Tag Archives: breast reconstruction

Nipple tattoos

WARNING: NSFW / graphic content below.

I recently attended a local FORCE support group meeting. As always, it was fantastic! Our group meets quarterly, varies in size from five to 20, in age from 20 to 60ish, and is comprised of mostly previvors (in various stages: just found mutation to done with surgeries), but also women currently undergoing treatment, as well as survivors. There’s something for everyone facing hereditary breast and ovarian cancer to relate to. I highly recommend you find a group near you and attend at least one meeting. You may find that it’s not for you, but it’s worth a try. Find a FORCE group near you by visiting the local support page. Other organizations also have in-person support group meetings, so check with your doctor or do some googling.

Sometimes we have guest speakers come to share their research, work, products, or information relevant to our community. Our most recent guest was tattoo artist Amy Black of Amy Black Tattoos and Pink Ink Fund. Since 2011 Amy has been specializing in nipple and areola repigmentation as part of the breast reconstruction process for patients post-mastectomy due to breast cancer or as a prophylactic measure. Her 3D nipple tattoos look like the real thing! See for yourself below. Amy also founded the Pink Ink Fund shortly after beginning nipple and areola tattooing in response to seeing clients concerned about costs and having no health insurance. Amy’s work both in restorative tattooing and supporting the community is amazing! I plan on paying her a visit once I am done with my reconstruction. In addition to 3D nips, she also does touch ups, repigmentation, and artistic designs.

Here are some examples of her work:

Amy is located in Richmond, VA. If you are interested in contacting Amy, click here.

Healing well

2 Replies

WARNING: NSFW / graphic content below.

Elephant on chest So far, so good. Things are looking good and healing well after my latest surgery two weeks ago when a tissue expander was placed on my right side. I am not loving the discomfort I have. Feeling no pain, but the tightness is definitely there! It is that elephant-on-your-chest feeling. Not as bad as after original mastectomy, but still very uncomfortable.

I have not been doing my stretching and range of motion exercises on a regular basis, so time to get back to those at least once per day. No lazy days! I am a fan of the Coach Casey Eischen post-mastectomy exercise program. She designed it specifically for women recovering from breast cancer related surgeries after she had her own PBM and noticed a void in this area. Check out FoobieFitness.com for exercise tips, videos, and nutritional information. Here is the video with level 1 & 2 exercises. These helped me a lot after my original surgery two years ago and each one after that.

And here’s my progress pic: two weeks after tissue expander placement on my right side (left in pic).

First expansion: March 4. Exchange surgery: July 23, 2015.

Buh bye, drain

2 Replies

10/10 people who have had major surgery will list having drains at the top of the list of “things that suck about this.” Today, I said tata to my ninth drain thus far. I hate those suckers (pun intended). Buh bye, drain. I will NOT miss you at all.

Tard on drains

Long road of expansions ahead

The day after

What’s next?

We wait six weeks for the body to heal and then start the expansion process. Once I find out how much was put in, I’ll have a better idea of how long this is going to take. I typically do 50cc expansions every two weeks. When we hit 550ccs I wait another four weeks before exchange surgery. Right now that is scheduled for July 23, but I may be able to go sooner again. We shall see!

Drain pockets

6 Replies

Ladies getting ready for surgery, here’s a really great video on how to make your own drain pockets for just $4. Got a sewing machine? You can do it and they will come in handy!

Also, see my checklist for other things that make recovery a bit easier.

Prosthesis v2

3 Replies

WARNING: NSFW / graphic content below.

After I lost an implant the first time, my husband and I were planning a trip to visit his family in the Caribbean. Prior to going on that trip, I got a breast prosthesis, so that we could avoid awkward conversations about my health with distant relatives; in Spanish, nonetheless.

Well, as you already know, I’ve lost another implant. On an average day when I’m running errands or meeting friends for lunch, I go as I am and don’t even think about it. Also, I work from home. No boob? No pants? No problem! 🙂 However, I will again be traveling in the near future, but this time it will be a trip to corporate HQ to show face and meet some new team members. So I got another prosthesis. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not shy about sharing my story (hello, blogosphere) and I am not embarrassed when uniboobin’ it, but in some close-encounter situations I don’t want to be focusing on and explaining my lack of mammary.

I made an appointment for a fitting at a local boutique that specializes in “image consulting.” Since I have gone up in size by 100ccs from the last time I needed one, it wasn’t as easy as just ordering another one. After a couple of tries, we found the right form to complement my current breast. It’s not perfect, but it’s pretty darn close. I also picked out three new bras. My insurance provider covers the prosthesis as well as bras. In fact, they cover up to six bras per year (this varies, so check with your provider). Most boutiques and stores like Nordstrom work with insurance and even submit the paperwork for you.

