DIEP Flap Reconstruction 2016
Comments
-
Sugar8: I was a little bummed that the reduction didn't take place because this means I will have to have more surgery in 3-6 months. Also, I had hoped they could do the pathology on the 'good' side so I could rule out any cancer there. I am ok with it now. It is what it is, and I really want to get back to work anyway. I need a break from the cancer merry-go-round. Frankly, I am recovering very well, much better than I had expected. I have been sleeping in my own bed since day 1, 2 drains came out 7 days post op, and I can lie flat (some tightness notwithstanding). And the sun is shining, the cherry and magnolia trees are in bloom, and I am so happy that the mx is behind me. I'm not even too worried about the 'good' girl, because if I have to go through worst case scenario again on the other side, there are no big surprises...been there, done that lol
Lilyn and Tanya: I hear you on the fatigue -everytime I do a short walk I have to head back to the couch. I also have the shortness of breath and sharp pain in my chest - this is a result of the small piece of rib that was taken to allow access to the vein. My PS said this would resolve itself. I was given a spirometer to exercise with.. it is a small box that has 3 chambers, each containing a ball. Inhaling ( deep breath) raises the ball. The target is to raise all 3 balls simultaneously.:
0 -
Stella. ..you are doing awesome!!! Do the breathing thing as often as you can. Keep it beside you on couch and do it 10x. They gave me one in the hospital. Just remember to not over do it.
I smell like Inadine strips and have been feeling kinda down lately. Trying to recover in a basement apartment is depressing me. I try to get up and out as much as possible. I think I will attempt driving this coming week.
Other than that I am hoping the 4 special dressings PS put on my incisions will help my incisions heal. I am back on my Arthritis meds as of 2 days ago so hopefully I start feeling better.
0 -
hang in Tanya. I am in a basement apt too. I am lucky that there is a park across the street, so I walk around it several times and then sit on the bench. I am also lucky to be in Vancouver, which is now in deep spring weather. Sending positive vibes and a big hug. Take care
0 -
stage two done. Boobs look rounder. Dog ears are gone. No pain at the boob area. My waist hurts tho. Nothing unbarable.
0 -
No reconstruction. BreastExtenders had to be removed. Inflammation. Extreme nerve pain still! Removing extenders did absolutely nothing!!! My nerve pains continues my left arm motion limited. I will not ever endure more pain. Doctors can't fix me.
0 -
looks great. Congrats!!
0 -
Lidia, I am so sorry that you are still struggling. Are you posting here because you are considering a DIEP? A second opinion might help.
When I was running into trouble with my original PS, I talked to the hospital's nurse navigator for advice. She recommended going back to see my original breast surgeon because he was highly respected in the community, and I really liked him. He got me set up with the DIEP surgeon and helped me with deciding what to do next.
Sounds like you need some outside help to give you direction?
0 -
You look great Myajames please keep us posted on your recovery timeframes, pain etc. Good luck and I love your attitude.
0 -
Myajames, you look fabulous! You're lucky not to have any big scars.
0 -
Grateful, is you surgery this week or later in the month? The date in your signature and the one above in the forum don't match.
In any case, it is almost here!
0 -
BigSister, thanks for the heads up, I forgot to change the date on my profile. It's on April 28th. Unless it gets moved up again... the waiting and waiting and having it postponed repeatedly is really stressful for me. I can't make any plans until it's done.
0 -
Myajames you look fabulous! Tanya sorry feeling a little down it is a long recovery but in s few weeks we should be getting more spring like weather if not we will move to B.C. ha ha One of my sisters lives in Victoria so lovely. Barb hang in there almost there. I have a question for you ladies. I am 8 weeks out and not supposed to carry stuff over 10 pounds. Had seen girls over for dinner last night and went to an Italian specialty shop for their amazing lasagna. Had to park little ways away. The lasagna must have been at least 8 pounds. My abdominal incision pretty red with tiny streaks below incision. My husband said looks okay just probably strained it. Anyone ever lift stuff over what we should? Wow what a long winded message sorry:-)
0 -
Lilyn, you are likely OK, but if you are not sure, call your PS. The lifting restriction is primarily for the muscles, which you wouldn't see on the surface.
I wonder if the redness is from wearing toghter clothes or moving around more while to were out? I know everything was pretty red when I started wearing jeans.
0 -
Myajames you look fabulous! Tanya sorry feeling a little down it is a long recovery but in s few weeks we should be getting more spring like weather if not we will move to B.C. ha ha One of my sisters lives in Victoria so lovely. Barb Han in their almost there. I have a question for you ladies. I am 8 weeks out and not supposed to carry stuff over 10 pounds. Had seen girls over for dinner last night and went to an Italian specialty shop for their amazing lasagna. Had to park little ways away. The lasagna must have been at least 8 pounds. My abdominal incision pretty red with tiny streaks below incision. My husband said looks okay just probably strained it. Anyone ever lift stuff over what we should? Wow what song winded message sort :-)
0 -
thanks Big sister you are probably right just maybe more red as I have been much more active lately. I am surprised how tight it feels below and on abdominal incision. hope this feeling starts to let up soon.
