Yesterday i went into hospital for my surgery - malignant lump removal, suspicious area and 3 sentinel lyph nodes. Had 3 wires inserted after loads of painful mammograms. Then onto xray for radioactive injection …ouch… Finally back to ward, nightgown on , paperwork checked n off to anaesthesia room.
after 15 minutes of TRYING to get canula in…again big ouch… Gave up on that vein n tried again with success on another. By now bp was 200/96…
after op surgeon came to see me n said it went very well.
now gotta wait until 30th for final results to be sure margins were clear , also lymph nodes.
have to say today has been mixed. Still woozy from anaesthetic also nausea comes n goes. Been eating ginger biscuits n water which seems to help.
With regards to pain control, i’ taking mainly ibuprofen with paracetamol. Just need to find the right combination. Getting comfy in bed is proving difficult as i usually sleep on my left side. Hospital gave me a heart shaped cusion toput underneath in my armpit which is proving useful n comfortable. Using other cushions to support my arm in bed/while sitting in armchair.
gone on a bit…sorry…just needed to write this all down in here, def helps me.
good luck out there is anybody is going in for surgery. In some way we’ve all been there… ?
Good on you Mini mad - another part over as you say. I too had paracetamol and ibuprofen - seemed to do the trick very nicely. Like you I also go to sleep on my left side so for a few weeks after my lumpectomy and node removal I had to learn to sleep on the other side - surprisingly odd, isn’t it - like putting a different leg first into your jeans. Back to normal though 3 months on.
I had a little heart cushion too - made such a difference under my armpit while watching TV - don’t know if it was helping physically or just made me feel emotionally better, but they are a lovely idea.
My armpit was numb for ages - still a tinyu bit numb even now - most odd sensation when rying to wash underarm! So don’t panic if you can’t feel yours, it takes a while
Onwards and upwards now -don’t forget to drink lots of water (it’ll help flush the anaesthetic out and the blue dye if you had it) and do the exercises they tell you about - easy ones for week 1, then slightely more stretchy ones afterwards. They will have given you a Breast Cancer Care leaflet about this I imagine? Really important to get mobility back into your shoulder and armpit so you can “assume the position” (not sure if you are old enough to remember Hill Street Blues?) if you have radiotherapy.
Very best wishes for your recovery. X
Poor you, Minimad. Not a nice experience but that is over with. I’m two days ahead of you, but I wasn’t given anything like cushions from my hospital. What a good idea. I bought a nursing cushion for bed, and up until last night it worked well. I must have got too flat and tried to roll over. Ouch!
Forgot to ask, how’s the drain?
Definitely call out of hours and get some anti tablets prescribed. I got them over the phone the day after I was discharged. X
Hi I had mastectomy last Friday. Doing ok but also feel sick a lot of the time. Was given anti sickness tablets but have tried a few and don’t work very well. Also constipated due to drugs given in surgery so making me feel rubbish. Trying to drink lots of water and green tea. The sunshine today is nice. Hugs to all suffering. xx