How long after top surgery do you usually have limited mobility?

[yarblockos]

I'm going to be a high school senior at the end of August, and I'm hoping that I can get top surgery done in December, around Christmas time. I get about two weeks of vacation for Christmas/New Year's, so I was hoping that I'd have the procedure done early in my holiday (or I'd be out of school a few days beforehand if need be) so I can recover during my days off. My only concern is that even with two weeks to recover from surgery, it might not be enough to put me back in shape to go to school again. Next summer is always an option as well, but I have a lot of ideas for travel plans then (because I'll have graduated high school and I want to go a few places), plus I'd like to go swimming and all that good stuff, and I don't want surgery or recovery from surgery getting in the way then.

So, if you've had surgery already, how long did it take for you to regain sufficient use of your arms and the ability to walk around comfortably? I mean, being at school and sitting in a chair doesn't really take a lot of effort. But if you're someone who had to schedule surgery around school or work, how did you handle it? Thanks!

[Brendon]

Disclaimer!: I have not had surgery yet. I'm really just going off things I've watched/read on the internet.

I was under the impression that it would take somewhere around 4-6 weeks to regain complete/near complete mobility. I certainly wouldn't advise carrying a back pack 2 weeks after surgery. You'd probably be better off getting it early in the summer, if you can deal with moving around your summer plans. I'm sure someone who has had surgery will come along soon, and hopefully they'll be more helpful than I am.

On another note, I'm super jealous. I'll be a senior too, and I have nowhere near enough money to get surgery next summer (though I really want to get this done before college). How did you manage to get that much money already, haha  Regardless, good luck with your surgery.

[JohnAlex]

I know this is kind of off topic, but I'm interested, how are you able to get surgery in high school?  I didn't know it could be done under age 18.  or at that young of an age.


And I'm sorry I can't help you because I have not had surgery yet.

[yarblockos]

I know this is kind of off topic, but I'm interested, how are you able to get surgery in high school?  I didn't know it could be done under age 18.  or at that young of an age.


And I'm sorry I can't help you because I have not had surgery yet.

I'm turning eighteen at the end of November. By the time I want to be getting surgery I'll legally be an adult.

[yarblockos]

Disclaimer!: I have not had surgery yet. I'm really just going off things I've watched/read on the internet.

I was under the impression that it would take somewhere around 4-6 weeks to regain complete/near complete mobility. I certainly wouldn't advise carrying a back pack 2 weeks after surgery. You'd probably be better off getting it early in the summer, if you can deal with moving around your summer plans. I'm sure someone who has had surgery will come along soon, and hopefully they'll be more helpful than I am.

On another note, I'm super jealous. I'll be a senior too, and I have nowhere near enough money to get surgery next summer (though I really want to get this done before college). How did you manage to get that much money already, haha  Regardless, good luck with your surgery.

My parents are really supportive and have come a long way in terms of accepting the situation. So while we're not in the greatest financial situation right now, they understand that (for me, anyway) surgery is something I need to have, not something I simply want and not something I can really wait years and years for. After a rich friend of my dad's passed away, he left my brothers and I each about thirteen thousand dollars to put in the bank "for college." I'm hoping I'll be able to use that money for surgery instead and still be able to pay my way through college with loans and scholarship money because, not to sound like a bragging know-it-all snob, but I get straight A's so I'm hoping that'll get me some academic-based scholarships.
Best wishes to you though, in getting surgery as soon as possible! I know how irritating and frustrating it is to have to wait any amount of time for something you need so badly.

[Adio]

I had top surgery 4 weeks ago and I have relatively full range-of-motion now.  The first two weeks though were difficult.  I was supposed to be able to drive a car by 2 weeks but it hurt too badly (steering and seat belt).  At 3 weeks I was able to drive around town, and now I don't have a problem with it.  Still can't drive long distances but that wasn't really your question...lol Just to give you an idea of time/movement.

I probably couldn't have carried a book bag and especially not a messenger bag.  If you have a locker, that might make things easier.  I think you'll be okay as long as you don't have to hurry between classes, have an easy way to store books, and aren't going to play sports. 

[Robert Scott]

Here in MN ... Dr. Tholen will do top surgery on ftm who are under 18 with parental consent

[Jigsaw]

I get my surgery next month and when I spoke to Dr. Garramone he told me it depends on my body's healing rate, but normally it takes 4-6 weeks.

[Brendon]

I know this is kind of off topic, but I'm interested, how are you able to get surgery in high school?  I didn't know it could be done under age 18.  or at that young of an age.


