Top Surgery recovery time?

[sneakersjay]

I took 10 days off.  I have the equivalent of a desk job, not quite but not physical either.  I did have limited arm movement and couldn't reach the higher shelves or wall racks of papers and folders.  I wore my binder for protection the first few days.

I'd still take it easy.  You don't realize how much you use your upper body even when not lifting things, just by moving and bending and reaching etc.

FWIW I'm not the type to sit still or take it easy and tend to do too much too soon because I *hate* being incapacitated in any way.  I also take pain fairly well.  I also worked 1 day 4 days post hysto and went back regularly after a week... not recommended but that's me.

Jay

[tekla]

I have the equivalent of a desk job
FWIW I'm not the type to sit still or take it easy

Please justify these two ideas being in the same post.  I dare 'ya.

[sneakersjay]

lol tekla

I'm a computer database nerd so have to sit at a computer but do have to run around the office with paperwork also

but if someone tells me NO YOU CANT LIFT OR GO OUTSIDE then of course I just HAVE to lol

then I do things like run marathons and hike in my spare time to get the energy out.


Jay

[tekla]

You choose to be that, and you choose to sit at a desk.  Which is cool, everyone ought to know their limits, but sitting at a desk to me was like giving a 50 minute ->-bleeped-<- to someone who came in the first 30 seconds.  More work than it was worth.

[sneakersjay]

Very true.

It's mentally stimulating and financially rewarding, which is why I do it.  If it sucked I'd go do something else.  Though in this economy I'd just like to have a job.


Jay

[tekla]

All sorts of things might be 'financially rewarding' - but they suck.  Literally.

The 'guys' I know have more jobs than they can do, the rest, are looking for any job.  In any economy, no matter how depressed - and in many cases because of it - real jobs find the people who can do them, the rest?  Well, unemployment insurance exists for a reason I guess.

[Alexmakenoise]

lol tekla

I'm a computer database nerd so have to sit at a computer but do have to run around the office with paperwork also

but if someone tells me NO YOU CANT LIFT OR GO OUTSIDE then of course I just HAVE to lol

then I do things like run marathons and hike in my spare time to get the energy out.


Jay

I can totally relate to this.  I'm a lounge around most of the time and then RUN!!! type too.  I like things like having a job that requires me to sit still all day but choosing to walk as fast as I can to get to and from work.  And then lounging again after work.  Then banging on drums and practicing playing guitar while jumping up and down and spinning in circles for half an hour.  Then lounging again until bed-time.

I'm like a snake - I spend most of my time laying low and conserving energy, then let it out in short bursts.

I also like to try doing what I'm told I shouldn't do.  I'm a real sucker for "reverse psychology".   

[tekla]

I'm a real sucker for "reverse psychology".

Go out and be a success then.

[Alexmakenoise]

I'm a real sucker for "reverse psychology".

Go out and be a success then.

Case in point - self-deprecating humor doesn't always work online.

[tekla]

It always works for me.

[sneakersjay]

Mentally stimulating + financially rewarding = WIN

Financially rewarding - mental stimulation = FAIL

I work hard but then I play hard.  Best of both worlds.


Jay

[YoungSoulRebel]

For all you guys who have had top surgery, what was the recovery like? What did you have to do, how did you manage simple things like showering, when did you finally feel fit enough to carry on everyday life, etc etc...and how long did it take your scars to fade to a barely noticeable level?

I was able to do a lot of what i did before and since, few exceptions included:

*my laundry
*reaching into the freezer over my fridge,
*spraying the top leaves on my laurel for mildew

Dr. Wilson told me that I could "shower as normal", but I learned the hard way that is the LAST thing I should have done.  What happened?  The grafts got wet, couldn't dry completely between showers (his bindings are just large hunks of cotton sewn directly to the skin), and this led to them falling off.  I then had to argue with Dr. Wilson (and get my Enormous Room-mate in on it, as well) so the man would just fracking do a revision so I could look like a human being again -- and even then, he refused to admit that he did anything wrong.  It's been about eighteen months and I still don't have total feeling back in my underarms, either.

