Inner Thigh Flap (TUG) Anyone?
Comments
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Hi Janet,
I'm sorry to hear about your infection. I hope you will heal beautifully.
I struggle with my breasts some days and although they look terrific in clothes (unless cleavage is showing) they don't look great to me in the mirror. I'm also having fat grating done in the very near future (waiting for a date). Hopefully that will allow me to have some cleavage.
I sure hope all does well with your D&C.
Some women receive a hysterectomy or oophectomy (sp?) as part of their breast cancer treatment if they are ER/PR+. I didn't have one. Yet, anyway.
Hey, try working out again when you feel up to it. I started working out again about 2 months ago and I go to the gym 4-5 times a week. I am loving my new found energy.
Janet, take good care of yourself and don't give up hope. Live your life to it's fullest.
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Janet, I hope the mass is nice and benign. Some days it does seem never-ending doesn't it? I remember thnking, "Wow, Breast Cancer does suck as bad as you hear". That pretty much sums it up.
Ladies my breasts looked pretty good before the fat grafting and now I think they look terrific. It really made a difference - that and finding the right bra size! I was so frustrated that no bra looked good, but when I went for a bra fitting, I found I was wearing the wrong size. So lifelover, I think you'll love the fat grafting, and Janet, I bet your PS can get your looking back to good again. You're still very early in the process. I had the infection in my one leg, and it looked kind of funny too, but it was also corrected by moving around the fat a little during the fat grafting.
Stac, I hope you are doing well too.
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Thanks so much ladies for your kind words. My fat grafting made a big difference and the recovery was easy. It was actually the first time I didn't get sick from anesthesia. I want to do it again in the fall. I have a couple of areas that need to be done. I have to finish it this year because i went out of network so I had to pay out of pocket.
I'm going to try to put pictures up on TimTams site in the next couple of weeks if I have the time.
Thanks have a great weekend.
Janet0 -
hello ladies!
I am new to this feed, as I'm just starting to seriously consider the TUG flap. I am a 34 year old, diagnosed November of last year. I opted for a BMX with immediate reconstruction using expanders. When I had my swap out in June I developed infections in both implants, one at s time, and they both had to be removed. I am interested in this procedure to lower risk of infection and risk of implant failing. My main concerns are that I still be able to do yoga, dance and run. I found out that l have osteopenia in my spine (due to chemo) so I began training for a 5 K about a month ago. I am now addicted to running and would be so sad to give it up. Of course, I know that recovery time is long with this surgery and I would need to take it slow. But I'm wondering if anyone reading this was pretty athletic before and was able to get back to their previous level of activity once recovery was complete.0 -
Hello, Shondi. I am so sorry that you've had problems with infections and hope you find the right solution for you. TUG has been right for me. I only had DCIS on one side, and did immediate reconstruction during the same surgery as the mastectomy. It was long--maybe 6 or 7 hours. Two other patients of my microsurgeon had warmed me that their stitches in their thighs tore (they both had bilateral TUGs), so I was extremely cautious about movement for the first 4-6 weeks and followed the doctor's instructions to the letter. You must sit at only a 20 degree angle, then up to 40, and so on; if you try to sit erect too soon or bend, you risk tearing stitches and much worse scarring. One person said that the doctor would not restitch her because of risk of closing in an infection; she had to let the wound heal from the inside out..
Anyway, I consider myself pretty active, but not excessively so. I garden a lot, walk my dog for about an hour almost every day, and do a cardio or yoga class twice a week. I can do anything I did before. But remember that I had surgery only on one side, and that I had no complications with my donor site incision. My sister and my parents came to stay for the first two weeks to help me. I was EXTREMELY careful during recovery. I did not even sit down to go to the bathroom. (Yes, it can be done!) It took a long time for my leg strength to return--maybe at least 8 months--but I did not do anything special to work on that.
My main goal was to not have to deal with a form for the rest of my life. And I was too put off by the downsides of implants. This was the right thing for me. I do have a low spot and some fat necrosis (hard spots) in the transplanted tissue, but it does not show under clothing. At first the hard spots really bothered me, and I thought about having another surgery with microfat grafting to address them. But my husband had been so scared during my original surgery, and I got used to it, so I decided just to let it go.
