January 2017 Surgery Group
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DCISinAZ, I went to piper at Shea for my genetics testing. All of my mammo/biopsies/surgery have been at the Honor Health Breast Center Deer Valley. My BS is Dr Lise Walker and PS I met with is Dr Andres in Scottsdale. I don't think i will ended up needing his services though. We shall see after my healing is complete but my BS very skillfully cut that 2 cm mass out and it looks like you won't be able to tell at all!! Even my incision is in line with the aeriola since my mass was at 6:00 (as they say) right beneath my nipple. So far I'm very impressed! I had met with Dr Andres while trying to decide between the lumpectomy and double mx.
I did have my son 25 years ago at thunderbird. I don't think it was Banner back then.
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Today's Ladies - you're the ⭐️ today. Run with it and when you are back on board know we are all supporting you.
My sched is starting to fall in to place; appts for PET scan tomorrow, oncologist (trying hard not to quake at the anticipated results 😫) on Thursday and PS on Monday - which means I should have a date for BMX soon. Still wearing compression bras to keep from feeling "the spot" and that's helping.
I have decided to make good boundaries with ppl around me who don't have much self awareness. (Yes, a particular person at work!) The plan is to stop them immediately, saying,"ive found that its better to hear cancer stories only from the person who is experiencing it; second-hand stories just don't help".
We need only life giving ppl surrrounding us- not those who suck the life out of us!
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annoyingboob, that's the place! Thanks for the picture!
3bears and the other 10's....you do have this as all have said above. It will be over before you know it and we'll be waiting with yummy drinks! One thing we never discussed...I'm guessing we won't be topless so be prepared for tan lines! 😁😁😁 haha!!
DsMom, great advice. We can only share our experience but every single one of us is different in some way.
LeftCoastie, praying for good results. I'm right there with you sister. I get mine today to. Was a rough night but I've taken lorazepam already this morning and my sister should be here soon to go on a short walk to keep me busy and help prevent those blood clots!!
Docmama, did your sister end up making it in? I hope so.
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Hi Ladies! I am currently considering PBM with diep flap reconstruction. I am BRCA 2 positive. I am driving myself crazy, trying to make this decision and reading all of your stories helps so much! I just wanted to say, thank you for sharing and best of luck with surgery and recovery for all of you! Hopefully one day soon(ish) I will be able to share my story on here as well.
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To all of the Tough 10's - Godspeed on your surgeries and quick healing. Check in when you can. To the newbies, Welcome and if I didn't get your info updated properly, feel free to drop me a PM so that I get the correct info on the schedule.
I had my regular appt with my MO yesterday and he confirmed that pre-surgery I had CPR! Amazing what these drugs can do! We discussed the "lost clip" episode and I think he'll be more diligent about reading the radiologist's report on that account for his future patients. (Gotta love making the professionals more aware of important things).
Rosebowl16, DsMom, and DCISinAZ - I hope that you are relaxing and pampering yourselves in preparation for your surgery day!
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Fightingirl & Leftcoastie: praying for good results! It's my turn tomorrow....for some reason, I haven't minded waiting for these results...not up for focusing on a whole new phase yet, I guess. Better get a good night's sleep!
DSmom, I couldn't agree more. The first thing my mom asked when I told her about this group was, "I hope they're not too negative." Maybe we're unique &/or maybe the other boards are people dealing with specific problems & those doing well just move on with their lives. In any case I don't read them either...I don't know if you're planning on recon but I have pre-pectoral TEs on my way to implants which are a great option for athletes since the pectoral muscle doesn't get cut. Feel free to PM me if you like...
Bevmomduck: Amen! none of us are guaranteed a tomorrow, whether or not you have cancer, but whatever time I have left on earth will be with life-affirming people, not life-sucking ones! Hoping tomorrow goes well for you
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Late start for me this morning girls! Tough 10's you got this! We are all waiting for you! We will laugh, cry and cast all over anxieties to the crystal blue water when this is all over!
Now for a me minute, my DH had an appointment with our PCP this morning. I asked DH to get my pathology report and ask our PCP what he thought about the surgeon who is doing my surgery. PCP was surprised about the BC. I see the NP who specializes in women's health at the practice so he shocked. Anyway, he was a great comfort to my DH and was truly "YOU GOT THIS" that we needed not to stress. That as far as BC goes I got the most treatable one. So ladies, I will have my pathology report this evening.
