Nipple reconstruction
Comments
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mamma......I think removing it would be more help with shrinkage. I'm not a nip expert, by any means, but my understanding is first the thought is to guard it to allow healing without compressing it. Once it's healed, then allowing some compression helps with the shrinking. Other thoughts ladies???
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Nihahi,
I'm certainly no expert either, but my own experience and choice was to protect it for about 7 weeks. MUCH longer than my nurse said to. As soon as I stopped protecting it shrank by about half almost immediately. It has not shrunk much since then. I really like the size as is, although I have to wear "t-shirt bras" (light padding) in order to hide them. They are definitely ON if I don't. Fitted, plain colored t's are NOT happening here without a bra with good coverage. But that's the kind I wore prior to bmx anyway.
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it is so interesting the varied recommendations from different PS. I only protected mine, with some gauze & a hole cut in the middle, for 2 days. Since then I wore nothing & when I went to see my PS,10 days post-op, she said it was fine to wear a regular bra & no other precautions were needed. I asked if smushing the nipple in a bra would harm it in anyway - she said "no". My natural nipple is small, so I'd like this one to also be small. It has shrunk a good amount since surgery, but still has a ways to go before it will "match". She said that it will shrink for about 2 months. She thinks the size will match very well.
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mammalou....I realize I might have misinterpreted your message....I "read" it as you are wanting it to shrink.????
I've worn a tight bra just for running for two days in a row now. Granted, the nip isn't compressed for more than an hour, but it's pretty compressed for that time...It returns to pre-run condition as soon as I take off the bra. Yep, I was told too, it will shrink to about half of what it is now. If I end up like that....I'll be like a combo of....small, but happy! And at the moment...dark, patterned tops are still my friend!
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I had DIEP in March and will have stage 2 with nipple reconstruction, scar revision, and some lipo because the left side is smaller than the right. I've been reading past posts and wonder if I really want to have permanent headlights along with the scar across my entire chest and crop circles. My DH says I'm fine, but I don't feel fine. I feel incomplete but worried if nips will be a benefit for completion or not. I have time because I'm not scheduled til July 30. I just want this all to be finished.
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Hi teach....It is a totally personal choice for everyone, and we all have different perspectives...sound familiar
!First....though....I want to reinforce to you that your scars WILL fade. So it is important to try to "visualize" your body without the scars when you are trying to decide which path to take from here. My PS actually advises to women looking for answers to "should I, shouldn't I" to use makeup to cover their scars, then take some photos, so you can really see what your breasts may look like in the future. (Obviously you need to be well healed before doing this). This does NOT mean, he pushes nip recon, he just encourages thinking "in the future", not in the moment. In Canada, we are not under the gun, so to speak, to get surgery completed within a calendar year for $$ reasons, so time to consider things is more on our side, in that way, and even waiting until scars have faded out, is entirely doable.
Personally, after many, many years of being nipple-less on one side, now having two nipples (regardless of how well matched or "lighted" they may end up) makes me emotionally feel like I have two breasts again. With no nip recon for many years, even when my implants weren't causing problems, I never "bonded" with that side as being a breast. For me, I know without any doubt, that a tattoo nip, no matter how "artfully" it was done, would not give me that emotional "completeness" either. If I end up needing to wear a lightly lined bra....I have absolutely no issues with that...since that is the style of bra I have worn for years, to conceal being a uni.
I "get" that someone with a bmx, may have a different perspective. I get that many ladies love being nip free. I get that many ladies love their tattoos, especially the 3D ones. I'm glad for them, that they are happy with their choices. I just know, that for me, a tattoo is still not a "nipple" and a nip free recon, is not a "breast".
I'm not someone who seeks or even believes in physical "perfection"..to me, that is just a personal opinion, and not a "fact" or even reality. I opted for a nip recon for emotional closure, and that is truly what I feel I have gained. I know in my heart, I will feel truly "done".