I would encourage you to ask your surgeon to put you in touch with other patients who have had this surgery. The two women I talked with were immensely helpful in sharing their experiences and cautions.
Best of luck in making your decision.0 -
Shondi I had this surgery on both sides two and a half years ago. Physically the only lasting side effect I have today is some numbness in the legs along the incision. Of course it does take a while to get back to running and so on. I am not a runner but I do a lot of cycling, walking and gardening. So the jiggling of running may be uncomfortable for a few months but longer term I don't believe it will bother you.
Louisa and I went through this surgery together. I was surprised to see a post on this old thread but you can read up on the experience as I think we documented it pretty well. Louisa how are ya?0 -
Hi Shondi, I'm glad this old thread is helping someone! I actually was in kick boxing this morning reflecting on what a AMAZING difference my TUG flaps have made in my life and wishing anyone who is living with implants could spend a day in my shoes just to know how different and wonderful it feels. My story is on here (in detail) if you want to read my old posts. I had a TUG/PAP (one on each leg) in April of 2012, so I'm about a year and a half out. I was very active before and am very active now. I used to dance (ballet) and am very flexible, so I was worried I would notice a difference. I don't. Running would not bother me although I am not a runner. As for yoga, which I also love but don't do regularly, my TUG leg is a little stiffer in certain positions, but I think if I worked it more (as yoga would) it would loosen up. I don't feel any difference at all in my PAP leg because the muscle was not used, so you might want to consider it as an option over a TUG. I too was careful in recovery not to mess anything up, but honestly I was back up and going much faster than I thought I would be, and the lifetime pay out is HUGE. I feel completely normal--they move and feel like boobs. I'm even starting to regain sensation across the flap paddle, which is WILD. It's not the same as nipples, but at least there's sensation there. My legs have full sensation except for some slight numbness on the scars. I would do it again in a heartbeat and highly recommend it to everyone I meet. If you want to PM me feel free. Good luck!0 -
amac,two hobbies, and Louisa,
Thank you for responding! I so appreciate your feedback! It's so awesome to have these online forums to connect us to each other.
Amac, I would opt for the muscle sparing thigh flap if I had a choice. My surgeon says that we should aim for that but once we get into the operating room, if there isn't enough blood supply from the tissue, he would need to harvest the muscle. I may be worrying over this for nothing!
The leg scars don't bother me too much. I feel like these are private areas anyway, and I'm not in a swimsuit too terribly often. I am a little concerned with the aesthetic appearance of the breasts, but I've seen a lot of nice ones on the Internet. In this feed I did see some references to photos but I'm not sure how to gain access to those. Timtam was it?
Did your partners have to help you wipe, etc? Or can you move your arms after a couple of days? The bathroom stuff makes me a little nervous, I must admit.0 -
Shondi, my doc said the same on the PAP/TUG. She went in and was able to do a pap on my right but couldn't get a good enough supply on the left so did a TUG instead. I worried about which to do, a lot, but in the end it really hasn't mattered. I told her my first priority was success. I didn't want to go through all of this and have one or both flaps fail, so she said she would make her decisions with that in mind. I really don't feel a difference between the two aside from the very slight "tighter" feeling on the TUG side. As boobs the TUG side was a bit larger at first, but I had some fat necrosis that we removed in my stage 2, so it's actually a bit smaller now, but not much. If I do say so myself, they are beautiful--better than the ones God gave me. Very perky and full. My kids had totally deflated my others, so these are actually a bit of an upgrade. I have nice cleavage--I could totally pull off one of those low, low tops, but since everyone knows they are fake I've never gotten the nerve.
