I was informed by my surgeon that the surgery is not a very painful one, so I expected to come home and feel pretty ok instantly. I personally found the reality very different.
The day I arrived home from hospital, I felt on top of the world. Smelling the fresh air and the garden and leaving hospital for our beautiful home was such a wonderful feeling. I was free!! We had so many bouquets of flowers, our house literally resembled a florist and each and every bouquet I received brightened up my day just a little bit more.
Since the day I got home, I have been going for daily walks; not very long walks but we started going around the block and have increased it gradually from there. Exercise (light walking) has really helped me to feel positive and it has been a great opportunity for my partner and I to get out and chat about things and enjoy the simple things in life like fresh air.
My chest area has been quite painful. For the first week and a half, all of the sensations and tenderness was much more painful that I envisaged. As I had a full mastectomy and axillary clearance, I think it has awakened the nerves under my arms a lot more than just a mastectomy but I felt quite a strong throbbing pain for days when I returned home. I have found it very hard to sit still so my partner insisted that I keep as still as possible and rest up, to see if that made a difference.
So I rested and rested...... in between playing lots of board games, (which have become the highlight of my days!!!) writing my journal (I have two others), reading books (including Lance Armstrong's journey with cancer) and being determined not to get lured into viewing daytime TV (sorry Oprah!).
I would receive daily gifts; gifts from friends and gifts from the Breast Cancer Network Australia. I received the 'My Journey' kit which I have found invaluable. I love the journal which really helps to keep everything together as we now have loads of appointments to organise and attend to. I also received a fabulous new Berlei bra and prosthesis, which again brought a big smile to my face.
I think it's really important to keep busy but while having a good balance of rest. I've had so many visits from friends and some days, I haven't felt like visits and I have been open with our friends and they completely understand.
Give yourself two weeks to feel better. Your body needs time to rest and while the pain may be unbearable at times, just lie down and read a book and try not to think about it. I had what looked like a big golf ball under my arm but after a couple of days of rest, it has gone down a lot and my surgeon will drain any excess fluid in my weekly visit to him.
I am now feeling quite good (still pretty tender) and hey, it's a great opportunity to get really pampered and looked after.... my partner has become the housewife and I think secretly, he's loving it!!!!
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