Top Surgery Recovery Updates (a place for all members to update after surgery)

[mm]

Dex, I hope you continue to have a good recovery.  Was your oophorectomy done through a small incision so little muscle repair was necessary.  I look forward to having my ovaries/uterus removed so no more monthly bleeding to be concerned about every month.  I know top surgery results wills be great too.

[MacG]

Mm, are you asking me? Luckily I had a laparoscopic oophorectomy., so two tiny incisions and one small. Both surgeons have been by and things look good. I'm incredibly sore.

[JandJ]

dont worry, its an impossibility for your nipples to change color permanently just because they were operated on....it took 2 months or even more for me to get my normal nipple color back....doesnt come back til they are 100% fully healed....theyre just irritated right now like a wound

Oh yes, I get that - I was just concerned they might be getting infected or something because they wer SO red.  This morning I decided to clean them of all the gooey stuff and just leave them to get some air for a while and already they look better and less red 😎 - or maybe not?

Thanks for the replies - I do appreciate it.

[jumpthenexttrain]

Somehow I missed 3 other guys getting surgery done.  Usually I am on top of this thread.  Congrats to JandJ, Amadeus, and jumpthenexttrain.

JandJ and jumpthenexttrain, who were your surgeons?

JandJ, try not to worry too much about what you are seeing right now.  There is swelling and craziness that goes on with the skin before it settles down.

jumpthenexttrain, how are you healing up now?

My surgeon was Dr. Gregory Baum in Syracuse NY. He's a regular plastic surgeon, not specifically known to the Trans community. He's only an hour drive from me and accepted my insurance and they covered the whole thing except for $150 copay so I jumped on that opportunity.

I had my drain out from the second surgery on Tuesday. So my right side which didn't have any complications is almost 2 weeks post op, and my left side is now 2 weeks from the original surgery and one week since the second surgery to repair the hematoma. My right side feels pretty good, still sore and a bit swollen but not bad. My left side is more swollen and sore than the right.

How long did it take for you guys to have swelling go down? I spent forever standing in the mirror, worrying if they left too much tissue behind and worrying that I'd have man boobs :/

[jumpthenexttrain]

Front view




Bad side which had the hematoma and is now a week post op from the second surgery

Good side which is 2 weeks post op


I know both sides still have some fluid (the bad side has more) and have plenty of swelling left to go down but at first I was like noooooooo. The good side is acceptable to me cuz I had some pec muscle before surgery but the bad side side freaked me out. I don't have "man boobs" Do i?

[AleksiJason]

Oh yes, I get that - I was just concerned they might be getting infected or something because they wer SO red.  This morning I decided to clean them of all the gooey stuff and just leave them to get some air for a while and already they look better and less red 😎 - or maybe not?

Thanks for the replies - I do appreciate it.

If they aren't turning yellow or green dont worry....inflammation is normal....yellow or green means infection.....mine became tinted greenish yellow for 1-2 weeks but i decided to let it go but planning on seeing a doc if it got worse but luckily it didnt and went away on its own

[FTMax]

Brett, here are the nips I promised you 



Tape started dropping off yesterday in the shower. The rest came off today. The purple along the incision is Dr. Fischer's line - whatever kind of marker she used, it does not want to come off. Overall, very happy with it. There's a lot of caked on blood around my right nipple. The ends of the line under my armpits where the drains were are probably the worst looking.

[Bimmer Guy]

ftmax,

Looks great.  Fischer rocks.  Are you pleased with it?

[Bimmer Guy]

My surgeon was Dr. Gregory Baum in Syracuse NY. He's a regular plastic surgeon, not specifically known to the Trans community. He's only an hour drive from me and accepted my insurance and they covered the whole thing except for $150 copay so I jumped on that opportunity.

I had my drain out from the second surgery on Tuesday. So my right side which didn't have any complications is almost 2 weeks post op, and my left side is now 2 weeks from the original surgery and one week since the second surgery to repair the hematoma. My right side feels pretty good, still sore and a bit swollen but not bad. My left side is more swollen and sore than the right.

How long did it take for you guys to have swelling go down? I spent forever standing in the mirror, worrying if they left too much tissue behind and worrying that I'd have man boobs :/

Outside of the swelling on the sides, I really didn't have that much at the time of removal of the bandages at day 6.

[jumpthenexttrain]

My bio male friend told me it looks fine and to stop freaking out lol. So I think I'll just relax and wait for everything to settle

[FTMax]

ftmax,

Looks great.  Fischer rocks.  Are you pleased with it?

Very pleased. I'm still a bit swollen where she did some extra lipo under my arms, but once that goes down, I have no issues with anything else. I think she did a great job.

[AleksiJason]

i still had a large majority of swelling until at least 2 months post op....and 5 or 6 months for it all to go away

i went to garramone and most post op guys dont have swelling during their post op reveal but i had a lot

probably depends on your body

[MacG]

3 days post-op di top. My left chest feels like it's vibrating sometimes. Like maybe a muscle spasm. It really feels like I'm holding a small vibratory on low there. Is this common? It doesn't hurt, but if it bothers me more, I'll contact my surgeon's office.

[FTMax]

3 days post-op di top. My left chest feels like it's vibrating sometimes. Like maybe a muscle spasm. It really feels like I'm holding a small vibratory on low there. Is this common? It doesn't hurt, but if it bothers me more, I'll contact my surgeon's office.

I have had a few small muscle spasms in the chest area in the last week. Short-lived, not painful. Right below the incision line. Maybe things are getting reconnected?

[MacG]

Maybe.  seems soon. It's really a fast vibration. And it doesn't hurt. It feels like if I had my phone on vibrate laying in my chest and a call comes in. Zzzzzt zzzzzzzzzt a few times then done for a while.
No burning at all, like I'd expect with nerves healing.

[AleksiJason]

the nerves are reconnecting....

[Konnor]

I guess I'll add my photo to the mix! I'm about a month and a half post-op with Dr. Medalie. I'm happy with my results, just waiting for the swelling to continue to go down (mostly in my abdomen from the lipo). I have a small dog ear on the right side but it's not too bad and might still settle out.

I started using the ScarAway long strips this week. They stick pretty well on the first application, but after I wash them and air dry them, the ends won't stick anymore. I have some chest hair but not a lot. Are there tricks to using these things??

I also got the ScarAway gel, but am hesitant to use it. I can't feel it on my chest once it dries so I'm afraid it won't be effective. What was your experiences in the effectiveness of gel vs strips? Thanks guys!

[FTMax]

Konnor, you look great!

[jumpthenexttrain]

Update: I lightly wrapped my chest with an ace bandage for a few hours and the swelling went down some thank god. I'm not a patient person, I just want to be healed already. Happy with how my chest is turning out though.

[MacG]

Rotator cuff injury?
I'm 5 days post-op DI. Since surgery, my left shoulder has hurt, with the pain ramping up while surgical pain gets less intense.
I can't move my arm in specific  directions. Could this be caused by the position of my arm during surgery? Anybody else experience this?
If the pain gets worse, I'll get ahold of one of the surgical residents, and I have my post-op in three days anyway.
Until then, my chest is wrapped in Ace bandages and gauze, so I don't get to see yet.