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Thread: Post-op

  1. #101
    Senior Member Bria's Avatar
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    Paula, I hope that you are resting comfortably at home now!

    Hugs, Bria

  2. #102
    Driver karenpayneoregon's Avatar
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    Congratulations, your in good hands with Marci and Robyn
    “When it comes to life, we spin our own yarn, and where we end up is really, in fact, where we always intended to be.” ― Julia Glass

  3. #103
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    My first week back was pretty rough. I had a lot of visitors, including the lovely Ashley from here on the forum, which was wonderful, really. But I was tired all the time.

    I went to my primary care physician yesterday, so she could check out my wound separation. Its slowly healing, but yeah, I have a 4cm deep hole beneath my vagina. It should heal up without a skin graft in a couple of months, but I wanted to have my local doc have seen it in person BEFORE anything goes wrong, it becomes infected, etc.

    Hopefully nothing goes wrong. Probably it will be fine. But I think its good to have a local doc on board, just in case, even if she winds up annoying Marci with questions. My doc was a little freaked out by what she saw, although so far, everything is healthy. I felt a little better about my own reaction after seeing hers.

    I'm feeling better this week, although I sometimes am in enough pain to still need a percocet. I tire really easily, 5 pm yesterday, I had to lay down for a nap. I just ran out of gas. I'd worked my job some, gone to the doctor, and had lunch with a friend who lives 1 block from my doctor. Not a hard day, but it wiped me out.

  4. #104
    Gold Member Kaitlyn Michele's Avatar
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    the exhaustion afterwards can be pretty rough..

    i had a similar issue and it went away...the scab was pretty gross tho
    I am real

  5. #105
    Living MY Life Rachel Smith's Avatar
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    Congrats Paula I hope what you have given to others is returned to you in a speedy recovery.
    My parents should have known something wasn't quite right when I kept putting Kens' head on Barbies' body Rachel Smith May 2017

    [SIGPIC][/SIGPIC][SIZE="3"]Experience is what you get when you don't get what you want. Dan Stanford[/SIZE][/SIZE]

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  6. #106
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    I'm healing up really well, according to my local doc. She worries about infection, but the area where the suturing separated and the wound opened up seems to be healing very rapidly, and from the inside out - which is what she wants.

    I'm still tired all the time, although it's better each day. When I run out of gas though, wow, I just collapse and sleep!

    I think the hardest thing I face is trying to keep the demands of my real life in check. There is only so much I can do in a day, before I'm exhausted.

  7. #107
    Ex prisoner in paradise CostaRicaRachel's Avatar
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    That's so wonderful, I'm just so happy for you, I'm glad you can finally be yourself.
    Although your current visions might be grounded in reality,
    there are no shortcuts to get from here to there.
    Face the facts and realize that you still may have to manifest this
    dream the old-fashioned way: by creating a concrete plan,
    putting in the hard work and maintaining an
    unwavering determination to make it happen.

  8. #108
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    That's great news, Paula! Glad to hear you're doing well, just don't overdo it.

    Hugs,

    Leah
    Last edited by Leah Lynn; 10-08-2015 at 06:55 PM.
    Be nice; It don't cost nothing.

  9. #109
    Senior Member Eringirl's Avatar
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    Excellent Paula! Thanks for the update. Glad to see that things are progressing as they should. And yes, take it easy.....all in good time. Don't overdo it.

    Be well.

    Erin
    Seize the day. Life is short, and you're dead a long time...just sayin' ...

  10. #110
    Senior Member Suzanne F's Avatar
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    Glad you are healing! Will you be coming back to the Bay Area any time soon? Sorry I didn't get to see you again.
    Suzanne

  11. #111
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    Thanks everyone!

    Suzanne, I'm really sorry I didn't feel up to getting together again. Surgery took a lot more out of me than I'd imagined.

  12. #112
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    I'm really very happy for you - I went back into my pm file to check on it - two years ago you were worried about getting your ears pierced, now look at what you've done

  13. #113
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    @rachael.davis - yes, once I stopped trying to please other people, and started doing what I needed to do to save my life, this all got easier. I can honestly say that I couldn't imagine my life today two years ago.

