Harmony's consultation with Dr. Foster

[Ladon]

There were already a few people in the office when we arrived for her appointment, and the ladies at the desk were very warm and helpful.  We got a late start as we didn't plan ahead for the paperwork, so by the time we got in a room we were about 45 minutes late for the appointment.  Sheila was right in to chat and she asked about finding a picture for size/shape and trying out sizers, we pointed out that Harmony brought her falsies and also brought her inspiration pictures.  She kinda geeked out about the falsies, she started giggling and told me I should apply at Mentor to make the real thing. :p

Anyway, it took a while to talk to the doctor, when Harmony went out to check, there were a TON of people in the office.   So we were ok with waiting, we got to listen a little to the other ladies and his advice to others while we waited.

I was a little worried, as Dr. Foster IS older than I'd expect, but after meeting him I left with a very good feeling about the whole thing, as did Harmony.  He seemed to be very confident in his ability and very matter of fact and thorough in our case.  He was rushed, but he put us both at ease quite well.

He did some measurements from her neck to her nipple and such, momentarily checked for lumps or other abnormalities, and that was that.  She asked if he could 'fill up' her existing shape, without doing too much otherwise.  He said absolutely, she has 'good material to work with', and she shouldn't need a lift.  She mentioned from our research that she would feel more comfortable with overs, despite common opinion that unders offer a more natural look.  He said he would have recommended overs anyway, in her case.  He looked at her falsies and eyeballed the total volume at about a liter, and said that was about the limit of what is easily available, that he can overfill around 1100 or a little more, if that's what she wants, beyond that it gets complicated.  He said the largest he's done is about 3600ccs each, and I mentioned that much of our research was done on a forum where several such ladies are around.

We had a few moments in the waiting room with another lady, she sounded happy with her results, but she's still getting used to the added volume and she can't sleep on her chest anymore.  Sheila mentioned that she will be going in soon for her 4th and last BA, to go to 800ccs (she was actually really neat to talk to, when we were leaving she kinda put her hands on both sides of her boobs, I'm not sure if that was a mannerism or just that she caught me looking XD) 

Harmony told her Dad when she talked to him about it afterward, that before the appointment she was waffling but now she knows it is what she really wants.

Overall, it was a good visit, despite the longer wait than we would have preferred.  Now, we just have to come up with $4k     It is frustrating to know that we had that money in the bank at least three different times during the last few months, but now we're not expecting another check like that until perhaps tax returns next year.

I'll post any pictures as we go on.    Harmony has asked me to keep a photo journal of her progress once she gets them, even if the pictures do (as MDF once suggested) look like someone knifed and beat her up.

[xenon]

There were already a few people in the office when we arrived for her appointment, and the ladies at the desk were very warm and helpful.  We got a late start as we didn't plan ahead for the paperwork, so by the time we got in a room we were about 45 minutes late for the appointment.  Sheila was right in to chat and she asked about finding a picture for size/shape and trying out sizers, we pointed out that Harmony brought her falsies and also brought her inspiration pictures.  She kinda geeked out about the falsies, she started giggling and told me I should apply at Mentor to make the real thing. :p

Anyway, it took a while to talk to the doctor, when Harmony went out to check, there were a TON of people in the office.  So we were ok with waiting, we got to listen a little to the other ladies and his advice to others while we waited.

I was a little worried, as Dr. Foster IS older than I'd expect, but after meeting him I left with a very good feeling about the whole thing, as did Harmony.  He seemed to be very confident in his ability and very matter of fact and thorough in our case.  He was rushed, but he put us both at ease quite well.

He did some measurements from her neck to her nipple and such, momentarily checked for lumps or other abnormalities, and that was that.  She asked if he could 'fill up' her existing shape, without doing too much otherwise.  He said absolutely, she has 'good material to work with', and she shouldn't need a lift.  She mentioned from our research that she would feel more comfortable with overs, despite common opinion that unders offer a more natural look.  He said he would have recommended overs anyway, in her case.  He looked at her falsies and eyeballed the total volume at about a liter, and said that was about the limit of what is easily available, that he can overfill around 1100 or a little more, if that's what she wants, beyond that it gets complicated.  He said the largest he's done is about 3600ccs each, and I mentioned that much of our research was done on a forum where several such ladies are around.