Here it is. It is lightweight and comfortable. Looks good under clothing too.

By the way, this is working from home with cats (not my vid, but accurate):

Yep, looking good

Déjà vu

29 Replies

WARNING: NSFW / graphic content below. I can't even

A month after my last surgery, during which we swapped the tissue expander on left and adjusted pocket on right, I am again uniboobin‘ it. Déjà vu? Twilight Zone? Groundhog Year?

Yes, that is right, I have lost another implant. This time it is the right one. Everybody together now: WTF?!? DARN IT! I am really feeling dejected. I literally can’t even … (not me~>)

So what happened this time?

This was different than last year, but the outcome is the same, unfortunately. Sunday during my typical post-shower wound inspection, I noticed that there was a tiny inflamed spot on my right breast on old, already healed incision. It got a bit bigger by end of day. Monday morning I went in to see Dr. M. Both him and one of the nurses suspected it was an internal stitch trying to make its way out.

That’s not so bad, right? Just a little stitch. Dr. M advised me to do a warm compress three times per day and keep a very close eye on it. A couple of days later the area started bulging out and I could see yellow puss inside. Thursday morning I sent an email to Dr. M, with an update but I knew he was in surgery. Early afternoon I did the compress, which made the abscess open. After all the goo drained and the stitch knot came out, I was left with another hole. I knew what was coming :(. Went to see the nurse right away. She took cultures and started making calls to coordinate my surgery for the next day, during which I had the right implant removed, pocket cleaned out, and closed back up without inserting another implant.

So … here I am with one breast again AND I got another drain. Fun fun! I go in for follow up on Monday to find out what is next. This is like a rerun nobody wants to watch. Especially not me. Last year I had exchange 9/3, implant taken out 10/15, expander placed 4/10, exchange surgery 9/11, and this implant out 10/10. At this pace, it will take another year.

Enjoy the visual (kind of gross):

Bra shopping

9 Replies

WARNING: NSFW / graphic content below.

My exchange surgery was on September 11. We swapped out the tissue expander on my left and made a pocket revision to correct the implant bottoming out on the right. The follow up appointment was two weeks later. Everything feels and looks relatively good. Some twinges of pain here and there, but that is to be expected. As far as my results: small issue, but it’s still early as things will change and settle for a while. My next follow up is at six weeks.

I have been wearing this sexy little hospital-issued number almost 24/7 and was hoping to hear that I could ditch it. Well, I can burn that one, but I do need to continue wearing something. It should be wire-free, but have a tight band. I set out bra shopping this weekend and quickly became frustrated! The first two stores didn’t even carry a 32. I ended at Victoria’s Secret, where I should have started, but that was tiring too. It seems that out of the 23049814 bras VS carries, only a few are wire-free.

First tried on the Perfect Comfort Demi Push-Up in 32DD. Too much padding, I’m still spilling out (no DDD), and the VS girl didn’t know her shit – it has an underwire. I went home with two of the Sexy Tee Wireless Bra in 32D. It truly is wire-free and has no extra padding.

VS bras

Update: I also went to Nordstrom Monday. My location does not work with United Healthcare, but they offered to provide the paperwork and I can file it myself for UHC to review and decide on.

I didn’t mention this option originally, but should have. As Joyce wrote in the post comments, Nordstrom has fitters and works with most insurance companies for post-mastectomy bra needs. They will find the right bra and file paperwork for the insurance company to cover the expense. Appointment required.

I bought How Perfect by Wacoal in 32D. It is super soft! Love it.

The results

As I mentioned things are looking pretty good, but I do see a small issue: asymmetry. Prior to this surgery my right implant had bottomed out and was lower than the left. Now I am seeing the opposite, although not as much of a difference. I also have a sneaking suspicion that my right side is getting tighter, which may be a sign of capsular contracture, but I don’t want to panic just yet and continue to massage like Dr. M advised.

It is still early and things will continue changing. This may be a non-issue in a few months or it may be worse .. we shall see. In any case, I am just pointing out what I see now. I have not lost sight of the big picture and reason for all of this: I said NOPE to breast cancer! In the words of the wise Casey Eischen: “Prevention, not perfection.” 🙂 ❤

These things really don’t look like a D naked, but you know bras are like jeans: there are multiple ways to measure and it seems like every brand does it their own way. The bras I bought will serve for the next month. After that I hope I can go bra-free.

Reminder: Mentor round, smooth, high profile silicone implants in 450ccs.