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*Treatment results may vary
Follow-up appointment
So I just got home from my 3 month follow up and Dr. Eppley remains positive and confident that things will naturally settle into place over time. I was informed that there's only half a centimeter difference. I was given the ok to discontinue squeezes and just let it do its own thing. He wants me to call back in the Autumn if Egg remains high so that we can schedule a revision to release the capsule. He said if we perform surgery too soon there is a possibility of the implant settling too low over the next few months causing it to bottom out. Lora reassured me that once Egg settles, the distortion of my pec muscle will subside and react the way my other implant does.
So the only thing I can do at this time is ride it out for a few more months and hope for the best!
So the only thing I can do at this time is ride it out for a few more months and hope for the best!
Just call me Negative Nancy...
Obviously it's been several weeks since I've done an update here. There has been sooooo much going on around here and I kept pushing it to the side.
--Firstly, I'm going to get this out of the way. It is irrelevant to my experience so feel free to skip over. I seriously don't want to bring this up because it's a bit embarrassing but I feel that someone reading this may learn something from my experience pertaining to this topic. 3 weeks after surgery, my head starting itching as if I had lice. I checked my daughters head and had mine checked numerous times over the course of 3 weeks to include a thorough check-up by my hair styilst before receiving services. Nothing was there, no lice, no dandruff, no build-up, NOTHING. Over the course of that time period, I noticed bug bites in small clusters on various parts of my body but the weather warm warming up and I'm a mosquito magnet so chalked it up to being ate up. One night as I was getting into bed, I noticed a dead bug. Naturally, I threw back the linens to make sure there weren't anymore. Not only did I find a couple more bugs but there was an entire infestation of bed bugs! I always thought it was a myth/thing of the past ("sleep tight, don't let the bed bugs bite") and never knew they still existed. The next day, I went out to get pesticides but once I took my bed apart and saw just how many there were, I was completely overwhelmed and decided spray what I could and then call an exterminator. Luckily, I didn't have them long...I know this because I was able to back-track my activities to figure out approximately when they were introduced to my room. It was very apparent they manifested from my bedroom because I found very little evidence of bugs in other living quarters of the house. Sooo...where did they come from? Based on my life habits and routines (EX: I undress in the bathroom, place dirty clothes immediately down a laundry chute...shoes, coats, purses, gym bags are all stored in the mudroom in back section of my house) I was able to figure out where I went wrong. I am 90% sure they came from an eBay purchase of some Victoria Secret bralettes. Upon receipt, I immediately brought the envelope to my room from the mailbox, tried on the tops, put them back in the mailing package and left them on the floor for about a week before laundering them. Through research, I've learned that bed bugs are great travelers and all it takes is one pregnant female or 1 egg to hatch and to begin an infestation. Since I cannot prove I got the bedbug from the purchase or that I did not have them prior to the package, legally, there is nothing I can do.
----So my message to you......open all packages OUTDOORS and immediately wash and dry them at the hottest temp available! It was a pain in the ass prepping my house for treatment by Orkin. It's been 2 weeks since my first professional treatment and I've still found a couple bugs. They will be back in tomorrow for the 2nd round. Luckily, I caught it early. But those 4 damn bralettes ended up costing me $120 for DIY pesticides/cleaning products, $108 for bedbug mattress and pillow case protectors, $800 for Orkin treatments AND $600 for a new dryer because my heating element was going out so it posed the risk of not killing the bugs. Learn your lesson from me, I would not wish this on my worst enemy!
Whew, now THAT'S out of the way! On a positive note (the only thing positive in the post!) is that my husband surprised me by coming home a month early! God is always on time and knows what we need because I was seriously losing my mind during all this mess and hubby couldn't have come at a better time!!!!!! He will be home for a few more weeks before going back to Baghdad.
