Pre op for Reconstruction Surgery

Note: this is not a “bitch” session, but just tired person getting ready for reconstruction surgery on Monday, arrival at 530 am.

This breast cancer “stuff” has taken a lot and I’m down to my final HER2 treatments, and reconstruction surgery. Oh, the hair growth as well: excited that it’s coming in --- but I look like Kramer from Seinfeld. It’s crazy.

Getting ready for major surgery (I’m doing the kind that involves taking stomach fat and moving it up to make new boobs. It’s 8-10 hours with three nights in the hospital. I’m bummed that this time surgery is at Baylor instead of Medical City, because I know my way around Medical City Dallas and something new unsettles me. It also means a new online portal, new patient set up, etc. And I feel this year I am on every online healthcare portal and setting up as a new patient frequently.

Pre op for surgery

·         Meeting with Dr. Beale to go over the date of surgery: October 11. He also doesn’t think I have enough belly fat to be Cs (I don’t care). I have to be “on call the week of October 4 to answer any calls to get set up. I also set up another pre op appointment with Dr. Beale to go over everything the Thursday before surgery.

·         Baylor registration calls, but not when I expected. I was on vacation in Tennessee. But, got that taken care of.

·         Bonnie at Baylor calls on Sunday afternoon, again, not when I expected. This is to schedule a COVID test (find out that Baylor requires even if you’re vaccinated). I don’t want to keep going back to Baylor for tests, so I put her off.

·         Bonnie at Baylor calls on Tuesday afternoon, but again doesn’t have any other tests on record yet.

·         Thursday, appointment at Dr. Beale’s office. It’s picture day – nothing more unsettling than standing naked in this cold room (I took my shoes off even though they weren’t in the pictures because that’s just odd). They give me a packet with nutrition stuff and rules, etc. Oh, and bra stuff (already have) and compression garment stuff (don’t have so need to get since I’ll be wearing 8-10 weeks). Again, not sure that I have enough belly fat. What I get, I get. I really don’t want to go back for more. They also give me a 7 am Baylor lab work appointment (blood and “other stuff”) and 830 am pre-op doctor appointment (don’t know what)

·         Friday morning, pre op at Baylor

o   Check in (first I had to find out where to go) and make my $75 copayment for the procedure

o   Labs – bloodwork (they use different tape than Medical City and I still have the bruises) and COVID swap (they let you choose your nostril) and EKG (you know, those little probes you hook up all over your body for a few seconds)

o   Pre-op doctor’s appointment: height, weight, blood pressure, review my EKG (say mine is perfect) and then ask a bunch of health questions (same ones I keep getting asked over and over, but he’s nice about it). I am not really in the Baylor system so it seems a bit silly to be asked if I’ve ever had cancer…

o   Pick up prescriptions at CVS – antibiotics, baby aspirin, valium, other pain pills, stuff to help poop – along with more Miralax (more stuff to help poop)

o   Go on Amazon and order a Spanx compression garment (ouch at $75) and some Juven nutrients (ouch, expensive, but I don’t like Ensure and this is orange and fruit punch flavored and you can mix it with Sprite or water). I haven't tried Juven yet, so I'll let you know how that goes.

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o   Saturday afternoon, I get a call from a person at Baylor – it feels to do all of the stuff AGAIN that I already answered. Again, super nice, but not much sense of humor – and I’m losing mine in a sarcastic way at this point, but you have to temper sarcasm with health care people lest they believe you. She also seemed really surprised that Tony wasn’t going to sit in a waiting room all day while I’m in surgery (I’m having him throw me out of the car, hoping that they give updates to him like Medical City so he knows when he can come with my overnight bag – PJs, toothbrush, kindle and laptop and charge cords).

o   Saturday: my delivery from Amazon comes. The Spanx DEFINITELY don’t fit – the reviews said that they are true to size, but I couldn’t get them over my thunder thighs, let alone up all of the way to even be close to covering my butt and over my waist – and couldn’t imagine even wearing them anytime soon after surgery! Maybe I’m not a Spanx “true to size.” They would definitely compress if I could get them on to compress. And I think it’d be like Scarlette Ohara getting laced up for her corset, only these are stretchy pull ups – I would need laces to get anywhere close to getting this sucker on. So, returned, dropped off at UPS and reordered. No clue if they’ll fit or I’ll be trying for a third size. Or just wearing the one that they give me at the hospital for 8-10 weeks.

o   Sunday: assume that I’m going to get a call telling me when to show up (guess 530 am), along with a call from the anesthesiologist. In the meantime, prepping for a week away from home in the hospital by working, packing, showering.

Looking forward to this next chapter to be written. I’m not sure how I feel about getting new boobs and a tummy tuck. I just got off my wii fit and may get back on to do a final weigh in. Looks like I won’t be very mobile the first couple of weeks.