Downsizing - Dallas, TX

This is the first week I've felt no pain. I've finally been able to sleep on my sides, and sometimes even on my stomach. I have random pains occasionally, but nowhere near as bad as the first couple of weeks. I still feel swollen on the sides, still have some bruising, and still have one ultra-sensitive nipple. They are starting to look more like real breasts instead of Frankenboobs!

I tried on some old bras yesterday, to get an idea of what size I will be. My previous size was a 38H, and it seems that I am now a 40DD. I think I still have a bit of swelling on the sides, and I hope that's the reason for the band-size increase. I'm still quite a bit bruised on one side, and the incisions are red and angry-looking. The doctor said they were healing nicely. Ultimately, the doctor took 985 grams out of my right side, and 935 out of the left side. My left nipple is ultra sensitive, and my right one is mostly numb. The right breast still hurts quite a bit, as well as the left nipple. I still can't sleep in any other position but on my back, reclining slightly. I've stopped taking painkillers, as they make me loopy and because I've returned back to work. I've been suffering from insomnia and I'm still pretty constipated. My lower back is starting to hurt from reclining so much, but I still can't sleep in any other position. I'm usually a side-sleeper. I can almost sleep on my left side, but with pain. My right side is still pretty painful, but probably because of the bruising.

I'm still a bit depressed, mostly because of feeling like I didn't have enough taken off. Logically, I know that the doctor did what he felt was best, and I would be fine with a 38D or 40D. I'm concerned that they will grow back!

I've really hesitated about writing a review, as it seems like my recovery has been slower than others. The first week was pretty painful, and I was in a painkiller-induced haze for most of it. My surgeon did not use drains, so fortunately I did not have to deal with those. I seemed to be pretty swollen however, and the surgical bra they gave me no longer fit. I bought a couple of front-opening sports bras, and they worked fine.

The second week was better, but I was still in a good deal of pain. I describe it as feeling like two softballs of hurt, wrapped in barbed wire and stapled to my chest. I have 18" of incisions, and that seems to be what hurts the most. I also had a large hematoma on the right side, pretty low down. My doctor wasn't too concerned, and told me to take it very easy and rest. I was able to get out and move around a bit, but I would tire pretty easily. Most of week 2 (and 3) was spent resting.

I attempted to go to back to work on week 3. Ultimately, it wore me out, and I opted to stay home for the rest of the week. I still had the hematoma, and wanted to keep an eye on it. Other than a moderate amount of pain, I was also very constipated and found myself getting overheated easily. I was getting out more and more, and wasn't as worn out as before.

Around the 3 week mark, I did find myself getting a bit depressed. Being smaller on top, I noticed that my waistline had expanded a bit over the years and I felt frumpy. I'm still on a no-major exercise limit because of the hematoma.