NOLA in September?
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Things are still going well. I did not get discharged yesterday as originally planned. My bp was still low nd I just felt better staying one more night. Having never had surgery I just don't feel comfortable without the nurses and docs near by. I should get discharged later today though -don't think it is justified to stay any longer.
I did get to see Leslie yesterday as our rooms are next door to each other. She was doing well. She did not have stacked as planned. I think hips only but i'm not sure? She will have to update us on what exactly she did have when she can. Her step-mother has a laptop and Leslie said she would update when she could.
I did not get to see Kathryn, she stopped by but I could not see her at that time and then I think she got discharged yesterday. We are both going to be at Homewood so I'm hoping to see her then.
I did have Dr Lagarde and liked her. I do not know how many nodes she took. I have asked several times but I won't know until I get the path report which I don't have yet. Both my husband and I liked her demeanor and felt very comfortable with her.0 -
Ro, tell your husband to get it in gear and keep up with you! Seriously, as long as you are still folowing all the instructions, I think you should go for it, and do as much as you feel up to! Why not?! I am also staying up late and sleeping til all hours - I do feel like I should kind of get back to a more "normal" schedule, but then I ask "Why?". Enjoy yourself, lady!
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Ro, I agree with Amy, don't overdo, but activity is good for healing! It reminds your body what it's designed to do. They love it if you're up and about. Walking is good!
Laura, glad you spent the extra day, and hope you can hoo up with Kathryn at the homewood!
Leslie, we hope you're doing well!
Any news on Surfa?
DRAGON!!! GIRL!!! You're doing it!!! Go for the gold!!! As Jerusha said, we want the blow by blow!
Amy, how are you feeling?? Is your middle feeling any better? Are you up and about? Thinking the best for you...
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I swam some laps tonight! It felt soooo good. Ultimately. I felt so very tight when I got in: right arm/shoulder, pecs, ribs, abdomen. My thighs were screaming; I had no idea they were so weak. I took it easy enough and kicked probably 3/4. It felt really good to be in the water again. I worked on deep breathing, too. I think I'll be able to make it a regular thing again.
Laura, I stayed an extra night, too. I got overwhelmed and some caretaker logistics made it an easy choice. I also didn't feel like I could do it outside of the hospital, without nurses. Alice reassured me that I was indeed very capable. And she was right. You'll do well. It was my first surgery, too. What a doozy!
Dragonfly, I'm really excited for you!!
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Paula... That is awesome... I hope I am a rebounder like you... It has only been what? 5-6 weeks? And swimming?
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All settled in at our hotel! Super humid of course but sunny when we got here! Some site seeing tomorrow
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My favorite thing was riding the St. Charles street car, because I love looking at beautiful old homes. I rode it both directions. I also rode the length of the Canal St. It gave me a good view of lots of the city, including the amazing cemetries. The shops and galleries on Royal St are nice, and of course you need to have a beignet at Cafe Du Monde.
How's the hotel? Hope you had a good flight!
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finally finally my insurance issues been cleared and i now can proceed with the process and scheduling at nola. tomorrow i have my mid chemo treatment follow up appt with BS here in NYC and so guess should break the news to her tomorrow that am not going with her/their team but going to NO for MX.....am shaking in boots about this, i know that is silly, but i am ...anybody got the right language so that i can avoid being sent to siberia???...which am fairly sure she will do....
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Louis13, I dodged that bullet. Surgery (bilateral mastectomy) was supposed to be my treatment, based on the cancer types found before final pathology. I had time to shop around for a plastic surgeon. I talked to my BS when I just started the NOLA process and told her I was considering it. She did know about NOLA, even had former patients go there, and basically said going to the best was the only way to go for flap surgery. But she never said anything about following me or wanting to hear from me on my final decision or anything like that. I never followed up with her! But I did with my MO, of course, who is on team w/BS. Monday I see my BS: she's putting in my port. I'll report back on how she responds! All I can say is be straightforward with your BS. Maybe even write out a couple key points that you want to make. Be confident in your decision to go to NOLA; it really is the best thing you could do for yourself!
Dragonfly, I hope you have a blast today! I've taken Garden Dist walking tour before, one that included a cemetery. I tried to do one of those haunted history tours on the french quarter, but something cancelled it (this was maybe 12 years ago), so I still really want to do one. I love roaming around. Cafe du Monde before the French Market. I've been to the aquarium in the past, but that was when I was there for several days. It is a great way to escape the heat. I want to go to Mardi Gras World!