We had a few moments in the waiting room with another lady, she sounded happy with her results, but she's still getting used to the added volume and she can't sleep on her chest anymore.  Sheila mentioned that she will be going in soon for her 4th and last BA, to go to 800ccs (she was actually really neat to talk to, when we were leaving she kinda put her hands on both sides of her boobs, I'm not sure if that was a mannerism or just that she caught me looking XD)  

Harmony told her Dad when she talked to him about it afterward, that before the appointment she was waffling but now she knows it is what she really wants.

Overall, it was a good visit, despite the longer wait than we would have preferred.  Now, we just have to come up with $4k    It is frustrating to know that we had that money in the bank at least three different times during the last few months, but now we're not expecting another check like that until perhaps tax returns next year.

I'll post any pictures as we go on.    Harmony has asked me to keep a photo journal of her progress once she gets them, even if the pictures do (as MDF once suggested) look like someone knifed and beat her up.

I have only had email conversations with him. I mentioned the age thing to him and he basically ignored my concern there. I am still very very concerned with his age. 71+ right? His price is great from what I have seen. Curious to hear about your experience when it all happens. Just seems like there needs to be a line when a surgeon retires... and that age seems lower than 70. But if he is steady, visually acute, etc... why not.

Anyway, I hope all goes well and look forward to hearing about the final results and experience.

[Ladon]

I'd like to hear Notty's impression as well, I'm fairly sure she had hers done there, but she is not a daily visitor here.  The photos in her thread looked pretty good, and she seemed happy with the procedure when she got home.

He mentioned that he's been doing his own anesthesia for 40 years, and he has his own operating room at the Tahoe clinic (rather than renting a suite at a hospital), which partially explains the pricing.  He said those two items save about $3000 per patient.  I also asked his policy in a situation like Cherri had, where one or both don't heal up properly and have to be explanted and redone.  He was (almost too) quick to say that is very unlikely, but in any case it would be included under the original payment.  The web site has this to say about it: "Any revision that can improve the result is performed without charge."

It appears that a Petition to Revoke was filed in April, but the Medical Board says "THE PHYSICIAN HAS NOT HAD A HEARING OR BEEN FOUND GUILTY OF ANY CHARGES.".  The first two points calling for discipline center on a single 2009 patient (admittedly she had severe complications which MAY have been avoidable, but if it were my wife I'd be upset too), and the rest on more minor complications that surely arise in any plastic surgery practice. (For example: Patient changed from inframammary to transumbilical the day of surgery and he didn't get a new consent form for it. Another patient requested better cleavage, so he used a wider, high profile implant.  She later said they were too big and poorly contoured.)

I'm going to point these concerns out to Harmony to see what she thinks, but it seems odd that the petition comes two years after all the incidents mentioned in the paperwork, and the first patient I mentioned doesn't show up on any malpractice judgements or settlements.

Thanks for the positive thoughts and we'll keep everyone posted. 

[Aragorn]

Hi Ladon -  Just wanted to let you know that my wife and I (finally and thank God!) found Dr. Foster about 4 years ago after she had (3) previous bad experiences with Plastic Surgeons.  Dr. Foster is a bit older, but he is extremely fit and his 40+ years of experience (over 20,000 breast surgeries if I remember the quote right) are pretty amazing.

Needless to say, he did an amazing job on my wife, we loved Shelia, Kate, Lisa and Aga (his nurse)  and couldnt reccomend anyone higher.  We had traveled all over the country to 2 different surgeons previously, but Dr. Foster is definitely an expert with larger implants. 

Best of luck!

Sincerely,

Aragorn

[xenon]

Hi Ladon -  Just wanted to let you know that my wife and I (finally and thank God!) found Dr. Foster about 4 years ago after she had (3) previous bad experiences with Plastic Surgeons.  Dr. Foster is a bit older, but he is extremely fit and his 40+ years of experience (over 20,000 breast surgeries if I remember the quote right) are pretty amazing.

Needless to say, he did an amazing job on my wife, we loved Shelia, Kate, Lisa and Aga (his nurse)  and couldnt reccomend anyone higher.  We had traveled all over the country to 2 different surgeons previously, but Dr. Foster is definitely an expert with larger implants. 

Best of luck!

Sincerely,

Aragorn

Sorry if I am asking about something you already shared. But what size did your wife get with Dr. Foster? My wife is currently at 1400cc, using overfilled 800cc shells and looking for other options that are not using overfilled 800cc shells. While I have written off Dr. Foster due to age, I am interested to hear from someone that has used him recently like your wife. Especially if she got something similar to what we are looking for.

