Surgery Thurs. the 4th

[Pray]

Hi, My real name is Nancy, thank you everyone for your prayers,responses and friendship. I'm sure I used every single one up getting through the past two weeks

The surgery itself went well, Allthough there was so much scar tissue from previous c-section they spent 3 extra hours just weeding it out. So instead of 8hrs it was close to 12 which takes you longer to wake up. I went into surg. at 830am and into an actual room by 130am. None of which I knew was going on. Good for me. Any one who has had reconstruction knows the way you look right out of surg. isn't exactly what you have three months later. With doing one breast that is in my case. So I said to myself going into this I was not going to worry about the turn out for several months

I wake up and the next 6 days are pain med. and trying to walk again. Not an easy feet, though doable. as these days go on I am noticing the flap is huge and looks to me like it is at least 4 or 5x times bigger than the other one. I am not worried though I have faith in my drs. I get home and hear about our beautiful Sheila and I'm consumed with praying for her and her family.

I go to my recheck on Mon. and as I get out of my van I relize I have my house slippers on and I am so humiliated I can barely speek. So in the the drs room the nurse notices my slippers and I start telling her how sorry I am and so on. Then the three drs. walk in and my husband and nurse in this very small room w/a curtain we are all behind. I'm still thinking how I hope no one else notices my slippers when as the dr. talking he notices something on the floor and I said what is it and he says oh its just a black spider. WHAT! I start screeming like a 5 yr old girl. and everyone else starts to panic not knowing what I'm screeming for. My husband starts dancing around the room trying to step on the spider when he alone knows my great fear of spiders especially the bigger they are. ( This one to me was huge!) Someone yells in the door are you hurting her. One of the other drs. runs to shut the door saying I hope no one hears her in the waiting room and my Dr. says no thats great! we can all go out to lunch today I never get to go out to lunch! This all happened in about 4 mins. time. I was laughing so hard, when the dr. started talking and again he paused I said to the nurse I guess I don't feel as bad about wearing my slippers here. Everyone looked at my feet (slippers) and all started to laugh out loud together. You never really expect a dr. visit to be so funny. It was great (except for the spider thing!)

So my free flap is very swollen and he tried to asperate it and couldn't get anything and said to give it time. He will be able to take care of it eventualy. By the fourth day home I was walking almost straight up still a work in progress. I don't remember the pain much and I have been told it will take 3 to 4 months to recover from which I think is doable. The visiting nurse comes weds.to check on the one drain left in. I did have 3 until monday. That will be great. Heres to slow going my beautiful sisters and brothers.

Now I'm back to being cosumed with prayer for Sheila, Jen and all of their family and everyone of you here struggling. Peace and Gods blessings to all of you.

P.S. I would change my name but I had to have Becky do it last time. Originaly I had my 1st and last name and a friend told me she thought I had to much personal info on the internet. I do not think so any longer. Not when all of these beautiful people on this site bare there inner most feelings, pains and sorrows also greatest joys! I like a name to put the feelings with. I would put a pic also but, I don't know how. Thanks again for thinking of me your friend, Nancy

My Aunt who I had mentioned to a couple of people here, had been suffering with dimentia passed away this morning. She was my Moms twin and they are finally hand in hand agian. The peace of the Lord will be with them always. Amen! Amen!

[JennyB]

Hi Nancy,

Glad to hear youre getting back on your feet - slippers! What a funny story so glad your Dr's visit was such fun! Please keep us updated on your progress and I hope you continue to speedily recover.

Very sorry about your Aunt but glad she is reunited with your Mum.

Rest up

Jenny x

[Pray]

Thank you Jenny, you are so sweet and so appreciated!

[norkdo]

Dearest Nancy,
I have had computer problems...no laptop for two months. Today I logged on to my new laptop and the first thing I did today on my laptop is catching up with your recon. I howled! You are a riot.

I feel awful abt your 12 hour surgery tho!! !I am writing the identical account of my Sept 17 2012 recon operation to Denise but in case I screwed up the private messaging system, and also to say hello to all of you kind warm women, like Amy, whom I also consider my friends, here is me catching you all up on me.

Here is my account:


I had a silicone implant put into my good breast, with a dif surgeon standing next to my plastic surgeon and an old revered surgeon, retiring, supervising these two adorable boy geniuses. Adore my surgeons. Right before I went under, my Plastic Surgeon, (PS) said "Okay, ladies and gentlemen, let's get this plane off the ground" and I asked him later bout it and he said they were just teasing the anaesthesia people for talking like they were in an airport control room.

The silicone was chosen by virtue of being half the size of my real breast, which weighed 8/10ths of a litre. Ridiculous to have that slapping around on my chest for the past year. Grrrrrr.....

The PS chose a 420 ml silicone and wrapped it in the skin left dangling there after they cut the end off the breast and dug out the food craved by HER2 cancer cells (i.e. breast tissue).

An hour prior to surgery my PS and his resident came to me in scrubs to draw on my existing boob and he told me the other cute surgeon is now offering a nipple sparing version of the left boob silicone insertion operation. I simply asked PS his opinion as sensation was not as high a priority, I had decided, after long consideration (tough to give up never feeling anything sexual again on the top half of my body, believe you me.) PS said "I will give you excellent looking nipples, yes, yes, without the elevation, simply tattoes, yes, yes, I know."

In addition, during the insertion of the doubly-wrapped silicone on my good, left side, the PS worked for hours to untether my mastectomy scar from last summer from the back of the wall, so he could slide an expander under it. He only put 150 ml water into it.

