Great news!

I heard great news yesterday.  My sister got her results back from the breast surgeon and there was no evidence of cancer in her lymphnodes.  Yeah!  She is getting better each day but her recovery will take about six weeks.  The good thing is that when she is "done", she truly is done.  Whereas, I still have my final surgery on March 9th and then, hopefully, I will be done as well.As of this past Wednesday, I have had to eliminiate all drugs which means not even an ibuprofen can pass by my lips.  As a substitute for the drugs, I have been given a full box of pre-surgery vitamins.  Since I have never been pregnant before but have watched my friends go through their pregnancies over the years, I will equate these to pre-natal vitamins.  For the next two weeks, I have to take three large pills between breakfast and lunch and three huge pills at dinner.  The problem I have been having is that I don't eat very much so when I could finally take the first three pill dosage, I felt very queasy and still, to this day, have not managed to take any of the dinner pills yet.  I know I had better step it into gear because, starting three days before surgery, I have to add on yet another pill (Bromelain with Quercetin).  After surgery, I then take Arnica Montana 30X NINE times a day to help with swelling and bruising.  On a final note, I have been able to ride the stationary Precor bike and am now up to 45 minutes.  Yeah!  I also walked my first long walk which was about 5.5 miles.  I can wear gym attire and I look extremely normal but I sure as heck, still know that those tissue expanders are in my body.  I keep reading on the community breast blog that when I get the exchange, the new boobs will feel more like real ones and are much more comfortable.  Between you and me........I CANNOT WAIT!

Started Out as DIEP

My sister's bi-lateral mastectomy was last Wednesday.  If you read previous posts, she was told to gain 25 pounds to prepare her stomach to harvest the fat and tissue to recreate new boobs.  However, there was always a chance that there would not be enough "material" to harvest and the DIEP technique would have to become Tram-flap which would then mean stomach muscle would be used in addition to the fat and tissue.  Well, unfortunately after 12 hours in surgery, it started out as DIEP and ended up as a Tram-flap.
Why is there concern?  Tram-flap recovery is much longer since the muscle has now been cut and removed.  Also, there is a tendency to loose strength in the abdomen.  My sister is very active so, hopefully, this will not be the case.  She has been in the ICU for the past five days and I just heard from her (via text) that is going home today.  It has been brutal!
See, Caryl, I told you to consume more cookies and pasta!

Last Fill...(and it was a doozy)

Instead of driving 12 hours up to Philadelphia and then 12 hours back for thirty minutes of doctor time, I decided to fly as my Valentine's gift to my husband...since he would have been the driver.  My brother kindly picked me up at the airport on Sunday evening and then dropped me off to the plastic surgeon's ofice Monday morning.  Instead of Dr. Bucky, Valerie (my nurse) did the final fill to the expanders.  Originally, I was told that we were going for 30 cc's but when I got there, Valerie informed me that we had to get 60cc or else I had to come back one more time.  I responded with "Go for it"....and boy, did she!


I watched my breasts expand out like a basketball in front of my eyes.  Wow!  Or should I say J-Wow!  It was not uncomfortable...yet..but I knew the pressure would start to hit me soon since the muscles in my back would begin to pull forward giving me an ache that I cannot describe.  I asked for a valium since, I am the world's worst packer,and I forgot to pack my best friend, Val.  Typical me, I brought my PJ's, makeup and toothbrush....that's it.  I was hesitant to ask Valerie for more valium because the last time, I had her write another prescription and I lost that one and now I am asking her for more.   I just had to tell her that I am not an out-of-control addict; I am just forgetful as of late.


After the fill, we went back over to the photography room to take pictures of what my breasts now look like and then went back to go over the surgery and what will happen.  Apparently, I am going to be marked up again by the good doctor, then head to the anesthesiologist to go under, exchange out the tissue expanders for softer and prettier (I added that) implants and then I wake up and go home.  He uses the photographs to help determine the size I am going to be so it will be a surprise to me...kind of like Christmas!  Well, that's my thought at least :)


Alright, so I leave the office and proceed to walk to Rittenhouse Square with the thought of going shopping until I had to catch a cab to the airport.  Hmmm.....good plan until I walked outside and Val, my buddy, kicks in.  Goodness!  I was so drugged up since I didn't eat anything in the morning.  I was all wobbly and slow and I knew I had to eat something soon or else I would end up on the sidewalk slumped down on the side of a building like a drugged up panhandler.  I managed to make my way to Marathon Grill and nodded my head (which was about all I could do) to the hostess when she asked if it was just a table for one.  So, I sat there in my drug induced state until finally the food arrived and brought me back to normalacy.  Let's jsut say that shopping was left out of the equation since I managed to walk up to Rittenhouse but soon realized that I had to catch a cab to get to the airport.


Unfotunately, I did not have a nonstop flight back to Savannah but had to go through Charlotte.  I was feeling "okay" en route to Charlotte but as we deplaned, I knew Val was wearing off.  I pulled out my phone to call Bob to request that he bring a pill when he picked me up and, damn, there was no charge left.  I was desperate!  I found a pay phone (miracle!) and used my credit card to call.  He did not answer but I left a plea for help.  Immediately, my mind thought "tequila" as I walked to the next terminal.  Up ahead in the distance, God answered the call with a Tequileria staring straight at me at the Charlotte airport.  No shit!  As I walked over with a sign of relief, I thought to myself, I had better ask someone the time so I don't miss my flight.  Sure enough, I had exactly ten minutes to get to my gate which meant that the tequila idea had to fall by the wayside.  I walked briskly to the gate and I was, of course, one of the last ones on the flight.  Shoot...I had to hold it together!  Hopefully Bob and Val would be waiting for me in Savannah.


