Thursday morning I was on the operating table once again. This time, however, was on a much lighter, happier note. It was the beginning of being put back together. The first steps to getting my femininity back. It’s a surgery I’ve been looking forward to from the day that I decided a double mastectomy was the right decision for me. It was reconstructive surgery.
This is how my day went:
Arrived at Dr. Wigod’s office at 8:30 AM to get prepped and ready to go. When the Dr. arrived I was marked (just like they do on Dr. 90210) with a blue marker, that by the way, is nearly impossible to scrub off. Brock had Morgan with him so while I was getting ready to go under, he was meeting my sister so Morgan could spend the next couple of nights with her and later a night with her Nana and Papa.
After awaking from surgery, I stayed in the recovery room for about 45 minutes and soon Brock joined me. The Dr. talked to us, well Brock (I was so loopy that I hardly remember seeing his face after surgery, let alone the words that came out of his mouth), and gave us all the information we’d need for at home care. They scheduled my post-opp appointment for the next day and we were off on our merry way.
I don’t remember if I’ve explained the procedure on here in the past, but if so it’s neat enough that I’m going to share it again. Even though I took the most aggressive move to make sure cancer does not come back (by doing a double mastectomy my chance for a recurrence went from a 60% chance down to a 5% chance!!!) there will still always be that slight chance and fear of something returning. Because of this they put in a spacer (basically an empty implant) with a special seal that allows a needle to add saline without having any spill out. They put the spacer in under the breast muscle (not on top of like a normal breast augmentation) so that if something does return, I would be able to feel a lump instead of having an implant covering it up.
During surgery they were able to put 100 cc’s of saline in each spacer instead of only 50. This gave me a very tiny “A cup”. They do this with a spacer so your breast muscle can slowly expand to make room for the real implant. I’ll be going back once a week to have more saline put in until it’s either a size I am happy with, or the size my skin allows it to get to. Basically, I’ll be lucky to make it into a “B cup” (which by the way, I’d be totally happy with).
Warning- bellow is a note from “shallow” Nicole:
I really hope he can get me out of an “A cup”. I have not been in an “A” since maybe the 6th grade (I developed very quickly) and I can just picture people coming up to me asking, “So I thought you were going to get reconstructive surgery?” AHHHH! Haha. Seriously though, I would have to get a new bathing suite and everything. Oh well… I’m done complaining…
After the spacers reach their desired size, I’ll leave them in for 3 months (to make sure it’s nice and roomy in there). After that they’ll go in and replace the spacers with an actual implant. From there I decide on whether of not I want to go through with skin grafting (making a nipple and dark area around it) or if I decide I’m happy without. Right now I am leaning towards going without.
Over all, this surgery was a walk in the park compared to the double mastectomy and chemo. I’d be lying though if I said I wasn’t in a lot of pain. They gave me some great meds, but they make me so tired that I literally can fall asleep sitting straight up. Once I do let my eyes close, a bulldozer tearing down the house wouldn’t wake me up. In the last three days, I have no doubt slept at least 40 hours. I’ve only been getting up to eat, use the restroom, and periodically check my emails only to feel exhausted again and head back to bed.
I am so thankful that Morgan has been in great hands. It’s hard living so far away, but through out this whole process, friends and family have really stepped up and helped out more than I ever would have imagined possible. Thank you so much. With out all of this help, it would take me much longer to recover from all of this. I love her more than anything in the world, but I also know I wouldn’t have been capable to take proper care of her during this time with out help.
So….
Thank you, to everyone, for everything!
Lots of Love,
Nicole


regnancy and birth are miraculous journeys. This amazing time of life is full of mystery, anticipation, joy, hope, and wonder. Feeling the powerful energy of birth and new life, watching as a new family is born unto each other. These things humble and amaze. These are the things that we celebrate when a baby is born.


































