Ok I know this sounds weird but every time I drink a hot or cold drink I feel the sensation of hot or cold in my missing left breast!
I am reaching the conclusion that because the route to my stomach veers slightly to the left just below the breast, that perhaps there are some severed nerves left close to the chest wall picking up sensations of hot or cold and relaying them to my brain which tells me the feeling is in my breast…which of course it isn’t as it has been removed and reconstructed and has no feeling.
Also I sometimes feel pain in the breast too. Anyone else experience these sensations? I have only had the recon done 4 weeks ago…will it go away in time?
Love to hear what others have felt and if anyone knows why.
Hi Mandy,
I too had strange sensations of hot/cold drinks in my right breast after my Mx and recon,another forum user (ostrich)said she had the same.
My OP was July 2008 and the sensations have gone now,not sure exactly when they faded.
Hopefully yours will pass too,
Love,
Dot
x
SNAP Mandy.
After my mastectomy it felt just the same and not really very pleasant, I was also aware of my heart beating. As you say very weird, but Dots right it does go away in time.
I still occassionally think I have a left breast (I didn’t have a reconstruction) and try to scratch it when it itches. I must have one very confused brain.
Mx
I was exactly the same after my mastectomy in October 2008 (no recon). Every time I drank a cold drink I felt a chill spread all over the left side of my body where my breast used to be. I wondered if the breast used to insulate this area (if you know what I mean) but my OH said it was probably more to do with nerve damage or sensitive nerves. It has gone completely now.
I have this sensation too. I was quite alarmed at first and wondered if it was normal but I think I have got used to it now. When I swallowed something hot or cold it seemed as though I could feel every inch of its journey towards the stomach. I still do get this sensation but don’t notice now - I think after a while your brain just ‘tunes it out’. Maybe the removed breast tissue acted as some kind of insulation.
I have had a LD with implant reconstruction on my left breast and sometimes get an itch in the area which has no sensation. This is really disconcerting as I can’t scratch it!
I do notice also that there is a difference in temperature between the ‘flap’ of skin taken from my back and the surrounding breast skin - it feels colder. Anyone else notice this?
Hi,
I get both the itch that you can’t scratch in the numb area (awful), and the hot/cold feeling with drinks and food. It is reassuring to hear it must be a ‘normal’ side effect of the surgery.
Helen
Thanks for all the responses. At least I know its reasonably normal and likely to fade as it is a little disconcerting.
I too noticed that the temperature of the reconstructed area is different but not so much as to concern me.
The urge to itch was there the first few weeks but it seems to have gone, the pain also seems to be lessening thank god, theres enough pain going on in my back to worry about as it is!
The back scar is strange, some bits are completely numb other bits hurt to touch…i’m not sure which is worse. I’m hoping the sore areas will stop being sore and and the numb bits will get some feeling back. What have you experienced? Is this as good as it gets or can I continue to see some improvement?
Thank you! I thought I was going mad. I can feel cold drinks (especially wine!). I told a friend who’s a radiographer and I sort of got the impression she didn’t believe me.
Hi all I had a LD recon in march this year …just recently I have been having really stabbing pains actually in the breast …is this normal ??? Advice and experiences please
Maz - i have the hot and cold, pressure, throbbing and stabbing pains, I also have numb areas in my back and odd sensations in my back scar. The recon is a “jumper” especially when I cough. I have been told repeatedly that this is all normal but I think they are saying normal but mean usual. However, it is a year now and whether this will lessen, or I will become accustomed to a new “normal” remains to be seen.