Surgery with Fielding

[loman1]

Hello,

I am thinking about having surgery with Fielding in Toronto.  I would be flying in from Vancouver as a few others have done.  I am wondering if there is any way that the doctor would let you leave the hospital alone after surgery.  


Thanks in advance.

[supaaman]

Fielding can arrange for you to spend the night at St. Joe's.  I did that, then cabbed it to the hotel for one more night of rest before flying back to Van.  Worked fine. The night is good... they put you on intravenous drip so you are well hydrated and strong before you leave.  You won't need anyone with you.  Fielding prefers for you to spend the night if you are from out of town.  Hematoma's are the most common complication and they usually occur over the first 24-48 hrs... that's why he prefers that you stick around for a night if you are from out of town.

[loman1]

Thanks supaaman, I was actually thinking of taking a week off work and just spending it in Toronto, just in case there are problems.

I prefer that no one knows what I'm getting done thats all.  Did you have drains put in? Would that make things more complicated?

[znilracd]

then cabbed it to the hotel for one more night of rest before flying back to Van.

I was under the impression someone had to sign you out of the hospital?

[supaaman]

Hey Guys,

I signed myself out of the hospital.

A week is tons of time to recover.  I'm at 5 days, back in Vancouver, and at work (desk job).  I use the tensor they gave me + a nike "compression t" ($35) over it (keeps tensor snug and in place).  With a loose shirt over top, you can't tell I have it on.  I can take off the foam pads tomorrow, so it will be even lower profile then.

They give you a prescription for T3's.  They aren't really necesary as the pain is minimal, but good for helping you get to sleep.  I figure lots of rest is needed to heal quickly, so I take them at night and sleep like a baby.  I took it really easy for the first 4 days, but feel fine now.

Fielding didn't put drains in... I have never heard of him doing that.  His theory is that the body can absorb it and good compression can keep the fluid build up very small.  If you do get them, I imagine that would make it more difficult.

If you can stay for a week, that's great.  I'm sure you will rest well, but be bored.  The advantage is that you could do the one-week follow up with Fielding and deal with any complications there, should they arise.

I recommend getting a 4-star hotel.  Bid on priceline.com.  I did that and got the Westin Harbour for $80USD.  It was sweet.  That's as cheap as a lot of 2 star places.

Take care

[itstimetodeal]

well I just called and made the consult appointment with fielding, but I won't get in till November.  

[Give me Life]

Hi supaaman:

As you says, you use the tensor they gave you + a nike "compression t" ($35) over it (keeps tensor snug and in place). Can you please tell me where did you buy a "compression t"? Is it at your local store or you bought in Toronto (From Bay or Sears or any other name store)?

I am going for surgery on 6th Sept. And wondering about the compression belt. Your help is apprecited, my friend.

[supaaman]

Hey man,

I got 2.  One for holding on the tensor (XL) and one for after the tensor (L).  One is "Nike" and one is "Under Armour" - both were about $35 at Sport Chek.  They are pretty much identical, so either brand is okay.  You can get either at any Sporting goods store.  It's an athletic garment made for wearing under sports equipment.  I got one in Van and one in Toronto right before surgery.  From what I can gather, a lot of these special compression shirts are made of the same material.

They serve 3 purposes: keep the tensor in place, provide extra compression, and keep the profile of the "pads" lower,  so it is easier to hide under your clothing.  I also used scissors to shave down the pads at the top and give them a tapered edge (this will make more sense when you see them - another guy here mentioned he did this and it was good advice).  This makes them blend in much better and almost impossible to detect.

I've found the tensor pretty easy to keep in place.  Once in a while I rewrap it to keep it snug.  Gets a bit itchy too, but it I loosen a bit for a while and get more blood flow it stops itching.

So far, the whole thing has been a piece of cake, but we'll see how the next couple of weeks of healing go.

Good luck G-M-L!

[Give me Life]

Hi Supaaman:

Thanks a lot for your suggestion. I went through sportcheck.ca website and found some of the compression. Here's the link. Can you please check and let me know if this is one I should buy? Please let me know as I have now a week left and I need to buy before than.

http://www.sportchek.ca/product_description.jhtml?id=prod2920825

http://www.sportchek.ca/product_description.jhtml?id=prod3730080&fromSpecificCategory=true#related

I couldn't find Nike product. Can you please send me link if you can find on internet as I don't want to buy wronge stuff.

Will apprecite you help, man.

Thx

[supaaman]

Hey man,

Yeah that looks exactly right.  I bought a shortsleeve one in XL and a sleeveless (like the photo link you posted) in L for later.  I haven't used the L (and may not use it ever) as it's pretty tight.  Either a short sleeve or sleeveless will do fine, but I think shortsleeve is a bit better.  For the first week you wear pads and I think the sleeveless might not hold everything in as well (the pad may pop out a bit at the armpit on sleeveless).  I have one of the Nike and one of the Underarmour and they are pretty identical, so just get which ever one you see first.  They are meant to be snug, but maybe get one size smaller than you might normally wear.  Normally, I would be a XXL, so the XL is a bit tight , but seems to provide great support.  I don't wear it all the time as sometimes it gets a bit much, so I will sleep without it sometimes or take it off when I am watching TV or something (leaving just the tensor on).  Nice to get some airflow.  The shirt gets a bit stinky as it wicks any prespiration, so it needs to be washed a fair bit.  It will be good later to wear while playing hockey or skiing (with no frikkin tensor underneath).  

So far i am pretty happy with the results.  One side is better than the other, so hopefully it is just extra swelling.  If the left was as good as the right side, I'd be thrilled.  But, I will wait some months before judging.  Regardless, the contour is better as long as the puffy nips don't pop back out!

I haven't had any major swelling or hematoma.  Apparently hematoma is more likely in 1-2 days, but can be as late as 10.  I am at day 7, so pretty close to being out of the woods.

Feel free to ask any other questions...

[Give me Life]

Thanks a lot Sup'man.

Did you went to Dr. Fielding?

[supaaman]

Also,

Don't stress about getting one that is exactly right.  Fielding says the tensor is enough, so just go with what you think will fit nicely with tensors underneath and maybe to use after the tensors comes off altogether at week 3.

Cheers

[supaaman]

Yes, I did have Fielding.

[Give me Life]

Hi Supaaman:

I got the Nike one from sportscheck for $35. But went to Buffalo,NY for shopping and found same stuff (no difference at all) from Reebok store for just $15. Great bargain and great luck !!!

So How's your recovery is progressing? Any hicuups? I am going for the big day in 3 days. Worried but excited now. Trying to be cool. Let the time pass by fast, man !!!

[supaaman]

Hey man,

Yeah it went really well and was a pretty good experience overall.  I was told to be at the Hospital for 11:30 and had to wait a few hours - that was the worst part.  Oh yeah, if you spend the night in hospital, get you wife to bring you lots of food.  The food they have is pretty crap and there's not much of it.

So far, I'm thrilled with the right side and the left is okay, but I hear it is common for one to have more swelling/problems.  My chest contour is much improved, but hopefully over time the left side will match.  No hematoma or any other problems, although I can feel a fair bit of scar tissue forming (under the skin).  I've started doing some firm massage as I have heard that helps.

The lipo scars are almost invisible already and the nipple scars are healing well.  

Youl feel very assured in Fielding's hands!

Let us know how it goes!