Come join others currently navigating treatment in our weekly Zoom Meetup! Register here: Tuesdays, 1pm ET.

August 2017 Surgery Group

1356719

Comments

  • Beachmama
    Beachmama Member Posts: 28
    edited August 2017

    Thanks, Dodes! I think MommyErin goes in tomorrow, too. Blessings to you all!

  • beach2beach
    beach2beach Member Posts: 246
    edited August 2017

    Good luck Beachmama, tomorrow is my day also. I'm in a tizzy.



  • Dodes
    Dodes Member Posts: 18
    edited August 2017

    well, i can't keep up. there's too many of us,

    Winking

    so i'm just going to blanket all of you in healing thoughts, blessings of love and peace.

  • Beachmama
    Beachmama Member Posts: 28
    edited August 2017

    I wish you an uneventful procedure and quick recovery, beach2beach! We've got this!

  • pinkvictory
    pinkvictory Member Posts: 24
    edited August 2017

    good luck tomorrow beach mama and beach2beach. Wishing you botha smooth and quick recovery. I will be going in for my surgery on Wednesday...

  • ladynicole
    ladynicole Member Posts: 8
    edited August 2017

    Hi all, checking in. Surgery was the 7th, came home on the 8th. Everything went well. I've a heap of swelling at present, I don't think my drains are working properly so getting them checked by my local Doc this morning. Practically pain free. Had SNB on left side, but DMX. Feeling good.

  • pinkvictory
    pinkvictory Member Posts: 24
    edited August 2017

    ladynicole- so glad to hear you are doing well. "Practically pain free" is so encouraging.

    My surgery is tomorrow(yikes!) I will post as soon as I can to give an update.going through all of this and leading up to my big day,I have found it so helpful to read other people's posts.

    Best wishes to everyone going thru surgery this month. I will pray and think healthy/ positive thoughts for all of us!

  • MarilynIllinois
    MarilynIllinois Member Posts: 50
    edited August 2017

    ladynicole,

    Did you get your drains straightened out? Best wishes.


  • Carol246
    Carol246 Member Posts: 7
    edited August 2017

    Hi ladies

    Sweetpea - I met with the surgeon today I am having a mastectomy on my left breast. she explained that I will be fitted with drains. However the biopsy results tested for both estrogen and prestoyrogen.( I am searching for information on this if snyone can shed some lught please ) The HER test was inconclusive and further testing has to be done. So the tumour and lymp nodes will be removed in surgery and chemo after 4-6 weeks after recovery.

    Blessings and speedy recovery to all.

  • mommyerin
    mommyerin Member Posts: 102
    edited August 2017

    Candyapple, so sorry you had such a rough time! I hope the rest of your recovery goes more smoothly!

    Beachmama and Beach2beach, hope your surgeries went well!

    Ladynicole, I hope you got your drains working and that your recovery is going well!

    Pinkvictory, good luck tomorrow!

    Well, surgery for me tomorrow as well. I had the sentinel node injection today. Not bad. I have to be at the surgery center at 5:30am tomorrow...yuck! Hoping I can settle my mind enough to get some sleep tonight. Hope you ladies are all doing well!


  • AliceAgnes
    AliceAgnes Member Posts: 44
    edited August 2017

    Carol246, here's a good article on ER+ and PR+ status:

    http://www.webmd.com/breast-cancer/metastatic-bc-care-16/hormone-receptors

  • beach2beach
    beach2beach Member Posts: 246
    edited August 2017

    hi,

    Posting from my hospital bed. Can't sleep in hospitals. Still running on adrenaline too. Hate the heavy anesthesia head I'm left with. Yuck. Went well. I had the sentinel node injection before surgery what a drag walking around with iv pole. Been walking all over his place.

    Couldn't wait to eat even if it was hospital food. Some besties of mine brought food too.

    MommyErin good luck tomorrow. I have a beautiful 29yr old girl named Erin. Was the toughest to tell her about the Bc.