As for after, my arms were fine -- really not a lot of pain there. My legs were a different story. They were tight and painful--I mean REALLY tight and painful. Most of the discomfort centered around my hip flexors (up front), but keep in mind you have incisions from the front of your legs all the way around to the back, so it's tricky to get comfortable and avoid opening an incision for a while (sorry to tell you but going to the bathroom is really tricky). To get out of the hospital I had to be able to do a lap around my hospital wing. It took me 6 days to get to that point, and I did it shuffling and hunched over like a 90 year old woman. But my thighs didn't touch when I did it! My hubby did have to help me a lot with stuff I would rather not have had help with (i.e. going to the bathroom, showering, putting on underwear/pants/socks, etc.). He didn't mind, and it's all in the past pretty much forgotten (or suppressed hehehe) by both of us. Stairs are really tough at first and standing and sitting is very challenging. I couldn't drive for 3 or 4 weeks. But don't forget you are in the hospital for the first week (I stayed 6 nights), so there are nurses etc. to help with some things, and you have the "equipment" i.e. beds that raise and lower for you, shower bars and seats to hold onto, etc. to help out. By week 3 I felt like a new woman. I actually walked with our neighbors about 5 blocks to a local art fair. Of course I collapsed afterwards, but I did it. Impact activities hurt for a while. I think I was about 3 months out when they cleared me for that sort of thing. I remember bouncing or jogging being very uncomfortable, so I started avoiding it because I was worried I would hurt something. My doc said to go for it b/c I needed to desensitize the nerves. That took a couple of uncomfortable weeks to go away. I don't notice any issues with it now.
I know it's scary, but I think you will be really happy with the end result. Hang in there. It's worth it!0 -
Shondi my breasts look good and I'm definitely happy with the way they look. I had a vertical incision down the inside of my leg so it's not really visible although there's a slight bump where the drain was. When I had my nipple surgery my PS lipoed a little fat from my legs to add to the top of the breasts as it looked a little bony there.
I think the picture site is under nowheregirl. I think she changed her name. I think I have seen instructions on the breast recon page. At the time I used it there weren't many tugs out there but I think I found one.
I did not need my husband to wipe. It's hard to lift your arms up very high. So my husband helped me shower and had to wash my hair. It was a couple of weeks I think till I could wash my own hair. Think about moving things you need to shoulder height or lower whether it be in the kitchen or bathroom.
Stairs and rising and sitting are pretty difficult for a couple of weeks as Amac mentioned.
I had my surgery on Tues and went home Friday morning so it seems to vary how long your hospital stay is.0 -
TwoHobbies, this info is priceless! Again, I am beyond grateful! I really think I am going to do it. The biggest reason being that I am a petite woman and implants were a bit large for me, and I like the thought of simplifying, not having an implant to worry about. It seems like the biggest challenge is just getting through the healing stage without complications! I have a few more questions for my surgeon, but if all goes well I will be scheduling this thing for early November.
Next question... Did any of you need to be on a special diet or have any restrictions leading up to surgery? We have a vacation planned late October, and as I'd love to get this surgery done ASAP, I'm wondering if having a few cocktails in Hawaii would affect the surgery at all. I'm sure ,y doctor will answer my questions tomorrow..I'm just excited!0 -
Hi, Shondi. I had no diet restrictions, other than the normal "don't eat anything after midnight the night before." Also, I did not need help to wipe either. By the time I left the hospital, I was able to deal with bodily functions myself using a pee funnel into an old Nalgene bottle, and holding a plastic bedpan behind me, both while standing. I found it useful to bear my weight putting one hand on the bathroom counter while holding the bedpan with the other, as my legs were shaky for a while. I did need help to wash and dry my legs and feet, maybe for about 2 weeks after the surgery. You might want to get one of those loofahs on a stick so you can do it yourself. I also needed help to put on socks and underwear, as I was not supposed to bend over or lift my knee. I had an old long corduroy skirt that buttoned all the way down the front, so with that I could dress myself. I got a few old, soft shirts and sweaters (buttons and zippers to make it easy to put on) at the Goodwiill because I was worried about leakage around my breast drain. I spent a lot of time on a lounge chair on the porch under a blanket and with pillows, napping and reading. I was surprised by how much I napped. I gained 10 pounds in less than 2 months. I wouldn't have minded except all my pants got tight.
If you can get by with a PAP, that would probably be good. I have a slightly indented area down my inner thigh where the gracillus muscle used to be. It doesn't really bother me, but it is noticeable.
Overall, my TUG breast feels and moves like a real breast, except for the fat necrosis part, between 3 ad 6 oclock if you are facing me. When I move my arms in ways that exert my pectoral muscles, the tissue there "clenches up" and looks weird. But no one would ever see that under clothes.
