Surgery this week yikes! 30/07/15

[Charlie33]

I bought the Veronique initially but sent it back, it made my stomach stick out and didn't feel comfortable. I bought a Macom vest and it's been a great investment so far. Very comfortable and not noticeable under a shirt  

[ggnail]

Yea same experience Stan. Definitely the Macom vest anyday.  Had to return my Veronique as well. Bought two Macoms. Short and long ones of the 2070 series.
Charlie how's it going? My right side is problematic and that's the side that had fluid build up and was the larger side too. Now it's very hard and I think it's scar buildup. Not sure what to do. Been searching forum for others experiences.

[Charlie33]

Hi mate, going good thanks. My chest is smoothing out and starting to look more natural. The binder wings are less noticeable! I am still a little tender in places, more so on my right side ( what was the biggest ) I can almost see the line from the cannula when i lift my arm above my head. The area that had the fluid did go hard initially, this seems to be softening up as the days go by. I am massaging gently at night with bio oil, it seems to be helping.
Both nips are still recessed, the right being creased more than the left. The are improving gradually, I`m just going to see how it goes for now. At the moment I`m just enjoying being gyne free, my right side was very tender prior to surgery. Such a relief to have it gone.
I thought it might be a little further down the line before scar tissue developes? Are the lumps/bumps not from the lypo?

[ggnail]

That's great. I find that I have better mobility now. Can lift arms ok now which is good. I've still got the hard lump from the armpit entry running down like a line on both sides. The hard part however is above nipple where the fluid build up was. Its like a little ball. I'll resume massages anyway and see how it goes

[Charlie33]

Little update seeing as I'm 6 weeks post op  
Still healing nicely and almost back to full movement, I've applied Savlon to the incisions since the dressings were removed and I'm pleased with how they look at this stage.

I'm still sleeping on my back, never thought I would but I'm used to it now. I'll probably go back to my side once the tenderness has gone. On the whole I'm very pleased so far, the crater seems to be filling in slowly and the creases seem a little better with the help of Bio oil. 

[Stan19]

Looking good charlie. I am finally on the other side now after 30yrs. A surreal feeling. What can i say that hasn't been said already? Mr levick what great man. Stefan the aneasthatist top bloke. All the staff at the priory are lovely. The whole experience was nowhere near as bad i thought it was going to be. But this binder is not good digging into the armpits and i dont know if its tight enough

[Charlie33]

Cheers mate, good luck with the recovery. It was well into the second week before I could tighten the binder right down, it was quite sore. It is very uncomfortable under the arms, just try not to move around too much . I used some make up pads tucked over the edge of the binder under the armpit. Did help a bit  
Have you still got the hospital dressings on?

[Stan19]

Thanks mate. No ive just this minute taken the tape dressings off  they were just too painfull much better without them i think. Iv put 2 hankeys over the binder under my pits seems to have eased it abit. I know what u mean about not moving but its really hard especially if your home alone! 

[Stan19]

Pain not that bad its mainly the soreness around the pits just abit stiff elsewhere. I feel i want to tighten the binder but because im so stiff i fear it will end up looser than it is now if i attempt it

[Charlie33]

You will know when you feel like you can tighten it down, I held it down with my right hand around my left ribs and pulled it across with my left hand. It actually felt better tight once the pain had died down a bit. That tape was a nightmare under the arms, much better with a sticky dressing.
I literally did nothing for a week while I was off work !

[Stan19]

Yer i'll do as little as possible when possible. Got nothing on incisions now, let the air into them tnite and see what thier like tomorrow. I'll leave the binder for a few days then maybe have a go a tightening it. Thanks for advice mate. 

[Charlie33]

Little late with the update, I`m now 9 weeks post op
I emailed some photos to Dr Levick yesterday just to check everything is healing as it should. He replied almost straight away and put my mind at rest. I had some concerns about the creases on my right side, he assured me that it takes time for the nerves to heal and only then will things start to contract. At this stage he said I`m doing fine, it was reassuring to hear! The crease on the left side has almost disappeared now, looks great. 
I still feel quite lumpy and the lines from the cannula are still there under the skin when I massage. Not sure how anyone else feels but I still find it uncomfortable to lie on my front? I've also noticed If I lean backwards and arch my back I can feel a firm line going down at the top of my stomach muscles on one side, just wondered if this was to do with the nerves. Hopefully everything will sort itself out in time :-) I`ll post some pics up later on today.

[Stan19]

Glad to hear your healing fine mate. I too have major nipple creasing at nearly 4wks post op. I can sleep on both sides easily without pain although both sides and across the top of the chest is still sore to touch. I suspect the top edge of the vest is causing the soreness at the top due to it being very tight. Its driving me nuts  i cant wait to go vest free.!! Dont really know when to stop compression but i will contact mr levick again after 1 month. The area where the moob was is still totally numb which is worrying me slightly?? Other than that i'm quite happy this week unlike last week  when i thought i had loads more fat on left side than on right side or maybe fluid or swelling  i cant tell. Anyway looking forward to your latest pics charlie  cheers 

[Charlie33]

Yes the vest/binder made me very sore at the top but it soon subsides mate. It's strange, I too couldn't wait to ditch them but in the end missed the support feeling. I kind of felt secure with the vest on! I just didn't want to risk any further fluid build up so kept them on longer than most I think. It's perfectly normal to be numb for some time , it takes a while for the nerves etc to heal. Don't worry too much about that:)

[Stan19]

Cheers for the reassurance charlie. Its great that your still posting on here being a month in front of me, there dosen't seem to many guys active on the uk forum since mr L retired. At what stage did you go vest free for the first time with confidence that you were past the fluid stage?