0 -
Hello,
I was reading through some of your posts and am inspired by all you ladies. As someone who is farther along in this DIEP reconstruction process, I wanted to pop in and give some encouragement. I had my bilateral mastectomy with immediate DIEP reconstruction in December of 2014. It has been a little over 15 months now. I had a couple of bumps along the road of recovery. I will tell you it gets so much better. I had the abdominal tightness and swelling (swelly belly) for quite a while that I started to get discouraged. The swelling has completely resolved now. I also had really bad back pain for over 3 weeks that at one point I said to my sister, "What have I done, I have ruined my back"! LOL. I'm happy to say that it resolved completely around the 4 week mark. Also, the breasts have softened up and settled quite nicely.
For those of you considering nipple reconstruction, I would recommend you ask your plastic surgeon about using the cook biodesign nipple reconstruction cylinder. It really helped me retain nipple projection. I had my nipple reconstruction surgery in October 2015. I am thrilled with the way they came out ( although they are still a bit larger than I expected, which I attribute to still wearing the shields). I am waiting to get my areola tattoos. I am really happy I went ahead with the nipple reconstruction ( I was a bit reluctant at first). That part of the surgery was painless. The fat grafting (lipo) was the part that was uncomfortable, although not too bad, and did not last too long.
Hang in there, pamper yourselves and give yourselves time to recover. It does get better!
0 -
Lilyn, it will take a LONG time for your belly to be happy again. They moved a lot of tissue, so it takes a long time for it to heal. I think mine felt puffy and sore for a good 2-3 months.
I am almost 4 months out and my belly is now pretty normal feeling. I found wearing my yoga pants really helped because of the light compression.
0 -
Caligirl, thanks for popping in! I am scheduled for nipples and fat grafting on Wednesday, and I was wondering what to expect.
How long before I can get back to work? I am a homeschool mom and I also write for a living, so work isn't physically demanding.
I know my doc is not a fan of binders--thank goodness!--but I was wondering about physical restrictions. Seems like just when I get my energy back and can exercise again, something else comes along to knock me back down. Sigh.
0 -
myajames - stage two looks fabulous.
)))) May I ask what specifically you had done to the girls..... was it fat grafting to round them out and was anything done to the 'crop circle' scars around the nipple area -- did they need to open them up again to do the stage 2? I am gathering info as I get stage 2 in the fall [ need to wait due to radiation]. Mine are already fairly round but hoping for a bit more projection on the right side which has the crop circle same as you but mine is flatter at the tip [if that makes sense] -- the left side is more typical pointy end as I kept that nipple.Good luck big sister with your stage two - you have given tons of great info, and also thanks Caligirl! I've written that cylinder down!
0 -
Hey Phoebe!
No fat grafting.. The girls were a bit wide (I thought they were fine, but my PS is a perfectionist), and he thought the circles from the DIEP flap were big and wouldn't hide well under areola tattoos (again, I thought it was fine). So, he lifted them slightly, and made the DIEP skin circles (wth should I call those) smaller. Which in turn made my boobs rounder and not so wide.
I alsihad my abdominal incision widened to remove those pesky dog ears. My breast now are larger than I began with, and my hips and butt have always been pretty plump... My body shape is now stripper. Lol.. Seriously, everything is looking good. Now just waiting for nipples.
0 -
thanks myajames - my 'crop circle' [-- heard that term elsewhere and liked it!] is a bit big too, and was wondering if it could be reduced, as the areola I will eventually get would only cover about 3/4 of it, and the scar line seems a bit indented too which is noticeable. Gotta love our picky surgeons!! Now you just need a pole
LOL.0 -
Myajames - 2 words "absolutely fabulous". So, so happy for you!
0 -
Phoebe: I like crop circle. Apparently, they can make them smaller. Ask your PS.
StellaMaris: Thanks!
Ummm... So I think I want heart shaped areola tattoos. Anyone else thinking of doing something less traditional? Called Vinny Meyers shop and looks like I have to wait 5 months after nipples. Best case scenario... November. 🙄😒
0 -
Big Sister, the fat grafting has pretty much been the most painful part of the process for me. Sorry! I had fat taken from abdominal areas, flanks and backside upper thigh (under my butt). I look and felt like I had been beaten with a 2x4 for about 2 solid weeks. The bruising completely subsided by week 4, but the tissues are all still very sore. I think that the stage 1 pain didn't register as being as painful because of the time I was in the hospital on their pain meds. This time, that first week seemed to drag on endlessly. All that being said, once I got past that first week, I was back into our normal routine. We also homeschool and I work from home. I was sore, but able to do anything I needed to do. My P.S. didn't require any lengthy compression after stage 1, but did recommend using compression to the fat donor sites in order to hasten the reduction in swelling. I don't know if it did anything but suffocate and annoy me. I switched out to several different spanx-type, high waist bike shorts and felt much better and still had compression on the right areas. Based on my results, I'm guessing I'll probably be given an option for at least one more fat graft to my left side. Haven't decided yet if it's worth going through it again.
