And The Journey Begins

So I am off early this morning to begin reconstruction and all that goes with it. I know it will be a tough surgery and recovery a little slower than I am used to but in the end it will be worth the work. I am not taking any cute night gown - just going to west hospital stuff - but I do have my really, really comfy clothes to wear home. There is free wifi so I will have Joe bring my iPad tomorrow when I hopefully am awake and bored and wanting to play on the web.

I did a pre- op interview with Lakeland and the nurse I was talking with could not say enough good things about Dr. Logan and that this surgery is his specialty and she has a friend who had it and she looks wonderful. That is always good to hear especially right before you are going under for 6 hours or so. I have never had this extensive surgery - every thing else has been out patient - even my mastectomy I was home within 24 hours. Time to grab a shower and get dressed as we are heading out at 5:30 to check in at 6:30. Wish me luck! Oh and a prayer too please.

Here We Go Again.......

So, the weather was terrible Friday morning and took me an hour to get to my doctor's appt. I had my check up w/ nothing unusual. BP okay, weight down about 5 pounds (wished it was 10) and to return in 6 months instead of 4. Then we talked about me having surgery and she asked when my last mammogram was and I said May 2011 and she wanted me to get another one before Tuesday to make sure. UGH. So she set me up for 1:00 p.m. That afternoon. I ran back to work, and returned to Lighthouse Place at 1:00. Waited and the I looked at the images w/ the tech and saw " nothing". This was a good thing because I have learned to never take anything for granted. The doctor reviewed the images too and I was cleared to proceed w/ surgery!

One step closer but I am wondering why my plastic surgeon didn't request the mammo? I still am anxious thinking everything is falling in place so something must be going to happen to delay Tuesday.

I have to admit running back and forth to appointments today took me back to 2010 and all the tests, doctors, procedures and now I know another reason why I waited to do surgery. I also wished Dr. Logan was at Memorial Hospital and not Lakeland. I will just see this as another chapter in this crazy book I am living. Last weekend w/ a saggy tummy and uneven chest.

Getting Ready

So what does one take for a few days in the hospital. I only have a couple days to prepare. I am not a fashion diva so I don't need a matching ensemble to lie around with tubes in me, and hopefully by the time I am so bored and ready to walk the halls for hours I will be released to home. I think I will just take my toothbrush, Oil of Olay, my iPad, and socks (I usually have cold feet) and will just wear those great hospital gowns since they are charging me for them anyway.

I will wear comfy (I mean really comfy) clothes to and from. Pants with no waist bands and a top that zips in front to minimize my arm action. I might not look so cool but I will reduce the pain.

I have been looking at the procedure on line and it is pretty interesting - actually kind of gross - I hope he puts me all together in the right places. Some complain about their belly button being off center - if that is my only concer I will be very happy.

Seeing Dr. Z this morning at 8:30 since I messed up last week's time. I anticipate nothing of interest and hope to move to 6 months but I am not real sure how that works. I don't mind every 4 months - and it seems to come quick. Just seem to go to doctors a lot.

Time to ready for this Friday and the beginning of the weekend. One day closer.

The Phone Call

So I have been patiently waiting for the doctor's office to call with the details of surgery and finally I had to call them. I just have the feeling something is going to delay the day and I have put all these plans into place and will need to change them all. Well, they still were waiting to hear from the hospital and would call me. UGH. So, literally 10 minutes later she calls back and left me a message. I am to check-in at 6:30 a.m. and surgery set for 7:30.

For those who know me know I am an early morning person and this schedule is perfect for me. Joe on the other hand will have a long day. So, sounds like things are all set to go and I am ready. I don' remember ever spending 3 to 5 days in the hospital not even when having a baby and any surgery I have had over the years has been out patient. Not real thrilled and not even sure how to prepare or what to take. I will tae my iPad since it has my music, my audio books, and my ebooks. I have the Steve Jobs book downloaded and it is about 20 hours long so I may listen to that in between naps. Hopefully I will be home by Saturday with drugs of course.

I have some very, very busy next few days trying to tie up some loose ends before Tuesday and the last ND women's basketball game is Saturday too. I know time will fly and my next post maybe Tuesday morning before the day gets underway. I wonder if the hospital has free wifi?
I could do my Farm. :)

The Wait is Hard

I have not heard from Dr. Logan's office since last Friday so I called to confirm my surgery is still set for Feb 28th. It is and I am glad because I have been busy putting plans into place, clearing my calendar and making reservations in Florida to enjoy some sun during my recovery. I guess if for some reason surgery is cancelled we will be going to FL in March/April because at this late date there is no way to get a refund. :)

We have one week reserved on the beach in North Miami w/ plans to travel to South Beach to enjoy the sun, sand, and people watch. I should even be able to wear a nice bathing suit. Depending on the healing of my scars it could even be a two piece. Now I didn't say bikini but I should have a nice flat tummy so a cute tankini should work. A girl's gotta think positive.

I have to look forward past the first two weeks cuz I know that time will be ugly. I will have 4 drains and my past experience tells me those will be more irritating than the actual healing of the incisions. Of course the tummy stuff will be a whole different story. Ugh.

I should be busy around the house instead of on my iPad but oh well. Check back later in the week for more updates.

No News is Good News?