See you at the bungalow!
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Vargadoll: Great news! See you at the bungalow later
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DSMOM you may want to look at the chemo boards for ladies who have finished. You can ask your questions there. Great group of ladies on this forum
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3 bears and all those going in today, peace and light!!! Lie back and float in that still water. We are with you, cheering you on from our bungalows!!
Cowboy, they told me a few days off work and no driving for a week, BUT I drove post op day 1 to pick my dog up from a friend(I was off narcotics and just on Tylenol for pain, and my car is automatic) and I went back to work post op day 3!! Having said that, I work from home in front of a computer, so I stayed in my jammies. I also didn't have any axillary dissection, just 2 lumpies on the rt, 1 on the left, and a bilateral reduction/lift. So the recovery is much easier than that from mastectomy with reconstruction. And everyone is different, so don't get frustrated if you heal slower. What I have learned from all of this is to be more accepting of my body and just appreciate however it wants to heal and roll with it. A good life lesson for me who tended to plan my life out a year at a time!!
And for those healing, did anyone get glued back together? I told my ps I get a rash from steristrips, so he said he would use glue, and now post op day 5 that stuff itches like crazy!!
Good luck to all you gorgeous ladies!! Focus on just slow breaths in and out. Float in the water and feel the sun warming you up. Bask in the love we are sending you.
Fightingirl, I think we all have perfect boobs on our island!!
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Hi All- I haven't been on lately, I've been dealing with a blood clot and honestly it has laid me up more than I'd ever imagine. I have a follow up appt today with PCP. Pre-ops had already been scheduled with both surgeon and PS this week so I will see what they say regarding keeping my surgery date.
I do agree with others regarding the boards- if you spend a lot of time reading through them, you can get confused, down, and scared. As my MO reminded me- a lot of the women that do well with treatments etc don't post. So just try and keep a good balance and don't get sucked into the negative (coming from someone who went there lol).
Dsmom- chemo- agree to read some of the boards (I was on Aug 2016 for example), and I hate to re-iterate what everyone says but we are all different, and our bodies react differently. Depending on the treatment some of it becomes cumulative too. Example- all of them hit me, but #5 of 6 was the worse. Then for #6 I had to delay as my platelets were down- nothing you could prepare for by being in shape for example. I had a great immunity system going in- hadn't been sick in years, but chemo will change that quickly, again- beyond your control. So if you have to go down the chemo road- just realize how your body responds is what it is, and no reason to feel you should be responding better or worse. Some women do work through it-- also depends on your "exposure" to potential germs etc. AND...some of us will feel the effects of chemo for months to come afterwards.
This is a very positive group....wishing those going into surgery this week the best, and those that have completed it continued smooth recovery!
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Thanks AJBClan...I know you're right...I won't know until I'm there how it will go - wait and see and hope for the best! I thought about it and probably won't go to the boards...I don't want to stumble upon negative or scary threads. It is what it is...
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annoyingboob: I get a rash from steristrips too...I had a BMX & they have me all wrapped up in this clear thin bandage ( looks like clear packing tape) It itches the most on my sides, even more so at the drain sites. I feel like pulling them out! I just realized that my little training bra foobs don't itch bc they're probably numb...hey, who knew having numb foobs could be a positive thing? At least they don't itch LOL!
Ajbclan: good to hear from you! Hope your surgery doesn't have to be postponed...I'm assuming it might be because you're taking blood thinners to break up the clot?
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pugsmama, I had that clear tape too - all around nipple and lower breast incisions . I think it's called tagaderm? Well, it started itching like crazy post op day 3 so I ripped it off. I read on another site how someone used maxi pads and paper tape, so that's what I replaced the clear stuff with! I put a little bacitracin on the spots where my drains were, then the maxi pads over all the incisions, then my postop bra. Sounds so silly but it worked! Today there was no drainage on the pads, so I'm down to just the bra. The glue they used on my incisions itches, but I think it should start flaking off next week. Ah, the joys of sensitive skin!
Maybe you could try the maxipad and then just wrap yourself in an ace bandage! I can tolerate natural fibers, but any tape or sticky stuff is so irritating. Good luck!!
And for those of you showering, are you still doing hibiclens? I used it preop but maybe I should do a light rinse with it post op too? The incisions all look clean, just a bit bruised still.