[Ladon]

Wow, great to hear a testimonial from a fellow BEA member.

Anyway, THE APPOINTMENT HAS BEEN SET!   

It's set for her birthday, on Nov 16th.

She's anxious and I'm a little scared, but she was the one who picked that date.  Main problem is I'll have to cut classes for a couple of days.  Not the end of the world, but not how I usually do things.

Woo hoo  o.O  Two weeks  0.0

[Ladon]

One word... LAME!

Due to my mother's lack of planning, and my foolish decision to help her move...we suddenly realized we were a couple hundred short!  Oh no!

We're desperately trying to scrape together enough before pre-op, gonna hold out hope to keep the date, at least for now.  I'll talk to her about 'before' pics too, she's been losing weight and looking really good lately.

(I didn't think about it until after we made the appointment, but she JUST bought a spectacular new bra from VS a few weeks ago.  It's barely been broken in, and she won't be able to wear it any more!  Won't be able to shop there anymore either. :p Anyway, their Bombshell bras are sooooo nice.  She got a 36C and it really looks great on her, and she finds it far more comfortable than her other bras.)

[MasterDragonfly]

Argh. I hate when I have those split-brain moments. One train of thought is planning for X, another completely independent train of thought is planning for Y. Then one day you realize that you hadn't considered X and Y at the same moment in time, and need to decide which one has to give.

There are some pretty nice bras elsewhere. I'm trying to remember where I got cherri's bra from, but it was a site which I found to be easy to use, snappy in response, and great in offerings. I know I've got it linked-to from my site, but if you'd like me to dig through my emails... wait nvm, I just now did it it's www.herroom.com

I trust you've measured and measure and measured and conjectured and have arrived at the size of bra she will most likely need as soon as she's comfy wearing a bra...? I recall pretty much nailing cherri's first post-op bra size, buying it like 1-2 weeks before her surgery.

Hope you get the loose ends tied up!

[Scott13183]

One word... LAME!

Due to my mother's lack of planning, and my foolish decision to help her move...we suddenly realized we were a couple hundred short!  Oh no!

We're desperately trying to scrape together enough before pre-op, gonna hold out hope to keep the date, at least for now.  I'll talk to her about 'before' pics too, she's been losing weight and looking really good lately.

(I didn't think about it until after we made the appointment, but she JUST bought a spectacular new bra from VS a few weeks ago.  It's barely been broken in, and she won't be able to wear it any more!  Won't be able to shop there anymore either. :p Anyway, their Bombshell bras are sooooo nice.  She got a 36C and it really looks great on her, and she finds it far more comfortable than her other bras.)

Why not use something like Care Credit?  A lot of times you can get X months same as cash (depends on the surgeon I believe).... though you may have to pay a little more in total cost to the surgeon regardless of whether you end up having to pay Care Credit/GE any interest fees, it's one way to go if you don't want to shell out all that cash at once.  It was pretty quick to get approved, and had the card in about 2 weeks. 

[Ladon]

Horrid credit due to things when she left her ex, and having my name on my mother's credit accounts as a cardholder.  I got reported even though it was her poor choices.  -.-  It's ALMOST gone, and the less credit we take on, the less trouble we'll have in the future.

Yeah, we weren't PLANNING to spend a grand helping Mom, it just ended up that way.  She ended up needing two trips with a pickup and a trailer, and one in a UHAUL truck, 250 miles apart, plus having US go to help her four weekends in a row.  I was thinking we had enough set aside, but Harmony ended up needing more than I expected for the truck and gas.  :s

Thanks MDF, I know there are some great bras elsewhere, I was just loving that Bombshell bra and I realized she's only had it a month and we're looking at two weeks 'til her date.  :p  The nice thing about a store is the hands-on ability to try things and see what feels good and what doesn't, without having to wait days to try a different size.

She's currently in a 38D for her usual bras, though her Bombshell is a 36D and the band isn't uncomfortable.  Her falsies are in the 1000cc range, and she wears them in a 40H.  40H will probably be too big with the 'real thing' but we're shooting for that ballpark.

ANYWAY... it looks like we'll be okay if Mom's check comes in before the appointment, we have enough for the procedure and living expenses already, just need a buffer to be safe.