Two Hobbies and Lifelover, I hope you are doing great. I am doing well overall. But this year has been very difficult because I lost my dad suddenly to cancer. It went undetected until it was just too late. Once it was discovered, Dad only lived another month. I miss him terribly. At home, my garden is a wreck. It really hasn't been the same since I had my surgery. All the weeds that went to seed that summer really took hold and have spawned more generations of weeds. I am starting to reduce the amount of garden space by eliminating plants that I am not crazy about. Then eventually I'll step back, figure out how to recombine what is left that I really like, and plant some more grass. Mowing is definitely easier than weeding!
Take care, and good luck, Shondi.
Louisa0 -
thank you, Louisa. I appreciate the candid detail. I am an information girl, so it's good to have all of this. I cancelled my implant surgery this morning. I was feeling rushed to make a decision before my pre op and I realized that I should just cancel it. If I decide not to do the tug I can always reschedule the implants. I'm trying to listen to my gut on this, but uncertainty is the only thing I'm certain about at this juncture. I keep thinking though, down the line, not having implants maybe such a blessing, depending on what happens with insurance, etc. I'd hate to lose my breasts again and have to walk around again with this chewed up mess on my chest.
I'm so sorry about your father. We have had a rash of cancer scares in our family lately. It seems like we can't get away from it. Cancer blows.0 -
Hi, Shondi. Yeah, I was afraid of an implant too, and of being lopsided (from having just 1 implant, or from having just 1 mastectomy if I'd opted for no reconstruction. If they'd found DCIS on both sides, I'd have been tempted to just get a double mastectomy without recon, and then maybe get some tattoo art to cover the scars. I saw some pictures somewhere and thought, "Now THAT is a good use of a tattoo!" I'm pretty small chested to begin with, so that wouldn't have been such a huge leap as it might be for other women. But I was worried about looking bony because I already have a prominent sternum.
It is so very hard to think of/balance/weigh/consider all the options, possible outcomes, and how you might feel about them once things settle down. Best to take your time as much as you feel comfortable with, look at pictures if you can find some of women with similar body types as yours, and imagine the best and worst possible outcomes. You will likely be somewhere in between the two. And find out how many of these surgeries your doctor has done.0 -
Hi Shondi. Good luck with surgery. I had my BMX and TUG recon in April of 2011 and I've healed well. No problems with my thighs at all other than some numbness but my muscles are working well. My breasts were reconstructed beautifully and with nipples using muscle from the inner thigh. Some of the sensation around the reconstructed area has returned. The only advice I can offer is to keep all your surgical sites extremely clean using antimicrobial scrubs when bathing and after using the toilet. I was able to work out in the gym for about a year and my legs felt fabulous. However, I injured my arms doing too much too soon. I still suffer a bit and so have turned to Pilates for my exercise - my instructor works with breast cancer surgery patients and so knows the best exercises.
Hi Louisa, I'm so sorry to hear about your Dad. I don't know what I would do if I lost mine - I'm just not ready for that. However, one of my best friends is dying of secondary liver cancer and I'm despondent over that. My garden is looking beautiful! It was hard work though - lots of hours pulling weeds (and there are always plenty more) and planting. It was worth it though. Even my partner Dave is pleased with it. Gardening and cooking make me very happy. I do what I can and some days I just don't worry about the silly weeds. I've returned to working about 20 hours a week, teaching and performing, and constantly have to ensure that I get enough sleep to handle it all. I still have neuropathy in my hands and feet but the medication I take helps with that. I'm taking a break from tamoxifen but know that I will need to go back on it again soon. Feel great right now though - so much more energy. Hey Louisa, don't fret, the gardening can wait.
Love to you Ladies!!!0 -
Shondi I didn't want to have to replace implants every ten years or wonder if they were leaking so that's why I did this. Honestly the only downside is that numbness along the incision in my legs. I never had implants so I can't compare but I've been really satisfied. And no I had no restrictions except aspirin before the surgery.