An hour long flight and I was like a heroin addict, without the sweats, anticipating my next fix.  Good God my back was killing me and I thought of everything and anything happy to get me through the flight.  For the first time, turbulence worked in my favor since I HATE flying.  It definitely took my mind off my back!


I deplaned and headed straight towards the sidewalk outside the terminal where my drug dealer was to meet me.  What?  Seriously? Where are you?  Oh no...and I had no phone to call.  After a few minutes of anxiety, I borrowed someone's phone and called Bob.  "Dear God, where are you????"  Right as I asked that question, he pulled in with a glass of water and my saving grace- Val.  Ahhh!  We made it back home where I immediately showed him my new additions.  Uh yah..he liked those :)  and then sat with a heating pad on my back while I watched my dentist, Ashley, on The Bachelor.


Today, I am much better.  I have not had a valium yet and I do plan on working out my fat ass on the bike for thirty minutes.  The plan for the rest of the afternoon is to rest with the heating pad and probably take my little friend sometime around 4ish to nap. 

Foods to Avoid for Breast Cancer

I just found this website and I wanted to share this link:
http://www.foodforbreastcancer.com/

Here is the list but if you go on the website and click on any of these, information will pop up regarding breast cancer risks and survival.  This is pretty much everything I love!  There is also a Foods to Eat link on the site.
Foods to Avoid For Breast Cancer

Meats and Dairy
Bacon,  BBQ meat,  Beef,  Butter,  Cheese,  Cream,  Liver,  Milk,  Pates,  Pork,  Sausage,  Veal,  Well-Done Meat

Oils and Fats
Avacado Oil, Corn Oil,  Ghee, Lard,  Mustard Oil,  Partially-hydrogenated Oil,  Peanut Oil,   Sunflower Oil,  Sesame Oil, Soybean Oil

Beverages
Alcohol,  Beer,  Coffee,  Essiac tea,  Reishi tea,  Sage tea,  Wine (really?),  Yerba mate

Nuts and Seeds
Bitter Almonds,  Papaya seeds,  Peanut butter,  Peanuts, Sesame seeds

Spices and Herbs
Lavender, Meadow Saffron,  Sage, Salt, Wild ginger, 

Beans

Adzuki beans,  Butter beans,  Lima beans,  Soy protein isolate

Vegtables

Avacados, Fermented vegtables, Fried potatoes, Green papaya

Sweets and Desserts

Persipan,  Red bean paste,  Sugar

Fish

Dired Herring,  Dried mackerel, king Mackerel,  Pickled Herring,  Shellfish,  Smokes mackerel 

Ugh!

Ugh, yes!  How appropriate to start this out with the word "Ugh"!  It has been six weeks since my last fill and I am so excited to fly up to Philadelphia on Sunday to get my final fill Monday morning.  I am sorry for not writing but there hasn't been too much to say.  I will make this really easy and write down a few observations from my six week "layover":
1) After awhile the tissue expanders become less uncomfortable but it still feels like a hard, plastic object is attached to your chest area.
2)  Try to stay warm.  When you are cold, your muscles contract and you shiver to create warmth.  This is definitely not a good feeling since those damn expanders are under your pectoral muscles.  Bundle up!
3)  Eventually, you can lay a little on each side when you sleep so that you don't have to sleep on your back every single night and wake up with a back ache.  If you can prop your head up high enough, you may be lucky enough to get a few moments on your stomach which will make you feel like you are in heaven....until the numbness sets in, of course.
4)  If you do a nipple sparing mastectomy, all I can tell you is that when the scabs come off around the aereola, your nipples will look damn good.  Is that TMI?  Sorry but that if for those that will be undergoing a mastectomy in the near future. You need to know this because there is an end in sight and it is absolutely amazing to watch the transformation back to "normal".

5) Get a tennis ball.  Seriously!  This was recommended by my masseuse and it really works.  Lie on your back and place it between the shoulder blade and the spine and lie down on the floor for 5 minutes.  It stretches out the muscle and relieves a lot of the "pulling" in your back.

I will fill you in next Tuesday after I fly back to Savannah Monday night.  I am bringing a lot of valium to loosen up those muscles since I have a feeling that the plastic surgeon is going "full steam ahead" since this is it.  Once again, my final surgery will be on March 9th....and I cannot wait!

A Quick Test

Every Wednesday, I drive to Savannah, which is only twenty minutes away, for my half hour lymphatic massage with Hope Lyons.  Usually, I have to take a valium because, when she is finished, my body aches with muscle pains.  She is extremely gentle when she massages but, apparently, the massage loosens up the muscles in my chest area and also in my back and brings on a good solid throbbing for at least a full day.


I think I may have mentioned this before but a lymphatic massage releases quite a bit of fluid into the lymphatic system.  So much that by the time I drive back home, I already had to go to the bathroom three times.  This is over a one hour period!  On the way back, I stopped by the fitness center and I decided to weigh myself on their scale.  You know that horrible scale?  It is the evil one that told me I gained a bunch of weight during the past month and a half.  Well, lo and behold, the new number went down two pounds!  So...to anyone undergoing a mastectomy now or in the near future, it is now evident that fluid does indeed build up in the breast area using the tissue expanders.  Yes, I know this doesn't explain the other four pounds and I will have to attribute those to inactivity but, boy, do I feel a lot better!