NOLA in September?
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So after stage II did you only do an overnight in the hospital? Was there pre-op testing? How many days until your post-op visit? How many days did you need to stay in New Orleans? Oh, so many questions but I'm scheduled on Halloween and need to reserve some kennel space for our 3 pups and book a hotel! And, I guess most gals have drains again?? Thanks, Katiejane
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katiejane....i would like the answers to those questions too....i will have stage 2 at fairway oct 26....
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For stage 2 (and 2b) - I was in the hospital one night (for me I think it was Friday to Saturday). I spent the rest of the weekend in NOLA and then had a post-op appointment on Monday and flew home Monday night. I don't think a post op appointment is required so if I omitted that I could have gone home sooner. I think preop testing for me was just blood and urine tests (no x-rays, CT etc). In terms of drains I am guessing everyone is different depending on what is being done but for stage 2 I had drains from Friday to Monday - and then Dr.D. pulled them before I went home. (For 2B no drains).
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Harmonysun, six weeks is a turning point for most. But, I'm still having some pain & my rear hurts at times. As Laura from the center told me, everyone is different and everyone heals differently. If that was your first all day outing, what your feeling today and last night sound completely normal.
What I was told for stage II is that all the pre-op is the same except you don't need a CT scan. Most women stay 1 night in the hospital, but some stay 2 if they need to. They do not require a post-op for stage II, but personally I want to have one before I leave the NOLA. I will arrive on Tuesday, post-op appts on Wednesday, surgery on Thursday. My post op appt will be on Monday and I could leave Monday, but we will leave on Tuesday so I can have an extra night with one of my best friends.
The tests you do within 30 days of surgery are also the same (bloodwork, chest x-ray)0 -
I don't even recall pre-op tests for stage II... I think they just went with what I had for stage I... and I stayed 2 nights in the hospital because I was sore... and my post op was with Laura, not Dr D, cause he was in surgery and it was Thursday... I would have needed to wait til Monday to see him, so had surgery Mon, discharged Wed, post op Thurs, flew home Fri.
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Thanks ladies! I know each case is different but atleast this info gives me some ideas. When I was in NOLA for my stage I we stayed at Homewood Suites pre and post-op. I've seen many different Hotels recommended here but can you name a few that were comparable that were in the French Quarter? Homewood is very close and I was very happy there but was just wondering! katiejane
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KatieJane- Thank you! It has been the first time (in a while) for some happy tears. My husband was so excited too!
On a very fun note- My husband and I ran a mud run today. I was a bit unsure if it was a good idea because I did not want to get injured after finally getting a surgery date. Made it safe & sound and it was so worth it. Its been a good weekend!!
KSue- I am very happy for you on losing your drains. Congrats!
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Wow...losing drains KSue. That is what I am most worried about. Congratulations.
Harmonysun-it is so nice to hear from you. Please PM me and let me know what Fairway was like.
I know this topic was brought up before but wasn't on my agenda at the time. Do I Need underwear after Stage 1. Was this an embarrassing problem at airport??? I have not bought any larger sizes. Did anyone look for special soap such as DIAL antibacterial ?
Great restaurants in French Quarter?? Emeril and commander palace ?? I am at the Hotel Montelone for 2 days then on to Covington near Fairway. Then on to Homewood Suites after surgery. Whew!!!! Thanks for all the input and help.0 -
hi cherrie....thanks for the good wishes....i sent you a pm...please feel free to call...:))
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Cherrie... Underwear is a personal choice. Many go commando (don't wear any).. I am not a commando girl. So I bought larger higher undies to wear OVER the girdle. It worked great for me, but some forget to pull them down when they go to the bathroom.
I used DIAL.
And restaurants... Emeril's NOLA restaurant is good and in the Quarter... Commander's Palace is excellent but you need to take a cab (or streetcar up to around Napoleon and walk), Court of Two Sisters, Arnauds, K Pauls, Brennans. None of these are cheap.
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Help, what a trouble-maker my body is!
My necrotic abdominal incision is either worse or healing. The eschar has stopped extending, but now it looks like the incision may be separating below it. When I showered yesterday, more of the surgical glue peeled off, revealing an area on the incision about 1cm, away from the main necrosis, that opened a little. And below the eschar, the incision is pulling away, with a narrow groove that is kind of yellowish. I don't know if this is actually opening up, or a "normal" phase of healing. DH keeps painting with betadine. Because it's the weekend, I think we can watch it until Monday morning and call Dr. S's office. It seems to be a slow-motion change, not ready to burst. It dries up with betadine, and there are no fluid pockets. Still, it scares me that I may have to go back to NOLA for wound closure, when the abdomen is already so tight.