Nevertheless I woke up screaming in a panic attack in the recovery room, nobody around that I loved, to hold my hand...my stupid idea, thinking I was braver than i was....it is not like people didnt offer....how wonderful were the two nurses. "Hold my hand!! To the other nurse: "Don't let go of my hand!" To the first one: "YES. KEEP RUBBING MY SHOULDER" To the other one: "NO. DON'T GO!!!| Finally I started breathing normally after they managed to convince me.. ("You're shouting at me!! Why are you being mean!!) All of this as if from a spoiled twelve year old child. And the "mean" one understanding the morphine coming out of my speech, and lowering her voice, becoming my substitute mother, so longed for throughout this awful journey........

Anyway all was great for a week, then the silicone breast cuts became infected or whatever and the whole front of the breast turned black.....fell off, then green and yellow. A month later here I am. It is still sticky, yellow, slough under bandages that need changing by the Victorian Order of Nurses (WeCare) every two days.

The PS says this is why he double wrapped the silicone in my old big bad 8/10ths of a litre breast skin. In case i lost one layer of skin i would have more skin under it. "You just think of everything," I joked to him. He is nonplussed abt the yellow goo still pouring out of it. (necrosis). "There is plenty of healthy pink skin coming in behind the dead skin so we didn't even need the second layer of skin." So I am good, fortunate, lucky, etc and excited bout my new boobs. Sad about losing nipples, like all of us. While you sleep your sheets, throughout your life, as a woman have brushed over you and given you pleasant dreams. Over it now. I'm good with the trade off. (parallel boobs, etc)

I went through bad depression bout after about three weeks of bi-daily bandage changes by the nurses, and i should slap myself i am so lucky that the nurse service is free here in canada, but am crawling out of that stupidity now and i just got the right expander inflated yesterday by 80 mls. All by myself like a big girl.

[Laurel]

Hey, Nancy!

Laughed out loud at your tale of spider woes! My guess is October is not the best month for you, huh? Good luck on your recovery!

[NEDenise]

Nancy,
So happy to read things are going well with your recovery!
Just wondering...is wearing slippers outside the house a "bad" thing? I think it's brilliant!!
Lots of love,
Denise

[Pray]

Thanks for your responses ladies!

Denise, What was the time frame in which you returned to work after this surgery? How long before you drove? Thank you, Nancy

[NEDenise]

Nancy,
First, I'm so sorry about the loss of your aunt. I missed that the last time I logged in.

Second...I drove as soon as all the drains were out, and I stopped taking the major pain meds. I think that was about 2 or 3 weeks later...not exactly sure.

I'm not a good gauge for when someone could return to work. My surgery was in October, but I had to have surgery again in April, because my abdominal incision never closed properly. (It was not draining or anything, it had come apart under the skin, so it wasn't comfortable, or very supportive of all the "stuff" inside.)

I also still had all my rads to do before I could return to work, and they weren't finished until the end of December. Sorry I can't be more helpful. I remember that once I was off the pain meds, I started to feel much better quickly. And I do know that I had surgery on Oct 10, and hosted 17 people for Thanksgiving, if that helps...and I was able to do all my own shopping, cooking, and cleaning. (I had help with all the heavy lifting though, even grocery bags)

Hope that helps a little.
Sending a gentle cyber hug!
Denise

[Paula O]

Thanks for sharing Nancy, and Norkdo.

I loved your slippers story..very funny!

Rooting for ya,

Paula

[Pray]

Thanks again Ladies!

Denise, It will be a total of 5 weeks before I can drive and not a day sooner(Dr's orders)

I must admit my body will only let me do so much. He doesn't even want me walking more than a house or 2 and would prefer I walk in the house. I went to my Aunts funeral because I love my Aunt dearly. I had picked up a starbucks on the way or I know I never would have made it through the funeral. It was a grave side at the cemetary and my daughter had to hold me up trying not to let anyone notice I couldn't do it alone. I couldn't do anything the rest of Fri. and Sat. Doing much better know.

I really did think because I recovered so quickly from the c-sections this wouldn't be much worse. I do know women who sarted cleaning house in 2 weeks time and 1 other who its been 2 months and just started to use the steps. (If I go down stairs I stay down and same going up).

I'm not complaining all though I wish I were one of the quicker ones. (My windows need a serious washing!

God bless everyone!

Your friend,

Nancy

[conomyself]

Yay, I'm so glad to hear from you!! I have been thinking about you the past couple of weeks!!

And thanks for the funny story!!

[bria]

I will keep you in my prayers. God Bless

[Pray]

Thank you so much for your responses you are so appreciated!

Bria, I pm you.

[norkdo]

Nancy, this is so awful. I am now caught up on your situation. How terrible about the incisions. I really wish I was in Michigan and I could help you with your windows. My prayers go out to you. You are an angel.
Nora

[Pray]

Nora you are to sweet! Really I haven't had anything I can't handle. I have never been very good at sitting still! Peace my friend. Nancy

[kvogler]

Praying for you dear.

[rhondalea]

I'm thinking of you, Nancy. Feel better, heal fast. The windows will wait.

[Pray]

Thank you Kvogler and Rhondea, Everyone here means so very much to me! Gods blessings to all

[harrie]

Hi Nancy! I have been thinking of you often and am so glad the surgery went well. It was great reading about your experiences. You are one tough lady and I am sure before you know it this will all be behind you.
take care.
Maryanne

[Pray]

Thank you Maryanne! I'm doing well. You have been a great blessing to me and you took so much of the worry away. Gods blessings to you. I do appreciate your friendship! I do think you should change your pic. to the one you sent me! Peace my friend,

nancy