[Ladon]

Sheila is so fucking awesome.  She got us all sorted out and we're good for our scheduled appointment on Wednesday!  o.o  Pre-op is tomorrow.

We're playing with them like there's no tomorrow, since we'll have to take a break until she's healed up at least a little.  Her nipples are so sensitive even a t-shirt is overstimulating right now. lol

Kinda scared...one way or another they'll never be the same!  Hopefully, for the better. 

Here are a few pre-op photos

copyright Ladon 2011

[Ladon]

another

Copyright Ladon 2011

[Ladon]

Dr. Foster will let us know for sure tomorrow, but he sounded very confident that 1000cc subglandular would give her a good result, no lift needed.  We talked with him about getting a natural look, but not a teenaged-perky natural look, but she wanted to avoid extra scarring around the nipple or anywhere else, he said he wouldn't have said she needed a lift anyway.  We'll see what he says during the pre-op.

copyright Ladon 2011

[MasterDragonfly]

Fingers crossed! 

Or as I usually say: May her surgery be uneventful.

[Ladon]

TY for the good thoughts MDF.

I checked the volume of her falsies yesterday and I have to say...Dr. Foster has a good eye, or got really lucky.  He suggested I check the displacement on her falsies and said they were probably almost exactly 1000ccs.  What do you know, when I did the displacement test and measured... 1007ccs.  lol

Of course, that means we might actually want to go a little more overfill than we had discussed, as the implants will not look as big under the skin, but we'll talk to him about that.  She has her list of questions prepared and stuff, so I think we're all set.

Edit:  After the Pre-Op

Harmony had me ask most of her questions, got satisfying answers, and were really put at ease.  Shiela, the nurse, and Dr. Foster all really gave a great impression today, though they were very busy again.  The surgery will be about 30 minutes, and she'll be ready to come home on Thursday if she wants, though we may wait until Friday morning to leave.

She finally decided on an 'exemplar' photo, along with three others (of Eden Moore, Dors Feline, and Lorna Morgan)

[Ladon]

Well, tomorrow after school we 'book it' to Tahoe and get the deal done on Wednesday!  I was looking for tips on helping her recover, aside from some Palmer's and a lot of (hands-off) attention to her needs.  Didn't find much in that department, but I found some LMAO threads, mostly people saying either to prepare for a divorce or how much better natural breasts are. :p  There were a few great puns though.

Anyway, we'll be sure to keep ya'll abreast of the situation.

Hope the surgery isn't a bust...   

La -wait...I hope it IS! -don

[MasterDragonfly]

Just be her go-fer. Help her stand up, help her sit/lay down, help her change her clothes.

Remember to set her expectations: Her boobs will NOT have dropped-and-fluffed inside of 3 days. She will probably be a bit taken aback at how peculiar they look. But they WILL sort themselves out, you'll need to remind her of that repeatedly.

The physical support will be a big detail. But the emotional support will be fairly significant as well.

Brace for impact.

[Ladon]

I already have those bases covered - I'm taking two days off school which will give me 6 days with her without interruption, after which she should be able to at least get around a little.  Her main restriction from the Dr. was to avoid raising her hands above her head for 6 weeks.

I was astonished by the number of "wife had boob job, wants divorce" threads out there!  Not going that direction, I'm sure, but it was distracting.

One blog post I read detailed a lady's reaction to her (moderate) augmentation in the days after surgery:  She thought she looked like a circus freak, just huge.    Over time she liked them a lot more, but she had been a B and asked for a "full C", and ended up in a D.  My favorite comment from the blog was that her husband and her SISTER were asking to see them on an almost daily basis.    She eventually switched from saline to silicone later.

We probably would have taken silicone if it were available in the size she wanted.  I wish they'd fix this foolishness with the FDA.   Either way, the saline was cheaper by a grand, and they'll be great anyway.

[MasterDragonfly]

The 6 weeks restriction seems a little excessive. I'm sure she'll be feeling quite a bit more able to move her arms at 10 days post-op, if not sooner. My guess is that he's just playing the "extreme caution" card. In general: avoid sudden movements, and if it hurts, don't do it.

You'll have to remind me: Is she going under the muscle? If so, then anything which involves those muscles will be pretty tender for at least 3 days.

I think the old guideline of "don't lift anything more than 10 lbs" is appropriate here. I would say nothing more than 2 lbs for the first few days, if she can avoid doing so.

