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Old 12-10-2015, 02:14 PM   #10
agness
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Aug 2014
Location: Seattle, WA
Posts: 285
Re: My leptomeningeal journey

-- part 7 --

POST-RADIATION TREATMENT RECOVERY

The first six months are the most critical to tissue repair



massaging my breast
I started doing this during rads and continued to try to keep from having the tissue turn fibrotic due to stagnation. It evolved into a more specific practice of lymphatic massage to help drain the area as I developed temporary trunkal lymphedema. I started seeing someone who is trained in lymphatic massage and she helped my body figure out where the lymph will flow now that my upper quadrant lymphatic system has been compromised (as it was for each of us). Rads damaged the minor lymphatic structures in the treated area and stagnant lymph is what leads to fibrosis over time. Keeping things moving and re-establishing drainage helps our bodies to heal better than just letting things go.

My body asked for vibration in the treated area at the beginning of January (a month after finished rads) and I looked it up. Vibration is used to re-establish minor lymphatics and vascular structures in physical therapy. I figured out that a Clarisonic, a facial cleansing tool, is really great at helping with breast massage once you know how to do breast lymphatic massage post surgery. It has a soft brush and a fine vibration and is great as exfoliation if nothing else.



I used Earthsong pomegranate oil meant for breast massage occasionally. It comes with a booklet describing how to do breast massage though I advise working with someone who does lymphatic massage so you can know how to modify for your body post treatment.

skincare

I came up with a little routine to help care for my damaged skin, evidently it is permanently altered by radiation (see: Changes in biophysical properties of the skin following radiotherapy for breast cancer)

  • Thorne DermaQOL lotion (currently discontinued as it is being rebranded) as a daily moisturizer
  • Castor Oil - overnight a few days a week
  • Vitamin E oil, occasionally
I use a facial cleansing cream from Aubrey Organics (http://www.aubrey-organics.com/ProductInfo/910.asp...) or the Clarisonic cleanser and the Clarisonic brush every other day on my irradiated area to help exfoliate for about 5 months (I used it a few times a month now). It was amazing how much lighter my treated area was after the first cleansing.


Fungal Infection Risk -- too much oil and broken skin can lead to fungal infections. Alternating Nystatin, vinegar and diluted oregano oil on bandaids for many weeks got rid of my infection. I got a fungal infection on my treated breast when I itched it and accidently broke the skin a tiny bit.

movement

I continued with dance practice and qigong at home, later returning to a qigong class. Full classes of other types would be too trying and I might tear something I felt.

I worked with a physical therapist on understanding how to work with my lymphedema. My PT noted that in some areas that were treated the muscle had adhered to the fascia. Also, my serratus muscle group was very pissed off post rads (why I had a sore side during treatment). He did myofascial release work on me; terribly painful but it worked amazingly well.



---

If you can manage the time and more appointments, definitely seek out professional treatment with any issues. My RO gave no post treatment instructions but with the first 6 months being the most critical to post radiation healing and tissue remodeling I wanted to do the very best I could.

PS - when I had my first post treatment physical exam at the breast clinic in June the NP couldn't believe how well I healed. Trust me I had a really bad reaction to rads, my breast surgeon couldn't believe it and I even put it together into a PPT she can train her residents with. You can do a lot but they don't know what it is, they won't suggest a damn thing. Do more.

Last edited by agness; 12-10-2015 at 02:31 PM.. Reason: more content
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