Let me start off by saying - This, I hope, is the worst of it. I have never been in so much recovery discomfort/pain in comparison to all other surgeries before this one. Which brings me back to those infamous drainage tubes! Last time I had ONE tube for my Left Breast Mastectomy back in June. That tube brought me to my knees twice. There is something about a nice (LONG) playable tube inserted about 12 inches into your chest that can get on anyones last nerve - So this time, times that by 4. Yup. 4 drainage tubes. I dont care who you are... you will be on the floor at some point crying hysterically because it is too much to bare and you want them all PULLED OUT!!! Ya know, the same feeling you get during the last week of pregnancy ...
I had my surgery on Wednesday, October 22, 2014 @ 6AM. I knew the drill and my nerves were pocketed this time. My lovely Scott was with me and we both joked around, laughed with the doctors and teased like we do, to make light of the situation. God, I love that man. I had a good idea as to the surgical process & what was to be expected - However this time Id wake up with a reconstructed rack. HA! To my surprise, I did not. Now, I knew the surgeon was only going to start my Chest Expanders out with minimal fluid... but not THAT minimal! Sheesh. Cut this small B chested woman a break and give me something to wake up to. Unfortunately, I will have to go through a 1-3 month process of getting a needle inserted into each breast and have about 75cc's of saline injected every few weeks. Once I'm comfortable with my size, they will go in and swap out my expanders for my new Silicone Implants!
Interested in what was used for my reconstruction & the process - Watch this video! Alloderm - Chest Expander Process - They used a "cadaver hamic" called Alloderm that was sewn in my chest muscle in order to hold the new implant. Its all very intriguing how they do this, honestly.
I was released Thursday to go back home and pretty much do a whole lot of nothing for 2 weeks. Unfortunately I cannot take that much time off so I settled for a week and some change! II'll be returning to work on November 3rd and I am looking forward to it! It really keeps my mind off things and I enjoy what I do. The pain meds have been heaven sent and I have not been shy to use them this round. When your chest feels like its locked in a metal vice bra 24-7, you take the drugs.
Prescribed
Percocet - Pain
Lorazepam - Muscle Relaxer, helps the clenching in the upper chest a TON
Cephalexin - Antibiotics / Every 6 hours like clockwork for about 2 weeks. Super Important that I do not have an infection.
Tips & Tricks for the Drainage Tubes
With the Chest Expanders I am not allowed to wear a bralette or zip up medical bra (that I had with my mastectomy last time). So improvising happened! I took two fluffy socks, safety pinned them to my pants at each hip and tucked 2 drains into each one. This helps tremendously in having to carry them around. I was given a long necklace of some sort to hang around my neck to hold the drains - Not a chance!! I tried it and wanted to faint. The weight around my neck and the necklace with the drains leaning on my chest was a no go. Also, I thought wearing loose fitting tops would feel better - negative there as well. The snuggier the shirt the better. Im not talking super tight, but lightly snug. It helps the drain tubes stay against your sides without them dangling & flopping around too much - which ends up irritating the stitches that are holding the tubes in place. Always pad your drain tube site. After each shower, I take a folded piece of gauze and tape it over the drain site as a cushion - Brilliance at its finest right there!
Creating the Breast
In this photo, you can see how cleaned out and concaved my "cancer" breast is post Left Breast Mastectomy. It was so hard for me to believe that a surgeon could make a breast from that. After the Expander Surgery with very minimal Saline, you can see that my chest is starting to form a rounded contoured breast shape. I am very happy with the result thus far!
And lastly, our boys are awesome! For October 24th Breast Cancer Awareness Day, their school wanted everyone to wear pink. So a week before surgery I bought some hot pink long sleeves and puffy paint! I designed the front and they designed the back. They sported these so proudly that day and it makes my heart smile HUGE to see this photo!!!
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