The "wife had boob job, wants divorce" is just noise. People rarely post "things are great here, nothing new to report". Also bear in mind that it's financially easier to get a boobjob when the marriage appears to be stable, as that becomes a shared expense. Once the divorce card has been played, it's not necessarily quite so shared. (Depending on local laws, of course. I defer to our local legal expert. ) Point being, those relationships were likely already in trouble, and the woman was strategizing, not the least of which was to improve her sex appeal before pulling the plug.

[Ladon]

I really have to praise the girls at the Tahoe Clinic again, they were all so awesome.

I was able to sit with her while the Valium took effect, then I got to pace in the waiting room.  Well...actually I got to sit and read my history book (Darwin, specifically).  Anyway, it wasn't too long before Sheila called me back to the exam room where she was recovering.  She slept for probably an hour or more, even they said the sedation hit her harder than most, the other girl that was there had already awakened and walked to the car on her own.  Harmony had to get a wheelchair.

She got 960 saline shells overfilled to 1000, they look huge at the moment, but no bruising is visible around the compression garment.  I couldn't help but take a couple pictures while she was resting in the recovery room, all covered with a blanket.  She's already authorized me to post any pictures I want, but I'll still run them by her first.

Doc said she can lift in increments of 10 lbs a week, as a guideline, and as MDF said, common sense applies.  Sheila said the main reason for the restriction on arm lifting is in how the implants settle.  She has one that isn't settling as well as the other, but it's only been three weeks since her upgrade to 800s.  (She's gorgeous, IMO, though definitely a MILF.)

The only thing that might give her a problem is getting into our bed at home, should she so desire.  The top is probably four feet from the floor, and usually she needs a stool to help her climb up.  I may have to make some adjustments.

I couldn't help but laugh about this:  She asked for some ginger ale and crackers so she could take her first lortab, and promptly ended up with soda down her shirt.   

Mentor has an 'extended warranty' for the implants, an extra five years, covering the replacement implant and the cost of the suite, and Dr. Foster waives the surgeon's fee if an implant fails.  (Of course, if he retires before then, we'd eat that cost.)  I wonder if it's worth the extra peace of mind?  We have 90 days to decide, so she can see how things are settling, if she decides to get a revision between now and then, it's just an extra $100 sunk.

She's happily sleeping it off now, we're hoping to drive home tomorrow, before the snow hits on Friday.  We have chains, and it's just down the hill, but safety is best.  Pics to come soon.

[MasterDragonfly]

Fantastic update!

I should have added: take pics, lots of pics. Not for us (other than what you're in the mood to share), but so that you have a photo journal. Make note of the date, watch the progress over time. Front and side. Maybe log her subjective perceptions into a journal as well. Could be a running email to yourselves.

If something happens to crop up, you can go back to Dr Foster and say "well on Day 5 such-and-such happened, she said she felt this thing, I checked and noticed whatever, etc". Beats the crap out of "we're not sure really... sometime in the first week... or maybe the second week... possibly the third week... no I'm pretty sure it was the second week... I think?"

Hope the drive was uneventful.

[Ladon]

Yup, perfectly clear and beautiful the whole way, except for some smoke on the way down through Placerville, there were supposed to be some controlled burns today according to road signs.

She's having a bit more pain today but by far not as bad as she expected.  Mostly in the armpit-side of the left breast, but compression helps a lot.  The biggest complaint has been itching?  Must be due to nerve irritation and skin stretching, I'd guess. She's been using ice on and off, and Dr. Foster ran her through how to do the massage to help them soften.  

Speaking of which, I got my first glimpse of her bare chest during that demonstration, and it was absolutely exquisite.  He said 1000ccs was the perfect shape for her, and I can see why.  The only visible marks were the lines he drew on her skin, and the little tape strips under her breasts, no bruising at all.  Her IV site bled more than her incisions.  I cannot wait to see how they settle, they're gorgeous as of now.

It's funny you mention a photo journal, we talked about that this morning.  

She's calling, gotta run.

EDIT: Photos!
She wanted a short break from her bra, so she went ahead and did a short massage and asked for a little cocoa butter on the top part of her breasts and her tummy, to help reduce the itching.  She invited me for a nibble to see if she could feel her nipples, which she can't yet, but there was a strong antiseptic taste so I stopped pretty quick, that might be what was causing the itchiness.  I showed her the pictures and she vetoed a few of them, but decided she would pose for another while she had the bra off.  I don't know what I did, but I must be winning.

