Mastectomy
Mastectomy with Tissue Expander Placement
Contemplating this was terrifying for so many reasons. I chose to have a double mastectomy (removing both sides). Simply stated, it was the option I felt the most calm about – yes, that sounds weird, but it’s true given the options! For those who are diagnosed while pregnant, (and even if you’re not) consider all of your options! I was originally considering removing only the affected side so that I could try to offer breast milk for my baby. I quickly realized that after going through the physical effects of major surgery, chemotherapy, and um…stress; I didn’t feel my chances for successfully breastfeeding my sweet little one would be very high; AND I didn’t want the emotional stress of that failure, on top of everything else, and then having to go through the surgery again for the other side and drawing out the whole process to get back to “normal.”
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Belly Band for Drains
The drains were such a pain! I had a total of 4 drains. The recommendation was to hang them from a lanyard or pin them to my ACE bandage or bra. Both ideas were miserable. I was wearing foldable yoga pants one night and pulled them up over my belly so I didn’t have the drains against my skin. Then, I finally got smart...I pulled out my “Be Band” from previous pregnancies and put it on over my belly so I didn’t have to feel the drains, and then, folded the bottom of the band up over the drains, so it was like the drains were sitting in a pouch! Genius! (if I say so myself!) This was so much better! I no longer felt my drains swaying all over the place, nor have them hanging from my neck, and it kept them from sliding around and getting the tubes caught up and tugged on while hugging my other kiddos! (Insert angels singing here!) They also didn’t compress the drains, so the drains could still do their job. I told my plastic surgeon and he had me educate his surgical nurse coordinator on the idea. I, also, offered the advice to my sister, who has worked for a plastic surgeon for 15 years or so. She had surgery requiring drains. She also said I was a genius . I bought my belly band at Target years ago. From what I can tell, these are pretty much the same thing, mine just didn’t have the silicone strip:
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Wedge System
Yep, you get to sleep on an incline for a while. In my case, 6 weeks. This was so helpful!
https://relaxtheback.com/products/purefit-adjustable-wedge-system
I, occasionally, used the headpiece as lumbar support and used my regular pillow for my head. Play with it and see what works for you! When you order, request 10% off because I said you deserve it.
Or…this looks comparable, and it’s a little cheaper…
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Dolman short sleeve shirts
I like these because they are loose and super easy to put on and take off! It’s a good (if not better) alternative to the button-down shirts that are recommended. These shirts were great for mastectomy, radiation, and pregnancy! I pretty well lived in these for the past year…and was complimented on them! What I purchased are “no longer available.” You can do a search for “dolman short sleeve” or “bat wing short sleeve,” or click on the links below as these are similar to what I used.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01HOT4366/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_image_o01_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
or these...
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Probiotics
My plastic surgeon recommends taking a probiotic while on antibiotics. I like this one because it’s the only probiotic I have found that tackles the yeast in your body! I order it from here:
https://plexusworldwide.com/mccallzpark/product/plexus-probio-5
I also take this in combination:
https://plexusworldwide.com/mccallzpark/product/plexus-bio-cleanse-180
I actually started taking probiotics before my surgery because of some irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) issues I have. I used to take the DoTerra brand once per week, which was great, but I like that the above-mentioned one combats yeast as well. The probiotics seem to do the trick! This along with eating clean! I feel so much better than I used to, but that is a different story…
I don’t know if probiotics are the reason, but I never felt nauseous, suffered from constipation, and/or diarrhea issues that a lot of other patients undergoing chemo experience. I am convinced they help me just because of my IBS alone, so I take them daily.
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Maybe I would have considered…
Laser hair removal ahead of time, but chemo takes care of this anyway. You don’t get to shave your armpits for a few weeks ladies! You will run into this “problem” again after reconstruction surgery and again during radiation.