Stacy at the center told me on Friday (before this change happened) that I should expect the edges of the eschar to turn up, but not to break any of it off -- just keep applying betadine. It doesn't look like the edges are turning up. From my description, does it seem like the wound is opening or is the eschar healing?
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gmorning.....i have one hip drain that is getting little stringy red and white fiber type stuff....does anyone know what this is?.....also, those with hip drains.....did you have the issue of greatly increased output with activity.....this drain hurts when it moves around and not sure how long it's going to last....have only been showering every 5 days....yuck...to try and keep this drain in(because the girdle keeps it steady).....
.....happy sunday morning to all.....lil cooler here in chicago this morn....so feels fresh with the windows open......like i tell my kids....yesterday is history...tomorrow's a mystery.....but today is the present....like a gift...open and enjoy....:))
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I scheduled Stage 2 on a Thursday. Dr S does his Stage 2s at the Center on Wednesdays and Thursdays. I did need to do the same preop testing for Stage 2 as I did for stage 1 because thre was 7 months in between. My preop with Dr S was on Wed afternoon. I did not have a long day of appts like for Stage 1. I did end up having to wait a while, as Dr S was tied up in surgery. I did not mind at all about the wait.
For my Thursday surgery, I was second on the schedule. I think I was scheduled for 10am but didn't go in until noon. It made for a longer morning with no food or drink, but it's doable. I stayed one night in the hospital. I was ready to get out of there the next day. Such a different feeling from Stage 1, where I was afraid to leave and stayed an extra night! I can't recall how many drains I had. I know I for sure had one breast drain.
I prefer having a post op visit. I scheduled one for Monday. Turns out it was a good choice for me, because I had a nipple made in the clinic! I needed too much work on one breast for Dr S to do the nipple in surgery, so he did it in clinic. It took him about 30 minutes to make me a nipple. He had me leave the drain in my breast for one more day, having me pull it before I drove home on Tuesday. Have I mentioned I like pulling my own drains??
Kerry! A mud run! How fun.
I used Dial antibacterial soap before Stages 1 and 2. But now the smell of it grosses me out (I get so sensitive to scents, both the smell and association). For some reason I came home with two bottles of hibiclens after 2, so I will use that for 2B.
Regarding compression and panties: for Stage 1 DIEP Dr S does not use abdominal compression (as far as we can tell on this thread) until drains are pulled. The he has us wear an abdominal binder for one week after drains are pulled. I woke up from Stage 1 with no panties. I think the next day the nurse gave me some gauze panties; I can't remember details. Maybe I got the gauze panties after the catheter was removed. I did go ahead and buy some simple comfy Hanes before surgery, and that's what I wore in the weeks after. You have all that betadine swabbing of incisions to do.
For Stage 2 I woke up in the girdle. I preferred no panties. I did buy a Marena girdle to wear after the Center's girdle because I liked the compression, but Marena is more comfortable. No panties wearing Marena either.
I've got my new surgery letter and preop testing orders. I feel like I shouldn't be nervous about another surgery, but good grief, it's still surgery! I'm most nervous about not knowing where my 'baby' flap is coming from. (for those that don't know, one breast did not heal well after Stage 2 and I need another small flap to fix it). Lipo can compromise donor sites, and I had lipo everywhere, so Dr S will have to search for some viable fat. He couldn't tell me where from ahead of time. I've been praying he finds a good spot somewhere on my butt!!0 -
Ann... I think that as long as this is all an external problem, you are still ok... and if you request it, they might have you go to a wound center locally to have a wound surgery where they cut away the dead skin and attach a wound vac. The wound vac seals the open incision and basically sucks out any fluid, helping to dry it up and heal from the insde out. Some people wear these vacs for weeks. I traveled back to NOLA for my wound surgery, but mine was on my breast (so more complicated cause it involved the new flap. I walked around with the vac for only 5 days because I then had a DIEP flap to replace the lost fat. With the abdomen, don't worry about what the scar will look like because it will be revised, and as long as it isn't infected or a gaping gaping wound, they will probably just have you using betadine, or a wet bandage (Using saline solution and stuffing gauze inside the wound). I used betadine for about 1.5 weeks on my incision and then they had me switch to the wet dressing... I would wet a 4x4 gauze pad with sterile saline solution and stuff the whole pad inside my breast. The idea is that it helps suck up the fluid and dry it up on the inside. This did not work for me.
