This tuff cookie is crumbling
Hi I am 46 and diagnosed 2 weeks ago with invasive ductal carsonoma and DCIS on a routine mammogram. Met my surgeon on Friday and having surgery this Wednesday. He offered me a mastectomy but said I...
Forum Discussion
SO sorry to hear of your diagnosis @Melc503 - you've come to the right spot for good old fashioned understanding & advice!
The waiting is the worst part of it, I think - waiting for the initial diagnosis, waiting for the surgery, then the pathology ....
I think most of us start out as being a 'tough cookie' but you really DO need the support of your close family & trusted friends if they offer you support - so let them help you - and lean on them. I was pretty 'tough' until I had to leave my family as I went in to surgery ..... then I crumbled! The admitting Clerk gave me a whole BOX of tissues! LOL
I was lucky - as we live up the coast, we stayed with my brother & sister in law in Sydney before, during & after my surgery & for other checkups as well ... it was great not having to do the shopping and cooking etc, even for a few days now & then!
Do you have a family member or close friend to go with you to all your meetings - especially when you go for your results post op. They are an extra set of ears & good support for you. My sister in law was invaluable at my meetings - asking all sorts of intelligent questions that my numb brain would never have thought of!! I also recorded the meeting too - to go thru again afterwards, if I needed to.
The waiting is the worst part of it, I think - waiting for the initial diagnosis, waiting for the surgery, then the pathology ....
I think most of us start out as being a 'tough cookie' but you really DO need the support of your close family & trusted friends if they offer you support - so let them help you - and lean on them. I was pretty 'tough' until I had to leave my family as I went in to surgery ..... then I crumbled! The admitting Clerk gave me a whole BOX of tissues! LOL
I was lucky - as we live up the coast, we stayed with my brother & sister in law in Sydney before, during & after my surgery & for other checkups as well ... it was great not having to do the shopping and cooking etc, even for a few days now & then!
Do you have a family member or close friend to go with you to all your meetings - especially when you go for your results post op. They are an extra set of ears & good support for you. My sister in law was invaluable at my meetings - asking all sorts of intelligent questions that my numb brain would never have thought of!! I also recorded the meeting too - to go thru again afterwards, if I needed to.
Re going to hospital - pack a pair of ear plugs & eye pads (like they give you on a long haul flight) as hospitals are incredibly noisey and have lights on 24/7 .... it may help you in getting some sleep!! These ones are particularly good. You squash them into a 'pencil size' tube then ram them into your ear - they expand once in there, to take the shape of your internal ear shape & block out all but the biggest noises (like smoke alarms!) So safe to wear at home, too! ;)
Take a couple of magazines & a couple of treats to nibble on .... If you have a soft bra, take one with you, tho you may prefer to leave it for a few days, post op (no wire - like an Ahaa Bra or similar - Kmart & Best & Less have some beauties that won't break the bank.) BCNA also provide a Berlei Bra for post op recovery .... (see the link below)
Have you signed up for the BCNA Care Kit & Journey Kit yet? It includes a wonderful diary for not only recording your appointments - but your thoughts & questions for the surgeon, breast care nurse etc ..... take it with you everywhere!!
https://www.bcna.org.au/about-us/information-for-health-professionals/early-breast-cancer/
Ask any question that you may think of - don't rely on Dr Google - it may 'do your brain in'!
All the best for your surgery on Wed - we'll be thinking of you! xx
Take a couple of magazines & a couple of treats to nibble on .... If you have a soft bra, take one with you, tho you may prefer to leave it for a few days, post op (no wire - like an Ahaa Bra or similar - Kmart & Best & Less have some beauties that won't break the bank.) BCNA also provide a Berlei Bra for post op recovery .... (see the link below)
Have you signed up for the BCNA Care Kit & Journey Kit yet? It includes a wonderful diary for not only recording your appointments - but your thoughts & questions for the surgeon, breast care nurse etc ..... take it with you everywhere!!
https://www.bcna.org.au/about-us/information-for-health-professionals/early-breast-cancer/
Ask any question that you may think of - don't rely on Dr Google - it may 'do your brain in'!
All the best for your surgery on Wed - we'll be thinking of you! xx