Done!
Kidding. I’m almost two weeks out from surgery and insanely proud that I can do my PT with 2 lb weights and walk 1500 steps in a day. I can also brush my teeth, but not my hair yet. I can’t lift my arms that high. I’m going with quarantine hair, don’t care, though!
We came home on March 19th, the day after my surgery, and honestly? I could barely get out of a chair on my own. The ride home was traumatic, as mentioned in my previous post. My mastectomy pillow - a gift from a friend, thank you!! - took care of the top half, but nothing could really help the feeling of stuff shifting in my belly with every turn and curve.
It was great!
**Sarcasm in use.
So, back to recovery. Today I’m 1,000% better than I was on day one. Every day is getting better/easier. But I’m not back to ‘normal’ by a long shot. The first few days I had to have help getting up - especially out of bed. ‘Bed’ has been the new sofabed in our lovely room we are finally finishing. Except it wasn't until last night that I used it as a bed, and then this morning I couldn’t get out of it on my own. I think of it like a new hurdle to jump over.
My lack of being able to get up is mostly due to the surgery on the lower part of my body, so if you’re having a mastectomy only, take heart! My abs were, well, moved about and they’re still getting back to where they should be. I’m not allowed to really do much to help them as of yet. I’m just glad I’ve gone from looking 18 months pregnant to 6 months pregnant or so. Seriously. I think between the day we came home and today I’ve lost 20-30 lbs.
I was so bloated and sore when we got home, that the day I finally did a poo - had to be within 3-5 days of surgery or I’d have had to go back and get ‘assistance’ - well… let’s just say things were challenging. I did manage to reach that first time. Had to get assistance the second time. Love does stink, but I’m happy to have someone to help me through it.
The lifting me out of bed and assisting in the bathroom - thankfully mostly with showers - has fallen squarely on the shoulders of my husband. And I am so, so happy that he’s here to help. And that he knows how to help because of helping to care for his grandparents in the past. He’s not complained at all, even when I’d call him at 1am to come downstairs because I couldn’t get out of the couch myself to wee.
We are also thankful for all the friends and neighbors who have helped us. Every two days since the night we got home, someone has dropped off food. It’s been such a huge burden off his shoulders to not have to cook dinner, and sometimes there’s been enough leftovers for those two nights plus! And apparently everyone I know is an amazing cook. So, so thankful.
This post is not linear. My recovery is not linear. Some days I feel great! Most days I need a nap. Some days I’m just tired. The one constant is that my belly swelling is going down daily.
I forgot to mention the drains! I have two drains coming out of my body. They are on each side of my chest and are long tubes terminating in what look like little grenades. Several times a day he strips my drains for me. This entails holding one hand pinching the top of the drain tube near where it comes out of my skin and using an alcohol wipe to squeeze the, uh, juice in the drain down towards the JP drain - Jackson-Pratt - and then emptying them. If there’s not a lot in the drain after stripping, we just strip. When you empty them, you clean the tops and the little plug and squeeze it before closing it. That creates the suction to keep the, uh, body juices flowing. If there’s a measurable amount, we empty and then write down the amounts. I’ve got to be below 30 milliliters or whatever it is by next Monday to get them removed. Shouldn’t be a problem.
I also need to talk about the mastectomy scars and how that’s going. They don’t hurt. Maybe they did, but the gas and bloating hurt more. I’ve been on just Tylenol for at least a week now. 1000mg, two times a day. Before my first shower, my husband and I sat down to look at the picture the doctors had sent me so he’d know what to expect. Surprises are great! Except when they’re not.
Sometimes it feels like my chest is asleep when I touch it. Like, about to wake up, but not really. I’m glad I’m having some feeling at least. Hoping that hugs will be awesome again once I’m healed and social distancing is a thing of the past. I’m also swollen still up top, mostly under my arms where they took the lymph nodes. But that’s what the drains are for, and that’s getting better every day. It just feels weird when I touch it all, but I have to keep touching it to help the nerves know where to regrow.
See, there are lots of nerves cut during a mastectomy because they just have to. There’s no way around it. Some people never get feeling back, but I’m hopeful that in time I will.
Advice for recovering from stuff: Listen to your doctors. When they tell you to limit activity and not lift more than 10 lbs, there’s a reason for it. When they tell you to do physical therapy, do it! I’m going to try to get my eight exercises done three times today with my 2 lb weights. One down, probably go do it again after I’m done writing this, and then this evening. Eat lots of protein, and don’t worry about the carbs right now. Sleep. As much as your body tells you it wants to, do it. You will not regret it.