Gingerela

I had my surgery on Feb. 15 and I am still not healed properly. Both my left and right breasts had open incisions. The vertical incisions from my nipple down to the crease below the breasts opened up. For 7 weeks, they were still open and oozing. They kept getting larger, about the size of a quarter. At 7 weeks, my PS did a revision. On my left breast, he didn't have to do anything. Once he removed the large scab, he found that half of the area had healed and assured me that the remaining skin would heal on it's own in a few weeks. The incision on the right breast, however, had to be completely redone. He cut away the existing tissue and restitched it from the nipple down. It is now going on three weeks and the incision that he redid has opened up once again. I have an opening the size of a dime but in more of an oval shape, just above the crease. There is a smaller opening above that, but it seems to be healing up. Up until two days ago, watery pus (sorry for the TMI) was oozing out of there and I would have to drain it daily. So far, it looks like it has stopped, although it has done this before and then started up again. My PS said that this was ok. I also noticed from the very beginning that my body was rejecting stitches. They would protrude out from my skin, especially in those areas where the open incisions were. I would find them bunched up, melded together, and I'd cut them off. The skin would settle down afterwards. There was so much inflammation in these areas. I strongly believe my body was rejecting the dissolvable stitches. Anyhow, I was wondering if anyone else has experienced these open incisions, and possibly undergone a revision. I'm so frustrated that at 3 and a half months, I am still dealing with this stuff. I have yet to be able to enjoy the benefits of my breast reduction. It's so frustrating to still be dealing with bandages and tape and such every day. I'm anxious to start using my silicone strips, which are on hold for now until my incisions finally close up and heal. Anyone else have this problem?

I should clarify. I'm bleeding, not necessarily oozing.

I'm 8 days post op today. I have some oozing right under each breast in the center where the seams come together. My steri strips are still in place, but if move my arms at all, the bleeding starts up. I've basically been completely inactive since my surgery. Anyone else experience this? Another really strange thing is that I can feel my internal stitches. I feel tightness, like tight ropes in my chest where there are no visible stitches. I assume this is where everything below was pulled and stitched together.

Wow! What a difference a day makes. I am 4 days post op and had my drains removed today. I feel 100% better. I stopped all pain meds yesterday at noon and I have been fine without them. I did take 3 Extra Strength Tylenol a half hour before my appointment today since I had heard it hurts when the drains come out. I honestly can't say I felt anything other than a slight sensation that did not hurt at all. I have steri strips left and my PS told me to let those come off all by themselves. If any of them come off a bit, that I should not pull the rest off, but rather cut off the part that has removed itself from the skin. I can now shower! YES!! Best news ever. I asked about stitches being removed and he said they are dissolvable so he doesn't need to remove them. I also asked about a the kind of bra I should wear now. He said NOT to wear a compression bra. To just get a comfy sports bra with front closure for easy on and off. He said that the bra is more for comfort so that there is something between the incisions and my clothing - to keep the clothing from rubbing directly on them. He asked me if I was happy with my size, and said they would get a bit smaller since there is some expected swelling. One thing I noticed that is really interesting: I started taking Arnica Montana as soon as I got home from my surgery. I had some liposuction done under my underarms to remove extra breast tissue there and the dark purple, almost black, bruises were evident the next day. By day three they were gone! These kinds of bruises tend to last for at least a week or so. I had them for less than 48 hours. I couldn't believe it! I have to attribute this to the Arnica Montana. I truly am amazed at how well this homeopathic remedy worked. I didn't get the kind of Arnica Montana that the PS's normally sell in their practices (my PS doesn't sell any of this stuff nor ever mentioned it - I learned about it all here). I bought the Hyland brand from Amazon - only to find them at my local Wegman's supermarket afterwards. In any case, I will continue to take these. They certainly paid off. An entire day after my previous post, I am certainly turned around. Tonight will be the first time I can lay in bed comfortably. For those of you who have been sleeping in a recliner as I have, I wanted to share my experience. Yesterday I tried to lay on my back in my bed to see if I could get some rest. The minute I started to place my head on the pillow, my chest was in extreme pain. I couldn't take it. My husband immediately helped me sit up and I ended up sleeping in the recliner again. Today, after I returned from having my drains removed, I decided to try again. I laid down perfectly and comfortably and went right to sleep for hours. I was amazed. I am wondering if if it has to do with the drain placements within the chest. Once they were removed, laying flat on my back is no longer an issue. I am SOOOO looking forward to going to bed tonight. I am so, so happy with my results. And, btw, both my breasts are completely even now. The right one is no longer larger than my left. Again, I attribute this to the Arnica Montana which helps reduce swelling and bruises. I'm so happy I had this done. Two weeks ago, I was clueless that this was even an option. Now, here I am two weeks later in a size C cup.

Well this has been quite the experience. My surgery was on Friday so today I am 3 days post op. Although I spent countless hours reading this forum and others like it, and have a friend who recently had a BR, nothing really prepares you for this. It hurts, plain and simple. But the truth is, I do not regret my decision for a split second. With that said, there is no comfort whatsoever these first few days. I've started to take half the dose of Vicodin, which makes me feel better about taking painkillers, but it is an absolute must. Sleeping is almost impossible to do in any way that is comfortable. I suffer from back pain so having to sleep in a recliner, even with additional pillows to cushion my back, has been difficult to say the least. One thing that no one mentioned before was the probability of constipation. Wish I would have known that earlier. I also don't want to eat. I'm constantly nauseous. Coffee, which I absolutely need to breathe most days, has suddenly lost all it's appeal! That one surprised me the most. I'm not at all hungry. I force myself to eat something, but it isn't with any pleasure whatsoever. My breasts ended up being different sizes. My right side is definitely larger than my left. I know everything is swollen and out of whack right now. I'm not too worried about it because I am right handed and I know my breasts have to drop with time. My chest is really, really tight. They put on a surgical bra that is more of a joke than a surgical bra. It was some kind of meshy nylon that irritated my skin so much that I sent my husband out to Walmart in the middle of the night to buy me a front closure sports bra that I had seen a few days prior. We had to jerry rig it a little. The straps on the cotton sports bra weren't adjustable and it didn't come down far enough so we cut the straps and poked holes through each one, then ran ribbon though them to give them extra length, and tied them in bows at the top. I have three drains, but only two with tubes and bulbs. The third is in my arm pit where they removed excess breast tissue and that one just leaks out onto the gauze. Thank goodness I am a take charge person because my doctor's office didn't even mention changing the gauze. This open drain is constantly oozing so my armpit is always wet. I can't imagine going five days without a gauze change! I am very happy with my breast reduction so far. I go to my PS tomorrow and hopefully everything will be ok for him to remove the drains. I do hope the pain starts tapering off soon. I wish more than anything that I could sleep more comfortably and perhaps get a back rub of some sort that wouldn't hurt or interfere with my chest. Now to find a surgical bra. Of course, it would be my luck that I have a breast reduction on a long weekend where everything is closed!