    Beachmamma hope your getting some sleep and all went well.

    Pink victory, good luck tomorrow, you'll do great!

    Lady Nicole, yuck the drains!

    I hope I can get some sleep thank goodness they give you a private room here.


    Hugs to you all.


  • Carol246
    Carol246 Member Posts: 7
    edited August 2017

    Thanks aliceagnes.

    We will be fine.

  • Beachmama
    Beachmama Member Posts: 28
    edited August 2017

    Hi all

    I'm just hanging out in my hospital room waiting to go home. I slept a little last night by listening to music. I was starving bc I was the last surgery of the day and the cafeteria was closed. Just ate some breakfast and feeling pretty good. Very numb and sore, but I've only been doing Advil for pain. I looked at my incisions when the surgeon came in to check on me. She was really surprised - she said most don't look that soon. I'm so thankful for all those who have gone before us and shared their stories, so we can feel prepared!

    Btw, the sentinel node mapping was awful for a few minutes. The dr said 50% of women feel fine and the others it really burns. I also had the nausea patch, which seemed to really help last night. Hope you girls are feeling good!

  • Lsunshine
    Lsunshine Member Posts: 24
    edited August 2017

    cadyapple1 so sorry to hear about the nausea but so glad your surgery went well. Hopefully this is your light at the end of this tunnel and smooth sailing ahead. Beach mama good luck on your surgery today fingers crossed and prayers sent for a successful surgery and speedy recovery. I'm counting down aug 28 is my surgery bmx and reconstruction

  • mommyerin
    mommyerin Member Posts: 102
    edited August 2017

    So far so good, ladies! I've been home about 5 hours now and pain has been manageable. Hoping sleeping won't be too uncomfortable tonight. I've manage to avoid over exerting myself (which I was worried about with a 2 and 4.5 year old, but they've been good). I got the nausea patch as well as zofran before surgery this morning, so no nausea so far (knock on wood). I'm honestly just so relieved to have it over with. What I expected was definitely worse than what it's turned out to be so far. Thankfully, my lymph nodes (3) all teste negative for cancer (yay chemo!), so I avoided an ax dissection! Sending positive thoughts and prayers to all of you ladies!

    Beach2beach- Good name choice ;-) I think Erin must have been a fairly popular name in the 1980s...all the Erin's I know were 80s babies (myself included). I'm sure it was very hard telling her. My kiddos are young enough to not fully get it, but prepping my 4.5 year old for my hair loss and now surgery was definitely hard. Same day sentinel node injection sounds awful! Will you get to go home today? Hope you're doing well!

    Beachmama- Wow, you're brave! I don't think I'll be ready to look until my followup next week :-S Are you home now? Hope you're feeling well!

  • Beachmama
    Beachmama Member Posts: 28
    edited August 2017

    MommyErin- I am home! I agree it was not that bad overall. I'm sore and tired, and a little druggy from the meds, but overall not too bad. I'm supposed to shower tomorrow and change out the gauze in my bra, so I figured I'd be seeing the incisions soon enough! I'm sure I'll go through many emotions in the near future, but right now I'm relieved to have it done. I think looking at a lot of pictires before really helped me know what to expect. Just trying not to be nervous about the final pathology report, now.

  • Carol246
    Carol246 Member Posts: 7
    edited August 2017

    Beachmama I am happy for you. I am packed and ready for tomorrow as well. Looking forward to being at home already.😊

  • Beachmama
    Beachmama Member Posts: 28
    edited August 2017

    You' ve got this! Prayers for you!

