Drainage bag question

I have friends that had mastectomy as part of their gender reassignment surgeries (known as top surgery in the Trans persons world) and 2 of them only seemed to have a drain in for less than a week, whereas i had mine in for a month. It would seem that as i kept my own skin, they said my body knew there's a cavity there & kept trying to fill it. 
We are all different. 
i hope it heals nicely for you. 

Good luck with the path results!
I hope the physio is good. Mine is lovely and very understanding. Got to get this arm to go over my head for the radiation, 1/2 hour in one place. 
I didn't find that easy before the operation!

My shoulder does ache at the end of the day, did I mention that?
I guess that will go as it gets stronger again and the nerves start to mend. 

yes, my house too, and the backyard covered in weeds.
I have been slowly getting things done these two weeks, finally looking like I am getting somewhere. 
Little bits at a time.

I am also slowly starting work again, but can't do much in one day,  my arm gets very tired and starts to shake. I guess that will take time to get right again too. I am a dog groomer, my arm gets a work out!

Good luck with getting yours moving again, I think it helps you to start to feel you are getting through this when you can do normal things again.

Thanks @Unicornkisses, that sounds positive for you. Tomorrow I get my pathology results and see a physio. I'm not worried about either. Just want to get back to doing all the things that have ground to a halt since treatment. My house looks like a bomb went off in it, inside and out. I'm glad you've come through the surgery well and on your way.

Hi @LMK74  I have numb areas at the back of my upper arm, shoulder and chest under the arm. They are numb and irritable at the same time, if that makes sense.
My arm movement is very good, at first it was a little restricted because of swelling and tenderness, but I wouldn't say I couldn't do any usual movements, just not as far as usual, such as stretching down to my foot to put my sock on, washing my ankles etc. 
Now I can do all that, the swelling has reduced under my arm and the area in front of my shoulder on my chest, where the upper lymphnodes were removed, has settled down too, it was the sorest and most swollen point.
I still have restriction reaching up such as hanging out the washing, though if I persist it gets better each time I reach up, so by the end of the basket it is fine.
I do have some cording under the arm from the centre of my chest, I can feel the tight bands when I lie my shoulder back in bed. 
I can massage them over the top of my singlet top and they seem to release enough that they are not pulling, but they are still there. The Lymph Physio says they will gradually go.
I find that my arm is not as strong though.
I tried to clean out my horses hooves on Sunday and could not get the pick into the solid dirt properly. I am not sure if I was scared of hurting myself or if it just wasn't strong enough, perhaps both. 
I think I will have to start some gentle strengthening exercises as well as the stretches.

My arm worked pretty well, even the day after the surgery, I just couldn't reach out far without it pulling and hurting.
I could reach up my back to wash from the first day, that has never been an issue.
So I would say that except for the reaching up to the clothes line and the strength, it is the movement is the same as before the operation. I am really relieved.

I hope you have the same positive result.
My physio said to just do the stretches she gave me gently, to push them a little but not to make it sore. jennie

@Unicornkisses, I went to the hospital today to see my bc nurse to have it checked. She took the drain out after she thoroughly felt everything. I'm day 5 post surgery. She said sometimes having chemo first can dry up the lymphatic fluid or something like that. I'm glad the drain is out, I have minimal pain, just lots of stiffness in the arm. I am sore of course and tender and numb in armpit area. Do you have full movement of your arm, I know you're a little ahead of me.

Does the chest area or under your arms feel like they are swelling up? Are there lumpy places which could be holding fluid?
That was what my home care nurse checked for when she was here, my lymph area drain didn't drain very much at all after the first few days. 
I found that massaging the areas around my scar and where the lymphnodes had been removed helped ease the discomfort and if there was any areas that felt a bit swollen it helped them go down a little. Perhaps you could try that and see if it helps.

@Zoffiel, thanks for the advice. There is hardly any fluid in the bag this morning. The bulb above the bag is still working so I will wait till Monday morning and contact my bc nurses. I was discharged on antibiotics as a precaution until drain is removed. Temperature is fine also. I thought I'd be oozing longer than this from what you other ladies have said.

Drains are a trial Lisa. I leak for weeks but not everybody does, it is quite common for some people to dry up in a very short time.

A couple of things can happen to drains, they can get blocked or lose suction. If your little 'bulb' above the actual bag still looks like it is slightly collapsed, it still has suction, in which case it is still working, you may have just stopped oozing. The end of the drain looks a bit like a soaker hose -- lots of little slots, so it takes a bit to block them but it can happen. Sometimes blockages resolve themselves, a gob of muck gets sucked through and everything keeps going.

If you are still unsure with it in the morning go back to ED. There will be a different lot of staff on so you may get better advice.

 If it has stopped working, it is not the end of the world. At worst you may have to have it replaced, at best your surgeon may adopt a wait and see attitude as you may have just dried up. Keep a really close eye on your temp until you can connect with your surgeon or BC Nurse;, the fluid will be fine for a day or so sloshing around in there ( you may get to learn about seroma) as long as you don't get an infection. You don't want anyone who doesn't  know what they are doing tinkering with it. F%#@, I'm just making this worse, aren't I.

This shit always happens on a weekend. Or a public holiday.

Hi @LMK74 - just jumping in to say hello, and to also agree that if you are still feeling concerned it may be worth visiting Emergency or getting in touch with you medical professional to discuss your concerns further. - hoping everything goes okay ~ jess

@Summerhill38, breast care nurses not available til Monday. I guess if it has nothing in it by morning I could head back to emergency. Bloody typical it's on a weekend when bc nurses unavailable.