2018 DIEP Surgery
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My Dr was strict about the no caffeine, the order was nothing with caffeine for 6 weeks after surgery while the blood vessels are healing, they suggested weaning off like Bella said. no decaf either because it still has trace amounts, only naturally caffeine free as in never had caffeine in the first place. I knew it was for precaution but my Dr has a very low complication and rejection rate and I did everything they said to do. I loved my cup of coffee in the morning and the idea of not having it made me sad lol, it was the idea more than anything because I actually didn't want it after surgery and didn't drink it for months actually. I found some roasted teas that taste like coffee that got me through the weaning off process. Teeccino Roasted Herbal Tea, got it at a Whole Foods type grocery store. It really helped!!
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Clarrn, I agree with your surgeon, just enjoy that baby for a while! They grow up much too fast.
Simbobby, it looks like we're just a day apart, I am March 11th at 7:30 am. I had my preop today, they never mentioned caffeine but things have been a bit messed up. I started off with one doctor, went through everything with him, then 2 weeks ago he realized he was going to be out of town on my surgery day. I had to choose between waiting an extra month or switching surgeons. I decided to go with a different surgeon in the practice as my boss had worked hard to get help linked up while I was gone and the is a good chance with 6 weeks noticed she would not have been able to do so for April, there are only a few people who are able to fill in and only one who does a good job so I went with changing surgeons to another equally qualified one. So today I met the other surgeon and one probably doesn't know what the other had told me. I started weaning off caffeine this week and should be totally off a week from now. I don't want to find out in the hospital that I can't have caffeine and end up with a horrible headache on top of everything else. I am worried about the heat, I was told they crank the heat up and have you under a heated blanket to help the blood flow, I am struggling with horrible hot flashes as it is, this sounds like torture to me!
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Twills- thanks for the info! I’ve never heard of roasted tea- i’ll have to look into that.
Dipaquette, It sounds like a good plan as long as you feel good about the new surgeon. The talk about caffeine did make me wonder about going thru withdrawal at the hospital. My stomach does not like anesthesia so I usually have a couple rough days after surgery- perhaps cutting out caffeine is a good idea even if ps doesn’t tell me to do so. I’ve heard about the heat too. My D.H. is going to love that- I keep the house far too cool for him,post treatment.
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Thanks for the offer for future contact about the lift/reduction at stage 2 Runrcrb. That feels like ages away at the moment, but I'm sure it will creep up on me sooner than I think.
Re the ongoing caffeine discussion here, my surgeon said that yes, it does constrict blood vessels but the odd one won't make that much difference. My solution was to switch to decaf coffee and decaf earlgrey tea. However, given the swelling I've had, which is a tiny bit reduced from last week thank god, but still significant, I am trying to be careful and not have too much of that either.
On another note, my lower incision opened up a couple days ago, near the centre section - about 3 or 4 inches. Has this happened to others? My surgeon today was not overly concerned, and said it will close itself over the next 2 to 4 weeks, and just to change the gauze daily and put on antibiotic ointment.
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Hi Dipaquette,
We can take this ride together. I had my preop this past Monday. My Dr said that the best predictor for surgeries is how you’ve handled them in the past so she expects no issues.
I too would have switched surgeons. Not only do you get yourself in a mindset but My daughter is flying up from out of state to help me out and she’s bringing her three kids because it is Spring break. Non-refundable tickets have been purchased. I sure hope mine goes as scheduled. No mention to me about caffeine.
Oh and thank you all who responded to my question about reporting 12 hours before surgery. It was a typo. It’s 2 hours
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I’ve been in contact with Dr Nastala in Texas and Dr Levine in Ny. I’m not a little girl and have been in the D ranges most of my adult life. I thought for certain I had enough lower belly for a hearty D, but after picture consultation was told the I could have a solid C.
I’m scared to death of being so much smaller after surgery. I’ve only had picture and phone consults.