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Harmony.. that consistancy sounds normal... and have you tried taping your drain line down to prevent movement?? I showered everyday, even though I had my drains for almost 9 weeks... I agree that the girdle keeps them steady, but for the show time, try taping them. I didn't do this, but I was ok for the 30 minutes I was showering and betadining.
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Betsy -- As yet, there is not an opening in which I can "stuff" gauze or anything. It is a shallow, narrow, gully that seems dry because of applying betadine. It did look slightly yellowish and moist until betadine dried it. You had a MUCH worse thing going, and I'm so glad you got it fixed up!
Thanks for the info on the wound vac. I remember you mentioning that way back. I suppose there must be a wound center near me, but I would have to do some checking if it comes to that. Would that speed healing of the necrosis (even if not lovely in outcome) and make surgical closure unnecessary?
Cider8/Paula -- thanks to you and others for sharing your stage 2 details. I hope to have that coming up if I can get beyond 1b recovery! I prefer underwear over the binder -- to keep the outer clothing fresher. I was going to try out the long black girdle the center gave me, with the hooks and zippers, but it seemed like just too much to wear. I know it will be required after stage 2 lipo, but I only need abdominal compression now. I should have been finished with the binder, but I was advised to keep it going all month to support the necrosis healing.
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Cherrie -- I went commando most of the time, but one of the nurses kept asking me if I wanted some underwear, so I started wearing some. Then other nurses made fun of me for looking like a superhero with my panties over my girdle! Do go with the bright colors so you don't forget to pull them down! I wore the same undies from before surgery since I had hip flaps and the loss of tissue + the gain of girdle made me about the same size.
Harmonysun, when my hip drains started getting red, I used betadine with a liberal dose of the Neosporin that has pain relief ointment. It got rid of the redness quickly and numbs it a bit. I had also been shy about showering more frequently, but a good hot soapy shower really helped clear up the drain sites. Activity does increase the output. I think that someone said that the white fiber stuff is platelets? My hubs and I call it krab ("crab with a 'K'") because it looks like that fake crab meat. Ew.
KSue, I'm so jealous!!! Enjoy every minute of freedom!!! I'm at 6.5 weeks and still have my left hip drain. The right one failed and came out early, and I've had two needle aspirations so far.
EvaM, good luck today! I love how large you live!
Hang in there, AnnAlive! I hope this resolves for you soon!
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Ann.. Yes a wound vac would speed it up... but don't just go diving in.. it is a lot of aparatus... It is a suction thing attached to you 24/7, with one of those poles that holds the vacuum and bag where the stuff is sucked to... you have to unhook it all to shower. So you are walking around like you have an IV all the time. Yours sounds rather superficial, so I would just continue the betadine, keep it dry and let it heal.. of course send photos to the doctor regularly.
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Ann - I had my surgery at UW Medical Center in Seattle on July 18th (one day after you). I don't have any open wounds and pretty much all my incisions are already heal. Under my right breast I had an area that opened a little (3mm) with a yellow groove that eventually dried and felt. Don't worry, my PS said is normal. I have never applied betadine. I think I have some necrotic skin on my rigth breast incisions (the none radiated side), but nothing that can't be fixed on Stage II. Well, I am counting my blessing, but I have to confess that the first 2 weeks were terrible because I couldn't walk due to a "moody nerve" which at the end seems to have helped my wounds to heal faster, but I ended with two tiny tiny blood clots (gone by now) that made me feel like the "monster with the sock" (Monters Inc. movie) by the way the doctors reacted. I hate medical protocols sometimes... Well, no more Tamoxifen for me due to "my history of blood clots" (they gotta be kidding me... What history?!!! Even the Vascular Specialist said that with or without Tamoxifen after this kind of surgery people end up with 1 or 2 blood clots that the body dissolves by itself). Best wishes!!!0
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Went to NOLA Monday. saw dr. D. Beautiful yellow leather shoes.
I go to MDA Aug. 22. I have a letter form Dr. D describing what needs to done. If my Dr. Approves I will be having surgery very soon. Wish me luck.0 -
I did my skydive today! It was incredible! The best part was going out the door and free fall. We jumped from 13,500 feet, so we had a full minute of free fall. I'm glad I'm three months out from my stage 2 and feeling well-healed. The chest strap of the harness ended up right across my breasts. Here's my video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BwaQoZI13CYReplies to above items:
No undies, no problems. But I'm commando girl anyway.
