(Warning: this post contains a lot of detail)
I went to see the plastic surgeon yesterday for another post-op appointment. He decided to take the back drain out. It had been in for three weeks, which is longer than normal. It was still draining bloody fluid from my back but had slowed some. He was concerned that the drain itself may have been causing irritation and drainage. As of today, bloody fluid is still seeping from the hole in my back, which is better than having it accumulate under the skin in my back. It is just sort of yucky. I am hoping that by tomorrow it stops seeping. Once it finally stops and the hole heals over I can actually take a shower. That will be a glorious day.
So that was the good news. As I have mentioned previously, I have had problems again with necrotic (dead), non-viable tissue in the newly grafted skin. The nipple had died completely and the necrosis had started spreading to the other tissue in the newly built areola. The doctor said that the radiation damage to the vascular system that feeds the left side of my chest and under my left arm was much worse than he had anticipated. Even though he brought new unradiated skin around front from my back, there was not enough blood flow to support it. So I really need continued prayer for new veins to form and a miraculous healing to my vascular system there so that the tissue that is left will survive and heal.
Yesterday, the doctor went in with a scalpel and cut away and dug out all of the dead tissue to try and give the healthy tissue a better chance to begin to heal. I was awake. It was not painful because I have no feeling in that area, but I could feel pressure and it was uncomfortable. It was hard to loose another nipple, that brings my total to three nipples lost, which is just weird. It is very stressful to loose body parts. I was so hopeful right after the surgery and it all looked so good. I had a good cry off and on during the day yesterday, really just mourning the loss of what I had hoped would make me look more "normal" again. It was also just hard to have all of that cut away. It was pretty deep in places and so he had to sow it all back up. It was just emotionally intense.
I feel better today. I am pretty sore, but emotionally I am doing much better. The Lord's grace has been sweet.
Wednesday, February 24, 2010
Still so happy to have my VAP (Port) out!
A few times each day I reach over and feel the area under my right collar bone where my port used to be, I still smile every time. I don't know if all cancer patients feel this way but it is difficult to over state how happy and grateful I am to have that port out. I was very, very thankful to have had it. It was a blessing during my Chemo and Herceptin treatments to have a direct access to a major vein. It was so nice not to have IVs in my arm. It was a much needed life line. But it is so encouraging to be at a place now where I don't need it. Getting that port out was a major milestone for me in my healing journey. It seems like there should be some kind of a port removal party. Maybe once I am feeling strong again, a celebration may be in order.
plucked eyebrows and other indicators of recovery
There are some very pragmatic indicators that help to let you know where you are on the journey back to health. For example, when you are too tired and hurting to even notice that your eyebrows look like a forest, that's when you know you are still pretty bad off. I am happy to say that a week or so ago I noticed the sad state of my eyebrows. A couple of days later I had the strength and endurance to do something about it. A few days later, I passed the next milestone of shaving my legs. I am making progress!
I still have not been able to take a shower. I am hopeful that tomorrow will be the day.
I still have not been able to take a shower. I am hopeful that tomorrow will be the day.
Tuesday, February 16, 2010
making progress
Today was a good day with my surgeon. He was able to remove one of my two drains. He took out the one in the front and is hoping to remove the back one on Friday. He removed the bandages from the back completely and the incision is totally healed over. Amazing. It is just a very thin line that runs horizontally where my bra strap or bathing suit would cover it. It is about 41/2 - 5 inches long. It looks great, much better than I imagined.
I will begin changing my own bandages/dressing tomorrow on the front part of the incision. The actual incision is just a round area where he removed much of the radiation damaged skin and using skin from my back, built an areola and nipple. Somehow, through that hole, he was able to remove the damaged muscle and scarring/encapsulation bring the muscle flap from the back up to the front and sow it in place and replace the expander with a saline implant. I saw pictures on the Internet of others who had Latissimus Dorsi flap surgery and they had huge scars on their breasts. Dr. Ghorbani is truly an artist and an outstanding plastic surgeon. You would never know all of that had happened. I almost cried when I realized I had minimal scarring. I am still amazed.
It does look like I will loose the nipple that was reconstructed. It has essentially died. It is black and shrivelled. He will have to remove it, called debriding the wound, later when it is ready to come off. I am not too concerned about loosing it. On the bright side, I probably will never have to wear a bra again. That is a bonus. Please do pray for continued strong and robust circulation for the muscle flap and the areola. Those are really the important parts.
Also, amazing news! I have actually recovered feeling in the reconstructed breast. I could FEEL that his examination gloves were cold. It was amazing!! I haven't felt anything there except some occasional pain since the bi-lateral mastectomy. I am thrilled. It goes a very long way to making me feel "normal."
