Home From The Hospital – Going Flat After Surgery

Hello wonderful friends, followers and visitors.  First, I want to say thank you to all followers.  I’ve not been blogging much lately so having new followers is truly appreciated.  Because of my health issue, I’ve not been able to keep up with all the blogs that follow me, nor able to follow new followers.  Currently, there are more than 900 Word Press notifications in my in-box.  I don’t think I’ll ever be able to catch-up, but after recuperation, I’ll do my best to stay current.

Today I was discharged from the hospital after having a double mastectomy and 3 lymph nodes removed.  I figured I would get this post done while the pain killers are doing their job. Sleeping is a problem because I’ve never been one to sleep on my back so whatever online time I’ll have is subject to how good I sleep.

Thanks to all of those who stayed in touch with me, gave me well wishes, prayers, and positive thoughts.  They worked and are working. 

Staying Positive and Confident

Some hospital staff was amazing!  During one shift, they said to me that they wish every patient was like me; that I was humorous, positive and confident.  The compliment about being confident is because I’m going flat.  For those unfamiliar with that term, it’s when having mastectomy that the patient does not have reconstructive surgery.  It’s a personal thing for every woman.

The way I see it is that I was little lady before reaching puberty.  My femininity is not defined by the size of my chest.   It would be superficial for me to have reconstructive surgery for several reasons, the main reason being that I would be trying to satisfy others — strangers, and the amount of importance they place on the size of women’s chests.

The surgeon and my oncologist recommended removing the right breast because that is where the tumor was located.  I opted to have the left breast also removed.  Since 1995, I’ve been cystic.  During the decades, there might have been 4 years in total that I was not bothered with cysts.  I do not want to go through the rest of my life wondering each time I have pain or feel a lump, if it’s a cyst or tumor.  Years ago I asked my physician about having a double mastectomy and was told it wasn’t a medical necessity.  Approximately 4 years thereafter, I asked another physician and was told the same thing. They also told me that cysts do not progress to breast cancer and that cancerous tumors do not hurt.   In my case, they were wrong.  The cyst in my right breast that gave me problems for decades is in the exact place where the tumor was found.   It behaved and hurt like a cyst.

Also, by having both breasts removed, there is a balance and I won’t have to worry about reconstructive surgery or wearing a prosthetic on just one side.

As it was explained to me, reconstruction might give a semblance of being “normal” but reconstructed breasts have little to no sensation. In fact, women who opt for reconstruction actually go through more surgery.  Skin is removed from another place on the body to form nipples.  Then, the women undergo tattoos to give them areolas.  While going through that for appearance sake, many women still undergo chemotherapy.

Going Flat is now a movement.