Louisa and Lifelover it's good to talk to you. I'm so sorry you have lost your dad and in such a short time. And lifelover sorry about your friend. I'm glad you're doing fairly well otherwise. Louisa I can totally relate on the garden. I did get mine weeded and looking good in 2012. Now end of April this year I went for my regular appt and had a 5mm nodule in the skin of the breast. Yep cancer. Luckily had not spread but it's been a lot of work all summer and fall for 5mm ! So needless to say my yard is a mess and I'm seriously considering planting grass in the two big backyard beds so I only have to concentrate on the front yard. The stupid hydrangeas and peonies won't bloom anyway and the perennials that were there are choked out by weeds now. That would leave beds in the front and by my deck and that would be plenty for fun and reduce the work. But by next year I'll probably change my mind and be digging again with another plan!0 -
Hi Two Hobbies and good to hear from you!
Sorry about you finding that nodule but thank goodness it hadn't spread. How are you feeling on tamoxifen?
Don't worry about the garden - it will still be there. When I need extra rest, I let everything go. Our health comes first. The other stuff like housework, gardening will get done eventually.0 -
They took me off tamoxifen because they feel it wasn't working. So I did chemo and am half way through rads and then I will switch to estrogen suppression and an AI when I'm done with radiation.
Yes everything else has to wait. I hate I don't have the energy for it but it' will be winter soon and then I don't have to worry about weeds!0 -
Ha, ha, ha . . . the darn weeds. Let 'em go . . . have a cup of hot cocoa and put your feet up
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Just wanted to say that I am going in for a TUG flap next month, and lurking in this thread has been invaluable for me! I appreciate all of your candid answers, and I feel like it's helped prepare me for what's realistically ahead.0 -
Good luck, LALady. I hope everything goes smoothly. I have been very happy with my surgery two and a half years out and would do it again. No regrets.0 -
I had simultaneous BMX and TUG flap in 4/2011 after my second DCIS in situ diagnosis. Both flaps failed after a week and I went into acute renal failure. The docs said I went into acute renal failure due to the trauma of the surgery. I had TUG because I had a tummy tuck previously and my surgeon pushed me away from TEs. I was in the hospital for a month and the PS said both flaps had failed because my weight was too high (180lbs). Unfortunately, he didn't say a word about that before the surgery. The PS was highly recommended by the general breast surgeon doing the BMX.
I went home with four open wounds all about 10-14 inches long. I was unable to work for 9 months, and I had wound vacs on the 4 wounds for 5 months, which required a home care nurse three times a week, and two hours of applying the wound vac 3 times a week. I wish my PS had not pushed me away from TEs, which I said I preferred. He said implants would not last 10 years because I had radiation (internal Mammosite). The truth was he just didn't do TEs and steered me away from it. Afterwards I went to other PSs to get other options. One told me that at MD Anderson that they didn't do TUG because the failure rate was 50%.
I now have totally numb knees and thighs and lymphedema in my left leg since the surgery. My feet are now size WW. I am unable to wear most pants because my knees are so large, numb, and hang in the back. I must wear jobst hose every day and undergo lymph drainage in my legs routinely.
I am now with another PS and am doing TEs, getting switched in January. Maybe the TUG is the right surgery for some people, but for me it was a disaster which nearly killed me. I don't recommend it because of the high risk of flap failure and the potential horrible consequences of flap failure. If I need to have my TEs/implants removed, I can always put another back in without risking my circulatory system in my legs.0 -
LALady, I hope that your surgery goes smoothly and that you bounce back quickly. Remember to listen to your body, take it easy, and ask for help when you need it. People will want to help, and you can always pass the favor along to others when you've recuperated.
Cookie, your ordeal sounds absolutely horrible, and I hope you find your way to a better place very, very soon. Besides the scare of having cancer, the other scary thing is that none of us knows just how our individual body will react to any of this stuff--surgery, radiation, chemo. It doesn't matter how much we read or share stories or ask questions--outcomes are bound to vary. Best wishes for your next steps.
Lifelover and TwoHobbies, I hope you are well. I have so appreciated your encouragement since joining this forum. TwoHobbies, I hope that you are fully over your setback by now.
We are having Christmas at our house this year, even though the addition to our tiny house is far from finished. I did not want to go to my parents' house and feel my Dad's absence even more. We will make do and be glad to have my mom, brother, and sister with us. In spite of everything, we do have much to be thankful for.
Lettuce is growing in the cold frame, where the deer can't get at it!0 -
Oh warmsmartcookie, I am so sorry to hear about the difficulty you've been through and are still going through! Thank you for posting your experience because people considering this surgery should know what could go very wrong. I sure hope you get some relief soon.
