August 2019 surgery support group
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Hey Yogatyme!
The compression bra made me nuts (right mastectomy 8/8)! A nurse at my PS took it off me and I wanted to buy her a car or something (Ha!). When can you take it off? A soft sports bra is so much better. I too have had trouble with recovery. I started to go back to work some hours a day and am doing more around the house. I found the days really long in the beginning. I’m better busy and things are getting better week by week
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I'm wearing a compression cami with a built in bra now. I started physical therapy last week and it's helped a lot with the mobility in my arms. I'm working half days but considering going the full time once I see how I'm going to handle chemo. My right incision seems to be having some trouble healing. There are a couple of spots that have "opened". My PS didn't seem to think it was anything to required attention. He just told me to use neosporin and a nonstick pad until they close. Have any of you had this issue?
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Bridget
I had my BMX on 8/5 and I have one spot on my left side that still leaks clear/yellowish fluid. My PS said as long as there is no puss or infection it fine, my body is still healing and fluid takes the path of least resistance.
Tracy
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That's exactly what mine is doing, Tracy. I feel relieved that it's normal.
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I'm going home from hospital tomorrow morning..but will still have a drain in ..yuk ...I got my pathology back today and it's all good ..
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Lucy55 - Congrats on the good labs! Sorry for the drain.
I was very happy to see mine go. Hopefully yours will come out quickly! There's no place like home.0 -
My surgery was on August 8. My incisions weren't healing at the T junction, there were holes and so my surgeon put me on abx and did a minor procedure. Cut and restiched the area on each side last week. Looks better and I'm less worried.
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I see my plastic surgeon again on October 14th. My "trouble spots" seem to be closing. I hope that remains the same since starting chemo.
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Update. Had my stitches out last week and now there are tiny open spots where the sutures were sticking into my skin. One side even looks the same as it did before the stitches! Two plastic surgeons not worried. I guess I have to trust them!? Hahaha! Thinking of you ladies! so glad to know I'm not alone, although I'm sorry we are going through this
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GerberD - I had surgical glue but I still have tiny open spots too in a few places since the glue has come off. Most have cleared up except for one spot on my breast at my skin paddle (I had DIEP). Nothing seems infected so I'm thinking it's fine.
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Hope, I m having the same thing w the glue, but like you it doesn’t seem at all infected, so I’m assuming all’s good. I have wondered if my age (68) maybe is playing a part in this.
Sounds like folks are generally doing well!! Yay for us
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It has been 33 days since my surgery. I think there are stitches there but can't really tell. The scar looks dark so I am afraid to pull the skin or put lotion on the area. I still can't sleep comfortably on the right side and the U shaped pillow has been helpful. My breast feels numb, tingly, foreign and odd. Is that meaning of “foob?” If I press on the skin I can feel bubbles pop from the fluid. The spot that hurts the most is where the drains were. I will have about 3 more fills before radiation mapping.
I wore the mastectomy button down shirt the hospital gave me with the inside drain pockets for weeks because it was the most comfortable item to hold the drains.
Overall I feel great and have lots of energy just worry about how my body will hold up to getting rads
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Ann,
I had a mastectomy and tissue expander on 8/8 and still feel numb in spots too. I had the mapping and start rads next week. My RO sent me for PT, which I did not think I needed (and the PT agreed that my range of motion was good). Some people have said that PT helped if you feel stiff or weak on that side. I guess I am tired of doctors and being a patient and want to get back to my life, so the idea of having to do one more thing (like pt) is not something I want to do. I still don’t like to sleep on the expander side either. Don’t have pain, but discomfort. .Rads mapping is not too bad. Not looking forward to daily rads, but looking forward to getting done!
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Hi Laurencl, I am feeling similar. I haven't been on this site as often since I came back to work. I no longer feel my stiches as much, and have began to sleep on my stomach. It feels so good on my back. I know our experiences are different since I went straight to a diep. The biggest complaint is the amount of slouching and my stomach weakness. I want to start doing yoga, but I will wait until I am at least 8 weeks post surgery. I hope you are all doing well. My focus now has become my diet, and getting back to exercise.
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It's been almost 2 months since my surgery. I'm currently having chemo so none of the cosmetic issues I'm having can really be addressed yet. I just started sleeping on my side some this week. It does feel really strange when the implants move as I roll on my side. I'm also doing PT. I'm doing really well with it. My range of motion is pretty much normal and we're going to start adding weight to strengthen the muscles. I still have a good deal of tightness on the lymph node involved side due to cording. I also have some numbness in spots. I don't see my PS again until the 14th and I don't see my mastectomy surgeon until next year. I'm pretty tired of appointments too. I'm just trying to remind myself that hopefully this'll be over in a year or so.
