Exchange City

I just want to chime in on the whole lesbian/gay issue.  My favorite uncle was gay and died of Aids and I have a dear friend who is gay.  Doesn't bother me and we all need to support everyone here.

I got a call from the BS's office today.  I about died when I saw the number.  It was the lady that schedules surgery and handles insurance.  She tells me nonchalantly that my pathology results are in...  do I want them faxed to me.  I asked her, what are the results?  Verrrryyyy  slowwwlllyyy, she responds..."Well let's see... your nodes are clear and ummmm.... well.....  your margins are clear too."  I was shaking!!!! 

YAHHHHOOOOO!!!!!

Hooray!  I'm so very happy for you this morning!  What great news to start my day too.  Yippee!!!!

Kristenpink:  I know what you mean, I had been wearing the wrong band size too!  Thanks to Deborah and Val I am now in the correct band size (I was wearing a 36 or 38 and they told me 34) and I cannot believe it but it feels better.  I always thought it would be too tight because the others seemed uncomfortable, that's why I went up a band size....  huh, who can figure!  I am wearing a 34D and do not feel like I am that big...  but I like it!

Paula

I'm home!  Actually came home last night but was a little too knocked out by the Vicodin to post... feeling clear headed this morning (and just taking Tylenol for now -- I hate the narcotics).  I am sore but SO HAPPY to be done!  Won't know how it all really looks til bandages come off next week (my PS prefers to do that herself -- so no showers for me til Monday  

Good things: I have feeling in my remaining nipple (the reduction side) and all I can say is WOO HOOOOOOO!!!!  They said it was 50/50 I would lose the feeling... but yesterday when I woke up in recovery there was some bleeding there and they changed the gauze and I SO felt my nipple!  Another good thing is it feels like the gummy is PLENTY soft (I was worried about it as some women have foudn them too hard)... and even better: the horrible ache in my shoulder, shoulder blade and arm is GONE.  Clearly that was the result of the TE pulling so hard.  The reduction side looks a little swollen right now, but my PS said that was to be expected... and all in all I'm very happy with my size.  My PS was able to get the largest possible gummy in!  Yay!!!! It's the Allergan 410 MX 685.

So except for being really tired and the soreness, which overall is not as bad as the MX soreness, I am good!! Thanks you ALL for your prayers and good wishes.

As for people of any color, size, shape or lifestyle preference not feeling welcome - that pains me.  This site is all about joining together on one thing: surviving BC TOGETHER.  I can't remember what you said we can do Kristinka,so maybe you can repeat advice on how to help again?  (For the surgery-impaired?

Going to go rest now....

Hugs to all of you wonderful women!

Lilah

OMG KITTY -- I forgot to add: waaaaahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhoooooooooooooooooooooo!  So glad it was all as your ONC told you and is this the BS you don't like anyway?  Because right now I think he deserves to be ditched for what he said (though he does get credit for acting quickly to remove the new cancer).

So glad you're home and recovering well Lilah!!! Rest easy!  

Kitty, grrrreat news!  Shake away!!

Becky!!  I think you need to post that on dumb things people say thread!

And of course all are welcome!!  this disease does not discriminate and neither do we!!

Good article today by Dana Jennings, The Friendship of Cancer:

http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/05/11/the-friendship-of-cancer/?apage=1#comments

Yea Kitty!!!!!!!!! So happy for you!!!

Lilah glad all went well and you are feeling ok. I know you can't wait to see how it looks. I love you comment about how you don't have the pain in your shoulder and arm anymore. Gives me much hope that all the pain I am feeling may be gone after exchange. I can't wait!! How many days until June 4th? Too many! Lol!

About the gay thing. I can't believe anyone would make a gay woman feel unwanted on these boards. Cancer doesn't discriminate. Do they think they have less cancer, less pain, less emotional stuff to deal with just because they are gay? Noone deserves this stuff. I hope if any are reading they know at least here on this topic....ALL are welcome!!

Kittycat- Praise Jesus that is awesome news on so many fronts! You can draw a sigh of relief about your impant and about the nodes. Whew! I know there is still much ahead of you and we will be here for ya! Good luck with the oncologist. If you have been keeping up on posts there was a comment about the ECOG 5103 closing. It did close for a while to do some research on heart related issues but it has reopened incase you want to get some information on it.