LALady25, I hope your surgery goes well and you recover quickly. Please let us know how you get on.
TwoHobbies, hello and so happy to hear you are well.
Louisa, enjoy your lettuce
and your deer.
I've been eating loads of organic vegetables and have cut way back on my meat consumption. Hoping to go vegetarian so maybe I'll plant a veggie garden of my own this year.
I haven't been feeling very well, unfortunately. But it's nothing to do with my TUG surgery. I've had reoccurring chest, ear, sinus and throat infections for the past couple of months and will be having scans in the next couple of weeks to rule out any mets. I woke up dizzy today and am trying to stay calm as I have an important clarinet music exam to play the piano for today and 2 concerts this weekend. Fingers crossed for me Ladies, if you please. Prayers would be welcome. Or meditation. Whatever you can send me would be terrific. Music is the love and passion of my life (aside from my sweetheart Dave) and it wouldn't be very fair if I couldn't continue to do it
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Love and peace
to all of us.0 -
Warmsmartcookie, so sorry to hear of your experience and I hope the implants work better for you. I think the TUG is performed way less than DIEP and so its certainly important to find someone very experienced and ask how many they have done and what their failure rate is. If they are vague, it could be a bad sign.
Louisia I'm jealous of the coldframe and the ability to grow something. I might bring in a pot and grow some herbs in my bay window. I hope Christmas will bring warm memories. I do remember how hard that first Christmas was after my father died.
Lifelover, I'm sorry to hear of your issues and hope they are something other than mets. It seems like if its sinus and throat it would not be mets, but of course lung issues are worrying. Please let us know what you find out and yes I will say a prayer and send good vibes, hugs and the full force of whatever healing aura and abilities that I have! Myself, I am done with chemo and radiation and I get a shot of Zoledex once and month and anastrazole. So far I do not notice any real side effects from those. I still get really achy lower legs and feet in the evening, but I think that is left over from chemo and not these drugs.
I am actually going in the opposite direction of vegetarian and going Paleo. It started with a documentary called "The Perfect Human Diet" which really got me thinking. The theory is that for 2 million years man ate one way and then in the last 10,000 years with agriculture we started eating more grains and perhaps we're not genetically evolved to eat that way. Interesting. So long story short, after voraciously reading and studying, I have decided to go Paleo which is no grains, no sugar, no dairy. You still eat a lot of vegetables and its not as hard as I thought it might be, although I haven't achieved the level of consistancy I would like.
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Hi Two Hobbies and thanks for your support
I've heard about the Paleo diet and it sounds very interesting. I can see the reasoning for it. Good luck with it. It's hard to stick with any particular diet, I think. Mostly because of advertising and shopping. At the moment, I'm driven by my lack of interest in eating and no amount of advertising or shopping is having any effect on me. I just don't have an appetite.0 -
All ladies, I'm so blessed to have found this community and to be able to share and listen to the wisdom and different journeys that we are all on. Just wanted to shout out a prayer of thanks for all your stories, all your encouragement, and all your wisdom.0 -
Hi ladies,
Just posting an update 9 days out from my TUG flap.
Warmsmartcookie - so sorry to hear all the complications you had to go through as a result of the TUG. I know that all of this craziness on top of cancer isn't easy. I hope you can find a result that makes feel and look great with minimal pain.
My story (so far):
Had surgery last Monday and got out by Thursday! I was pretty shocked at the quick recovery while I was there, but I am only 27, had a unilateral flap and already had my mastectomy.
The surgery lasted 6.5 hours. To give you some context, I am 5 feet tall and clocked in at 102 lbs on the morning of surgery. I am super impressed by my surgeon's ability to even find enough thigh fat for my minimal A cup, but he did it!
I felt way less breast pain and trauma then when I had felt during my first operation (in which I had a tissue expander placed).
Hospital stay
I spent the first night in the ICU and apparently had breathing problems. They put me on oxygen throughout my stay and really pushed me to use the spirometer often. I was definitely coughing up a lot of mucous, but at no point did I feel like I was actually in danger. I was also extremely dehydrated, so they pumped 1.5L into me. Ahhhh. So much better.
