I had my mastectomy on the 18th of October and stayed in overnight as seems the normal routine. I woke up feeling well and had no nausea or throat discomfort as I was warned might be the case. Back in my room I was served a 3 course dinner and tucked in - having been fasting overnight. I read sips of water first and see how it feels. For me, I was fine and the food was all eaten!
I had a drain in and slept the night in an elevated position. BP and the drain site were checked around 3am and all was well.
I felt absolutely fine the next morning and spent time WhatsApping family and friends. Appetite as normal and 2 paracetamol for pain relief. Drain removed and BP normal I was discharged the next afternoon. I had been advised that a soft pillow was a good idea to have in the car to place under the seat belt, which I did. Truthfully, and bumps in the road surface were not a problem.
2 days later, I’m at home and continuing to feel really well and just relieved that the surgery is over. The nurses commented on my neat looking wound covering and I was reassured that the consultant had been careful and tried her best to leave a neat scar.
I am doing my exercises 3 times a day as recommended and taking 2 paracetamol 6 hourly. I have dihydrocodiene which I can take if the paracetamol is not enough but so far have had zero pain.
Two weeks to wait for pathology reports but I’m concentrating on getting on with life and getting back to full strength by walking regularly and generally living!
My husband is wonderful and doing any heavy lifting; he has also taken charge of shopping and cooking for a week or 2.
I will continue to report on progress over the next few weeks.
Hi Greatjunesby and welcome to the Online Community but so sorry to hear about your diagnoses. This is such a stressful and challenging time for you, but when it comes to getting support and asking questions there is nothing better than talking with others who are on the ‘exact’ same cancer and treatment journey.
The Community is divided into support groups (discussion rooms) and I see that you have joined our supportive Breast cancer support group. This is a safe place to talk to others with a similar diagnosis, treatment experience, to ask questions and get support.
If you'd like to connect in with a group click on the Green (Bold) link I have created above and once the group page opens you can then introduce yourself by putting up a ‘new post’ by clicking in the box near the top right with + New or + (Depending on the device you are using) and you are ready to go. You could copy and paste the text from this post into your new post.
Macmillan have many support services so do check out the Macmillan Support Line open 8am-8pm (timings may differ across services) 7 days a week on 0808 808 00 00. These services provide cancer information, practical information, emotional support, benefits/financial guidance or just a listening ear. We also have our Ask an Expert section but do allow a few working days for a reply.
We also have our Telephone Buddy Service where you can be matched with someone who understands what you're going through, and they'll give you a weekly call.
Talking to people face to face can be very helpful so do check to see if you have any Local Macmillan Support in your area, do also check for a local Maggie's Centre as these folks are amazing and aim to give support to all the family.
Do get back to me if you need further help.
((hugs))
