My post-surgical progress

[badger]

So I had my operation with Dr. Karidis on 29th November. I travelled to London from Liverpool the night before, stayed in a hostel, then had my surgery the next morning.

The whole process was easy-peasy. Karidis came into my room for a few minutes, took some photos and marked me up. There was some waiting around and then I was taken downstairs to the operating theatre.

The anaesthetist was excellent - I didn't even feel them putting the canula in. Post-op I was taken back up to my room and looked after by the lovely nurse.

Shook off the anaesthetic pretty quickly and ordered a nice lunch. The ice cream is pretty good, if you are wondering which dessert to go for.

My train left Euston at 9pm so I stayed in my hospital room until they kicked me out then hung around in the station waiting room until departure.

I only needed to take painkillers for the first few nights to help me sleep. Other than that, recovering has been pretty easy going. The pain was like a more intense version of the muscle soreness you get the day after lifting heavy weights when you've had a long break from the gym.

Now 17 days post op, I have full range of motion back with a feeling of slight stretching when I extend my arms fully overhead or to the sides. There is still some slight bruising on the left side by my ribs.

A few days ago I started massaging for 15 mins twice a day. My chest feels very hard in some places - presumably this is fluid build up since it goes away with massage.

The only real issue has been disrupted sleep, since I usually sleep on my stomach but the pain has made this impossible. I am now able to sleep pretty comfortably on my side and will try to sleep on my stomach in the next few days.

I'm very happy with the results so far. Looking forward to the scar tissue stage 

Here's some crap quality pictures for your viewing pleasure. In this order: pre-op, 7 days post op, 17 days post op.

[ChestMan]

Hey Badger thanks for your story. From your photos your case looked pretty mild. Keep us posted with your recovery etc. These help us understand what the recovery process will be like and manage expectations.

[badger]

Yeah, Karidis said mild to moderate. The before picture doesn't really show the mooby contour that well though, there was quite a bit to grab away from the muscle. You can see how much the nipples have moved in though - the gyno made them point out to the side more.

[Bikkembergs]

Congratulations Badger 

You'll have all the Sows after you now 

[ChestMan]

Any news Badger? How's the recovery going? Happy? I've got my consult on Monday and starting to have 2nd thoughts and getting nervous and this is just the consultation!