I wish I could stay positive and describe how much he loves my new breasts and how excited he is...how he can't keep his hands off them but that is not entirely the case. He hasn't said anything negative (nor would he ever). He gropes them from time to time or stops and checks me out if he notices them out but he did all these things prior to surgery. He compliments them when I'm wearing a top or bra. But to be honest, I think I feel about as self-conscience now as I did before surgery. Earlier in my recovery, I was extremely confident. My self-esteem was through the roof. But as the weeks went by and more time passed (with very little change in my right breast) I have lost nearly all of my confidence from looking at myself topless...by noticing the size difference between the two when going bra-less or wearing certain shirts or how lopsided I am in my tops from my crease difference. It's been somewhat depressing. I find myself behaving in much the same way now as I did before having my implants...getting (un)dressed quickly, turning my back toward hubby and silently praying that he won't come around the corner before I decide what top I want to wear.
I kind of have a love-hate relationship. I love how each one looks on its own. I love the size of my lefty but actually prefer the upper pole fullness of the right. And I hate how they look together. I understand breasts are sisters not twins. But these aren't even sisters. This is like the red-headed step child or twice removed cousins.
Next Friday we are going on vacation on a 7 day cruise to the western Caribbean. It's been paid for since February and I'm excited to go but kind of stressed about the way I look in a bikini. I expected to be a bit more evened out by now. I can actually deal with the higher position by rigging the ties certain ways but the size difference is rather noticeable....not only that but when I use my pec muscles AT ALL, I get this freakish effect that reminds me of one of those squeezable stress dolls with the eyes that pop out all [RS bleep]-eyed. My left implant kind of goes downwards and to the left, which doesn't look too weird but when seen with the right implant, it's pretty damn creepy looking! The right side actually sucks up under the pec muscle and raises toward my collar bone and completely flattens into the shape of a box. My entire areola and my actual breast tissue loses all fullness and kind of "melts" down to the very bottom of the implant and just kind of flops there. Because of this, I have decided I will most likely NOT be using any swimming pools or hot tubs where I will be required to pull myself up on the edge or use ladders to climb out. Seriously depressing :*(
Over the last 6 weeks, I have religiously performed my aggressive "massage". I'll usually do it throughout an entire movie holding it down in place for up to half an hour only releasing it to stretch my fingers or switch hands. I do it so often, my incision site has pretty much stayed irritated. Other than softening in appearance, I've noticed very little difference with regards to dropping from week 7 to week 12. I've taken my weekly progress pictures but made the decision to hold off comparing them until my follow-up, which is tomorrow. Dr. Eppley mentioned at the last appointment that he was confident that it would settle into place but if it didn't we will be discussing what the next step will be to correct it. So I guess I will be updating that news tomorrow.
On a side note, I've decided to try a different scar treatment other than the ScarGard MD brush-on that was suggested by my surgeon. I didn't notice any change in appearance after several weeks. The scars remained raised, bright pink, bumpy and after 10 weeks was still very sensitive. The liquid began to get gunky within the bottle and became a pain in the butt to brush on so I opted for ScarAway silicone and I noticed an immediate difference in as little as 4 days.
Random tip for indoor tanners that tan nude...I have tried NUMEROUS ways of concealing my incisions to avoid the dreaded (and potentially permanent) darkening due to exposure of uva/uvb. I tried covering with band-aids and applying a self-tanner to help blend the tan line...I tried steri-strips for a thinner tan line as well as using a thick line of sunblock. After research, I have discovered that Desitin diaper rash cream works wonderfully! I've seen a few posts from surgeons saying that zinc oxide will completely block rays and Desitin actually has a higher content that the typical tube that you would buy in the drug store. I use a small make-up brush to apply a decent amount in a thick line across the incisions and so far so good!