What experiences have others had with cup,soxes
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I had the same thing happen to my incision, Deaelle. Though mine was kinda my fault. I went to my chemo buddy's 50th birthday party and just had to dance. In high heels. At barely five weeks after surgery.
Not surprisingly, my abdominal incision opened near the center. It was only about two inches across, but it was kinda scary. My PS told me to use the Silvadine cream they gave me for my belly button and cover it loosely with gauze. It took a few weeks. But it did eventually heal just fine.
Hope everything heals well for you. Best wishes.
Trish
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Simbobby, I am hoping for a better outcome than my past surgeries, I seem to be a slow wound healer, hoping this time is not too slow. After my mastectomy they had to go in and fix an area that just refused to heal. I had an ankle surgery that took 4 months to close, but I think that one was the incompetence of the surgeon contributing.
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Flynn my husband will love the hot room too, I told my sisters they may not want to visit as they will not be able to handle it. I think men should have to have got flashes with us so the would be no arguments over the thermostat stuff:). If you have nausea after anesthesia they can you a patch behind your ear, the type used for motion sickness, it really helps, just ask!
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Poppy spruce, I went from DD to B, but by choice. They were so heavy it has been nice to not be bumping into things
I’m sure a C would be just fine. That was what I was all the way til I hit my thirties and had a leg injury and ended up gaining about 50 lbs. I’m pretty sure my ps would have been ok with c cup too, but I wanted to go a little smaller0 -
Dlpaquette, I was dreading the hot room as well but to tell you the truth, I hardly noticed. I’m always cold after surgery so I think that helped. I didn’t have to use a blanket though, the room temp was adjusted.
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Twills I am worried about the hot room exacerbating my hot flashes. I have my house at 62 degrees and it makes them more tolerable except at night, but in a hot room I will be just dripping in sweat.
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I am not sure all doctors or facilities keep the temperature up for DIEP patients. This was not a thing for me. My hot flashes have hot flashes so I would have recognized if the room were hot.
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My room wasn’t kept warm either! So hoping it’s that way for you
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I have talked to someone who had their DIEP flap done by the same doctors and she said they had the heat up and had her under a heated blanket. I know I will have to suck it up, but it won't be fun.
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My room wasn’t warm either. There was a very light covering (almost like bubble wrap) that was heated and placed over me. If I got too uncomfortable my nurse would make adjustments so that my chest was covered even if the rest of my body wasn’t. You will be so heavily sedated from the anesthesia and pain meds you may not even notice
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Thanks for the best wishes Trishyla.
Mine opened up only 2 1/2 weeks after my surgery and I didn't do anything extraordinary. Just some sedate walking, about 1 to 1 1/2 kilometres. Another smaller spot also opened up a few days later, after I saw the surgeon. The whole thing looks like I have been in a sword fight, haha. Not pleasant as it hurts some and bleeds and seeps, but I am keeping gauze on it and managing.
Still, makes me wonder if I should really slow down any activities, so I've scaled back the walking.
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Exactly what Bella2013 said above, you’re still coming out of anesthesia and still on heavy pain meds during the first day so you might hardly notice. It was only the first 24 hours for me that they kept the room warm.
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I've updated the future surgery list this morning, let me know by private message if I've missed anyone or if you would like to be added or edited.
So happy that this thread is still helping so many. Thank you everyone for continuing to share advise and your experiences.