Don't give me too much credit, Betsy. I will say I have healed well from the surgery. Good enough to start chemo at 4 weeks! I did walk as much as I could after stage 1, which was daily. I still move slow and need naps and don't seem to do much beyond taking care of myself and some running of the kids. I slept for about 4 days straight after my first infusion and have only walked 3-4 times since the infusion. I have started physical therapy because of post surgery pain. I am about 30 pounds overweight. Cancer, overweight, fear of gaining on chemo, high risk of lymphedema and having once in a lifetime body contouring by DrS are some BIG motivations to get myself in the pool! It was also a way for me to be a good mom and take my kids to the pool (a waterpark complex). I'm also not working, so work isn't draining me. I am sore today!
My dad spent this morning in the ER! He's got a 2mm kidney stone that is about to pass. Youch! Happy Father's Day! I'll be seeing him later today. He's got plenty of pain meds keeping him comfortable, or as he's joking: stoned.
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Louis13, Doctors can be really touchy about this. It's a wound both to their narcissistic pride as well as to their wallet, so I wouldn't have high expectations for the response....Maybe you'll be pleasantly surprised! Just remember, there is no reason on earth to do what's "best" for them, rather than what's best for you...
Some points that I think are indisputable are:
(a) The importance of being in a hospital setting where there are no sick people. All doctors are aware of the very dire consequences of hospital acquired infection. The statistics on this are revolting. Deaths per year staggering. (Not to mention that in most hospitals you have to practically beg the caregivers to sanitize their hands, and you are lucky if they do, even when you plead. You will be so pleasantly surprised at SCSH that no one will ever touch you without cleaning their hands. They are super -fastidious about it. They sanitize once as they enter your room and AGAIN at your bedside. The whole place is literally sparkling clean).
(b) Nursing staff that are highly competent in your postop care. Monitoring the flap once you are out of the OR is crucial to the success of your surgery. It's all in the hands of the nurses. At NOLA, you will never get a nurse who is not highly trained. They are not rotated around from floor to floor, working per-diem, etc. If there is a problem you won't get some bozo resident trying to figure out if they need to call the attending. Remember, it's nearly July... The worst month to be in a teaching hospital as all the new interns and residents are just starting out! Nowhere else has staff that do nothing else but care for patients like us.
(c) SCSH is tiny, but well staffed. It's practically like having private duty care. Even in an ICU, where many PS's place their breast patients, you are likely to be ignored if the guy next door is crashing. (d) The doctors work in teams, and do this surgery every day so OR time is dramatically reduced. My bilat DIEP was less than half (4+1/2h) of what I'd been told several other places.
(e) And, of course you could tell her how incredibly nice and helpful everyone is there, and about how fantastic and completely amazing the surgeons are....but, now THAT might be really threatening!!! Haha0 -
The hotel is cute!! They updated the rooms. Our carpet is dark purple and black carpet and purple walls
We were up so early, so we went and ate downstairs here the little continental breakfast. Rode the street car to the French Quarter, went to Café Du Monde, rented bicycles and rode around down there. Ate lunch at a place called Daisy Dukes and I had a Cajun cheese steak sandwich. It's super hot and humid it's gross. We're back in our room, and heading to the pool for a bit. Both parts of the flight were great!!!
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Dragon-Sounds like a fun day! Where can you rent bikes in the French Quarter?
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At the marriot on canal street, you can also rent vespa's. We were going to do that actually. But the cost was high when you figure in daily insurance and rental rate. So we went with the bikes. Which was fun, but it was nerve racking riding down there with so much traffic. People were honking at us lol
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Glad you are having fun dragonfly!!!
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Dragonfly - Enjoy your day and have a great time with the blue marker tomorrow!!!
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Jerusha, thank you so much for that, did not even think about all those things!! and cider8 thank you for your input too... depending on if they can still get me in for consult, prob flying down for next monday for consult..yikes! either that or not till mid july after a planned vacation which is really too late to bother i think....if I do make the 27th, you can all give me your room service deliveries for lattes.. looking into affordable hotels now for a night..knew i should have paid more attention
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Thanks ladies, just got back from eating at ZEA's! It was so yummy
I hope Dr S goes to town with the blue marker tomorrow.0 -
woohoo Dragonfly! I love Zeas...those roasted corn grits are amazing! and the spicy green beans...yum! Let us know how things go today with the blue marker! I've got my date with it in a little under 2 months and can't wait!
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Ok ladies... trying to think of one other thing to do. Plantation tour, swamp boat or airboat ride? Plantation looks neat but its a bit more pricey. Heading to my pre-op now, let ya ladies know how it goes.