I had a chance to admire the peaks outside the office window, before I got to see Harmony's new twin peaks in the exam room. At first I thought she had her arms crossed over her chest...
Copyright Ladon 2011

[Ladon]

After she got to the hotel room, the view was startling but just a hint of the whole picture...

Copyright Ladon 2011

[Ladon]

Finally, the reveal was well worth the wait...  She said WOW when she saw them in the mirror, but that they weren't quite as big as she hoped they'd be.  I told her they would probably fluff a little, even if only because her skin will stretch some, but she's always welcome to plan for an upgrade in the future if she so desires.

Copyright Ladon 2011

[MasterDragonfly]

They're looking surprisingly good, given she only had her surgery yesterday.

They will continue to look better and better (yet another reason for the photo journal).

Yesterday was the 16th, so... be sure to take more pics on Dec 7th (3 weeks hence). Obviously, take more pics between now and then; I merely mention 3 weeks out, so that you have a definitive date to shoot for.

Next milestone (6 weeks post-op) will be Dec 27th. Guaranteed they will look quite a bit better than they do now.

The itching could well be the result of the skin stretching. Keep up with the cocoa butter, as that will definitely pay off.

Enjoy! (As if I needed to tell you that. )

[Scott13183]

That's pretty wild that she only had surgery a day before in that last pic.  You can barely tell.  Congrats to you both.

[sonic2at]

Spectacular result! Now the usually time for patience has come, look but behave. *smiles* from my own experience i could say the anticipation was killing me

[Ladon]

She's feeling a lot more pain today, my guess is the long-acting anesthetic they used took longer than usual to dissipate for her.  Still more pain on the left than on the right, but there's no sign of infection, swelling, or drainage.  When I woke her for the 2am dose of vicodin, she woke up saying, "Ow ow ow ow ow!"  6am was better, and she was right back to sleep.  We'll see once the day progresses, I'm thinking it's worth a call to the office, if only to be told everything is fine.

Keeping up with the cocoa butter, ice on and off, and compression.  We had talked about me going to school today, but I think I'm going to cut (as planned) to be here for her.  She wanted me to massage them yesterday afternoon, which was something else.  The tightness is rather impressive, she feels like she's ready to pop.  The implants do have a little bit of mobility when massaged, but not much yet.  Her areolae sort of 'pooch out' where they meet the normal skin of her breast, something I've seen on photos but hers were never firm enough to exhibit this.  She was regaining some sensation in her nipples last night, another reason I think the anesthetic just took a day to wear off.

We did try her in one of her 40H bras, just for a minute to see how it fit.  She didn't quite fill the cups, but they followed her shape perfectly, my guess would be for a perfect fit once they settle.  If anything, a 38 band size might help, or a different brand.  Casique assumes plus-sized girls have natural breasts, but not all companies seem to, so we'll be bra shopping soon enough.

[Ladon]

The pain has been fairly significant over yesterday and today, though she's able to keep herself distracted on her laptop for the most part.  She called the Dr. and got swapped to codeine and Tylenol, from vicodin, which seems to be helping.  For some reason, hydrocodone just makes her sleepyish, but doesn't really affect the pain.  Even with the codeine she's still having some soreness when she tries to move around much.

Her skin seems to be loosening a touch, and she asked for some nursing pads to cushion her nipples now that they've got sensation back.  She's also started to get some light bruising in her cleavage area, the skin there seems to be making the most progress.  I also noticed she used to have a little wrinkle between her breast and her armpit (making a Y shape with the arm) which the implants have eliminated.

She's struggling to do the massage, because they're still so tender.  I've reminded her that the routine will probably speed her recovery, but it doesn't help when it hurts.

She managed to take a shower with my help today, her hair was a disaster.  Her hair is naturally very curly and tends toward tangles anyway, so laying on it for several days didn't do any favors.  She was really feeling poorly after I finally got her hair done, and sorta crashed on the couch, but after some rest she's feeling much better after getting washed up.  I hope she's able to be up and around a little more in the next few days, she wants to go see my mom on Wednesday and stay for the holiday, and she won't be able to do it the way she feels now.

Sorry if I'm just posting mundane stuff, but I figure it might be of interest to someone.  She didn't want to do a journal, but said I could post one for her, so I'm making sure to keep tabs on how she feels.

