I got the burdens off my chest once and for all!...but WOW, I was NOT expecting to be even MORE bound than I bound myself for many years. (And I was already VERY extreme with no mercy to those baggage.) But this really is savage. 
I am wondering how you guys dealt with your dressings/whatever the surgeon put you on.  Is it just me or the pain medications do not help with the pain that the binding produces and it just helps with the actual surgery pain? Also, I don't know if anyone else felt pain in the stomach area and lower back (basically right below the dressing) or not but I have so much pain over there that it overpowers the covered area. 
Did you guys have to take pain medications all the time during that 1 week?

I  had the strong pain meds the first couple days. I had a surgical binder but nothing came off the first week. It's not that much longer to bind.

I found the binding after surgery (or Dr G standing on you while pull the bandages very tight), VERY unpleasant. OTOH, I do not think that pain drugs handle that sort of discomfort. I didn't take pain meds at all. But more because I felt that the whole thing was more uncomfortable than actually painful.
How do you handle it, keep your eyes on the prize, so to speak. It's only a week til bandages are off in most cases. Definitely not fun, but the results are more than worth it.

--Jay

I had to wear a surgical binder for 6 weeks after the operation. The first few days were hell. The surgery itself wasn't even producing that much pain, but the binder was. It was very hard to sleep with that tight thing on, and having to lay on my back only. Like you, my stomach hurt as it seemed to be most tight around that area. But it became easier as time went on. I realized I was a bit bloated after the surgery due to water retention (trauma and an iv does that to a body). When that went down over the course of a week, the binder became less uncomfortable. I also got used to wearing it. So after about a week or two, I didn't even realize it was there anymore. So chin up, it gets easier! It's amazing how our bodies adapt.

Hey makipu,
No advice as I haven't taken the plunge yet, but CONGRATULATIONS!  I know you've been wanting this for a while and I'm very happy for you that it finally happened!

Chris

The binding was 24/7 for the first month for me. I found that although pain killers if really sore helped a bit, the best for me was the soft ice packs. 
Just focus on the end goal, you are almost there. And if all else fails, ask your surgeon and/or doctor for something that can help. (Making sure to mention to them all that you tried so far.)

Thank you Chris I did wait for this for an entire decade... 

I also don't find the pain medication (I was prescribed acetaminophen oxycodone) to be helpful for any of the pain at all. In fact,  it just gave me additional side effects instead.  I am taking the antibiotics and Arnica but I got black&blue right near my under arms anyways.. and it was supposed to help with this.  I was told this happened because the dressing came down when it was supposed to be leveled with my armpits but even though I move it up it keeps rolling down.  Is it common to have the unwrapped areas to have bruising like this?  I hope they go away and not stay like the scars because they're horrible.

Mr X and Eiahn, I am really surprised you guys had to wear it for that long. Is the surgical binder different than the dressings(cotton,ace bandage, surgery tape) I am wearing?

You would do better with Ibuprofen since it reduces swelling.

Some surgeons don't allow ibuprofen that soon after surgery, but essentially that's correct.
You should ask your surgeon how he feels about this.

I don't believe that the typical pain meds given do anything re: surgery. My discomfort did decrease as I went along, swelling after surgery is one reason that the constriction is great. OTOH, the constriction does help to reduce further swelling, kind of weird.

Surgical binding (like after dressings are remove is not usually as much). But that's the purpose, also to keep incision lines flat. Dr Garramone, I know, does not require these, but he does ask patients to use a tensor bandage (like an ace bandage). But his purpose is to remind people they had surgery. (Apparently, oddly, they sometimes forget.)


--Jay

Quote from: Alexthecat on March 03, 2015, 10:13:48 AM
You would do better with Ibuprofen since it reduces swelling.

I am not sure if the surgical binder is different from bandages. It all depends on the purpose, I think. Bandages are to protect the wounds, right? The surgical binder had to be worn because during surgery, your skin is separated from everything else, and tissue is removed. This leaves empty space underneath your skin. Your body has the tendency to fill up space with fluid. If you apply pressure, this swelling will be minimal. That's why the binder has to be worn for 6 weeks. Just to reduce swelling and aid healing as it presses everything into place.

I don't know if I should even try more medications at this point after going without it..In general, I seldom see their benefit anyways..It's like my body only likes to take in the side effects and not its possible benefits and make me go through additional trouble.  I would like to ask if I can loosen the damn thing though. How do I know that my other body parts aren't being injured or even damaged as I speak?  I mean even when I bound myself I never slept with it. Why put it so much tighter than I can even imagine?
I also JUST noticed my one upper arm bruised although not the same color as the chest area which is all purple/magenta.

I doubt body parts are being damaged.However, if you have numbness in your hands they could be too tight. Actually I have heard the tightness does help. It's kind of Dr Garramone's signature methods, for instance. No one can knock his results. You can ask if you can loosen the bandages. I did have someone do this for me, and it did help. They said exactly how much to loosen.

Bruising is a common side effect, not too much to worry about. But you might ask re: loosening up the bandages a bit.

--Jay

Unfortunately, I have to put up with this because I am told I shouldn't loosen it at all. The tightness is ridiculous but like you say I will keep my eyes on this (painful)prize.  Being transgender is the worst condition there is in my opinion. No matter what I'll do to get something fixed there is additional suffering that comes with it.

I believe you misinterpreted "eyes on the prize". It is NOT painful. That would be your chest when all this is finished. That's what to keep you mind on. Sorry for all this, but it is temporary.

--Jay

Quote from: makipu on March 05, 2015, 01:39:20 PM
Unfortunately, I have to put up with this because I am told I shouldn't loosen it at all. The tightness is ridiculous but like you say I will keep my eyes on this (painful)prize.  Being transgender is the worst condition there is in my opinion. No matter what I'll do to get something fixed there is additional suffering that comes with it.