I have a quick question for you all (I usually post on the Charleston thread, but thought I would get more responses here). Anyway, I am 1 year post SGAP and 6 months post Stage 2B. I have been wearing compression religiously but since I am 6 months out (and the heat is horrendous), I have tried to skip the compression. I always knew it felt "better" with the compression - but realized today that I am feeling quite a bit of tightness across the scar that I totally do not feel in the Spanx. Can anyone shed some light on this? Do you think I just need my body to get adjusted to the feeling and eventually this will go away? Thanks! Liz
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Liz, try some scar massage and see if you can't loosen it up a bit. It's not used to feeling the pull of gravity!! I don't know how youo made it 6 months. Mine were off by 14 weeks!
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6 months and still compression garment?
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I swill wear mine on occasion, I love it
But only cause it holds everything in more and I feel better with it on.0 -
What does this garment look like and why do we need it? And what is it for?
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