Exchange City
Comments
-
Hello ladies! I had a bmx on 12/28--been sporting TEs since that day. I go in every Wednesday for fills--60ccs at a time (on each side). I am SO over this. Can't wait for my exchange. For the past 2 fills, the PS keeps saying, "1 or 2 more..." I respect his opinion, and he's fabulous (this is all he does--breast recon for cancer patients), but seriously...I'm not a patient person. He just keeps telling me, "You want to do this right...this isn't something you want to 'rush'." Don't ya hate it when someone else is right?! hahaha!
Also, on the nipple topic. Last Wednesday, I told the PS that i wasn't going to get nipples. He told me that he thinks I should. His thinking: We will never look at our foobs and think of them as real breasts again. Every time we pass a mirror, in the buff, we'll see foobs and scars. Nipples help to heal that process. With nipples, when we walk by a mirror, our minds will see the nips, and start to forget the scars.
My PS--he's a good guy. I'm getting nips.
Steph
0 -
Steph your PS describes exactly how I felt. I am so glad I got my nips. I immediately began to feel better about how "normal" things were looking. I can't wait to get the tatoo part done now.
0 -
CindyLooWho!
Guess what got the call today surgery is Feb 15th..they finally shipped the Seintra implants so only 6 of us will have our surgery an 2 still have to wait..they better be worth the suffering....0 -
Carrol~~ Yep, he totally changed my mind about it.
I WAS of the "i've endured enough BS, i just want it to be over" camp.How long is the 'normal' wait time for exchange after last fill for most of you? I'm guessing that it varies by the PS...
Steph
0 -
Hey Ladies, that is how I am feeling should I or shouldn't I. I'm sitting here starting the healing from my exchange and thinking do I really what to go through another procedure? My PS does the nip and tattoo as an in office procedure which is a plus. But the thought of doing one more cut is a little overwhelming. But then I start to think, I want to look normal. I know I will never be what I once was, but when I look in the mirror I would like to at least seem normal. I will always know the truth, but it will be nice to pretend.
0 -
nipple surgery has a very easy recovery plus you can use that time to do any fine tuning you might want done.
I think I was told I needed to wait at least 2 months but I waited a lot longer cause I wanted to lose some weight which I never did really.
0 -
mrenee~~My ps does it in-office, too. My thoughts (now): It's MINOR compared to this other crap. I know i could always go without and have it done later, but really...i want it ALL to be done and over with.
Carroll~~TWO months??? UGH.
Steph
0 -
I'm not doing the Nipples..when I had my BMX my BS left my aerolas just made them smaller...
0 -
Sherry....omg woo hoo! I'm so happy for you. I almost want to jump in the car and drive the hour to hug you!
Stewbie I had my BMX on 10/23 and exchange on 1/24, that was quick for a couple of reasons....first I was lucky enough to not need chemo or rads. Second I had a horrible time with the TEs , fills or not I was in constant discomfort and/or pain, so my ps decided to speed up my fills. I had my last fill on 12/19 and the exchange on 1/24.
I was filled to 600 ccs, and my ps tried Allergans in 650 and 700 and decided on the 700. I'm at almost 2 weeks post exchange and I still have some swelling but I feel great and they look pretty good.0 -
My ps can do the nips in her office too. That kinda freaks me out. I guess I will talk to her about it some more down the road. It's too soon now.
0 -
Sherry!!!!!!
I am so excited for you!!!!!!!!!0 -
Dulcigirl,
Me to..hate these expanders..0 -
CindyLoo~~me too, no chemo/rads. I have...440ccs in each side right now (I think). To me, they look how they used to in clothes, but my PS keeps saying nope. I'm going to ask him to push a little more in my next fill on Wednesday. I'm usually pretty sore on Wednesday nights, then by Thursday night, it's just a bit of discomfort. Mine are always uncomfortable, so it's not like it's going to kill me to be THAT much more uncomfortable.
I think we're going to talk about implants tomorrow. I'm right under 5'4", and around 129lbs. I was a full C before, so i'd like to get to that same 'look' with the implants. The sooner the better...i keep running these things into doorframes and the like...it's rather comical, actually. Getting difficult to shave my legs, since they're not pliable--can't move my arm across them very well. 0 -
ShellShine! Welcome! Hope you can find helpful info here! These women are awsome!!
So, Ladies, I picked up my Arnica Montana, and Graphites for surg. Doing all the nesc BS at home. So, I am patiently awaiting the call from the OR for tomorrow!!
Sherry, Again, congrats girl!!!! So happy for you!
I will post tomorrow if i'm feeling up to it. Going to shower, then a hair cut! Wow! More emotional than I thought! Want to say thank you to Deborah, and all of the implant advice!! And to the rest of you who have been quite an inspiration to me!! OMG...I sound like i'm going to kick the freakin' bucket!!Annemarie
0 -
OH NO! Just gor word, that some people are stuck in NYC due to snow!! Which is where i'm having my exchange done!!! Great!
