Preparing for surgery

Mez_BCNA

Moderator moved @m_m11 post from activity section to main 'Discussion' page:

m_m11
Good morning lovely ladies,
I have finished my chemos and surgery is on 4th of June which is lumpectomy and breast size reduction. I’m very nervous and anxious about it, my surgeon said 6 weeks for recovery. Please share how recovery will be and recovery tips and thing I need to careful, is recovery will be painful? I’m very very anxious because never had surgery before. TIA

GinGin

@m_m11, I had surgery (lumpectomy and axillary clearance) first and then chemo, followed by rads. Like you, I never had any surgery before as well. This is my first time staying at a hospital ( there’s always a first😀) and silly me was actually excited about it 🤣. 

For me personally, chemo was the worst. So I am glad your chemo is over😉.

I had two drains (one for the lumpectomy and one for the axillary clearance). The drains were extremely painful each time I moved. But once the drains have been removed, the pain goes away ( immediately) as well. Taking the painkillers didn’t help me. I had the drains for 3 days🤪, so I was in pain for 3 days. 

I didn’t have any pain from my lumpectomy or the axillary clearance surgery at all. My scars healed very well. Not sure if me having oranges (Vit C)daily helps with my scar healing. Do you have a McGrath breast care nurse? She will be able to organise the C shaped pillow to rest your arm + bag to park your drain(s) and she can also organise for post surgery bras for you. 

Finally, a physio will likely visit you after your surgery and advise you on the exercises to do. I recommend doing this to your comfort level (don’t over do, the physio nurse will be able to guide you, ask her any questions you may have). 

There is a talk on scar management by look good feel better. I recommend signing up as I did get some tips from them. But the scar self  massage can be done only after your scar as healed and when your breast surgeon has given you the OK. 

In short, for me, there was no pain once those silly horrible drains were removed from me.

all the best for your surgery 💐💐💐

Gin

arpie

Hi @m_m11, so sorry to see you join our select little group xx Feel free to give us a bit more info on your story so far - what type of BC you have and how you've gone with your chemo so far (an congrats on finishing it too!) 

Where abouts are you, roughly? You can add your location to your Profile - then members living nearby may be able to point you to specific facilities in your area xx

You may like to join the Choosing Breast Reconstruction private group - where you can ask any question re your reduction & recovery - there'll be lots of tips there, I reckon!  

A breast cancer diagnosis is a real blow to your identity & self confidence - and it mucks with your brain even more than your body, i reckon dd  ... Some family and friends may even have a hard time knowing what to do or say & some will say nothing, which really hurts.)  xx  Have a listen to the Charlotte Tottman podcasts (she is a specialist BC psychologist who was diagnosed herself about 5 years ago & had a double mastectomy, remaining flat) and she only realised after her own diagnosis, that it is SO much harder than she thought prior to her diagnosis.    Her podcasts are VERY easy to listen to.  (Click on the block showing LOTS of podcasts (show 22) - and start on No 13, which is the FIRST one of Series One.  
https://soundcloud.com/search?q=charlotte tottman

Also check out this post ... where we cover a heap of 'off topic' subjects like our pets, our gardens, hobbies, art & craft & even some funny posts (god knows we all need a laugh now & then.). There's lots of other stuff to check out too xx
https://onlinenetwork.bcna.org.au/discussion/23477/a-big-welcome-to-all-our-new-members#latest

Take care, start cooking up & freezing some meals so that it is one less thing to worry about when you come home from surgery - and accept any offers of help that you can - as you won't be able to do any lifting & housework for a bit of time after you come home .... 

Consider recording your meetings so you have them as backup (and take a good friend or family member with you for support & a 2nd set of ears.)

Wishing you all the best for your upcoming surgery .... take care xx

lrb_03

I had a reduction of my other a number of years after my original lumpectomy.  At the same time, I had some fat grafting to fill some areas of my treated. The abdominal liposuction areas were the worst bit, though I would also have said that that the reduction was a bit more uncomfortable than my memory of the lumpectomy. Hope it all goes smoothly for you

Vangirl

I know it's not the same thing, but I had a mastectomy immediately followed by a DIEP flap reconstruction, which is where they take a chunk of fat from your belly and use it to form a new breast. I had some pain immediately following the surgery but after a day or two not much pain at all, and I was up walking around. I was in hospital for exactly a week, then I went home on my own, and I was fine with doing everything for myself. A nurse came in for the first few days, but just to check and empty the drains.
The drains were in for about a week, from memory, and they were annoying but not painful. The breast healed up really quickly and beautifully (although the belly was another story).
Given the complexity of the surgery, it was a walk in the park.