As far as the dog ears...that part has been nearly unnoticeable. The incisions were widened just a bit on my sides and into areas that we not numb from stage 1. They bother me just a little bit, but nothing to bad. With complete numbness to the noobs, all the work they did up there hasn't been an issue at all. Worst part was getting the glue to finally wash off.
Good luck tomorrow, and take that first week easy. It does feel great to get that 2nd part behind you so that you can get closer to being back on track for good.
0 -
Hi Guys I have a question about the compression. I have lymphedema and was wondering if anyone found that theirs had gotten worse after there reconstruction. I have a compression shirt and arm and hand sleeve that I wear pretty much everyday. Wondering if the compression shirt will be something I will have to be wearing after reconstruction or if it will be too tight (or is tight a good thing) Still haven't gotten an exact day for my Deip they tell me sometime in May/June. A date would really help never want to make too many plans.
Myajames you look fantastic, I can only hope for such a great outcome. I have heard some nice things about my PS (Dr. Douglas Ross) I hope he is as picky as yours.
0 -
Ok! I just scheduled! I saw PS in January, but wanted to wait until after my daughter's wedding in June for the surgery. I am scheduled for 8/1, prophylactic mam on right side and bilateral DIEP flap. I am scheduled for pre-op physical in July. I will be glad to get the surgery. Being a uni-boober has been a drag. Lymphedema has made wearing my left side prosthetic difficult for extended periods of time and it keeps me from going out as much as I would normally. My right side is still a droopy DD, so it is hard going without bra and prosthetic. Thanks for everyone sharing their stories. It is great to hear of other's experiences as I prepare for my surgery in a few months.
Joy
0 -
Taag, so sorry about the lymph edema. I hope someone here has some experience there. LE is one bullet I managed to dodge. Found plenty of others tho!
Just had my Stage 2 today, and it was a piece of cake. I have nipples, but can't see them under the dressings yet. Fat grafting from abdomen and thighs to fill in he upper poles of the foobs. Still leaking from the holes where they took the fat. Apparently they injected lidocaine and saline and then suctioned out the fat. They are thus pretty juicy and need to drain. I'll take gauze over JPs any day!
The PS said that 1/2 of fat injected will be reabaorbed (lost) so we'll have to see. Hopefully it will all stay alive with no fat necrosis.
The worst thing today was having no coffee for my 2 hour trip to the medical center EARLY this morning.
The PS also mentioned something I hadn't head before. Apparently there can be stem cells in the fat they are transplanting. Some scientists question the wisdom of transplanting stem cells into a "cancer organ" (the breast area). My PS said he doesn't think it is an issue, but he had to comment on it. He said he wouldn't do it if he thought it was not safe. They have been doing this fairly long term in other countries with no ill effects. Our bodies are indeed fearfully and wonderfully made!
I hurt quite a bit in my thighs in the recovery room, but nothing else bothered me. Feel great now! I am just pretty woosy and tired. Just ate in prep for my car ride home.
The anesthesiologist gave me a patch for nausea plus a bunch of antinausea mets in my IV, so I am doing well on that front.
Edited to add: No compression binder! Yay!!
0 -
Big Sister...have some of your pain meds at the ready for tomorrow. The day of my stage 2 I kept telling everyone how little discomfort I felt. When they kept laughing at me I asked "what? Is this some kinda temporary honeymoon from the pain?"...They said that some people feel it right away, some people feel it the next day, but very few people get away without feeling like they were flung around like a rag doll. I hope you are one of the few, but get the meds ready just in case...along with the collace. Happy healing!
0 -
Congrats Bigsister, glad it went well, and let those juices flow!! I had heard about stem cells too, but what I heard was good news.... that they can help heal and improve damaged tissues -- I perked up when I heard that, as I await stage 2 on my radiated foob this fall. Perhaps they also help support healing tissues generally, it would make sense, but I don't know that for a fact. Goodtip Dizzpark! Taag I had diep surgery before my radiation, and so far so good. Best wishes.
0 -
Great advice, DizzParkMom.
I wonder if the pain delay is because of the lidocaine, which is an anesthetic.
I figured out how to better manage all the leaking around my tummy incision line from all the saline that they injected. They had sent me home with 4x4s and tape, but they filled up and leaked thru. Plus the tape is irritating.
So, I put on a clean pair of waist-high granny pants, cut an overnight feminine napkin in half, and tucked it in my underwear on either side of my belly. The sticky side sticks to the panties, keeping the pad in place without having to use tape on my skin. The pad also is leakproof, so my panties stay clean. I wear my yoga pants overthe panties to keep everything in place and give me a little squeeze for comfort.
0