  • mommyerin
    mommyerin Member Posts: 102
    edited August 2017

    Carol246, thinking about you and praying your surgery and recovery go well

  • ladynicole
    ladynicole Member Posts: 8
    edited August 2017

    Checking in again 4 days after surgery. Drains finally working properly and swelling above armpit finally going down. Yay. Unfortunately I've picked up a virus during my overnight hospital stay. I'm sneezing and coughing like an old steam train. Gosh the coughing hurts the surgery scar. My only pain that makes my eyes water is the damn sinus headache. Strangely the surgery site still doesn't cause me grief. I have a bit of muscle soreness, it feels like I've gone to the gym and done 100 push ups and pull ups. ROM is pretty damn good, even Doc is surprised at how far I can move my arms in all directions. Strangely enough too my SNB side is less tight than the other side. All in all I'm feeling great. Doped up on panadol for the virus but no other drugs.

  • mommyerin
    mommyerin Member Posts: 102
    edited August 2017

    ladynicole, so sorry about the virus, but glad the drains are working! My surgeon doesn't want me lifting my arms above my shoulders until the drains come out, so I'm hoping my ROM will be good. My surgery sites aren't bothering me either...just my underarms and pec muscles occasionally. Hope your virus clears up quickly

  • beach2beach
    beach2beach Member Posts: 246
    edited August 2017

    sorry to hear ladynicole..keep hydrating. I'm finding the after affects of anesthesia the most draining. Sore throat and muscle twitches. Find it hard not to raise my arms higher.

  • AliceAgnes
    AliceAgnes Member Posts: 44
    edited August 2017

    Congratulations to all of you vanquishing cancer warrior ladies! You, too, ladynicole, even though you brought home "a little something extra" from the hospital. Do you usually have a predisposition to pick up respiratory infections? I know I do, which is why I caught bronchitis after the nadir point of my 1st and 6th chemo treatments. Now that I am a month removed from the 6th one, though, all is well. My strength is returning and I am even cooking meals again--something I hadn't done in a long time. Lo and behold, there IS gold at the end of the rainbow. I am so excited to be feeling this good again!

    MommyErin, that's great news about those nodes testing negative for cancer. Your story gives me hope because I was on the same chemo regimen you were on. Of course I know everyone's story is different so I will maintain an attitude of cautious optimism. Surgery is still a couple of weeks away for me.

    Know that I keep all of you cancer warriors in my daily prayers.

  • ladynicole
    ladynicole Member Posts: 8
    edited August 2017

    Yes AliceAgnes, I usually pick up something extra the moment I walk into a hospital. It drives me nuts. Most people go to hospital to get better but I usually get sicker. lol

  • Beachmama
    Beachmama Member Posts: 28
    edited August 2017

    I took a shower today - 2 days out! It was quite a production, but I felt so much better afterwards. It was a little weird rubbing vaseline on tbe incisions and redressing it myself - but i did it! I feel like I did too many push ups at the gym, too. And my drains are annoying. But, overall feeling more like myself only taking ibuprophen. I just need my digestive system to wake up - i'm really bloated!

    I hope you all are experiencing healing and feeling good!

  • beach2beach
    beach2beach Member Posts: 246
    edited August 2017

    Beachmama,,,,Ahh wish i could do a full shower. Did a partial and my daughter washed my hair. it is a good feeling. Thank goodness..! Im with you with the digestive issues too. Otherwise not too bad except having to to "milk" the drain tubing. Blech. Hope everyone else is doing well

  • Dodes
    Dodes Member Posts: 18
    edited August 2017

    so glad you're all doing so well!

  • Beachmama
    Beachmama Member Posts: 28
    edited August 2017

    beach2beach - clean hair is heavenly! My drains aren't putting much out- I keep trying to do the " milking", but it doesn't seem to do much. My husband goes back to work today, so I'm guessing I will be up and around a lot more with the kids.

    Hope you are feeling better ladynicole, and everyone else - rest and take care of yourselves!

  • beach2beach
    beach2beach Member Posts: 246
    edited August 2017

    hi,

    Hoping my fellow August post surgery crew is doing well. Took my first long walk to 7-11. If you could see where it is and the streets I have to cross it's quite a feat:). Going stir crazy.

    Feel well!