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Has anyone had any anesthesia issues? I had a scary event during a previous last September. Now that this one is days away and a much longer time under anesthesia I'm getting a bit nervous. The last time I woke up before they took the vent out and when they did take it out I remember them telling me to breathe and not being able 2, it was a scary feeling. At first I was very groggy and thought something was very wrong and felt like this was how I was going to die. Then I got a little more with it and told myself that they would put a vent back in if they realized I couldn't breathe and eventually I was able to breathe on my own. At this point I realized that other than breathing , I had no ability to move yet I was awake I could tell everything that was going around on around me. Right after they took the ventilator out they suctioned me but just barely behind the teeth. I remember there being a lot of mucus in the back of my throat and I couldn't cough or do anything to clear it so I started hyperventilating as I thought the small breaths would prevent it from going into my lungs. I still remember the doctor nurses around me trying to figure out why I was hyperventilating but I couldn't communicate in any way as I couldn't move any of my body. I still remember them pulling my eyelids open as I wasn't waking up, and rolling a pen on my thumbnails trying to get a reaction out of me. I heard them talking about whether to give me oxygen or not thinking that the hyperventilating with the oxygen might cause more problems like too much carbon dioxide in the blood. Eventually I was able to move my body again and things were fine but it was extremely scary while it was going on. I remember thinking in my head over and over again please just suction the back of my throat but I have no way to communicate that to them. It was scary being able to hear it and know what was going on around you but not being able to move any part of your body.
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I have been lucky with the 3 surgeries I have had and not had any issues with anesthesia. However the anesthesiologist was very good about checking in on any side effects and concerns. Make sure you explain to them exactly what happened. They can adjust and help with meds. They may even have you take something to relax you before you even go in so that you aren't overly stressed. I know my pre-op included a discussion with the anesthesiology nurse and they were very thorough. I hope this time goes better!
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dipaquette, i agree with mncteach - talk to the anesthesiologists about your experiences. They want to know!
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Thanks guys, I do plan on going over it with the anesthesiologist, all of my other recent surgeries have been away different hospitals, If I get the same anesthesiologist I will panic, this guy was old so I doubt he would do such a long surgery. 🤞
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talk to the anesthesiologist but ALSO with the nurse anesthetist. In my experience, the MD oversees several operations while the nurse anesthetist is with you during the operation
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Dipaquette,
I have been thinking of you today. Good luck and fast healing on tomorrow’s surgery.
Please check in and let us know how it went when you feel up to it
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Hi
My questions: When will the soreness in the belly get better? Would like other experiences. I know we use our muscles to go to the bathroom etc. Is this what is sore? Or is it the healing process? How do I know it is healing this time?
Also: my non cancer boob grew so now have to have another surgery to make them even. Did anyone have their cancer side get bigger and when did it happen?
I had both breasts diep. Left cancer side.
My story: I am 6 years out from breast cancer and decided to take out implants and do diep. Surgery was Oct 29 19. No binder. Belly wound opened around 6th week and then would not heal. Another surgery to clean wound. Feb 13th. I have a binder this time. I am now 4 weeks out. Incision still looks good being as careful as I can. Going back to desk job tomorrow.
Thanks for any info you can give me. Brandi
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belly soreness goes away. Some of what you may feel is actually scar tissue (per my PS). Sometimes, especially during an ab work out, i will feel almost a muscle cramping but it’s on top and usually just one side. I attribute that to scar tissue movement. And no my natural breast didn’t grow after DIEP.
Good luck going back to work. First day will be emotionally exhausting. Or at least it was for me
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Dipaquette & simbobby- I hope your surgeries went well and that you both have a smooth recovery!
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Hi DIEP Ladies!
Haven't posted in a while and have a question for all that are several months after their DIEP. I had bilateral DIEP in June last year and Stage 2 in September. The last month or so I have noticed a hard area in the “droop” part of both breasts. I think I read somewhere that this may be fat necrosis? And massaging loosens it. Has anyone else has this and does massaging actually work? The other 3/4 of both breasts are soft and feel like what I would call “normal” fat . Just seems strange that both breasts have this hard area in the same place. Maybe this is normal?
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Teaberry11, yes I have it in my left (cancerous) breast. I did have it in my right prophylactic breast but after my 2nd surgery my right breast softened. Yes, massaging does help break up th fat necrosis. At this stage you can probably massage pretty vigorously. I massage mine when I am watching TV. It’s just DH and me in the house. I can attest that massaging definitely breaks up the hardened areas. Do it often...I believe you will see results
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