Finally, I have lost about 50% of my range of motion in my left shoulder. When my back drain comes out I will ask for a referral to go back to the lymphedema clinic in Concord where they do physical therapy especially for breast cancer patients. They have wonderful expertise in this area. Please pray that I regain all of the movement in my left shoulder. Also that I have much grace. It is VERY painful trying to regain movement. Thank you.
I will begin changing my own bandages/dressing tomorrow on the front part of the incision. The actual incision is just a round area where he removed much of the radiation damaged skin and using skin from my back, built an areola and nipple. Somehow, through that hole, he was able to remove the damaged muscle and scarring/encapsulation bring the muscle flap from the back up to the front and sow it in place and replace the expander with a saline implant. I saw pictures on the Internet of others who had Latissimus Dorsi flap surgery and they had huge scars on their breasts. Dr. Ghorbani is truly an artist and an outstanding plastic surgeon. You would never know all of that had happened. I almost cried when I realized I had minimal scarring. I am still amazed.
It does look like I will loose the nipple that was reconstructed. It has essentially died. It is black and shrivelled. He will have to remove it, called debriding the wound, later when it is ready to come off. I am not too concerned about loosing it. On the bright side, I probably will never have to wear a bra again. That is a bonus. Please do pray for continued strong and robust circulation for the muscle flap and the areola. Those are really the important parts.
Also, amazing news! I have actually recovered feeling in the reconstructed breast. I could FEEL that his examination gloves were cold. It was amazing!! I haven't felt anything there except some occasional pain since the bi-lateral mastectomy. I am thrilled. It goes a very long way to making me feel "normal."
Finally, I have lost about 50% of my range of motion in my left shoulder. When my back drain comes out I will ask for a referral to go back to the lymphedema clinic in Concord where they do physical therapy especially for breast cancer patients. They have wonderful expertise in this area. Please pray that I regain all of the movement in my left shoulder. Also that I have much grace. It is VERY painful trying to regain movement. Thank you.
...and I'm back
Well today I feel well enough to sit up and type, that is encouraging. Karyn was not able to update the blog last week as she was sick. Sorry for the gap. I know that after the last post some of you were worried when you didn't hear anything. I apologize.
**Thank you, Karyn, for helping to keep up the blog while I was down. I know you are in a very busy season and I appreciate your help very much.**
Where to begin...
First, I want to thank each of you for praying me through this surgery. I had tremendous peace and grace throughout my pre-op, surgery and recovery. God's presence was tangible and I am grateful.
Karen Greschel flew up and served as our pastor during pre-op which was so sweet. We had much favor. She was able to stay in with us for a good long while. I still had a bit of a cough when I got to pre-op. After she prayed, I didn't cough again until last night. God is so awesome.
Surgery went very well, as Karyn mentioned. Recovery went well too. I honestly don't remember much of it, which is fine with me.
So last Sunday was a bumpy day. I think what happened was the drain in my back got clogged or something and wasn't draining the accumulated blood from my surgery site effectively. The blood has to go somewhere, so it started going into the tissue along my left side between my ribs and my hip. The red and purple bruising kept spreading. Meanwhile, I was getting more and more pale. The skin under my bottom eyelid looked like milk as did my gums. My blood pressure was low and my pulse high. I was dizzy and it sounded like water rushing past my ears. Generally not a good combination. My doctor, who is truly wonderful, wanted to see me on Sunday night at his office. Before leaving, I texted a bunch of friends and intercessors and they began to pray. Karyn updated the blog to alert you to pray as well. In the 20 minutes it took to get to the doctor's office, God had touched me. By the time I got there, my gums and eyes lids were pinking up and my blood pressure had risen closer to normal. The doctor fiddled with the drain and it began to drain again, the bleeding into surrounding tissue stopped. Blood work done the next day showed that I was anemic but did not need a transfusion, which is what we had been concerned about. I have been getting better each day ever since.
Thank you for your prayers! God leans in to hear them and answers (He inclines His ear to hear your prayers).
**Thank you, Karyn, for helping to keep up the blog while I was down. I know you are in a very busy season and I appreciate your help very much.**
Where to begin...
First, I want to thank each of you for praying me through this surgery. I had tremendous peace and grace throughout my pre-op, surgery and recovery. God's presence was tangible and I am grateful.
Karen Greschel flew up and served as our pastor during pre-op which was so sweet. We had much favor. She was able to stay in with us for a good long while. I still had a bit of a cough when I got to pre-op. After she prayed, I didn't cough again until last night. God is so awesome.
Surgery went very well, as Karyn mentioned. Recovery went well too. I honestly don't remember much of it, which is fine with me.
