Saturday, November 20, 2010

Surgical Chic

I woke up after my surgery with no clue what was under my bandages.

But, what bandages!

Whoever put these bandages on me missed their true calling as a contestant on Project Runway.  This week's challenge:  can you make something chic and stylish out of staples and bandages?   Why yes! Yes you can!  My new top is a combination of Sons of Anarchy motorcycle wear and a bit of  50s glamour.   The only thing missing is color - had the bandages been black, I'd be runway ready.  

I have a halter top.  And, a racer back! 



This style, folks, was deliberate.  My last bandaging was just wrappings.  There was no halter, no belly shirt.  Just foam and tightness.  I had big clips holding the thing together - this time I get these darling little punk staples.  It's a masterpiece, I'm telling you.  Somebody in that operating room is the next Carolina Herrera.

I'm almost going to be sad to take my designer duds off, but it's the only way to see my designer boobs. I can't peek with all the staples in my way.

My unveiling is Monday at 3:30 and I'll see how boobilishious I actually am at that time.  I have steeled myself -  I know it won't be great. If I can wear a scoop neck top and look normal, that is my goal. I've already noticed one improvement.  My armpit had been deformed, with skin and muscles stretched in such a way that it wouldn't flatten when I raised my arm up.  I had a very difficult time shaving that area.  And now, it looks like a regular old armpit, just like before.  I can't wait to take a shower and test my theory.

Recovery has not been easy.  Today I'm at that point where I want to feel better, where all the things I need to do are sitting there staring at me, calling me. (Did you notice the laundry on the dining room table in the photo?) Mentally I want to do these things, but it's physically impossible.  Yesterday, I didn't care. The day before, I didn't notice.  So, that is improvement.

The pain has been similar to the mastectomy.  On my left side, the doctor did cut through my virgin chest muscles to place an implant.  The purpose was to get the top "poles" to match in shirts, and that is extremely painful. I feel very much like I've been beaten with a baseball bat. My back, my ribs, my arms, my entire left side feels bruised and sore. There is no such thing as a comfortable position. Getting in and out of bed is the worst - I end up flopping around like a turtle on his back trying to get up.

Unlike heroic TV people, I am not capable of running or doing anything when my chest muscles have been sliced open. I guess that's a failing of mine. On TV, somebody like Michael Westin will get shot through the chest, and then in the next scene be recovering with bandages and running around driving cars and fighting the good fight again, so I know that's how it's supposed to be.

Me? I can't even cough without needing a pain pill.

The exchange on my mastectomy side has been easy though, the real pain was on my "good" side with the new muscle cuts. So for those of you who have doubles and are expecting your exchanges - don't let me scare you. It's not bad at all on that side, a little sore. You'll be fine.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Just a little housekeeping:  now that Christmas is coming, those of you who will be buying stuff on Amazon, please remember to use my link to the right to search for your item.  If you buy it, I get 4% of whatever it may be.


Thanks!

8 comments:

  1. Fantastic!! It's all behind you now. (well, in FRONT of you, but .. well... you know what I mean)

    Fabulous halter design - truly!

    I'm so excited for you and your new boobies. They may not be perfect, but you WILL feel like yourself again. YAY!

    Happy healing...

    Gayle

    ReplyDelete
  2. What a lovely designer top! I am glad to hear you are feeling better but please don't try to do too much. I recommend a few days of demanding your family treat you like a princess and let you sit around and watch Lifetime movies or whatever shows you like and wait on you hand and foot and take care of all your chores!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Glad to hear you are up and about and on the other side of surgery!

    ReplyDelete
  4. I *LOVE* the halter! Truly a masterpiece. And thanks for the note at the end about how it doesn't hurt so much on the mast side. I'm a double, and just starting fills, but I'm so ready for my exchange . . .

    ReplyDelete
  5. It has seemed like forever to get to this stage - congrats! I hope your unveiling goes well, and I know it's small but I try to go through your Amazon link everytime I buy something from there, which is fairly often.

    Ingrid

    ReplyDelete
  6. I got a good laugh out of that. You'll have to let the nurses know that they've got a talented member of their staff working with them. Your top really does look great! I hope the unwrapping went well. I feel like its always an emotional experience looking at yourself post-surgery so hang in there and keep resting. I hope the pain subsides so you can enjoy your Thanksgiving!

    Sincerely,
    Lauren (www.BreastCancerRegistry.org)

    ReplyDelete
  7. yup, I had the same fashionable halter for my reconstructive surgeries. Very useful approach which I appreciated each time. ;)

    ReplyDelete
  8. Hi,
    I went through all that you are going through a year ago. Well... the final surgery was this last June. I wish you well. For me the "good" side did not match the mastectomy side in where it sat on my chest, and the slope of it. The doctor did 2 more surgeries to get it right. I am satsfied how I look in tight shirts, etc., now but naked... uh that's hard to do... I am single... I know what you mean about the underarm wierdness!! I did not realize how much breast tissue was there! Are you going to have the nipple reconstruction too? Let me know and take care!
    Pam

    ReplyDelete

Thank you for commenting. If the post is over 14 days old, the comment will be moderated and will approved later. This is a spam prevention technique - but I love to hear from you!