Almost 6 weeks post-op!

How crazy is that? I am healing so well. There are quite a few places that I can't even tell where the incision site was.

So...tonight, I will be going shopping for some cute wireless bras (can't have underwire for 3 months after the surgery). I'm so darn excited about this.

Other than that, I'm ready to start up some sort of physical routine and get to feeling better both on the physical level and the emotional one.

This was one of the best decisions I ever made. Ever.

Pre-op / op / post-op Recap!

I was to be at the hospital at 9:15 to give a urine sample. While I peed in my lovely cup, the girls were shuttled to daycare by Brandon and then he met me in One Day Surgery. I was shown a room which was multiple cubicle like areas. I got in my gown, got some super sexy compression stockings and grippy slippers.

You know that's hot!

I read some information about anesthesia, signed a consent form, visited with my BFF Angie (she also works at the hospital so she spent a lot of time around that day since she was in the building for meetings), and then finally was told it was time to walk to the surgical suite. Brandon walked with me and the nurse for a bit (he had to take my glasses, so I was walking blind...which sucks!) and then he went his own way to the waiting room.

Once in the surgical suite, I was shown back to my own little corner of the big room which was divided by lots of curtains. Again, still blind...I lay in my little bed just smiling at those that pass me by. I can't see their faces. I have no idea who they are. By this time, I'm waaaaaaaay past nervous and just wishing I could get some drugs to relax me.

Soon enough, my surgeon comes in and starts the process of marking me up. It was then that I learned that I'm crooked. And not in a shifty sort of way, but instead that one shoulder hangs lower than the other. The doc marked me all up, and then had me get back in bed, for it was time to wait for the anesthesia tech. Once they came in, I got my IV, some IV antibiotic, and more talk about the dangers and whatnot. Yeah, people...I know this by now. The lead anesthesiologist came in and told me the plan. I informed him that morphine is NOT my friend. He said they would take care of me. Then, they administered the happy meds and with a twitch of the nose, we were off towards the operating room.

During the leisurely roll over to the operating room, one of the techs asked where I worked. I told him what department and he said, "Oh! You probably know my wife!" We exchanged a bit and finally it clicked! I said, "Oh my goodness! You're her husband! I love her! We just went out drinking last weekend! I love her soooooooo..............zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz!"

Yeah. Nice one. Reaaaaaaaaal nice, Jeana.

Next think I know, I'm waking up with a sore throat that rivals anything I've ever felt before. And a taste in my mouth that is just rancid. Is that...vomit? Oh, oh...yep..."GIVE ME A PAN!"

Frick! They gave me morphine!

My surgery started before 11 am. I didn't get to my observation room until 5:30 pm. The surgery is supposed to last about 3 hours, as mine did. But, because I was so ill post-op...I spent a longer than normal time in recovery. Throwing my guts up.

And you know what...there is nothing more annoying than people waking you up when ALL.YOU.WANT.TO.DO is sleep. Trust me, doctors and nurses...I know you want me to be awake, but I know I'll feel better if I sleep and there is a good chance I'll stop ralphing if you just let me do that. Thank goodness I only remember throwing up that once. Ugh, I hate throwing up.

Next, I'm wheeled to my cozy little home on the OB floor of the hospital. By the time we get to the room, I have to pee sooooooo bad, and I know I'd rather just stand up and walk to the bathroom. Ah...it felt great to stand up. Brandon said I was as white as a ghost, but my color returned fairly quickly. Once I got settled in, I did a little texting/Blackberry Messaging/emailing to let people know that I'd survived. Barely. ;)

I loved staying on the OB floor. The nurses were beyond awesome, it was quiet (no babies at the time), and I had my own room. My only complaint, which was out of the control of anyone...was the liquid diet only. BOO, people! I hadn't eaten for what seemed a lifetime and all I wanted was some frickin' food! I will say that the jello was top-notch and I think I inhaled it. :)

I took my pain meds (lortab) on time, and slept as much as possible. I went home the next day, and man...it was great to be home!

All-in-all...the entire process went without a hitch. I felt great, and still do feel great. I would do this again in a heartbeat and I'm wondering why I waited this long.

The before...and the after!

AND

There you have it! :) Today is almost one week post-op, and I had my follow up appointment. I got my drains removed, which pretty much was the best thing to ever happen to me. It didn't hurt me at all, so I was very thankful. Quick and pretty painless. It hurt more for them to cut the stitches out and then clean the area with gauze. Now, I just continue to wear the surgical garment for 6 more weeks, while applying Neosporin and next week I start scar therapy with cocoa butter lotion to help reduce the scars as much as possible.

I go back for another follow up on January 5th.

I still need to write an entry about the entire day of surgery and the day after. I'll get to that soon! Hopefully after the holidays! :)

Love to all!

It's done!

Well, surgery day has came and went! I've been home since yesterday and am doing pretty well. Pain has really been tolerable in most cases. I've had to give up my Lortab, as I believe they were making me quite sick this morning.

