Hi Friends, I am sorry that it's taken me so long to hop onto the blog and post an update. This recovery has been hard. The good news is that I am healing well and the one part of my skin that had bad blood flow has fully healed. The danger of having bad blood flow to the skin is that it could die and create necrosis, possibly exposing my surgery site and implant to germs and the outside world. I am so thankful to have dodged that bullet.
I am not sure how Tim and I missed the memo about how tough this recovery would be, but we definitely missed it. I really thought that once my big tape bandage came off, the wound vacs came off, and the drain tubes came out that my pain would go away. Those things were really tearing up my skin (I am a sensitive person!). The external pain subsided, but I still have a lot of internal pain that comes and goes based on how active I am or the position in which I am sitting/laying. Doing the simplest of things like walking to the mailbox aggravates my surgical sites. I am at the six week point past my surgery and still am not driving or going out much. Even wrapping presents takes a lot of energy and causes pain, good thing I have this little guy as a helper...
After talking to my doctors, it seems that the majority of my pain is from my "internal bra" pushing, pulling, and rubbing against my pectoral muscles as the weight of my implants move around. Trust me, it's as fun as it sounds. For the first 3 weeks it felt like I had the rough, scratchy chopsticks from Panda Express under my skin holding my implants in place. Now I mostly feel pressure and burning when I move too much (car rides, unpacking Christmas decorations, walking, etc.) or shifting positions. The shifting of the implants disrupts the healing that has begun and aggravates the nerves trying to mend themselves. So I am trying to do as little as possible so that I don't aggravate my surgery site and delay my healing more. Hopefully I can make it out to enjoy Christmas lights before New Year's arrives. I feel like I have missed out on that fun part of the holiday season. I have gotten in my fair share of cheesy holiday movies at least.
I should know by May if this was the last surgery for me, there's about a 70% chance that there is still at least one procedure to go. At least from here on out it should just be cosmetic adjustments. In other words I am done losing internal organs or major parts of my body, thank God!
On a cool science note, my "internal bra" is made of
Acellular Dermal Matrix (ADM). ADM is sterilized tissue that has been donated by an organ donor. The cells have been removed, so all that remains is the collagen structure. This donor tissue provides the strength and stability for my skin to be able to hold the implants in place. Eventually my body's cells will grow into the ADM and it should become a part of me. Pretty cool! Not only am I am mutant, but now I am part cyborg too. Just kidding! I'm just a mutant with Frankenstein parts.
For those of you tracking my hair situation, I have corkscrew curls! It's a bit out of control right now and depending on the time of day I look either like Joel Osteen or 1980's David Hasselhoff. To tame the curls I've started wearing the bandanas I wore during my chemo days. Glad I am getting a second use out of them!
It's crazy to think that as of today (Dec. 13th) I have been on cancer island for a year. For most of the year it has seemed like this crazy year of treatment and surgeries would never end. So finally being where I am at feels like a big relief. I am excited to get back to adventures with friends and family as soon as my new body can handle it. Tim and I have a lot planned for new year and I'll keep you updated on the fun stuff so you can celebrate our return to "normal" life with us. Until then, I'll be here at home resting up by taking cat naps like my friend Tuxedo Kitty. He's a pro as you can tell:
Sending you all of our best for the holiday season!
Nic and Tim
