I am new to this website & I am glad I found it. I am exactly 1 week away from my BR and very nervous. I have never had any surgery of any kind. I have 3 young children, the youngest is 19 months and I'm worried about how long it will be that I can carry her up steps and get them in and out of car seats. Any mothers who could give me some personal experience regarding recovery ( and tips on how to handle pre-op anxiety) would be greatly appreciated!
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Hey there mick!!! Well I had my surgery Dec 4 and i have a now 11month old son. My ps told me no lifting of him for two weeks. this was a very hard task. The first week my hubby took off work and helped me out a ton!! The second week I had family take turns and they came to help me. Now Im doing it all and feeling really good. i do get sore in the evenings but not really anything too bad. Hmm pre op anxiety..... I would just say think about how good your going to look and feel after its all said and done. Hope this helps [url=http://www.TickerFactory.com/]
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it took me about 3 weeks to feel 'ok' enough to lift things - then 4-5 weeks to feel totally fine. I'm now at 6 weeks and still get tweaks now and again. I would definitely suggest help for you and your kids for at least 3 weeks - then re-assess to see if you need it for longer.
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Hey there, I am 8 days post op and today is the first day I've been home with my son alone. He's been with his grandparents or my husband has been home too. I'm lucky that he is 4 and can do for himself. I sure do miss cuddling though, we hold hands a lot. If you have family to help, take it, that is what I did. I feel so much better today. I'm doing a few things around the house and my hubby is getting ready to take us to the movies.
I was too busy preop and preChristmas to have any anxiety.
Good luck to you!
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Hi Mick,
I'm also new to this website. I'm 10 weeks post-op and I have a three-year-old and a 21-month-old. My PS told me not to lift anything over 5 pounds for 6 weeks. I arranged to have help from my family for the entire 6 weeks. My husband had 2 weeks off, my mom stayed with us for 2 weeks, then my dad came for 1 week, and then my mother-in-law for the last week. Even if you feel like you could lift your child you could really end up hurting yourself and make your recovery longer and more painful.
At 5 weeks (one week before I was supposed to) I lifted my 21-month-old. I squatted down to his level, had him put his arms around my neck, held him close to my chest and lifted using only my legs. This worked fine and I didn't hurt myself. Before 5 weeks I probably wouldn't have been able to do this because my chest would have been too sore to hold him against it.
I hope this information helps, even though it might not be what you want to hear! Please take the time to let yourself heal, and don't rush it. Your recovery will be faster in the long-run!
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Thanks so much for all of your feedback. I'm feeling a little discouraged, because it sounds like my ability to carry and cuddle my kids may take longer than hoped. My doctor assured me that at two weeks I would be able to carry my kids and function normally. I'm not so sure he was being a bit too positve. We shall see. I have my mother-in-law staying for about a week...and my husband will help when he can...but I hope that will suffice. Any other input you want to share would be greatly appreciated! What should I definitely buy for post op healing? Any "must haves"?
Mick
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Hi again. I have a few suggestions that might help a little....
Try to get your little one used to walking or crawling up the stairs and scooting down (with you right there with her, of course). We got my 21-month-old (he was 19 months at the time of my surgery) used to climbing into the car and his car seat with just a few "boosts" from us to help him. You could use a booster seat with a tray to feed your baby on the floor instead of lifting her into a high chair. Maybe try a step ladder to help her climb into the crib, and of course you can change diapers on the floor or couch. We had all the adults helping him to do it the same way, so it wasn't just mommy that was making him do more things on his own. Also try to prepare yourself emotionally because it will be VERY hard when your little one comes to you with her arms reaching out to be picked up, and you can't do anything about it. She may get a bit mad at you too. That's the hardest part. Just try to remember that your kids will forgive and forget VERY QUICKLY once you can lift and play with them again. I tried to remind myself that my BR would make it easier and more fun to run and play with my kids, making me a better, more active mommy in the long-run.
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Thanks, Sally. Some good tips to keep in mind. My daughter is such a cuddler...it's going to break my heart. As you said, they will soon forget. At 2+months post op, do you have any regrets? Are you really glad you did it?