So last Sunday was a bumpy day. I think what happened was the drain in my back got clogged or something and wasn't draining the accumulated blood from my surgery site effectively. The blood has to go somewhere, so it started going into the tissue along my left side between my ribs and my hip. The red and purple bruising kept spreading. Meanwhile, I was getting more and more pale. The skin under my bottom eyelid looked like milk as did my gums. My blood pressure was low and my pulse high. I was dizzy and it sounded like water rushing past my ears. Generally not a good combination. My doctor, who is truly wonderful, wanted to see me on Sunday night at his office. Before leaving, I texted a bunch of friends and intercessors and they began to pray. Karyn updated the blog to alert you to pray as well. In the 20 minutes it took to get to the doctor's office, God had touched me. By the time I got there, my gums and eyes lids were pinking up and my blood pressure had risen closer to normal. The doctor fiddled with the drain and it began to drain again, the bleeding into surrounding tissue stopped. Blood work done the next day showed that I was anemic but did not need a transfusion, which is what we had been concerned about. I have been getting better each day ever since.
Thank you for your prayers! God leans in to hear them and answers (He inclines His ear to hear your prayers).
Tuesday, February 9, 2010
Bleeding and Bandages
A Quick Update from the last few days:
Last night (Sunday), signs of internal bleeding were found at my mom's surgery site and so Dr. Gorbahni most kindly rushed into his office to meet with them and decide what needed to be done and how urgent the situation was. Before going to the office, her blood pressure was well below normal and her eyes had gone pretty white (both signs of anemia, possibly showing blood loss). A few people had been alerted to pray and upon arriving at the office, her blood pressure was normal and some blood vessels could be seen in her eyes again. Certainly an answer prayer. The doctor looked at the surgery site and said that it was not an emergency for that evening, but that blood tests would certainly need to be taken in the morning. So this morning, my dad took my mom to the hospital agian and the proper tests were done, results pending until tomorrow. Unfortunately, nothing can be done until those test results get back in.
Please pray for healing of whatever is causing the bleeding, and that clear answers can be found from the results of the tests. Also, please pray for Leslyn as this process has discouraging and also for physical strength as she battles with potential blood loss. Thank you all so very much, Leslyn sends you her love and the whole family thanks you for your prayers. You are carrying us through this!
~Karyn
Last night (Sunday), signs of internal bleeding were found at my mom's surgery site and so Dr. Gorbahni most kindly rushed into his office to meet with them and decide what needed to be done and how urgent the situation was. Before going to the office, her blood pressure was well below normal and her eyes had gone pretty white (both signs of anemia, possibly showing blood loss). A few people had been alerted to pray and upon arriving at the office, her blood pressure was normal and some blood vessels could be seen in her eyes again. Certainly an answer prayer. The doctor looked at the surgery site and said that it was not an emergency for that evening, but that blood tests would certainly need to be taken in the morning. So this morning, my dad took my mom to the hospital agian and the proper tests were done, results pending until tomorrow. Unfortunately, nothing can be done until those test results get back in.
Please pray for healing of whatever is causing the bleeding, and that clear answers can be found from the results of the tests. Also, please pray for Leslyn as this process has discouraging and also for physical strength as she battles with potential blood loss. Thank you all so very much, Leslyn sends you her love and the whole family thanks you for your prayers. You are carrying us through this!
~Karyn
Thursday, February 4, 2010
Back Home :)
My mom is back home after being at the hospital for two days after her surgery. Her blood levels evened out and the pain was manageable enough that the doctors discharged her. I talked with her a bit this evening on the phone, and she said that she was able to handle the pain and that given that she just had surgery a few days ago, she is feeling alright. She is still a bit nauseous, so continued prayer for that would be appreciated. She is going back in a few days so the surgeon can make sure everything is healing properly, so also please pray for that appointment and that her body will receive the reconstructive work well and will heal as it should.
She thanks all of you for joining her in prayer, as do I. God bless you all.
~Karyn
She thanks all of you for joining her in prayer, as do I. God bless you all.
~Karyn
Wednesday, February 3, 2010
Hey everyone,
Leslyn is recovering well, hooray! She was able to sit in a chair for about an hour and walked a little bit. The doctors are pleased with her progress and according to my dad (Ron) he says that her color is good and she has been up to talking. There are still some concerns though, her blood levels are low and the nausea is still hanging on to her. Please pray that these issues are resolved quickly so she can go home tomorrow and be in her own bed.
Thank you all for your care and prayer, this recovery would not be happening so smoothly without them.
~Karyn
Leslyn is recovering well, hooray! She was able to sit in a chair for about an hour and walked a little bit. The doctors are pleased with her progress and according to my dad (Ron) he says that her color is good and she has been up to talking. There are still some concerns though, her blood levels are low and the nausea is still hanging on to her. Please pray that these issues are resolved quickly so she can go home tomorrow and be in her own bed.
Thank you all for your care and prayer, this recovery would not be happening so smoothly without them.