  14. #114
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    I'm having some problems with one of my breast implants. The surgical incision has opened up on one side, and seems to be having difficulty healing. I was told by Dr. Beck that if the implant extruded from the incision, they'd have to remove the implant with emergency surgery.

    I went to a local surgeon last week at Dr Beck's recommendation, and he told me that hasn't happened. That's a relief, but I'm still really worried because the wound seems to be getting worse.

  15. #115
    Gold Member Kaitlyn Michele's Avatar
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    Paula I am really really rooting for you to get through this part of it..

    the exhuastion is rough enough and hopefully you can acknowledge its real, be patient and rest as best you can.... i hope this complication gets better soon...i had some incision related issues too...it all worked out but it was no fun.
    I am real

  16. #116
    Living MY Life Rachel Smith's Avatar
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    I wish you well and speedily at that. Hang in there.
    My parents should have known something wasn't quite right when I kept putting Kens' head on Barbies' body Rachel Smith May 2017

    [SIGPIC][/SIGPIC][SIZE="3"]Experience is what you get when you don't get what you want. Dan Stanford[/SIZE][/SIZE]

    I used to feel like one in a million now with this forum I feel like one OF a million

    “We must be willing to let go of the life we planned so as to have the life that is waiting for us.” ― Joseph Campbell

  17. #117
    Platinum Member Eryn's Avatar
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    If it is getting worse don't back off until it is fixed. Incisions opening at this point is no joke.
    Eryn
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    "What do you care what other people think?" [Arlene Feynman, to her husband Richard]
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    "Tall, tall girl. The woman could hunt geese with a rake!" [Mary Cooper, in The Big Bang Theory]

  18. #118
    I've made it and love it Jennifer-GWN's Avatar
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    Paula;

    All I can say is wishing you well and you are in my thoughts.

    Be well Paula. We need women like you out there making a difference.

    I'm at your virtual bedside.

    Cheers... Jennifer
    I am who I am... I'm happy...I mean truly to the bone happy...and at peace with myself for the first time ever. I'm confident and content as the woman I am.

  19. #119
    Senior Member Suzanne F's Avatar
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    Paula
    Sorry to hear you are having complications. Get better, that is an order!
    Suzanne

  20. #120
    Senior Member Bria's Avatar
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    Paula, I'm sorry to hear of the complications, I hope that you get past them soon.

    Hugs, Bria

  21. #121
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    Thanks y'all!

    I sent a photo to Dr. Beck yesterday, and he suggested that the issue might be a dissolvable suture that hadn't dissolved, and was instead being rejected by my body and thus inhibiting normal healing. So I went in to see a local plastic surgeon, and sure enough, they found a couple of sutures in the open part of the incision that were causing the problem. So I'm hopeful that I'll start to heal more quickly now.

    Apparently in some people (this isn't super common, but it can happen), the dissolvable sutures that they often use now are rejected by the body more quickly than they can be dissolved, impairing healing. The signs are a wound that isn't healing properly, and is irritated, but not red and streaky or feverish (those indicate infection instead). Anyway, something to watch out for with any surgical procedure you might have now. They may have mentioned this to me a couple of months ago, but with all the pain and pain meds, I don't remember. I don't think they did - but who knows?

    On a related note, I also discovered that I'm apparently allergic to bandaids - at least the cloth ones from J&J. (I had one on my other incision, and my skin is really itchy now!) I'm not sure if it's the latex, or the adhesive. (These weren't latex bandaids, they were cloth, but they aren't entirely latex free.) I'm thinking the adhesive, mostly because I have a fair amount of experience with exposure to latex, and have never noticed a problem before. And, um, as my boyfriend pointed out, I would have definitely noticed this problem...

    I mention that because I was apparently allergic to one of the medications they gave me post-op. Probably the Keflex, but possibly the blood thinner (the first and worst rash was around the injection site of that drug, but I had rashes all over me, so it's hard to tell.) These are the first allergic reactions I've had to medical products in 48 years - since I was a very small child. (When I was a kid, they used to use cat gut for suturing material. Unfortunately, I'm highly, highly allergic to that stuff, and it very nearly killed me.) Weird stuff happens sometimes with major surgery, I guess.

