12/10/13 - Lumpectomy

Smoking the Peace Pipe

Wednesday, December 4th I had my lumpectomy. My surgery was scheduled for 9:15 a.m. and they requested I arrive by 7:15 a.m. Bud, Robyn and Mike accompanied me. We arrived a little late, but waiting out front to greet us was my brother, George. It was really comforting to see him. After figuring out where we needed to go, we went upstairs to the same day surgery department. Once I checked in they called my name pretty quickly. I went through the usual stuff - changed into fashion gown, started I.V., vitals, etc. It was determined that I had a fever of 100.4 so there was some question whether they were going to proceed with surgery. The surgeon decided to go ahead. They gave me a nebulizer full of some stuff to numb my throat. I felt like I was smoking a peace pipe. I also got to speak to the anesthesiologist. As you all know, I was pretty nervous about the fiber optic anesthesia. Turns out I had nothing to worry about because I can't remember a thing. In fact, I don't even remember them wheeling me into the operating room. Whatever drugs they gave me worked really well. All that worrying for nothing. It sounds like everything with the surgery went well. The surgeon said I had very little bleeding. I don't have the pathology results yet, but I'm thinking positive thoughts. My scar is much longer than my last lumpectomy. So far it seems to be healing nicely. The only problem I've had is a bad rash. Something they used didn't agree with me. I am itchy and red all over my stomach, chest, neck and down my left side. They prescribed a little tube of cream that was supposed to help. The problem with that is, it was such a small tube, I used almost all of it on the first application. On top of that, it didn't help the itching. So, I've been alternating between Benedryl at night and Zyrtec during the day. I've also been using Calamine lotion. The itching is driving me batty and I hope it gets better soon. I stopped the pain medication just in case that was the cause. It seems to be a little better right after I take a shower and I apply the Calamine lotion. Hopefully it will go away soon, before I scratch my skin off.

High as a Kite

My instructions were to wear a sports bra 24/7. That has been a bit of a challenge. I've purchased four different bras and none of them are comfortable. Due to swelling, it's difficult to find one that fits. I ended up using a Danskin sports bra from Walmart. I can at least tolerate it while sleeping.

I would really like to thank Bud, Robyn, Michael and my brother, George for being there during the surgery. They all took precious days off from work to support me - I appreciate it more than you know. Robyn flew back down from Northern CA to take care of me this week. I'm so fortunate to have such a wonderful family. Special thanks to Jeanne once again for keeping me in soup and to Jason for always checking on me to see how I'm doing. I would also like to thank my friend, Jenny. She has been a great friend through this whole ordeal. Thanks to Melissa for letting Hunter call with his usual question, "when can I come over?" That's what I love about this kid - no beating around the bush. We had him over yesterday along with his brother, Ethan. He helped us trim the Christmas Tree and we made a gingerbread house. I had such a good time with those two boys.  Hunter was so proud of the tree. I started to take a picture and he asked, "Are you taking a picture of the tree because it's so beautiful?" He is such an exuberant boy that just loves life. Being around the kids really takes my mind off of things like surgery and pathology results.

Robyn & Hunter - Notice the Well Placed Cluster of Ornaments at the Bottom - Beautiful!

Isn't it Lovely?

That's about all for now. I will update with pathology results as soon as I get them. Thank you to everyone for being so supportive. I'm a lucky gal.

Cheers,

Beppy