~Karyn
Out of Surgery and Into Recovery
Hello everyone,
Thank you all so much for praying through today. I am Leslyn's daughter, Karyn, and will be updating you all for a while since she, obviously, cannot type at the moment. Leslyn went into surgery early this afternoon and was in for about 4 1/2 hours. The Lord was very gracious, this was about an hour less than what was expected. The surgery went very well, due, I am sure, to all of your prayer and support. Also, some good news (if I understood my Dad correctly), the surgeon was apparently able to do more work than he had planned, so it is likely that a second surgery will not be necessary. Please pray that would be the case!
Tonight, when she woke up from surgery she was nauseous, but the nurses have been working on settling her stomach so she would be more comfortable. My dad and some others have been able to visit her in recovery. Please keep praying for her recovery process as she has a lot of healing to do. I will give more specific details as they come up, but after her last surgery the nausea was a significant concern, so specific prayer on that would be so appreciated.
My dad has said how much he appreciates all the concern and prayer from everyone, he and the people who were at the hospital today could all feel it, it has been a blessing already.
I will hopefully have another update tomorrow to let you all know how the recovery is going. If you have any specific questions please post them as comments and I will try to address them in the next post.
God Bless!
Karyn
Thank you all so much for praying through today. I am Leslyn's daughter, Karyn, and will be updating you all for a while since she, obviously, cannot type at the moment. Leslyn went into surgery early this afternoon and was in for about 4 1/2 hours. The Lord was very gracious, this was about an hour less than what was expected. The surgery went very well, due, I am sure, to all of your prayer and support. Also, some good news (if I understood my Dad correctly), the surgeon was apparently able to do more work than he had planned, so it is likely that a second surgery will not be necessary. Please pray that would be the case!
Tonight, when she woke up from surgery she was nauseous, but the nurses have been working on settling her stomach so she would be more comfortable. My dad and some others have been able to visit her in recovery. Please keep praying for her recovery process as she has a lot of healing to do. I will give more specific details as they come up, but after her last surgery the nausea was a significant concern, so specific prayer on that would be so appreciated.
My dad has said how much he appreciates all the concern and prayer from everyone, he and the people who were at the hospital today could all feel it, it has been a blessing already.
I will hopefully have another update tomorrow to let you all know how the recovery is going. If you have any specific questions please post them as comments and I will try to address them in the next post.
God Bless!
Karyn
Tuesday, February 2, 2010
It is time...surgery is here
Well, I thought I would be asleep by now, but alas I am still awake. I suppose I can catch up on my sleep during the surgery. Since it is after midnight now, I am having surgery today, Feb. 2.
I just wanted to thank you once again for praying for me during the surgery today and through the recovery journey. I check in at 10:45AM and the surgery will begin at 1:00PM. It should last around 5 1/2 hours. I had a great day today. Spent most of it with my sister, which was very sweet. Now that everything is done and it is quiet I am feeling a little nervous so I have just put on my new favorite worship CD that I have been using lately in my personal time with the Lord as well as during ministry. It is called, "Take Me Away" by Grace Williams. (I downloaded it from iTunes.) It has a beautiful anointing for healing and miracles. I know I just need to keep focused on my Jesus. I always do well as long as I keep my focus on His beautiful face. It is when I start looking at circumstances that fear finds a place in me. Like Peter walking on the water, I just can't look around at the waves. Jesus is my Love and my peace.
My daughter, Karyn, has graciously agreed to update my blog for me daily while I am in the hospital. She will update it as soon as I am out of recovery from the surgery so please check back here for updates and prayer requests.
Already I feel His peace filling me and I am grateful. It has gotten late so I had better close and sleep. I wish I had words to convey my gratitude for you! I will trust the Lord to communicate it to you for me.
With a thankful heart, Leslyn
I just wanted to thank you once again for praying for me during the surgery today and through the recovery journey. I check in at 10:45AM and the surgery will begin at 1:00PM. It should last around 5 1/2 hours. I had a great day today. Spent most of it with my sister, which was very sweet. Now that everything is done and it is quiet I am feeling a little nervous so I have just put on my new favorite worship CD that I have been using lately in my personal time with the Lord as well as during ministry. It is called, "Take Me Away" by Grace Williams. (I downloaded it from iTunes.) It has a beautiful anointing for healing and miracles. I know I just need to keep focused on my Jesus. I always do well as long as I keep my focus on His beautiful face. It is when I start looking at circumstances that fear finds a place in me. Like Peter walking on the water, I just can't look around at the waves. Jesus is my Love and my peace.
My daughter, Karyn, has graciously agreed to update my blog for me daily while I am in the hospital. She will update it as soon as I am out of recovery from the surgery so please check back here for updates and prayer requests.
Already I feel His peace filling me and I am grateful. It has gotten late so I had better close and sleep. I wish I had words to convey my gratitude for you! I will trust the Lord to communicate it to you for me.
With a thankful heart, Leslyn
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