I saw the plastic surgeon today and got some more info about the surgery. It's going to suck, I'm not gonna lie. They'll do the masectomy first, then put tissue expanders under my chest muscles to make room for implants. I'll have surgical drains in for about a week, which horrifies me. Then I'll go back in late September to have the permanent implants put in. I'll be in the hospital for a few days and miss about a week of work, which sucks. I was saving those vacation days for the honeymoon!
I won't be able to do any vigorous physical activity until 6 weeks after the last surgery, so the marathon is definitely out. It's depressing. I had worked so hard to get ready, and now I can't do it. There's always next year, I suppose.
The silver lining to all this is that I've almost completely lost my appetite. I'm still weighing in at 144.2 despite not running in a few days (I may not again before the surgery--it just feels pointless at this stage). The idea of binging hasn't even crossed my mind-I can barely finish a bowl of instant oatmeal.
At least there's one good thing in all this, right?
Ugh, I can't wait for this ordeal to be over. I'm so tired of doctors right now.
Posted By: runjenrun
Comments to this post:
07/05/2007 14:09
hiya
I am glad you got to meet with the surgeon and get the answers you were looking for. I pray you have a swift and painless recovery. You deserve it!! Have a great day
Hugs - I'm glad you're able to look for the bright side to this ordeal. The most important thing is that you're protecting your body from the risk of developing breast cancer.
Sorry this is all happening, but hopefully having made the decision will ease things up, especially after the surgery. Maybe a short jog of 2 miles or so will ease the tension a bit. I wouldn't quit running all together just b/c you're no longer training for the marathon. Run a little before, if you can (and feel like it), and after everything is good to go later, run then to, if you feel like it. We both know that running can be therapeutic. But most of all, take care of yourself and do what feels best for YOU!
Be strong, lean on your family and especially your fiance. I hope you can keep us posted!
Dont give up running. It isnt pointless, because all of us runners know how GREAT it makes you feel, and I just know that all of this has to be so hard on you, and if you could keep that up even until the day you go in for surgery, it would help you so much!
