One Week post BR recovery..

I am not going to sugar-coat this and say this surgery was a breeze, and I feel sooo much better and unicorns and rainbows and glitter dust and blah blah blah...

Bullshit.

This is by far the crappiest thing I have ever put my body through.  Sorry body.  You're doing awesome considering what you have been through....  Only a few more weeks of this, I swear!

I am going to say that - for my case (because everybody is different) - my surgeon did exactly what I wanted him to, which is why it has been so tough.  I said I wanted high and tight.  No jiggle.  No sag.  No overhang.  And that is exactly what he did.  I now have a new understanding of what tight means.  Tight (when swollen) means no stretching, coughing, sneezing, laughing, lifting (anything!).  High means I still have a place to rest my plate when eating on the couch.  :(

So how do I feel?

Everything hurts.  I have a sharp pain on each side, like a knife is sticking into my ribcage.  My PS tells me this is because he removed fat in that area right down to the muscle.  It will be extra sore there for a while yet.  My incision is long.  The tail ends of it dip below the bra line on either side.  So it hurts to lean against my side - like on the couch or something.  The incision runs across my chest, following the contours of the underside of my breasts.  I have to wear maxi pads as padding along the band of my stretchy sports bra.  The incisions also run up the underside of each breast and circle around each nipple.  One side has been oozing since surgery day.  I have to wear pads along that incision line too.  I have surgical tape covering all of these incisions, but yesterday the PS removed the tape on both sides that runs between the bra line and the nipple because there were some yellow spots appearing.  Now I just have gauze taped in place there that I need to change out every 8 hours.  I am numb on both sides, in the same area.  If you were looking at two clocks side-by-side, it would be like 3-6 and 6-9, L to R.  I have zingers all the time, or the sensation that the entire area is clenching in a muscle spasm, and then it releases.  Weird and painful at the same time.

How do I look?

Well... a lot different, that's for sure.  You know the pencil test you used to do in Jr. High?  Before surgery I could hold NINE pencils.  Yes, that's right.  NINE.  Now?  None.  I don't think I will ever be able to hold one again!  The 36" sports bra stretches around me just fine, and compresses things just the right amount.  They are definitely perky.  Like permanently perky.  Like - put those things AWAY perky.  This bothers me.  I know that they are very swollen as well though, so I hope that they relax... a lot.  For now, though, I would look right at home in an eighteenth century brothel.

My take on meds:

arnica montana: despite copious amounts of arnica montana, the swelling has only lessened here and there - and then only temporarily.  It has helped with the bruising, so yes, arnica montana gets a thumbs up from me.  I didn't start taking it until day three because I forgot to.  :(

Hydrocodone: I've been taking 2 every 6 hours or so since arriving home.  One time I think I made it 8 hours before I needed it.  I tried to go without yesterday, because Dean needs to get back to work and I can't/shouldn't drive while taking this stuff.  So yesterday I made the break and I took Tylenol all day.  It was a long, uncomfortable day.  At three this morning I broke down and took two.  The pain was bad and there is no reason to suffer.  I feel sort of out of it while on this stuff, so this whole week has been hazy, but I've also been able to keep the homeschooling wheels grinding and remind Dean of when the next kid delivery to an activity was, so it was not like I was a total zombie.  But I know I shouldn't drive on this stuff.  It has also not helped with the constipation issue.  I am going to go back to Tylenol, and only use this stuff when I absolutely need it.  Surely the pain will decrease in the next few days...

Dulocolax - 10 pills over 6 days did absolutely nothing.  :(

Magnesium citrate - One dose plus 14 hours of waiting time (!) did finally produce results.  I would not recommend waiting 6 days to use it.  It was a long, miserable week.

Florastor - I am taking this to counteract the 7 day antibiotic I am on.  I hope it works.

So, I just plan to keep plugging along.  Next week Dean is at work again, so it will be a lot tougher.  I hope I have a weekend of miracle-like healing...