--Firstly, I'm going to get this out of the way. It is irrelevant to my experience so feel free to skip over. I seriously don't want to bring this up because it's a bit embarrassing but I feel that someone reading this may learn something from my experience pertaining to this topic. 3 weeks after surgery, my head starting itching as if I had lice. I checked my daughters head and had mine checked numerous times over the course of 3 weeks to include a thorough check-up by my hair styilst before receiving services. Nothing was there, no lice, no dandruff, no build-up, NOTHING. Over the course of that time period, I noticed bug bites in small clusters on various parts of my body but the weather warm warming up and I'm a mosquito magnet so chalked it up to being ate up. One night as I was getting into bed, I noticed a dead bug. Naturally, I threw back the linens to make sure there weren't anymore. Not only did I find a couple more bugs but there was an entire infestation of bed bugs! I always thought it was a myth/thing of the past ("sleep tight, don't let the bed bugs bite") and never knew they still existed. The next day, I went out to get pesticides but once I took my bed apart and saw just how many there were, I was completely overwhelmed and decided spray what I could and then call an exterminator. Luckily, I didn't have them long...I know this because I was able to back-track my activities to figure out approximately when they were introduced to my room. It was very apparent they manifested from my bedroom because I found very little evidence of bugs in other living quarters of the house. Sooo...where did they come from? Based on my life habits and routines (EX: I undress in the bathroom, place dirty clothes immediately down a laundry chute...shoes, coats, purses, gym bags are all stored in the mudroom in back section of my house) I was able to figure out where I went wrong. I am 90% sure they came from an eBay purchase of some Victoria Secret bralettes. Upon receipt, I immediately brought the envelope to my room from the mailbox, tried on the tops, put them back in the mailing package and left them on the floor for about a week before laundering them. Through research, I've learned that bed bugs are great travelers and all it takes is one pregnant female or 1 egg to hatch and to begin an infestation. Since I cannot prove I got the bedbug from the purchase or that I did not have them prior to the package, legally, there is nothing I can do.
----So my message to you......open all packages OUTDOORS and immediately wash and dry them at the hottest temp available! It was a pain in the ass prepping my house for treatment by Orkin. It's been 2 weeks since my first professional treatment and I've still found a couple bugs. They will be back in tomorrow for the 2nd round. Luckily, I caught it early. But those 4 damn bralettes ended up costing me $120 for DIY pesticides/cleaning products, $108 for bedbug mattress and pillow case protectors, $800 for Orkin treatments AND $600 for a new dryer because my heating element was going out so it posed the risk of not killing the bugs. Learn your lesson from me, I would not wish this on my worst enemy!
Whew, now THAT'S out of the way! On a positive note (the only thing positive in the post!) is that my husband surprised me by coming home a month early! God is always on time and knows what we need because I was seriously losing my mind during all this mess and hubby couldn't have come at a better time!!!!!! He will be home for a few more weeks before going back to Baghdad.
I wish I could stay positive and describe how much he loves my new breasts and how excited he is...how he can't keep his hands off them but that is not entirely the case. He hasn't said anything negative (nor would he ever). He gropes them from time to time or stops and checks me out if he notices them out but he did all these things prior to surgery. He compliments them when I'm wearing a top or bra. But to be honest, I think I feel about as self-conscience now as I did before surgery. Earlier in my recovery, I was extremely confident. My self-esteem was through the roof. But as the weeks went by and more time passed (with very little change in my right breast) I have lost nearly all of my confidence from looking at myself topless...by noticing the size difference between the two when going bra-less or wearing certain shirts or how lopsided I am in my tops from my crease difference. It's been somewhat depressing. I find myself behaving in much the same way now as I did before having my implants...getting (un)dressed quickly, turning my back toward hubby and silently praying that he won't come around the corner before I decide what top I want to wear.
I kind of have a love-hate relationship. I love how each one looks on its own. I love the size of my lefty but actually prefer the upper pole fullness of the right. And I hate how they look together. I understand breasts are sisters not twins. But these aren't even sisters. This is like the red-headed step child or twice removed cousins.
