March 10 is THE DAY I’ve been not so patiently counting down to since my double mastectomy! Tomorrow at 5 a.m. I will report to the hospital to undergo my breast reconstruction surgery!
The Implants: A few weeks ago we had our exchange surgery consultation where Matt and I were super mature (kidding, nope we weren’t) as we squeezed lots of implants until we decided on Natrelle silicone implants aka “gummy bear implants!” Apparently the cohesive silicone on the inside of the implant is very similar to Gummy Bear candy. But we selected them for reasons beyond that. These implants are actually specifically designed for women who have undergone a mastectomy or have very little breast tissue. With the Natrelle implants, I don’t have to worry about leaking silicone, they hold their shape much better than saline implants and there is only a 3% chance they’ll ever need to be replaced.
The Procedure: My surgeon explained to us that during this final surgery he will go back in through the incision under my breasts, remove the saline-filled expanders and pop in the silicone implants. Since we don’t know exactly what size will fit the space the expander has created, my doctor has a variety of implants ordered to see which one looks best. With each implant option he will literally sit me up on the operating table like a puppet to examine the size (height and width), projection (how far they stick out), fullness (volume of cc’s), evenness, etc. Since he is the breast expert, we are gladly leaving it to him to determine what looks “perfect.” After he selects the appropriate size he’ll inject fat from my stomach (best news ever!!!) into my breasts to fill the pockets where breast tissue used to be and provide an extra layer over the implants to avoid the appearance of rippling.
So, not your typical boob job.
The Recovery: As excited as I am to get this procedure behind me, I am a little nervous for recovery again. Apparently the fat grafting will be the most painful part of recovery. I’ll have a weight lifting restriction of 10 lbs for 6 weeks again which is the most annoying rule of all time and I also have the same instructions not to perform any household chores or cook. That’s going to be such a pain again. But hopefully 6 weeks passes quickly.
My mom arrives this afternoon for a week and we are so, so, so thankful to have her back. I know Matt can totally handle the kids (he was a pro last recovery) but mom insisted on coming up to make sure someone is taking care of Matt! Ha!
How I’m Feeling: READY. Actually, more than ready for a couple reasons. For one, expanders suck. I am incredibly self-conscious about the way they look and have been grateful that scarf season happened to coincide with this phase of my journey. Not only do they look incredibly unnatural and uneven (one of my boobs literally sits inches above the other), they are profoundly uncomfortable and make activities like sleeping and hugging incredibly awkward.
And two, I’m so sick of planning things around surgeries and recoveries. It has been 134 days (or 19 weeks and 1 day) since my double mastectomy and I am excited to close this chapter and move on with my life.
But all complaints aside, and most importantly, I feel EXTREMELY GRATEFUL. Every time I see a woman at the grocery store wearing a scarf over her bald head and proudly sporting an “I survived” shirt I want to hysterically bawl my eyes out. When I open the email from a reader telling me she (or her friend) recently tested BRCA positive or worse, was recently diagnosed with breast cancer, I want to drop to my knees and praise Jesus for giving me this chance to LIVE without the fear of breast cancer. And as I approach my 30th birthday later this year, I think about how different my mom’s 30th birthday with two small children and a very scared husband looked for her. I am so blessed to have had this opportunity to beat cancer before it could ever begin.
One last thing! Will you squeeze me into your prayers tomorrow morning?
Christina, you are such a strong and inspirational woman for taking charge of your life and health in this way. I know you're encouraging so many women! You are (and continue to be) in my prayers. I pray your surgery goes perfectly and your recovery is fast and smooth. I know you must be ready to put this journey behind you and play with your babies without this hanging over your head. Be blessed tomorrow!
So many prayers for you! Happy you get to close this chapter soon and enjoy living life with your precious babes and hubby! Hope your recovery goes well & you are back to snuggling those little ones soon 🙂
Thinking of you! You have been such an amazing, strong force throughout all of this! I am so happy for you that your final piece of this is here and you can just focus on looking forward to a long and happy life with your sweet kiddos! You'll be in my prayers!
I am praying for you and a speedy recovery!
Sending lots of prayers! I know this whole ordeal was a tough decision and you are almost through it all. Jess at Just Jess
Best wishes for a quick and simple recovery! And yay for the tummy bonus – I'm a little jealous 😉
Sending lots of prayers and good thoughts your way!