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Nihahi, thanks for the make up suggestion. That's a good idea. I guess I'm looking for the "doneness" of this process. I equate seeing myself more like I used to be meaning that cancer is truly a thing of the past. Being much smaller is ok. Being a different shape is ok. It's not a matter of perfection. My old bod was far from that so I don't expect it now. Beyond the scars, it's the visual "what's missing" when I see myself in the mirror that bothers me the most. I believe that nipples and tattoos will complete the visual I miss of myself. Reading about the binding, bandages, flattening, and recovery has scared me more than learning and experiencing DIEP. Don't know why, maybe it's because it is a giant leap toward the end of all this nightmare and I want to just be me again. For most of the last six months I haven't reflected much on what's happening because it has all been so fast and I put myself on a fast learning track. Now with things slowing down, the uncertainty, bordering on fear, has come to the forefront. Because I feel I've always been able to adjust and handle things, these new feelings have me going in circles.
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Teacher,
I had many of the feelings you are describing. I almost decided to just skip the nip/tatt part. But I decided to go ahead and try. Be sure sure SURE that you play around with circle bandaids or stickers to determine where you think you like them. Then combine that with your PS' ideas. I found that my scar lines were distracting me in placement planning...so stick something in the spot you like and then put a tight white camisole or tank on over it and see if they are where you want them.
Also...there are prosthetic nipples available on line if you want to try something lie that to see if you like having them.
After I had my nip recon I went through another time of wacky emotions. I thought I'd made a mistake...they were huge...they looked nasty...etc. Cried a bunch. Lol.
Now they are just perfect. They look very real. I'm glad I got them. Even though I don't have tattoos yet it STILL is nice to see them there. But I have friends who have chosen not to and friends who got them and are disappointed at how much they flattened.
I did not have radiation and I know that has an impact on success.
It is such a very individual choice. It helped me to just wait a bit til I was ready to face another procedure.
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Teacher, I knew I wanted nipples to feel complete again, similar to Nihahi. Really, getting them was a breeze, just an office procedure for me after I healed from Stage II. They were huge at first because I wanted to start big, knowing they would shrink. I wore gauze pads for a couple of weeks, they have since shrunk by half and I am happy. I will start the tattoo process in June ( it takes a couple of visits, I'm told). I wear lightly padded bras, although remember that most of these new nipples don't have erectile tissue so they do flatten in clothes and bounce back after. Sometimes PS's add pig tissue/cartilage or something to keep them erect. My PS (and me) went for soft ones instead. I really understand just wanting to be done, not feeling like a patient anymore, etc. It's a longer process than we ever knew it would be but time does pass and we do move on.
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Ladies,
Quick question... I'm having my exchange June 2. My ps said we can schedule my nipple reconstruction 3 months after that. I'm a teacher and have been out of work since January and I'm scheduled to have an abdominal hysterectomy on July 1. My question is- when I go to plan my nipple reconstruction, realistically how long is recovery and what's it like? My ps said I'd be able to go back to work after 24 hours. I'd need to wait the 24 hours, not because of pain etc but anesthesia. Are u really 100 percent after a day? She mentioned using a nipple shield... What's that?
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Mommyathome, I just had nipple reconstruction 2 weeks ago. I would say that if you had it on a Friday, you would be able to go back to work on Monday. However, for 2 full weeks I was not allowed to lift anything heavy or exercise. A nipple shield is a plastic thing that goes over the nipple to protect it. I did not have one. I just had gauze over it with a hole cut in the middle for a couple of days and that is all. I was allowed to wear a regular bra, but went braless for 2 days until the gauze was removed. One of the biggest problems is finding clothing to "hide" the enormously large nipple until it shrinks and heals. You would also need to be selective with your clothing if they give you a nipple guard. I had my surgery on a Thursday (late- morning) and went to a dinner party the next night. I did not have any pain, so pain killers were not needed. If you are on pain killers, things will be different for you.
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mommyathome....Unless significant "other things" are going to be done at the same time as your nipple recon, I don't think you'll be needing anesthesia. For just the nip recon, I think the norm is a local anesthesia, and because sensation in a recon breast is diminished, the local administration really is a whole lot of nothing....barely more than a prick or two. Donna is spot on with the other advice. Patterned, darker coloured, loosely layered tops will be your friend for awhile.
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Hi all,
Back in December I had an areola sparing BMX with TE's put in.
My exchange is scheduled for May 13th and my PS is doing my nipple reconstruction at the same time. My PS said he's done the nipple reconstruction at the same time before and it's turned out great, but I'm curious if there are many others out there who have had it done at the same time as their exchange....
