Hello everyone,
On 23rd of October, my mum is having her Total Mastectomy (Left Breast) and Axillary Node Clearance (Left Armpit) surgery done. I so can’t wait to have this cancer finally taken care off and completely get rid of it. She had neoadjuvent chemo before that since my mum got inflammatory breast cancer. My mum also got type 2 diabetes.
I don’t know why but I am more anxious about my mum going under general anaesthesia than the surgery it self 
I thinking all sorts which I guess is normal.
Would love to hear your experiences, how did you or someone who was having mastectomy feel, the feeling of going under general anaesthesia…any tips on how to stay calm and not worry about anything, anyone who had other health conditions such as diabetes going through mastectomy…how did they manage and monitor I don’t know glucose level during operation etc
Dear @sshini93, Your fear for your Mum is perfectly understandable. I have type 1 diabetes and underwent mastectomy 2 years ago. I was myself more nervous of the anaesthetic than the surgery. I asked to be first on the list to minimise the time i had to go without food. I wore my continuous glucose monitor throughout the operation and the anaesthetist checked my blood glucose using my own reader. The anaesthetist will monitor your Mum throughout the surgery and administer glucose through a drip if her blood glucose drops. Being as fit as possible with good glucose control before the op is important as diabetes can impact the healing process.
After the anaesthetic is administered one is asleep almost immediately and know nothing more until waking up in recovery. Do share your worries and ask the medical team, diabetes nurse or GP (depending where diabetes is managed) any questions you need to. The anaesthetist will also be happy to answer any questions on the day. Sending you both my very best wishes. Love Tulip x
1 Like
Thank you so much 
feel bit ease now. it’s so funny how we all panic but for the anaesthetic doctor, surgeon and their team is like nothing for them hehe as they do these surgeries everyday. How long was the surgery if you remember and did they kept you overnight. My mum had been instructed to avoid certain diabetic medications such as metformin, rampril and dapagliflozin. My mums admission will be at 7am and I do hope they take her in asap since she will be fasting from the day before surgery
1 Like
I too arrived at the hospital at 7am. After booking in I was shown to a bed and had various obs taken - blood pressure etc. Then I was given a gown, paper pants, and compression socks to change into and stowed my belongings in a locker. Then the registrar and then the surgeon came to see me and made marks on my body with a marker pen. I was wheeled down to the operating area, given the aneasthetic and the last thing i remember was the end of my trolley entering the operating theatre. That was about 9am. I woke up in recovery at 12.30pm but think I had been in recovery for some time before waking. I stayed in recovery for about 3 hours as it took me a while to come to and i needed three shots of fentinyl for pain relief. There was a blood pressure monitor on my right lower leg which kept inflating every 10 mins. The trolley bed i was on felt very comfy and i felt like i was floating on a cloud. Finally i was wheeled back to the ward where my friend was waiting. That was about 4pm. My friend had brought me a sandwich and a drink. I wasnt that hungry but managed half a sandwich. When i then visited the toilet i noticed to my horror that i had evidently shit in my pants during the op but wasnt aware until that moment. I was given the option to stay in overnight but chose to go home that evening. There was a one hour wait for hospital transport and during that time i needed to take some of the painkillers i had been sent home with. My wound was well bandaged and there was no drain. I had a bean bag gifted to me by knitted knockers which i used to protect my wound from the car seat belt. At home first night i needed to sleep on the opposite side of my double bed in order to be able to get in and out more easily. My sister stayed overnight to help me in and out of bed. Several pillows were needed to keep me propped up. After a few days at home I booked myself into a local care home for 7 days in order to access an adjustable bed, walk in shower, and have my meals cooked. I was 66 years old at time of the op.
2 Likes
Thank you for sharing your surgery procedure in detail and glad it all went well and of course recovered well 
I feel more relaxed now after hearing your experience. Looks like it will be one of a kind experience for my mum 
I have a strong feeling too my mum will be at the operation theatre by 9am and this is most likely due to her diabetes so fingers crossed. I won’t leave the hospital so I’ll be booking uber as no point taking my car for now as of course don’t know how long I’ll be at the hospital. I am not sure whether I can go with her up until before taking her to the operation theatre. My mum can’t speak English well so most likely interpreter will be there with her but hopefully I could stay around somewhere
1 Like