Wonderful news! I am so glad your surgery is behind you and congratulations on the good news about no lymph node involvement. That is great news.
I haven’t been on this site for a while because I have been suffering from lymphedema. It consists of swelling in my left arm due to the fact that the surgeon had to remove some of my lymph nodes during my mastectomy surgery. My left arm, wrist and hand swelled up over a period of weeks. Evidentally the process of having the tissue expander installed in December and the injections of saline into the expander aggravated the surrounding area(s) and I got lymphedema. I asked my oncologist what to do and they prescribed physical therapy.
I started p.t. about 3 weeks ago and I do specific exercises for the condition. I am also wearing a “lymphatic sleeve and glove” which are “compression garments” to try to bring down the swelling and promote proper drainage of the lymphatic fluid.
I had a lot of pain during the injection phase of reconstruction due to this swelling so the p.t. and wearing the sleeve and glove have helped a great deal.
I am only scheduled to get two more injections into the tissue expander, then two months of rest. After that the plastic surgeon will do the implant surgery on the left side and reduction surgery on the right breast.
When that is done, I don’t want any more surgery! I have quite a collection of those little blue socks they give you in the hospital with the rubber grids on the bottom in my sock drawer!
Keep your spirits up and once again so happy about your good news.
Bunches
Thank you for your good wishes. It’s going to be a slow road, but I’m prepared for it.
Sorry to hear about your lymphadema. I hope you get some relief soon. But at least you’re getting reconstructive surgery, which is a plus! :)
Right now, I have a small infection in the area where the underarm meets the chest. The doctor prescribed antibiotics and I’ll see him Monday. Otherwise, everything is going well.
I’m still not sold on chemotherapy though. I’ve been starting to experiment with alternative treatments. It’s not time to visit the oncologist yet, so I can still buy some time before a decision has to be made.
I hope you continue to get well, Bunches. We’re all in this together!
MMJ