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ladies, a friend is having chemo and her plastic surgeon has scheduled her exchange a month after the last infusion. Mine was 58 days after the last infusion.
I am questioning that a month is too short of a period for her to be ready for surgery.
Can you tell me if a month is ok? How many days after your last infusion did you have the exchange?
Thank you in advance.
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I noticed today that my nipples have shrunk to little buttons. They look perfect. It's been 3.5 since my nipple recon.
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I had a mastectomy 3 weeks after chemo. They wouldn't do it any sooner than that.
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I also waited exactly 3 weeks after last chemo, before surgery.
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thank you, ladies!
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Donna and Nihahia
Thanks. My surgeon actually said general anesthesia will be used.
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I had nipple recon. on May 5th, along with fat grafting to give my flap a better contour to match my native side. I have small implants on both sides as I had flap complications and lost some fat. The "big reveal" of my nipple took place yesterday. It looked very natural but, huge. I'm sure it will shrink in time.
My after care only involves putting a gauze pad over it, held in place by a piece of tape. I was told to avoid pressure on it and no sports bras. I have small breasts so it is easy to go au natural. I now have to figure out what to wear to Barre class to conceal the gauze pad!! Always something.
As far as the fat grafting goes, I was told it can take five or six weeks to determine how much fat will be absorbed. My PS said most people retain 60-80%. Hope that is true as I would love to be done except for the tat.
Just hang in there, as my mother used to say "this to shall pass."
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Hi ladies, I have a question which I hope someone can answer. I am scheduled for nips and fat grafting on June 18. Anatomical implants were put in on April 9th. My left breast is much bigger than right as the right side was the cancer side and more breast tissue was removed. I am thinking of holding off on doing nips and just do the fat grafting because I feel that if he does my nips at the same time and some of the fat grafting doesn't take my nipples will be uneven. Has anyone experienced this? Or are my concerns even logical? Once the nips are placed there's no going back and I want to be sure. Thanks!!
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Happy, I was in a similar situation. My left breast was smaller than my non-cancer rt. one. My PS did fat grafting on it and said he did not want to do my nipple until we saw the final results of the fat grafting. If the size changed due to fat loss then the nips would not be as symmetrical as they could be had we waited.
It made perfect sense to me and I am glad he made that decision. I think you are on the right track by waiting for your nipple.
Best of luck.
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Happyspring.....I agree with littlesara....waiting until the recon breast has settled and "recovered" sound like a much better path to nipple recon success. Hope it goes well for you.
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Thank you Llittlesara and Nihahi. I'm glad to be reassured in my thinking. So I'm not crazy after all!!
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hahaha....nope....you'd have to take a number and get behind me in the "crazy" category! I think I've got that covered!
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i had my nipple recon today. With some pain in the abdomen, where PS did flap for nipple.
Surgery lasted 2.30 Hours. Slept all the way back home and just woke up. Still sedated I guess.
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Headeast, congrats on nips! Love the schnauzer picture. My princess, Penny, has gotten me through some rough days. She's taking her after breakfast nap and I wish I were, too.
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thank you Teacher64! I guess I feel more pain than others. I am not moving too much today. The wpunds hurt even taking Percocet. But I am so happy this is the last surgery, yay! Tattoing after this and I will be done!
Bella my mini Schnauzer is the best, she loves to be on my lap. Not for a few days though!
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Headeast, I hope you are feeling good after your surgery and that your pain decreases each day. My left nip, which had to be stitched all back together again, is healing nicely. I am still dealing with lumps from fat grafting and PS wants me to have BS set up an ultrasounds because he's a little concerned about them. Hair is coming in nicely, albeit a little slow for my preference. It is also VERY curly in the back, so my little pocket flat iron is my new best friend. How have things gone with you? How's the hair situation?
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Hello all
The majority of nipples flatten to just about nothing -especially if you have implants. I would give it 6=12 months to be sure- before you get your tattoo. That way if you want another surgery .... or who knows a different technique or a different PS... you won't have to go through reconstructing with the tattoo in place. that could really screw the tattoo up. I hope that helps....
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