[MasterDragonfly]

Going from memory, the first 3-5 days were the worst for cherri. Strongly tempted to say the first 3, with noticeable improvements in the discomfort on day 4, and again on day 5.

cherri doesn't much care for the Hydrocodone, either.

My guess is she'll be feeling quite a bit better come Thanksgiving. Assuming you still want to spend it with your mom. Just don't expect her to be doing any of the cooking/cleaning up.

[Ladon]

Hmm, the bruising has mostly cleared up, but she's having quite a bit of pain even with the meds.  She said last night that it was mostly when she moved her arms much, the sides of her ribcage would hurt (as though it were from her implants pushing toward her armpits.)  Keeping up on the massage as best we can, considering the pain.  Her skin seems to be softening noticeably, when she moves certain ways she has nice cleavage, whereas her breasts were fairly immobile on Thursday and Friday.  Still no sign of infection or other irritation of the sutures, just aches when she moves around.

She pushed herself to get showered and out of the house yesterday, so we went on an errand to Wal*Mart. She wasn't very comfortable but she managed it.

I'm beginning to think the bra they provided isn't enough support or compression or something, it's basically just soft lycra with a front closure.  She got a little relief when I wrapped her with an ace bandage over the bra, and ice is helping some too.  She keeps trying to skip doses of her pain meds, which might be adding to the problem as well.

[MasterDragonfly]

Ice! That's actually a great idea. I think? Might want to check with the doc on that one.

Also find out from the doc whether skipping pain meds is a good idea. It's possible the body might tense up unconsciously in ways which will contribute to the overall aggravation and possibly slow down recovery.

She shouldn't push herself. If she's getting stir crazy, then going out for a walk wouldn't be bad. But she shouldn't be shopping, unless you're the one doing the lifting/pushing. Including her purse.

Short walks. Frequent rest breaks. Stay hydrated. Probably easy on the caffeine. And of course, no booze until the pain meds are done.

If you check with the surgeon's office, they may have recommendations for alternatives. It's all about pain management.

[Ladon]

Yup, you got it.  Ice is fine in small doses, keeping it on for too long slows down the circulation too much.  They say 15 minutes at a time.

We were actually just returning a set of chains we got for the trip to Tahoe, so there wasn't any lifting, just a short walk really, no purse.  Even so, the walking was what hurt, moving around seems to cause bouncing, which causes ouch.  :p  Good point about the meds, I'll talk to her about calling the office about that.  It's mostly that she feels comfortable enough that she keeps forgetting she needs them until she wants to move.

She's keeping on top of the fluids, no caffeine, no alcohol or the other things on the list of no-nos we got.  She was taking Arnica Montana sublingual, which the nurse said would be fine, and would help somewhat, but she ran out last night.  Arnica works well for her headaches and is indicated for bruising and aching muscles.  I should get some more on my way home from school tomorrow.

Today has been a bit more painful than necessary; she decided to do without the bra last night and found out why she's supposed to wear it 24/7 while she heals.

We both thank you for keeping an eye on the thread MDF, the insight is very helpful.  I'll remind her to call the office tomorrow to ask about any suggestions.

[Ladon]

Here I am again.

She got some muscle relaxers on Wednesday, and she's already feeling good enough to think she should wean herself off the meds again. :p  She's gotta drive me and J to school on Tuesday, he gets out before I do and I can't leave him for an hour until I get out.  Anyway, she's feeling much better, though the pain still bothers her when she does too much.  She woke me up this morning with a nice long nursing session, which was spectacular, though she said her nipples were giving her weird pains.

When we got to my mom's, my uncle immediately had to bring up that 'something got bigger'.  XD  She spilled the beans, and everyone seemed okay with it.  My grandmother (the one I thought would be really weird about it) said she would get hers done if she had the cash.  :p  Uncle took me aside later and told me he didn't know why I wanted her to get implants, but they look good on her. She was intentionally squicking my mom's BF (oddly enough, Harmony's ex) by suggesting she might want to get them even bigger sometime in the future.  He likes them, but hates the idea of surgery.

They're already looking noticeably better than the first day, and feeling softer.  Nursing was odd, as they're ten times firmer than before.  It's a little like suckling on a beachball or two.   They were very fluffy before, and the difference is astonishing.

[MasterDragonfly]

Excellent. Very good indeed.