And I'm sorry I can't help you because I have not had surgery yet.

I know Dr. Medalie in Ohio will operate on minors with parental consent. There is a guy on youtube who went to him when he was 17.

[yarblockos]

I think I'm gonna be going with Dr. Fischer because she's within an hour's drive of where I live, which entirely eliminates flight and hotel costs. Plus, from what I hear she's among the top four or five surgeons for FtM top surgery in the US. But like I said before, I'll be eighteen when I get surgery no matter what, so age isn't an issue for me.

[mm]

Great you have your family's support. 2 weeks is short, better if you could get a few day either before or at the end of the Chrisitmas vacation.  How large are you, which precedure do you expect to get?  It would be great to have the surgery over Christmas and then hopefully be healed to be able to swim next summer topless.  Are you attend school now as a guy?

Mine is still a few years off to have enough money saved.  Good luck to you.

[yarblockos]

Great you have your family's support. 2 weeks is short, better if you could get a few day either before or at the end of the Chrisitmas vacation.  How large are you, which precedure do you expect to get?  It would be great to have the surgery over Christmas and then hopefully be healed to be able to swim next summer topless.  Are you attend school now as a guy?

Mine is still a few years off to have enough money saved.  Good luck to you.

I'm hoping to get peri-areolar (I hear Fischer is excellent with that procedure), but double-incision would be fine with me too. I'm about 5'4 and 115 pounds with about an A cup chest, although I know other factors go into choosing between peri vs. DI (skin elasticity, sagging, etc.) so I'm not entirely sure what I'll be going with. And as of right now, I'm in an extremely "androgynous" in-between state when it comes to school. My passing rate for people who don't know me is kind of erratic, sometimes I'm read as a boy, sometimes as a girl, and many times people don't know what I am. Many of my friends know and respect my situation and pronoun requests, and my first name is unisex so I'm not too in a hurry to change it. However, due to binding and how small my chest already is, I figure that getting surgery won't make any difference to how others perceive me, considering that even those who still think I'm a "girl" can see that I'm entirely "flat chested." So getting surgery would be entirely for my own personal comfort as opposed to passing. But if it weren't for my parents' supportiveness, I'd probably have no chance of getting surgery any time soon, so I'm very thankful for that.
Good luck to you too.

[Radar]

I took 2 weeks off from work and when I returned I did just fine. I have an office job though but it's recommended for guys who do alot of physical stuff at work (like some blue colour jobs) to be out for 6 weeks.

Getting up, walking around and going places is fine after a few days- but if you get tired rest and don't push yourself. I'm thinking after 2 weeks you can return to school except there will be alot of restrictions.

For 4-6 weeks you can't lift anything over 5 lbs., lift your arms above your head (buttoned shirts are your friend) and you'll have limited arm movement. This is not only to prevent tearing but it helps reduce the scarring. Absolutely no PE or sports. You'll have to take life easy & slow during this time.

As for wanting to go swimming you're not supposed to expose your scars to sunlight for about a year because it will darken the scars.

[emil]

I had peri exactly two weeks ago, i can drive fine by now but parking is still annoying and so is using the stick-shift (not an American problem). I don't have full range of movement yet, e.g. i can't reach up all the way to close my car's trunk and it's a small car. also i can't lift much, and you're not allowed to lift heavy stuff for 4 weeks. So in the beginning two pounds of flour and a small bottle of water were too much, now i can lift a water melon but a heavy backpack still isn't a good idea. I could go back to school, even though i lost a good amount of blood and fainted twice in the first two days after surgery....and it would have been okay to go by the beginning of the week i think, but i would have needed a lot more time  than usual to get ready and occasional help with certain things. Some doors at campus are still too heavy for me to open with my arms, so I need to use my full body weight! Also, a weight that seems okay to carry for a moment sometimes becomes painful after 5 minutes or so.

To sum it up, you will very likely be fit to go there and sit there and study. You may need help getting there or carrying your stuff around.

[bojangles]

I had no trouble walking & actually overdid it a little on the first day. Lifting things is another story. Maybe you can get a cute friend to carry your books.

Worst problem I had was dropping something on the floor & straining to get back up after bending down to pick it up. Avoid doing that.

[emil]

Oh another piece of advice here - do push-ups before going into surgery! I used to use my arms and shoulders to lift myself up after lying in bed, and you can't do that for quite a while, and it took me a while to figure out that i could use my belly muscles to lift me up (and those muscles had to grow first )

and if your desk at school is kinda high you may want to write with your notebook on your legs instead.