As far as the surgery, I did really well. It took about 3 hours but they gave me Morphine after the procedure was finished. Morphine does not cooperate with me very well, so I was sick for a bit after that. Apparently they wouldn't let Brandon back there and he was sort of upset by this.

I was on the OB floor which was the best thing ever. The nurses were fabulous and I had wonderful care.

The drains are annoying. I can't wait to get them out. I'm thinking that will happen Monday at my first follow-up appointment.

But one thing is for certain, my boobs are smaller and I'm very happy with the results so far. I did get a peek under my compression garments yesterday and it was upsetting but I think that's normal. It will get better. I am only 2 days post-op after all!

More to come!

Tomorrow...

My mind is mush and I'm so scared.

Tonight I have to pack my bag, get the girls packed, take before photos (ugh!), and just try and relax.

Not sure that's going to happen! Ha!

Anyway, I have to be at the lab tomorrow morning at 9 am for a urine pregnancy test and then off to One Day Surgery to get checked in!

PRAY FOR ME! :)

5 Days...

I knew it was close but seeing that countdown literally made my stomach drop. Five days?! I have so much to do in those five days. Everything is "ready", in the surgery sense. My Mom is taking the girls home with her Tuesday after my surgery and keeping them until Friday. I can't express how helpful this will be for Brandon...and for me. If they aren't there and I know they are happy with her, then I can rest and heal better.

I know the theme of my last few posts has really been all about how scared I am. That hasn't changed. I'm still very terrified. But I do feel a little more prepared. I know it's going to be tough, especially trying to get the girls to understand why I can't carry them, hold them, etc. Thankfully the timing is lining up with my holiday schedule and school quite nicely.

Recovery...I've got some pain pills and Ambien to help me feel better and sleep well. My friend Trey is hooking me up with his entire collection of movies (well over 250), and I'm looking forward to just...being.

I'm trying to keep my eye on the prize but it's getting increasingly hard!

Final pre-op consultation review!

Well, today was the day for my very last pre-op consultation with the surgeon. The appointment was at 3:15 and I was actually a little late due to some work circumstances and forgetting that they moved the location of the office (duh, me!).

I started the appointment out with the registered nurse who took my temp and blood pressure. Pretty basic stuff. She then gave me the informed concent forms to review while I wanted for the surgeon's assistant to come in. Boy, that stuff is fun to read. "You might die. Your boobs might be lumpy or hard or lop-sided or they themselves my die. You might bleed to death. You might be completely unhappy with the results. Please sign here!"

Ooookay! Luckily the assistant came in and told me that she's seen my doctor perform this procedure countless times. She only once saw a bad outcome and that was due to the direct result of the patient not being upfront and honest with them about the fact that she smoked. Since breasts are...let's face it...fat, healing is harder because it's not an area of the body that demands blood supply. Smoking restricts blood flow even further which caused a lot of issues in this case. Thankfully, I don't have to worry about that. I'm a young, healthy woman who should heal well. Awesome.

Next, we discussed specifics about the surgery and what would be coming down the pipe for me in preparation for it. I might have mentioned previously, but I am having the procedure done at the hospital where I am employed. For this reason, I asked if I could recover on the OB/Labor and Delivery units due to a more private setting and I was told that this is generally possible. I found much comfort in that. I was told that I would be contacted by the PREP clinic to get more information about my surgery and answer any questions they might have. I would make the unit request at that time. I was given a folder with lots of fun specifics like what I could and could not bring to the hospital, how I can't eat after midnight the day of my surgery, where to park (haha!) and a few other Do's and Don't's.

Next, we addressed meds. I am to pick up my pain meds and sleeping pills before the day of my surgery so I will have them beforehand. I will have Norco for pain and Ambien CR to help me rest. I am a little nervous about the Norco, which is a hydrocodone derivative and also the generic name for Lortab. Most pain meds make me sick so I really want to avoid that. Oh, and I'm to take colace a few days before the surgery. I would hate to get stopped up. :)

Then came the fun part...trying on my compression garments for after surgery. They are some kind of attractive! Link here! I assure you the next $78 bra I buy will be much prettier! So I have two of those to wear 24 hours a day and 7 days a week for 6 weeks. Woo hoo.

And probably the highlight of the appointment came next...the drain discussion. Oh boy! That really is the one thing that scares me the most. I know drains are uncomfortable. I had one in my hip. But I've never had two and I've never had them for 6 days. The tubing will sit in my incision bed which happens to be under my breasts (one on each side). I am really trying to not think about this too much. I realize it's going to hurt when they are taken out. But I'm hoping a few deep breaths and perhaps a choice word or two will help that pass.

I did meet with the surgeon (after a slight delay due to her getting caught in surgery a little longer than expected) and we discussed what size I wanted to be again. She's thinking still in the large C to small D area. I am to think of this question in the next week and a half and report back my answer: If given the choice, would you rather be a little larger or a little smaller than your ideal size? Right now, I guess I'd say a little larger because I do hope to lose more weight after this is all said and done. But I'm going to keep thinking about this.

Other than that...seems like it will be smooth sailing. I'll probably have to re-read this post and try and remember what I've omitted. I'm sure there is a lot!

Until next time!