The one after surgery

While things still seemed a bit unreal the last couple of weeks, I can now no longer deny the truth. Just one look in the mirror and the scars will be there forever.

However there is positive news to tell! The sentinel lymph node did not contain cancer.

I had to be at the hospital at 7.15 a.m. and then they showed me to my private room. Perfect for this diva. I was being prepared for surgery right away. Not a lot of waiting in between so that was good. At 8 a.m. they took me downstairs. They kept asking me all sorts of questions and started to repeat them over and over again such as my name and my date of birth. I even had to draw a cross with permanent marker on my breast. A very nice lady gave me an IV. I got to talk to the surgeon and also met the rest of the team. Then I was taken to the OR. Again a big list with questions and they even asked me if I could describe the surgical procedure. Really had a small E.R. moment there. At 8.20 a.m. they started surgery and my mother received a phone call at 9.30 a.m. that everything went fine!

I woke up about an hour later and was told immediately that they removed the tumor and that the sentintel lymph node did not contain cancer. Such a relieve!

A couple of hours later I was already eating soup and even took a short walk through the hallway. Yes I was quite the diva, wearing my pink night shirt that my colleagues made for me. It had a print of my bunnies on it. To complete the outfit I wore my Hello Kitty bathrobe and my pink Birkenstocks. My parents gave me a pink cuddly bunny so my private room turned into a pink one very quickly as well.

On a less happier note, spending the night at a hospital really sucks! The pain started to kick in and I only slept for like two hours. Everything seems so much worse at night. I am now staying at my parents place together with the bunnies. Yay for painkillers and a home sweet home.

I got to take a shower 48 hours after surgery and removed the bandages. I have two wounds and the smallest one, underneath my armpit hurts the most. My breast is quite a work of art. The permanent marker is still on there and the rest looks really blue/green/black/yellow. I was very nervous about removing the bandages but in the end it didn't upset me as much as I thought it would. Obviously it needs time to heal. It's just a scar and it's a part of me now. 

I have another appointment next week with the surgeon for the definitive results.