As for the scarring -- honestly, that's going to be more you than the surgeon.  Yeah, good surgeons will have little tricks to make certain scars less apparent, but depending on how much tissue will end up removed, certain scars are inevitable. If you scarred well before, then don't worry too much.  But I had keloids left-over from chicken pox when i was ten, so for scarring I expected the worst and ended up with something not quite as bad.


Post Merge: November 24, 2009, 03:26:08 AM

lol, I'd be thrilled if a surgeon made the scars look different...different enough I could mark them up to something else if questioned about it. Sadly the top surgery scars scream "boob removal" by their placement.

I don't think my scarring necessarily screams that, but then again, only a few of my neighbours has seen me with my shirt off (and none of my friends have).  Of course, in my case, so much tissue was removed that the scarring extends under both arms and a bit in on my back.  The only time I was asked about it, I said "I had an eighteen-pound growth that went across my chest removed, that's what happened to the nipples, too."  Technically not a lie, though I'm sure he probably thinks this means I had cancer of some variety.

[Miniar]

I want "perfect" symmetry in my scars tyvm.

[onebody]

I'm considering surgery this year but am really bothered about recovery time cuz I usually work in a warehouse, how long after can you lift 20+ lbs?

[Kreuzfidel]

I'm considering surgery this year but am really bothered about recovery time cuz I usually work in a warehouse, how long after can you lift 20+ lbs?

Your doctor can tell you more about that.

For myself, 6 weeks.

[aleon515]

Depends on what you mean by "recovery". 2-3 months after surgery people still sometimes ask me "how I am?" and it always seems weird.  I don't have any discomfort except that I still feel my incisions if I lift my arms over my head.

I had a DI with drains. I had the drains in for a week. It wasn't comfortable but after 3-4 days I was more stir crazy, itchy, and uncomfortable than anything. After two weeks I had this sensitive kind of sensation. Really nasty actually.
I could have gone back after one week after getting the drains out (So that's two weeks) for a desk job.

I had help around the house because I couldn't take out the garbage or do the litter box for a few weeks (limited to 5 lbs). After 3-4 weeks I could do those things.

I had Dr Garramone, he says 8 weeks til normal activity like exercise and so on.
You could take walks and so, I think he doesn't want you elevating your heart beat or putting stress on your suture line.

--Jay

[FTMDiaries]

I had DI with no drains four weeks ago. I went back to work at 3 weeks, but I have a desk job and am not doing any heavy lifting. My boss is doing all my lifting for me until I recover. 

The physio gave me a list of gentle stretching exercises to do several times a day until normal movement was restored. I have most of my movement back, but I still struggle to reach things above my head. She advised that I could start some gentle exercise, like walking on a treadmill, from 4 weeks... but no weights until 6 weeks, and even then, I have to start out with very light weights and work my way back up.

So, bottom line: I doubt you'd be able to safely manage loads of 20lbs+ for at least the first six weeks, and it may be some time after that before you're back to full capacity.

Could you arrange with your employer to change your role for a few weeks until you've recovered?

[Alexthecat]

I didn't go back to work until 8 weeks due to paperwork issues. I'm a stocker so it can be 50 pounds at times with lots of reaching. I started physical therapy at the chiro at 5 weeks and I think that helped a lot. Now at 10 weeks I barely feel pulling and would say that I have full range of motion back.

[Berserk]

I'm considering surgery this year but am really bothered about recovery time cuz I usually work in a warehouse, how long after can you lift 20+ lbs?

My surgeon recommended 1 month before attempting to lift anything 20 lbs or over. And tbh up until about 3 weeks after surgery it hurt for me to even try (feels like it's pulling at the stitches). I worked at a hardware store at the time, and many places will put you on light duty if they know you've had any kind of operation/surgery (you don't have to disclose to them what the operation entailed).

[onebody]

ok thanks guys, Then I might have to quit and stay home, I usually work as a temp, some places are not so happy when you're taking 8 weeks off