0 -
Thank you for welcoming me, Annemarieh. I am so happy for you that you are about to have your exchange.
I log in to read this group's experiences every day, and you are the best medicine.
I see the oncologist for the first time next Tues. and get my first fill next Thurs. Amazing, three weeks ago I wasn't even diagnosed, yet. Soooooo thankful to hear other's experiences with TE's, fills and nipples - you are all amazing!!
0 -
Yay, Sherry! That's wonderful news! Happy dance!
Annemarie, I've got my fingers crossed for you! Hopefully the snow won't cause any problems! I'm looking forward to hearing about your new girls!
0 -
5 hours ago stewbie2 wrote:
Last Wednesday, I told the PS that i wasn't going to get nipples. He told me that he thinks I should. His thinking: We will never look at our foobs and think of them as real breasts again. Every time we pass a mirror, in the buff, we'll see foobs and scars. Nipples help to heal that process. With nipples, when we walk by a mirror, our minds will see the nips, and start to forget the scars.
My PS--he's a good guy. I'm getting nips.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Wow, stewbie2 - I don't know what to say. I respect the fact that you really like your PS, and that you think he's fabulous, but I found what he said rather offensive.
I did consider nipple reconstruction - VERY thoroughly - and decided that after all my research, there just weren't enough good reasons to do it. The failure rate is high, although I have seen some gorgeous results on the Picture Forum, sometimes after years of perseverance.
And while it's true that nipples and areolas take away the focus from the mastectomy scars, tattoos do the same.
From what I understand, reconstructed nipples have no feeling (as far as intimacy goes, so there's no return to "normal" there), and even given the amount of post-surgical shrinkage, they are still always on high beams (or medium beams!).
For the first time in my life I can go braless, but I have no desire to show off erect nipples under my shirt, nor do I want to cover them up with those "petals" you can buy in the store.
In August 2012, I had my exchange to saline implants. My MX scars are nearly invisible now. (If you look closely, you can see thin, silver lines.) My exchange scars are getting there.
DH loves The New Girls. He thinks I am beautiful, and thinks my breasts - yes - my BREASTS are beautiful.....and so do I. I may not have been born with them, but they are now my breasts, for the rest of my life.
I do not walk past a mirror and see "foobs and scars".
In the beginning, right after my BC diagnosis, I called them foobs and made a lot of jokes, because I didn't know any better. I thought my TEs were alien terrorists inside my body, trying to kill me. I wanted them out more than I wanted the cancer out!
But after my Exchange, I came to a place of peaceful acceptance.
I love the way I look with my implants and my reconstructed breasts - both in and out of clothes.
Please don't get me wrong - there is no one right answer for anyone.
We must all make that decision, and I fully support any woman who can do everything she can to make herself look and feel beautiful and normal, whatever her definition of that may be. (And like I've said, I've seen gorgeous results of nipple recon, where you can't even tell a MX was done....)
But for a man - especially a physician - to tell me that I will pass by a mirror and see only "foobs and scars" is just.....wrong and insensitive.
0 -
Wow Blessings...that was great. Thank you.
I will not call them foobs either. This whole process has been very real, and while they may not be the ones I was born with (and honestly they were not special) they are mine and I went thru my own personal hell to get them. So they will never be foobs to me, they are very real.
On separate note...I can see my exchange hospital bill in process on the insurance web sight. Since I have a high ded, my out of pocket will be $4700. And the surgeons bill didn't even come thru yet. I was so upset yesterday...DH said omg you don't have cancer and it's only money, we will figure it out. He made me cry.0 -
Blessings~~ I definitely see where you're coming from. And, just to be clear, those weren't his exact words. He was very tactful, and not at all insensitive. I apologize if you felt that MY words were insensitive. He simply gave me his thoughts--he runs a 'camp' of sorts for breastcancer patients where they stay at a beautiful resort for a week and get emotional therapy, as well. These are solely HIS findings based on the words of his many patients. I agree that it's a personal decision and we'll all handle it/see it differently. For me, i'm not sure how, exactly i'm going to feel about implants. When I had my breasts removed, I had my breasts removed. In my mind, I see it as if I had my legs removed--would I believe my prosthetic legs to be my 'real' legs and part of me afterwards? I don't know... I'm not having a hard time with it, per se, but that's one aspect of this that i'm still not 100% sure about--know what I mean? I suppose it's all part of this road we're walking... I fully respect your opinion, and I definitely appreciate what you have to say...made me think a bit deeper about it. On another note--I really hope my scars heal as well as yours. I've had bad luck with that in the past.
CindyLou~ Sorry about the bills--I, too, have a high deductible. Sticker shock is never fun. BLEH. Fortunately (or unfortunately), I already had cancer once this year (melanoma in April), so my deductible was met then. And as far as your boobies not being 'special'--believe me, mine weren't either! After nursing for 4 years (2 babies back to back), mine were pretty sad.