Lilah- Glad you are home and everything is so far so good! Hope your pain/soreness resolves quick.

Laura- I am glad you brought up the size thing. I would imagine projection has a lot to do with it. Then again there are some out here who do look true to size. Wonder what is different in those cases?

Congrats to you, Kitty!  I like that you keep on hearing positive news.

Lilah - I'm happy that you sounds so good and that you are feeling better already!  I can't wait for the report of the great unveiling come Monday.

Val - am excited for you tomorrow, and have my fingers crossed.

Good luck to you on your exchange, Kat.

best wishes to all,

Kristen

Hi Everyone!  I am fairly new to Exchange City and I have been reading much of the earlier posts.  There is so much information here! 

To introduce myself, I had a uni/mx on April 20th and I just had my first fill yesterday.  I have had several conversations with Deborah on Implant Sizing 101 and I can't believe how complicated it all is!  I am tall, 6' with a 32" ribcage 156 lbs and my PS will expand me to around 400 cc which means I should be done around the first week of June, as he is filling me 75 cc's at a time.  Since I lost my larger B/C cup and my remaining is an A cup, I have a bit of stretching to do to get to a full C.  Even though I have had only one fill since my surgery, I already have to pad my rt breast with a silicone insert!  I feel like I am the size that I was before my mx except it is higher, harder, flatter, wider and rounder.  He will do my rt side at the time of exchange.

Question 1:  How do I avoid the "hamburger bun" look?  I already don't have any cleavage as my breasts are too far apart and my shoulders are too broad but it would be nice to not have flat, round breasts!

Question 2:  I have a very indented place where they took out 2 (cancer free-yay) nodes but also, right next to the indentation, a drooping piece of flesh where they removed a non-cancerous lump and on top of that, my expander cuts into my underarm area as if it's creating yet another, separate underarm!  I have 3 armpits!  My PS says that he may have to lypo the side plus do some fat grafing.  Anyone else have these sorts of problems?

Thank you to all of the wonderful women on this site who are so informative and supportive--I don't know what I would do without you all!

Mary

Hi Valerie and welcome!

I had a prophylactic BMX in Feb and am part way through my expansions. I put a thread on with my video of my 2nd expansion if you are wondering what to expect?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SQ8-f7F9BdI

It's really not so bad so try not to worry

Mary~ thank goodness! Another tall lady with broad shoulders! I'm 5' 10 and 144lbs and the expanders i have in are 300ml ones but my PS will over fill them.Not sure if i'll reach 400 ml though but it would be nice! With having quite a bony chest at the top,my PS has opted for the teardrop shaped implants at the exchange.Cohesive gel ones.I am going with his recommendations as i didn't want the 'double -whopper -with -cheese' look either!

I am a little worried about lack of cleavage too.The gap between my foobs resembles the grand canyon and i'd rather have a couple of volcano's if i'm honest! I think from what i've read,if you choose an mplant with too wide a base,it will lack some projection,givinn a rouder flatter look. I've not yet discussed fully the implants yet with my PS but i think i would like a mid range width with good projection.Not sure if this is possible with a teardrop shape or not but will ask

Its hard with being tall and broad shouldered. My PS wants to keep me proportioned but as im fairly slim,he seems to forget im broad up top and need some boobs up front to balance me out! All he seems to see is my weight and slimness.Its frustrating. I've evn gained some weight to fill up my lower body in order to get him to make my foobs bigger!!! lol. will let you know if it worked or not!

MBJ I am so have lots of indentions in my chest and will be having fat grafts at the time of my exchange. I have no idea what caused my indentions. I am assuming my bs just took out a ton of tissue when I had my mx. I am so hoping the fat grafting works because besides the expanders being odd shaped and not being able to wear shirts like I want I also have to watch to make sure all my caved in areas are not showing. As far as the hamburger buns, I don't know. I have one hamburger bun and one triangle. Just hoping the exchange improves things a lot. By the way I didn't say welcome to exchange city. There are so many sweet women on here who are much more knowledgable than I am. Maybe they will have better answers.

LILAH-WOOOO HOOOO!!!!!!

KITTY-WOOO HOOO!!!  WE WILL BE WITH YOU ALL THE WAY BABY!!!!!

HUGS! Jazzy