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ladies - good to hear how everyone is doing.
notdefined- you're sleeping on your stomach???!! Wow, that's great! I was a total stomach sleeper before DIEP but I cant quite imagine doing it now. Maybe I should try. I've tried sleeping on my side but its sensitive. I can fall asleep on my non snb side but when I wake up my side boob/rib cage aches. I'm 6w out. Do you have incisions under your armpits? Maybe that's why my sides are so sensitive. My PS used the armpit vessel instead of the chest vessel for the connection.
TMI, but while I'm asking - any issue with your belly button? Mine is still oozing and wont heal. Its not smelly or hot, so I don't think it's infected but I'm getting tired of it leaking on every shirt I wear. It's just one little spot about the size of a pencil eraser.
I do dream of a day when my ribcage doesn't feel like it was worked over with a meat mallet!
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My IORT (lumpectomy) scheduled for Aug. 28 was rescheduled for Oct. 2. Late today I got a call about the lab report -- clean margins and clean sentinel node!
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Cherokee, great news!!👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻
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Hopewins- did you have a uni or double mastectomy? I only had my right side removed and replaced, I can't help but lol at replaced. I am technically 7+ weeks out. I have the u shaped pillow, and I used that to start transitioning to my stomach. My belly button doesn't ooze, but the pigment of it is noticeably different than its surrounding tissue.
Cherokee- great news!
I've decided to schedule a massage. My shoulders and neck are so stiff! I had my first week without my compression garments which was fabulous, yet hard on my body.
I look forward to beginning yoga and cardio, but I'm being nice to myself for another week.
Hope you are all healing well!
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I am an October 1st nipple-sparing bmx direct to implant surgery. I thought I'd have better luck with my questions in this forum as you ladies are now much further out from your surgery and may be able to help me. My biggest hurdle right now is a comfortable nights sleep. I wake up every few hours with terrible mid to upper back pain & I can only get back to sleep if I take pain meds or muscle relaxers, which I would rather not do. I have tried a wedge, sleeping flat on my back etc and nothing is working. Does anyone have any tried and true sleeping positions that will relieve this horrible back pain (I have never been a back sleeper)? Also, anyone else in this forum with this exact surgery with rippling or bumps still 12 days out? I have some mostly on the top and am hopeful it will smooth out or am I wishful thinking (I didn't have any fat grafting)?
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Willcare - can you take a sleep aid instead? I did that after I was done with the pain pills. Sleeping is hard, but a lot of women have luck in a recliner. I slept in one for the first week or so. I've never been a back sleeper but I had to get used to it after my bmx. When I transitioned to bed, I used a big U shaped maternity pillow, propping up my head and upper back, then the sides went under my arms to prop them and keep them away from the tender side boob area. Then I put another under my knees. It sort of mimicked the recliner position but mentally I felt like I was making progress sleeping in my own bed.
Theres a woman from the September surgery thread that had direct to implant. You may want to post there as well.
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I had direct to implant on August 6th. I just started sleeping on my side with a pillow 2 weeks ago. I've never been a back sleeper either and would wake up every 2 hours or so in discomfort. I would get up and stretch for a minute and lay back down. I found the auxilla pillows comfortable and still use them.
I have a lot of rippling and my implants aren't symmetrical or even the same shape. I hope my PS has some suggestions for fixing these issues during my appointment with him on Monday.
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Thanks ladies. I will try the U-shaped pillow next (fingers crossed). I see my PS on Tuesday so hopefully I'll have more insight on the rippling.
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Anyone here will skip rads due to negative nodes? Is it better to do rads regardless of negative nodes to reduce risk or better go with docs recommendation to skip rads and prevent potential se?
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Hi. I had BMX and negative nodes and clear margins. (feel very blessed). No rads. Nothing to radiate. I wouldn't do it since other risks come with it and can cause some issues w reconstruction. But if you had lumpectomy I think they do rads in tissue around it just in case. Good luck!
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same as purple flow. I consider myself very lucky. If I had any sketchy margins and/or a semblance of lymph node invasion, I would be having rads. Its certainly a personal decision.
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My mom had negative nodes but had radiation because she opted to have a lumpectomy. I had a positive node and don't have to do radiation because I had a bilateral mastectomy with clear margins but I have to have chemo.
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hi all,
Wondered if anyone here has started hormonal therapy. Have the pills, haven’t started. I know there are boards that talk about them and they are frankly scary
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Haven't started hormonal therapy yet. I see my oncologist in a couple of weeks and expect to get started then.
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I am three months post-surgery. I was back to sleeping normal again but now have rib pain. I think it is from the radiation. I cant have reconstruction until six months after rads. I haven’t exercised and put myself in a bit of a rut so I feel tight. I need a burst of motivation to get me back on track with juicing and exercising. My mood is at a low point which is most likely due to anastrozole and the BC diagnosis. Other than that, I so want this tissue expander out....
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