0 -
Stewbie I think for me the leg would be different...the implants are inside me and I can't remove them. I think that's the difference for me. Going braless with firm girls and no nips is pretty great.
Oh I was dx'd late last year so I hit the max of $7200 and was at 100% before the BMX, just with the pre op stuff. But now it's January so I get to start again. Woo hoo....
But I shudder to think what I would be faced with if I had no insurance. So I have to be thankful.0 -
CindyLoo~~ Good point. Now you guys have me thinking about no nipples.
And yes, as much as it costs, i'm still VERY thankful for insurance!!!0 -
The conversation about nipples just (I think) reinforces consideration for nipple sparing procedures. I, personally, fought (more or less) for the NS procedure. My cancer was lobular (further away from the nipples than ductal) & I felt strong that I should be able to keep them!
I have to say, I was somewhat surprised that I canNOT go bra-less because of the headlights syndrome. Yes, call me stupid but I actually consider myself naive (at times). That said, I AM happy that I chose to keep my "headlights" - I DO feel like there is a part of me left and it makes me happy I could keep a piece of my old breasts.
Bottom line..., (we all know) it's a personal choice. What works for one of us may not work for another. We share information so we can make the best educated decisions possible about things that may impact us for the rest of our (long & healthy) lives! We support each other in our individul decisions because that is one of the roughest parts of this journey..., making the decisions.
0 -
I wanted to keep mine too. Surgeon said no. Too risky for me. They were kinda ugly.
0 -
C-squared very well said. It is a personal choice. My exchange was last January & I just had nipple construction done last week. I oscillated back & forth for some time. With the help of what I've read on these threads I became empowered to make my decision. I learned about rub on nipples & tried them because I was leaning toward a 3D tattoo. I wasn't happy with that look so I changed my mind & opted for nipple/areola construction. Its too soon to to judge my final outcome, but so far so good. Thanks to all you wonderful ladies that share your experiences & support.
0 -
I asked too. My BS is not yet convinced about NS. She said it hasn't been around long enough to have a good feel for how safe it is. And she said if I was going for the ultimate surgical option to reduce my risks was it worth it to raise the risk back up a bit? I thought about it for a while. And also my cancer was invasive and was outside of the margin that is considered ok for NS....but not by much. So I chose peace of mind over my nips. I miss them, but I don't regret it. But I do hope that by the time my daughter is my age if she faces this choice that NS will have been proven very safe. The "after" pics of NSM are amazing!
0 -
Sherry woohoo on getting your exchange date.
Blessings I feel the same about my boobs. Since my exchange they have been my boobs not foobs. My real ones were pretty small and sad. My new ones look way better and DH is having fun with them.
With the talk about nipples I was actually lucky that I was able to have nipple sparing so I look like me but better. I have had to have a revision so my scars look good but have been cut on three times so having a more difficult time healing this time around. But my scars always heal really well so I know this will just take a little longer.
Stewbie2 welcome. I went in monthly for 100cc's each time and Ps had me wait one month before exchange. Actually ended up being 6 weeks. My PS is in San Antonio. He is with PRMA, there are 6 PS's in the practice and all they do is breast reconstuction. They are known as one of the top in the nation. I have been really happy with them which makes such a difference in the experience. Oh I live 2 1/2 hours for houston
Ladies-- I go next week for my 2 months post revision follow up. My original implants bottomed out on me. My PS has said all along I have really thin skin and no layer of fat. He placed alloderm at time of BMX. Anyway I know that i have again dropped quiet a bit but am really hoping that we will not have to do yet another surgery. I was suppose to go today but he got called for surgery so we rescheduled for next thursday. I am getting a bit nervous just wondering what he will say. I would love to go braless but have instructions for underwire pushup bra 24/7. Luckily I found a danskin underwire pushup that is very comfortable for exercising and sleeping in. Who knew and underwire could be so comfortable.
0 -
I see my PS next week for a follow up appt.; 2 months since exchange. I've been pondering the nipple vs 3-D tatoo question for awhile now. I do enjoy going braless and not having "headlights", but I would also like to look as natural as possible and I think the nipples might help.
Anyone out there who decided to do the nipples and did NOT like them? Is the procedure done under sedation? Local anesthesia? What are the restrictions afterward? How long do you wait for tatoos?
LovesDogs
0 -
CindyLoo & Stewbie,
Feel so happy for you! Wishing I was finished with fills: surgery on Halloween, still getting fills, my PS very conservative and won't even discuss exchange dates yet. She keeps saying she waits 2 months after last fill for surgery. Can't wait to be done with the discomfort/pain of TE's! Until then, I enjoy reading about everyone's wonderful progress!0 -
I feel so fortunate that I was a good candidate for nipple-sparing surgery. I had to travel long-distance to see my BS/PS team who have been doing NSM for quite a few years. I woke up from BMX with 350cc in each TE. I wasn't large before so I woke up to see a slightly beaten up and smaller version of myself. They have new filling, but I have always called them breasts because the outside, the part I see, is still me.
0