I will be praying for you and your family throughout the surgery and recovery process! Good luck, you are a fighter!!!
Prayers
Prayers for sure for you. Blessings for a speedy recovery as well.
Thank you so much for sharing your journey with the world. You are so brave and I love that you are give so many details about the process. (It's good to know it's not just a run of the mill boob job.) I always said you can buy boobs, but you can't buy your life. But you are buying so much more: peace of mind, health, years with your friends and family. Honestly I'm so grateful to hear your story. Lots of prayers and well wishes to you and your family tomorrow!
Good luck! Sending lots of prayers, good thoughts, and positive vibes your way!!Amy @ http://befilledwithj0y.blogspot.com/
Praying for you and your new girls, the surgical team and your sweet hubby and family!!
Thinking about you! Good luck tomorrow :)xo Jess
Praying all goes well!
Sending prayers for you, your family, and the surgical team!
After following your brave journey, I am ELATED to hear that you are approaching this final surgery! Prayers for you!
I'll be praying!! That's so exciting to finally have your last surgery and for it to be done!!
You've done great and you have such a great support system! Your gonna rock those new boobies and run right into your 30s with a CLEAN bill of health! Sending prayers!
Yay!! Sending lots of prayers friend x
Said a prayer 🙂 good luck!Justine @ Charm City Ciemny'swww.lifeasabaltimoregirl.blogspot.com
Christina, you are such an inspiration to women everywhere! I'm SO happy for you that your journey with all of this will soon be coming to a close and you can finally start the next chapter in your life. One where you won't EVER have to worry about breast cancer! You are so brave and I know that you are going to ROCK your surgery tomorrow. I will keep you in my prayers! Oh, and I can't wait to see that new cleavage! ;o)LindsayLindsay's Sweet World
Covering you with prayer!!!
Good for you and will say a prayer for you for strength and a great recovery! You got this!! =)
So excited for you that this day has finally come. I've been following your journey as I am thinking of having the same thing done (which I think I emailed/commented to you on a couple months ago).Thinking of you and your family tomorrow!
WOOHOO new tatas! I know the recovery will feel quite long, but YAY NEW TATAS!
Thinking of you always and you totally got this. Also, HOORAY for new tata's—- I've been there and the pain was totally manageable!
Your mini's are lucky to have you as their mama! You are stronger and braver then anyone I have ever met.
Christina, I'm so happy for you. I've been very behind in my reading and following along so I'm glad you beat this. Best wishes. Leigh
Sending prayers & hugs your way! I know you'll be so excited to put all of this behind you.
Sending you my prayers.
Keeping you in my thoughts and prayers. You're going to do great! Enjoy the new tatas lol. Praying for a safe and easy recovery.
Wishing you best of luck tomorrow!! You're in the home stretch of all of this! Xo, Evelina @ Fortunate House
Praying for you now and will continue all day tomorrow!! You are an AMAZING badass woman!
So excited for you!!! Wishing you the best in this last chapter of the mastectomy journey. You will rock it tomorrow, sweet girl. 6 weeks will fly and then it will all be over!:)
Praying for you and your surgery tomorrow! You are so brave and I have loved reading about your journey!!
You and your family are always in my prayers. Reading this post at work and there are many tears in my eyes! Good luck and God Bless xxx
Praying for you and your family during this last hurdle!!!
Many prayers to you!
Sending prayers your way!
You are in my prayers today!
Yay!!!! How exciting. I actually had my exchange surgery today as well. I'm feeling great and hope the same is true for you.
Sending prayers your way for a quick and easy recovery!
Playing catch up, glad to see on instagram that all went well! I'll be keeping you in my thoughts and prayers; after having just attempted one week of not picking up Lawter just for post partum recovery- I can say that I have no idea how stand it for 6+ weeks with your procedures!! It's hard! Of course you know you have to do what's best for quick recovery so you can get back to your babes fast. Sending love and hugs! xo
Thanks. Find All Macbook Pro Stickers, Macbook Air Stickers here. With over +1000s Design. Secure payment and quick checkout process. Apple Laptop Stickers
I fully support you blog.There may be noticeably a bundle to find out about this. I assume you made certain good points in options also macbook air stickers.
I hope everything went well and your recovery has been smooth so far! Xo, Stephanie