Next Friday we are going on vacation on a 7 day cruise to the western Caribbean. It's been paid for since February and I'm excited to go but kind of stressed about the way I look in a bikini. I expected to be a bit more evened out by now. I can actually deal with the higher position by rigging the ties certain ways but the size difference is rather noticeable....not only that but when I use my pec muscles AT ALL, I get this freakish effect that reminds me of one of those squeezable stress dolls with the eyes that pop out all [RS bleep]-eyed. My left implant kind of goes downwards and to the left, which doesn't look too weird but when seen with the right implant, it's pretty damn creepy looking! The right side actually sucks up under the pec muscle and raises toward my collar bone and completely flattens into the shape of a box. My entire areola and my actual breast tissue loses all fullness and kind of "melts" down to the very bottom of the implant and just kind of flops there. Because of this, I have decided I will most likely NOT be using any swimming pools or hot tubs where I will be required to pull myself up on the edge or use ladders to climb out. Seriously depressing :*(
Over the last 6 weeks, I have religiously performed my aggressive "massage". I'll usually do it throughout an entire movie holding it down in place for up to half an hour only releasing it to stretch my fingers or switch hands. I do it so often, my incision site has pretty much stayed irritated. Other than softening in appearance, I've noticed very little difference with regards to dropping from week 7 to week 12. I've taken my weekly progress pictures but made the decision to hold off comparing them until my follow-up, which is tomorrow. Dr. Eppley mentioned at the last appointment that he was confident that it would settle into place but if it didn't we will be discussing what the next step will be to correct it. So I guess I will be updating that news tomorrow.
On a side note, I've decided to try a different scar treatment other than the ScarGard MD brush-on that was suggested by my surgeon. I didn't notice any change in appearance after several weeks. The scars remained raised, bright pink, bumpy and after 10 weeks was still very sensitive. The liquid began to get gunky within the bottle and became a pain in the butt to brush on so I opted for ScarAway silicone and I noticed an immediate difference in as little as 4 days.
Random tip for indoor tanners that tan nude...I have tried NUMEROUS ways of concealing my incisions to avoid the dreaded (and potentially permanent) darkening due to exposure of uva/uvb. I tried covering with band-aids and applying a self-tanner to help blend the tan line...I tried steri-strips for a thinner tan line as well as using a thick line of sunblock. After research, I have discovered that Desitin diaper rash cream works wonderfully! I've seen a few posts from surgeons saying that zinc oxide will completely block rays and Desitin actually has a higher content that the typical tube that you would buy in the drug store. I use a small make-up brush to apply a decent amount in a thick line across the incisions and so far so good!
6 weeks post-op
Zuuuuuumba!!! I finally felt comfortable enough to be able to return to Zumba Saturday. I almost forgot just how much I enjoy it! I also began going back to the tanning bed last week as well. It was kind of neat seeing just how fast my skin tans due to having to cover the incisions with bandaids. It's been 2 months since I've gone so I had to work up my time to re-build my base. After 3 sessions with a total of 30 minutes exposure, I already had a tan line from the bandaids. So now, I am on a conquest searching for a great self-tanner that can help blend it in with my tanned skin. Not an easy feat thus far...I've tried 2 things so far and neither have pleased me. Going to order a 3rd type tomorrow from the tanning salon.
Recovery is coming along great! I feel better with each week and have noticed leaps and bounds over the last 2 weeks. I think Egg still has maybe another inch to go so we're still squeezing!
I've been going through my pictures and noticed that in my pre-op pictures it appears that Egg's crease was higher than Rebecca. However post-op it's vice versa. Kind of weird. Might be something I'll ask Dr. Eppley about at my next appointment. Maybe it was just the way my boob flap (yes, flap, not breast) sat on it that made it look that way but I'm curious enough to ask.
Recovery is coming along great! I feel better with each week and have noticed leaps and bounds over the last 2 weeks. I think Egg still has maybe another inch to go so we're still squeezing!
I've been going through my pictures and noticed that in my pre-op pictures it appears that Egg's crease was higher than Rebecca. However post-op it's vice versa. Kind of weird. Might be something I'll ask Dr. Eppley about at my next appointment. Maybe it was just the way my boob flap (yes, flap, not breast) sat on it that made it look that way but I'm curious enough to ask.
Provider Review
Barry Eppley