I had 3 drains in, 2 were drains in the side and collect fluid, district nurse came in for 3 days emptying fluid then removed them completely when there was no more. The 3rd drain was a CD shaped disc which was a pain release. Every so often youd hear it whirring as it released a chemical. Needless to say I was completely w/o discomfort. Lay on back all the time but so tired so not an issue. You will def need help at home both with washing and moving. Take everything slowly and demand food and drink at your leisure, from your family!!! Haha!!
Thanks for feedback, there has been no mention of nurse visits for me, and I was shown how to drain the pump at the initial diagnosis meeting. Sounds like a lot of help might be needed in the first few days
Wow! It’s possible I wasn’t allowed to do it myself as I had a trial pain disc..the time will go quickly before you’re on to the next procedure but I can assure you looking back you soon forget almost everything. I finished treatment (mastectomy, Feb2022, chemo and radiotherapy, last dose September) and I can barely remember much of it. I hope you sail through it all and don’t be afraid to ask McMillan for help with any questions, queries to ally any fears you may have,they were brilliant for me xx
I had my mastectomy in the afternoon, no pain or discomfort afterwards, but stayed in hospital overnight. I had two drains but the surgeon had instructed for them to be removed the following morning so I went home without them, which I was very pleased about.
I had no problems at all. In fact we had visitors arrive two days after my mastectomy and they stayed the weekend - I was fine to go walking and sightseeing with them and I didn’t even mention I’d had a mastectomy. I appreciate that some women encounter problems but that’s not inevitable and lots of women seem to sail through. I hope you do too - best of luck x
Hi, as you can imagine everyone's experience & recovery can differ.
I had a mastectomy with implant reconstruction. I was in hospital overnight. I had a couple of drains that I had to check daily & report readings to the breast care nurses. They were removed a few weeks later when the levels had reduced. Different consultants & hospitals seem to have different levels.
I took pain killers for about a week, but was up & having short walks in a couple of days. Felt pretty tired & sore for a few weeks
I had to keep the dressings & drains dry for a few weeks so no full showers, mainly flannel washes. Found it hard to bend & stretch so slip on shoes are great & lower items on shelves for a while.
You will have exercises to do & it's important to do theses.
I had radiotherapy after the wound had totally healed.
It's major surgery so need to make sure you have some care arranged at home in the early days just in case
Hope it all goes well, I found the psychological side as difficult as the physical to deal with.
Thanks for feedback, I’ve started to think about practical things around recovery about clothes and shoes. Think I’ll be in pyjamas for a time and buying elastic waist pull on trousers! Good tip about lower shelves
I was surprised how much I could do and how well I felt after the surgery. I didn’t want to go out (having worked like as you until the last minute to handover well from work) but could have done. I did have an unexpected stay in hospital as the cannula slipped during surgery and my “good arm” ended up swollen. I will always take pants and a toothbrush now for any procedure. I had one drain in for 10 days. Emptied at the same time each day by the community nursing team but I felt I was telling them how to do it mostly! Drain coming out was just “deep breath” and feeling an odd tug. I was doing the exercises straight away. I had a full axillary clearance and they really went for that (27 got taken out) so under my arm was sorer than the actual mastectomy which healed up really fast. I used a v shaped pillow to help me stay on my back with my arms propped up on more pillows - I needed the whole bed to myself for the big nest I build myself for the first few nights. It wasn’t that bad at all. I was walking my dog short distances quite quickly. We have a hand held shower head so that was all simple too in terms of avoiding dressings. I could get tops and things over my head but button up was more comfortable - remember you can step into a cami and pull it up from the bottom if it hurts to raise your arms. In the morning I felt really stiff in that area - just keep on with the exercises - it feels hard to start with but they help stretch the scar area and really bring benefit. Ask your nurse if they’d recommended any kind of oil for the scar once it’s healed - I used bio oil. I did have seroma after the drains came out - I had these drained at the hospital 4-5 times - that was the biggest nuisance. I hope it goes well for you - remember to make a list of books/films/pottering jobs you like doing to pass the time.
