A Second Chapter

Author: Anne

  • Rewind: One Week Post-Op Outing

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    Anne
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    And, before I knew it, it was time for my one week post-op visit with my doctor. Had it really only been one week since my DIEP flap surgery and I was feeling well enough to enjoy a po-boy for lunch with my beau?!? Roughly one week after my initial mastectomy surgery in 2017, I…

  • Three Steps Forward, Two Steps Back

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    Anne
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    Ha, well so much for that reminder. Our “last day” in New Orleans started out so well. We had mostly finished packing everything up the night before because we knew we would be out most of our last full day in the city. First up, I surprised Bill with a porch swing pedicure that morning,…

  • Rewind: The First Days at “Home”

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    Anne
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    When we made the final decision that we’d be heading down to NOLA for my DIEP flap surgery, the next order of business was to find somewhere to stay. I couldn’t imagine staying in some boring ass, non-descript hotel room, even though the Center works with many local hotels to offer their patients a discount.…

  • Three Weeks Post-Op

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    Anne
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    What a difference two weeks can make. When I last left you, I was most frequently identifying with Lurch and showing off my new Frankenbelly (and my new bruised, swollen and scarred breasts). The scars were looking especially angry as you’ll recall thanks to my allergic reaction to the surgical glue they used to suture…

  • Rewind: The Hospital Stay

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    Anne
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    Honestly, I don’t remember much from my time at the Shagri La Hospital that is St. Charles Surgical Hospital and what I did, I’ve already written about so I’ll mostly just let the photos speak for themselves.. [[ Insert shower day here, but unfortunately no pics because my personal photographer had to learn how to…

  • Up Down Up Down Right Round

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    Anne
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    Yesterday was a fantastic day. Yesterday, after going several hours past my next pain medicine dosage and feeling not too bad, I decided I no longer needed the Tramadol (woot!) and popped only extra strength Tylenol. Yesterday I showered. All by myself! (Still took a good bit longer than normal, but I’ll take it)! Yesterday…

  • Rewind: The Surgery-Stage One

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    Anne
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    My Fitbit alarm gently woke me from my valium-induced slumber at o’dark thirty the morning of my DIEP flap surgery. Thanks to one of those little pale pink pills, I slept pretty well the night before, but that doesn’t mean I was still happy to be rising before the sun. First order of business was…

  • Frankenbelly

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    Anne
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    (Warning: somewhat gory photos follow, but I feel it’s important for others who may be considering this or a similar procedure to know what the early aftermath of surgery can look like, even though we’re all different and thus, heal differently, as well.) You rang? In my normal life, I’m no Lurch, but thanks to…

  • Rewind: First 48hrs in NOLA

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    Anne
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    Some 20+ hours after leaving hot & sunny Denver, we pulled into hot and sweaty NOLA, feeling pretty hot and sweaty ourselves thanks to an A/C drain pipe that got clogged somewhere between Pueblo, CO and Amarillo, TX. It started innocently enough with a few drops under the dash on the passenger side landing on…

  • And Then There Was One

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    Anne
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    Elation. That’s what I’m feeling today. One week post-op from my extended bi-lateral DIEP flap and I have already had four drains reduced to ONE! (Oh, hope you didn’t think I was talking about only having one breast, still definitely have two of those. Thank goodness!) At LEAST 4 out of 4 women who have…