Love you ladies!! It gets better!! Xx
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same here annoyingboob, I suddenly developed a reaction to the stri-strips on my 3rd biopsy site. I'm glued back together and noticing the itch as well. The glue at my nipple is fine but the node incision is driving me crazy
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Thank you for starting this thread. I'm meeting with my surgeon tomorrow to talk about surgery options. I've just had 8 weeks of chemo which seems to have been very effective. So would expect surgery end of Jan or beginning of Feb, probably a lumpectomy, but depends on the conversation tomorrow.
Hope everyone's surgery has gone well so far. Will be thinking about you all.
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Lotsofbroccoli: welcome! Keep us posted on your plans. This is a great group
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tomorrow is the day i have my mastectomy after being told on the 13th dec that i have a 7cm moderate agressive tumor on my right side.
i have good friends and family with a strong husband but its good to know what we can feel not alone together, as i feel we are the ones going
through this.....chemo will be after 5 weeks recovery...hugs to you all x
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welcome jazz123!!! We have developed a tight sisterhood here and we all wish you well for tomorrow! We have been trying to calm our preop nerves by picturing ourselves in over water bungalows, rewarded postop with a fruity drink at the bar with all the ladies. So choose your bungalow and enjoy the ride. Health is on its way!! X
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Jazz123, we're all here for you. Good luck tomorrow!!!!
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Welcome Jazz123! Prayers for your surgery tomorrow. Please check in when you can and let us know how you made out! This is a great group!
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I need some words ladies! The lorazepam isn't even cutting it at this point. Path results were supposed to be yesterday or today... I just called since it's 3:00 my time and no path at BS office yet. I feel like I don't have another day of waiting in me!!! Breast cancer is annoying in so many ways.
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Oh Fightingirl! Waiting is the absolute worst! I am not getting my results until Thursday, but I was not promised them earlier either! Damn doctors! They don't realize what stress they put us through! Please know that it doesn't mean there is a problem... some nimrod may have put your file at the bottom of the pile or it may have been marked with the wrong date! Maybe someone was sick and a poor lab tech is in there working his fingers to the bone :-)
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Fightingirl: I can't imagine how frustrated you must be! I have an appt. with my BS tomorrow morning to go over my path results - hope they're there! It's funny, this is one I don't mind waiting for. I think because it's the start of a whole new phase of this BC business & I'm tired today and don't feel like thinking about treatment options yet. So maybe you can look at this delay as a break from having to think about the next set of important decisions? Lame, but it's the best I can come up with!! Hang in there...I do empathize with how frustrating the "process" of dealing with BC is..there's always wine LOL
xoxo
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Fightingirl, I don't have any perfect words for you, but hang in there. Are you feeling well enough that you can go for a walk? Physical activity helps me settle down. Just came back from some "laps" (walking, not running) around part of our property and I feel better.
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Rosebowl16: prayers for your surgery tomorrow....please let us know how you're doing when you feel up to it! We're all with you!!
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thanks pugsmama, maybe I should open a bottle of wine! Jinmo, I did 2.5 miles with my sister this morning and it totally helped but the endorphins wore off! I plan to go again tomorrow morning and every day this eeek for sure. Hoping I can get back to my yoga glasses in next couple of weeks and that will help to but doesn't help me today. 😭 Boo. My luck will be I start drinking wine on top of this lorazepam and the BS will call andI won't remember to ask all my questions!! Maybe I'll try those adult coloring books I got as gifts from friends for awhile. Supposed to be very calming...well see
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FightinGirl...if you haven't already, make a list of your questions! I couldn't survive without my lists...I am always forgetting something!
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fightingirl,
try the guided meditations on insight timer. or just sit in the dark, focus on your breath, 5 secs in and 7 out. hold for 2. when the crazy thoughts come in, just acknowledge them and accept their presence and then let them go. dont get caught up in all the 'what ifs'. give up some control. be grateful that you are here and surrounded by love. one of my mindfulness books recommends you repeat these phrases over and over :
'may you be safe and free from suffering'
'may you be happy and as healthy as you can be'
'may you have ease of being'
'you are loved'
I hope your results come in soon and they are all good news. best of luck!!
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Thank you! My amazon dot has guided meditations and I was just thinking about that. I love yoga and all about peace and calm until lately... never good at meditation but I'm going to try it this ver minute. Thank you, thank you
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