Seroma! Any tips?

Thanks ladies, so far so good and no need to drain.

Thanks ladies, so far so good and no need to drain.

Thanks ladies, so far so good and no need to drain.

I got to see my surgeon twice a week for about a month to have my seroma drained and he had to remove about 600ml of fluid each time for the first couple of weeks. I found it helped to understand it is just like a  burn blister, a sterile fluid filling up the space between layers of raw tissue, not any sort of infection or pathological process. If allowed to heal, it eventually does so. Prodding it and moving the fluid around can open up areas that are starting to knit together, so best to avoid that.  Once I realised it was not full of pus or dilute blood, I felt a lot better. Instead I remembered the big blisters I sometimes got on my feet, and how tight and stretched they felt,  and it did not worry me so much that the seroma felt tight and stretched. 

I also found I felt like a nanny goat waiting to be milked and gaining enormous relief once the pressure was relieved.  :-)

best wishes

I got to see my surgeon twice a week for about a month to have my seroma drained and he had to remove about 600ml of fluid each time for the first couple of weeks. I found it helped to understand it is just like a  burn blister, a sterile fluid filling up the space between layers of raw tissue, not any sort of infection or pathological process. If allowed to heal, it eventually does so. Prodding it and moving the fluid around can open up areas that are starting to knit together, so best to avoid that.  Once I realised it was not full of pus or dilute blood, I felt a lot better. Instead I remembered the big blisters I sometimes got on my feet, and how tight and stretched they felt,  and it did not worry me so much that the seroma felt tight and stretched. 

I also found I felt like a nanny goat waiting to be milked and gaining enormous relief once the pressure was relieved.  :-)

best wishes

I got to see my surgeon twice a week for about a month to have my seroma drained and he had to remove about 600ml of fluid each time for the first couple of weeks. I found it helped to understand it is just like a  burn blister, a sterile fluid filling up the space between layers of raw tissue, not any sort of infection or pathological process. If allowed to heal, it eventually does so. Prodding it and moving the fluid around can open up areas that are starting to knit together, so best to avoid that.  Once I realised it was not full of pus or dilute blood, I felt a lot better. Instead I remembered the big blisters I sometimes got on my feet, and how tight and stretched they felt,  and it did not worry me so much that the seroma felt tight and stretched. 

I also found I felt like a nanny goat waiting to be milked and gaining enormous relief once the pressure was relieved.  :-)

best wishes

Something to remember thank you x

Thank you xx

Hi Barb, I had a very annoying seroma post mastectomy. My GP thought I had an implant when he first saw it. Anyway, a friend who works with the elderly told me about Arnica gel. Apparently it's popular for the use of swollen ankles. I used it on my seroma. It did not reduce it, however it did reduce the tension very quickly across my chest. It's a natural product and you can buy it in the chemist. Hope this helps. Mandy

Hi Barb, I had a very annoying seroma post mastectomy. My GP thought I had an implant when he first saw it. Anyway, a friend who works with the elderly told me about Arnica gel. Apparently it's popular for the use of swollen ankles. I used it on my seroma. It did not reduce it, however it did reduce the tension very quickly across my chest. It's a natural product and you can buy it in the chemist. Hope this helps. Mandy