As I'm sure all you ladies with this procedure experienced, the first steps were the hardest. Before I left the hospital, I was able to shuffle around the entire floor and even go up and down 7 stairs!
Pain meds
I get violently ill from Codeine and most pain meds, so I try to avoid them. They gave me something called Torodol while I was there, which I found totally tolerable. I pressed the pain button twice while in the hospital at the insistence of the staff, but haven't taken one pain pill other than aspirin for clotting since I've been home. I know that everyone is different, but know it can be done!
The worst parts
Most of the initial pain was from my thigh. I'm starting to get a bit achy at my breast, but the doctor said this was common, as they take out a part of your rib.
I feel very swollen in my donor leg. The dr actually says I am not that swollen or bruised and am healing very well. But it is uncomfortable. I am very numb (again, a lot of it is due to swelling), and my dr does not give us compression of any sorts.
The discomfort of sitting or riding in the car is mostly just the heaviness of my leg and the strange mix of frostbite and sunburn-esque pain I feel at the donor site. It's not horrible, just uncomfortable.
Navigating cleanliness
Maybe TMI for others, but I appreciated everyone's candor about the unpleasant business of hygiene and the restroom: I bought and brought that pee funnel someone had recommended in the thread. It's been a lifesaver. Any time you don't have to sit down on a hard surface is one less opportunity for pain and for something to go wrong.
I live in a townhome, and the one bathroom is upstairs. I am a freak of nature, and anesthesia has the opposite effect on me than most people, meaning after surgery, I needed to urinate every other hour and have a bowel movement anywhere from 2-4 times a day. For me, going up that many stairs that frequently just wasn't doable the first week.
Hopefully, most people have same level bathrooms, but if you are in my position, get a bedside toilet. We found one at CVS for $80. There are liners that go with it.
I was able to use the restroom alone with some tricky weight shifting.
Now, one week out, I am not needing to go so frequently, so I now navigate the stairs and use a raised toilet seat in our real bathroom. (Woo!)
As far as showering, I have only done sponge baths. I can't bend down yet, so we've primarily relied upon dry shampoo and wash cloths.
You will need help
I am so lucky to have my parents and boyfriend looking after me, as well as the most understanding workplace imaginable. I know that taking this much time off of work or parenting would not be possible for everyone.
Compared to my mastectomy, I've needed so much more help. I got up and sat down on my own for the first time yesterday. Small tasks like climbing the stairs alone can feel insurmountable at first, but you'll feel like an Olympic gold medalist when you can do it.
One week out
In the end, I'm glad I had a staged procedure. Looking back, i do not think I was emotionally ready for a mastectomy with immediate flap reconstruction. So, I'm happy with the ultimate surgery plan.
The breast itself looks great, and the nurses complimented my doctor's work.
I am trying not to judge my breast yet. It is much bigger than the other, but they chalk it up to swelling. I will revisit it in 3 months.
At this point, they mention the final revision surgery, but I just can't fathom going under another time for something cosmetic. We'll see how I feel in the spring.
This thread really helped me make my decision. Just hoping to pay it forward for other ladies down the road...will keep you updated.
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I am scheduled to have this done on Feb 3rd.. I am a little bit nervous being that there does not seem to be many women who went this route..I unfortunately can not do the abdomenal flaps due to prior surgery.
I have had implants that just do not seem to fall right..they look flat and have no projection.. my surgeon suggested possibly trying a flap. The other choice was from the butt except he says they only do this one one side at a time and I really do not want 2 surgeries..Anyone else looking at going this route in the near future?
any issues with being under anethesia for that long for those who had it done? also if anyone can share the length of their surgery, i would appreciate it..thanks
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LaLady it sounds like you are recovering nicely. I'm glad everything is going well. I postponed my stage 2 for about 7 months because I was just sick or doctors and hospitals. But stage 2 is way easier and I was glad to get it done in the same insurance year!
Marial I didn't really ask nor was I very aware of the time on surgery day, but I do know my surgery (bmx and recon on same day) was an all day affair. Once when I complained about the fatigue, my PS said that the anesthesia contributes to that, so I do think the longer you are under, the longer the fatigue may last. But other than that, no harmful effects for me.
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