I have been busy at the office making plans to be gone 6 weeks yet I have not had any follow up from Dr. Logan's office and I am a little concerned.  Of course, those who know me know I worry about almost everything because if I don't worry enough things won't turn out right.   That is just my theory.  I still find it hard to believe that two weeks from today I will be recovering from surgery and probably very uncomfortable - everything I have read says the painful part is the tummy tuck and removal of the muscle - yes that does sound painful - but that in 2 to 3 weeks you will resume most normal activities and 6 to 8 weeks for full recovery.  The human body is an amazing thing. 

I see Dr. Z on Friday for a regular check up and I am a little dissappointed with myself.  Earlier this year and late last year I had gotten on the right track with eating very, very healthy, and exercising everyday, even if it was just an easy 30 minutes on the treadmill.  After returning from Vegas I had a bug, lost my voice and then just recently I started going to Zumba a couple times, I did one class on carpet and hurt my left knee so I had to stop all activity and let my knee heal (feels much better) and now I am afraid to try zumba again - just do it and modify.  Also, we had work done on the family room downstairs and so I had no access to the treadmill, etc. and while the work is done I have not been downstairs to at least put the treadmill  back up and reconnect the DVD so I could do Hip Hop Abs or my Zumba dvds.   I am such a whimp.   When I saw Dr. Patel in January I was down 10 pounds, BP was great and all my numbers were better.  I was hoping to continue to improve those numbers and I have gone in the wrong direction.

So, it is a great time to regroup, get back on the "take control of my life" train - and get on down the track.  

Wow - That Was Quick

So, I have been anxiously waiting for Dr. Logan's office administrator to call and set up a date for surgery.  I fully expected the date to be sometime maybe the first week of March, but more likely the second week and worried about the timing.  So today when Karen called me she said she was looking at February 28th and was that okay with me.  Silence.    I was looking through my calendar on the computer at work and then on my iPad for conflicts that I could not change.  I finally asked her what the next available date would be in March and she said at least the 19th or later and without hesitation I said no - let's do the 28th.  That means I will miss the St. Joseph DHS Board meeting and the conference call from Lansing regarding "tickets" but both of these can be covered by my outstanding 2nd line managers.  Karen said she has some work to do on her end to get this done so quick and will get back with me.  I need to have a physical, some medical history, etc. before surgery but knows it will be early on the 28th.  That is good because I am an early person and would rather have 7:00 a.m. surgery any day than 11:00 a.m. and anything in the afternoon.  I also think if I get it done early, then the clock will start ticking so I can get home.  Hospitalization for 3 to 5 days - I am thinking I will fit in that 3 day category just because.  I have a high threshold for pain, I would always rather be home, and I am relatively healthy. 

Of course, I have put things in place at work, contacted my boss, and began briefing my 2nd line managers.  I know I will be on the computer with them checking my e-mail, etc. once I get home just to stay in the loop.  Also, I can now plan a little better what weeks for certain we can be in Florida and reserve a week or two of timeshare and/or set up using homes of friends that always offer them up. 

I also have been googling TRAM flap reconstruction and saw some actualy surgical photos - very interesting.  Let's do this!  Maybe I should start packing for Florida so I can be ready without too much fuss.  :)

I will keep you all updated on my activity and how the process progresses.  See you later.

Hurry Up and Wait

I did not hear from Dr. Logan's office last week so I will call Monday to set the date. I am on hold w/ everything until that is known. Then I can make plans for coverage at work, get things at home prepped, and make some plans for traveling to Florida. We plan to drive, take our time, and relax. I have been doing research on the procedure and it really looks a little scary so I am not dwelling on it too much. It will probably happen the first part of March so we won't be headed to Florida until almost April but at least it should be warm. :). Also should be good driving weather without snow storms.

More info to come.....

And My Next Adventure Begins

I had my consultation with Dr. Samuel Logan today and I spent over an hour with him. He has a true passion to help breast cancer survivors to regain their confidence and sense of being a woman. He was talking to me about what he can do and how great I will look and he already knows he will want to use my before and after photos on his website if I were agreeable. He was like an artist just imagining the outcome. It was odd yet not. He has a back ground in engineering so the mechanics of reconstruction intrigue him.

I filled out all the paperwork, completed post opt information and then went to have some lab work done. That was not good. I sat in a large room with about 20 other people just to get registered to get services. After 30 minutes or so I was called into the registration area and filled out the info. TheN went back out to sit. Finally I called called in and literally 5 minutes later I was done. I don't think I waited 30 minutes for any of my doctors during my initial treatment. I think I was spoiled.

So the procedure is called a TRAM flap which means using natural tissue from you abdomen instead of an implant. Also the muscle of the abdomen is used to move up because it brings blood flow which will provide blood for the tissue. He will then Do a lift on the other side. This kind of means I will get a tummy tuck along with the reconstruction. Bad part is the surgery is about 6 hours long and there is a 3 to 5 day hospital stay. Dr. Logan also said for the first 36 hours I will be very sore and will wonder if I made the right decision but then hour 37 it will be ok. Recovery is 4 to 6 weeks and he said after about 2 weeks I can go to Florida for 2 or 3 weeks to finish healing. :).

My goal will be to be back home by April 22nd for the wedding shower. I also want to wear a dress to the wedding that shows a little cleavage - just a little.

I didn't realize how ready I am to do this - one step closer.