I had stringy stuff in my drains. I had chunky stuff in my drains. I had foamy stuff in my drains. It all worked out OK. I showered EVERY day and looked forward to it. I always felt a lot better after showering. Such a relief. I had drains for over six weeks the first time and two weeks the second time. They were uncomfortable, especially the first time. Sometimes they'd get red and irritated but keeping them clean, dry and betadined seemed to keep it from getting too bad. Output varied so much. Some days it seemed like it just wouldn't stop. Rest assured, eventually it will!
I had one breast incision that opened very slightly. The doc said to just use betadine and keep it dry. That worked, though it was hard not to worry and keep checking it.
Carry on!
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Ok, I bought a pack of cheap colored underpants but may not use them. Packing today for son's wedding and NOLA. When I get home from wedding I turn right around the next day for Detroit to fly out the next morning.
Just wondering what everyone's most important thing was that they packed? Ie. safety pins, pillow, etc. any last minute pointers would be great.
Thank you everyone. I am not sure I would have gone through this without you!!!0 -
Most important thing I packed? Laptop/phone/charger. Staying connected to family and friends: Priceless. Everything else is either provided or obtainable. It's not like you're landing on Mars.
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I did wear panties over my girdle & I can honestly say I never forgot to pull them down to go to the bathroom
I am very short and the girdle came up way to high on me, so I had to fold the top part down and the underwear helped hold the sides down some. I showered everyday or at least every other day and washed up the days I didn't shower. I looked forward to my showers even though they were tiring at first. I just took the blue rubber band thing the center gave me and looped my drains through and hung it around my neck when I showered. The hip drains would get a little red and irritating at times, but I would put bedadine on them along with the pain free neosporin which helped some. The most important thing I packed was my phone, phone charger and lip balm/lip moisturizer. After surgery your mouth and lips are very dry and I kept mine right by my bed and used it several times a day.
You're going to do great Cherrie!!
Enjoy the wedding!!
Chelle
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Bettye, I will say a prayer for you to get your surgery!
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Most important things for me were ipad and slippers.
And I also never forgot to pull my undies down.
Loved to take a shower and get everything clean... But agreed that it was exhausting... Took about an hour to do it all.
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And Eva... Congrats on the skydive... I did that in college (in NOLA - actually in Covington I think)... I jumped at 3000 feet on a static line, so my free fall was short. Survived and signed up to do it again, but bad weather intervened... maybe for the best.
I just watched the video... the big difference between your jump and mine was I was alone... perhaps better with a jump master.
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I packed way too much of everything -- clothes, first aid stuff, movies, random stuff. I wish I'd packed 2 or 3 outfits and left lots of room for medical supplies! Phone/computer and charger were necessary. My friend brought me a cute 50's-style wrap-around dress in a fun pattern that was easy to put on, super-cute, and hid my drain pouch well. I also brought a favorite movie about some musicians that I love -- the music gave me so much joy and I felt like myself again for two hours. I brought some of my favorite music on my iPod and remember hallucinating very pleasantly to it a day or two after surgery. If you have some favorite snacks, bring those. I was on a restricted diet and had trouble getting food at the right time to take with my pain meds. 0
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The best thing I packed: eye mask for the hospital and wet facial cleaning cloths.
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Ralston -- reading your description of the yellow groove next to your open area was encouraging to me last night that my own "mess" could be normal, or rather normal healing of an abnormal condition. I sent pictures to Dr. S's office this morning, and called his nurse later. I don't think he saw the pictures, but she told me that the wound looks superficial and that the yellow groove is granulation. It will be slow to heal, but is not currently infected. I should call them if I have a fever or if the wound has a foul odor, and their protocol is to keep painting with betadine 3x/day.
I'm still having the same amount of pain in the abdomen, at 3 weeks post-op tomorrow, taking Percocet every 6 hours, which I guess may be attributable to the necrotic condition. I'm suddenly feeling so discouraged about the current state of things, crying while I pray
, but maybe it's the 3-week doldrums. DH is going out to get me a dessert treat because I don't feel like going out today.Interesting about your nerve and clots, and I'm glad it didn't cause you further problems. I guess your medical team is afraid of taking the risk of keeping you on Tamoxifen. How did they detect such small clots -- did you have symptoms?
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