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Don't be discouraged. It all depends on how you feel. My PS told me no heavy lifting for 2 weeks. After that he said I would be fine. I have a 2 year old and I had no trouble getting her into the car and I changed her on the floor. She isn't super cuddly so I don't remember not being able to hold her when she wanted so I can't help you with that. I had no healing problems and no pain at all. I hope you have the same, it was really much easier than I thought it would be.
Cheers, Rebecca
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Hi Mick. I don't have any regrets. I love my new breasts!
Just yesterday I was running with my 3 year old in the park. I never would have been running before because it would have been too uncomfortable.
Good luck with your surgery. I hope everything goes well for you. Hope you have a speedy recovery so you can get back to some serious cuddling!
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Hi Mick, I have kinda a similar situation. My surgery is 2/7, and I am also having a TT with my BR. I have 3 boys, 4-1/2 years old and 21-month-old twins. Other than anesthesia, my biggest stress is how I will care for them. My MIL is coming (supposedly) for my 2nd week which will be a huge help, and DH will be taking 1-1/2 weeks off. I am most concerned about the first few days. What we have arranged to do on my 2nd and 3rd night (I stay 1st night in hospital) is have me stay at a bed-breakfast down the street from home that is owned by a R.N. who provides full nursing care. This way I can get alot of rest and sleep without worry about my children. I am, however, worried because it will only be DH at home with them and he is not exactly the most responsible person with them. I am trying to find a nanny/sitter who can perhaps live-in the first 3-4 days until I get home and can keep a watchful eye on things! I am trying to work out all the issues now so I will not stress so much when the time comes. The date will be here before we know it. One of my babies is a huge cuddler, too, and I feel sad that he will not understand why I cannot do that with him for several weeks. Can you find a babysitter or neighborhood teenage who can help out? If you haven't heard of it, craigslist.org has local listings for people looking to do childcare.
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Hi Everyone,
Thanks for the supportive words. It's nice to just connect with some women who are in my boat. I lost a lot of sleep last night thinking about my upcoming D-day...but I guess that is to be expected. What items (if any) did any of you purchase that you feel helped in recovery? I just want to have whatever I need at home. Were you given items in the hospital (i.e. silicone, cool packs, bras) or did you purchase ahead of time?
Happy New Year too!
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Make sure you have done your grocery shopping for about 2 weeks at least. Especially purchase heavy things since you will not be able to carry or lift anything of any sig weight for a while. This does seem to vary by doc...for me was 10 pounds for about a month.
I didn't get anything special as far as ice packs, etc. I used nothing like that for my recovery. My doc provided a pressure /mmh/product/compression_garments/index.vm?procid=51" target=_blank>garment when my drains were removed on day 2, but the fee was 25 bucks. You may want to purchase a cheapie /mmh/product/breastaugmentation/garments/support/index.vm?procid=1&catid=8&subcatid=60" target=_blank>sports bra prior to surgery...actually a couple would be a good idea since you will want to be able to wear one while washing the other.
Other than that, there really isn't much you need to do to prepare. Good luck! [url=http://www.TickerFactory.com/]
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For my recovery I wished I had more shirts that buttoned down the front. I didn't want to put any shrit over my head for a while.
The bra my PS recommended was the Bestform (Walmart) sports bra that hooks in the front. I like that one a lot, and I still wear it at night.
My husband had bought some frozen peas for me to use for /mmh/product/therapy/index.vm?procid=40" target=_blank>ice packs. He separated them into 4 ziploc bags. They worked really well because they form around your breasts better than ice packs, I think. He did 4 bags so I could be using 2 while the other 2 were in the freezer...just keep refreezing the peas. I thought he was kind of nuts at first, but I really ended up using them a lot.
When you go to the hospital wear loose fitting clothes. I wore a sweatsuit that zipped up the front. You might want slip-on shoes too. I also had a small pillow to put between me and the seatbelt on the ride home.
My nurse had recommended that I have some sort of laxative on hand because the pain meds can stop you up. I wish I had followed that advice!
Maybe get some Sprite, ginger ale, saltines, etc. in case you get an upset tummy.
My nurse also recommended that I drink pineapple juice to reduce bruising. I started drinking it a couple days before and continued for about 3 days after. I think it might work because I only had one bruise on my ribcage and none on my breasts.
The only other thing I can think of is to get a few books and movies for resting.
Hope that helps some. Good luck!