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So Dragon, how did it go with the Blue Marker??
Leslie, Surfa, and Katheryn, Hope all you ladies are doing okay! We are waiting to hear how it went for you! Thinking of you all...
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I am in Charleston right now and it is so hot... it was 105 at 5pm (according to my car)... I can only imagine how I'll feel in NOLA next month... my wig was just about killing me... feels like a plastic bag on my head as I walk around, even at 8pm... yuck.
Glad for those in NOLA now... getting their business done... thinking about you guys!!!
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Hey Betsy, did any hair start growing back yet?? Well I'm getting ready to start my chemo on wednesday. Just question about sweaty heads and wigs haha did you use one of those wicking caps under your wig? wasn't sure if it would make me even hotter..also debating when to shave my head...now or wait until hair starts to fall out ..either way it sucks..
Girls in NOLA...have fun and good luck..i'm thinking about you all!!!
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The blue marker is EVERYWHERE!! Stacy freaked me out a bit, because she said depending on the revsions Dr S wants to do to the breasts I may not get nipples on this trip. But thankfully he said all is well and went to town with the marker! All over my back, legs, belly etc... Can't wait to see the results! I'm curious about the nipples, she said I will always have to wear a bra. Does it have to be a special one with padding or will any bra work?
I didn't get to meet up with any of the girls tonight, unfortunately Dr S was behind and we were at the center for almost 3 hours, then just headed straight to dinner. I'm beat, I banged my foot pretty good so it's all swollen, we're back in our room and putting in a movie! My surgery got moved to 9:00!
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How exciting!!!! Geez so this is 2 b for you and now you've got me thinking...I know that at my 2 I really wanted to get a lift (so I guess that means no nipple than?) and not sure what to expect from Dr D at stage 2..will he go to town like Dr S? Dragon did you tell him anything you wanted or was it just him saying what he thought? I wasn't sure what was okay for me to ask for as far as other than the breast area...so glad you are having a good time (accept for the heat) have a good night and enjoy your movie!!
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Yay for the blue marker!! But why did he say you would always have to wear a bra?! That makes me very curious . . . And what's he doing on your back? Oh my goodness, you must be so excited!! I am three months away from stage 2 and I can hardly wait!
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And just curious Dragon, if you don't mind me asking, why did you not do nipples at stage 2 as opposed to 2b? I don't remember if you said way back in an older post. If I am being too personal, please just ignore me . . .
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I am not one for a lot of questions, and today again I just told him to do whatever he wanted and that I trust him. The back, belly, thighs (inner and outer) and many other areas he marked for lipo. Then adding some fat to the top of my breasts and a few other things? I think removing small dog ears, but NO DRAINS
The nipple part, I guess because they'll always be poking out and would be very visible when you go braless, that's my understanding anyway and was hoping to hear what others have to say about them. I did not get them at stage 2, as I just wasn't ready for them or sure I wanted them. Nothing is too personal Tonight was a much better night for temperature. We rode the St Charles street car to Canal street, then the Canal car to the Riverwalk (?) and found a neat little place to eat outside at and listen to some live music. It was great.
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Hi Dawn... I am glad you are finally starting chemo... sooner you start the sooner you'll finish!! And yes my hair is indeed growing... I posted my 5.5 week post picture on the hair thread (and my pre-chemo photo) and there is a huge difference, but for 5 weeks, it looked like good growth,. Tomorrow i am 6 weeks post chemo and I don't see much difference from last week, so I may wait a week for the next installment. I have always worn a wig liner and when I didn't the first day I had the wig in JANUARY I was sweating... so I wear it for sure.... I was doing ok with the short wig (the long one got hot in March) until I got to Charleston... it is just too hot... but its like over 100 degrees... up in NY you should be ok for the most part... i do love getting home and just slipping it off my head... very liberating.
And Dr D said to me that he was going to go after my thighs (inner and outer), love handles, back etc at stage II... he said I would need to diet when he was done with me.... ok... i am good with that!!! Of course I may be too sore to move... LOL... has anyone had fat taken from their necks or upper arms?? I'd be into that too.
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Dragonfly sounds like you are having a blast! Enjoy...
Bdavis your wig story has me thinking back to my chemo days..I can remember pulling out of the work parking lot throwing my wig on the back seat
... there were times where i would find the prettiest scarf and that would just have to work!!Kaitmom--please let me know when you get your date..I wanna be at NOLA with some of the sisters from the board...of course I still have to pay off stage 1 before getting to #2--lol
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Got my iv in, just waiting now. Dr S came by and said it should be less than an hour?
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