  22. #122
    Just call me Amanda GirlieAmanda's Avatar
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    I just read your thread. I live in the Bay Area. Unfortunately, I couldn't get even close to Marci Bowers since she seems to be overloaded with surgery requests. My friend had a consult over a year ago and still hasn't even gotten a date yet which could be up to 2 years. Of course, if one offered cash, sadly I would suspect one would be able to accelerate their timetable. Anyhow, I have a consult with Dr. Satterwhite in Marin. He is gladly taking Marci's and Toby's overflow and has dates that are only months out after consult. Satterwhite is really rising in popularity around here and maybe the country. We actually need more doctors to do this surgery. I mean, when you go in for heart surgery, you kind of get who you get. I know this is more cosmetic in nature and a specialty, but still, we can't have 2 or 3 year waits for surgery for a community who is prone to bad things happening when dysphoria sets in hard. I wonder what your path was to be able to go to Marci. How long from the consult till the date? How many weeks post are you and are you back to work yet? I worry about how much time off I will need and how to pay for that.
    The phoenix has risen the old life is gone
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  23. #123
    Silver Member Starling's Avatar
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    Paula, I hope it will be clear sailing for you now.

    Lallie
    Time for a change.

  24. #124
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    Quote Originally Posted by GirlieAmanda View Post
    My friend had a consult over a year ago and still hasn't even gotten a date yet which could be up to 2 years. Of course, if one offered cash, sadly I would suspect one would be able to accelerate their timetable.
    I paid $1000 to get on the waiting / cancellation list.

    Quote Originally Posted by GirlieAmanda View Post
    Anyhow, I have a consult with Dr. Satterwhite in Marin. He is gladly taking Marci's and Toby's overflow and has dates that are only months out after consult.
    Yeah, he has a good reputation.

    Quote Originally Posted by GirlieAmanda View Post
    I wonder what your path was to be able to go to Marci. How long from the consult till the date? How many weeks post are you and are you back to work yet? I worry about how much time off I will need and how to pay for that.
    I only met with Marci for a consultation (I live out of state) a few days before surgery.

    I got on the waiting list on 10/22/14, expected surgery date February 2016 - about 16 months. On 12/23/14, I was notified that someone had cancelled, and I could get surgery in Feb 2015. I declined that date, for several reasons. On July 20, 2015, I received another notification from Dr. Bowers' office that another cancellation slot had opened, and I could get surgery on September 4, 2015 - which I accepted.

    So from the time I applied to my surgery date was ~10 months, because of cancellations. It could've been as soon as 4 months, had I taken the first cancellation slot I was offered.

    I'll be 9 weeks post-op on Friday. I'm back at work. I've been fairly effective at work for the past 2-3 weeks. I tried going back to work at about 2 weeks post-op. I'm a programmer, I sit at a desk, how hard could it be? Well, it turns out, it was really hard. I grossly underestimated how tired I'd be, and the amount of pain I'd be in. (Turns out, in this one instance, having a job where you sit down all day wasn't an advantage at all.) I was exhausted most of the time, and the first couple of weeks post-op, I slept a LOT. Not just "Oh a nap would be nice", but bone tired "I'm going to collapse onto the floor if I don't sleep NOW" exhaustion. I've never experienced such a thing in all my life.

    I'd expect to be off work at least 4-6 weeks, depending on what you do, how your body recovers, your pain level, etc. This could be longer if you have complications, or you just don't heal as quickly. It's impossible to predict. I have talked to women who had much less pain, and recovered a lot faster than I have. At 6 weeks, I was only sort of functional. Even now, 9 weeks out, I'm still not at 100%.

    Again, my recovery is worse than some others. I know others who've had still a worse time than I had, and some who've had a much easier time than I have.

  25. #125
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    Update - the wound separation is mostly healed, but I'm worried that I have another complication. I don't seem to have a clitoris - or rather it's buried under my skin and completely unexposed. Looking around down there with a mirror, basically at the very top of my vaginal opening is my urethra - there doesn't seem to be anything else there. Feeling around, the only part with any sensitivity is buried under my skin, maybe 1/4" above the top of of my vagina. It almost seems like it's buried under scar tissue.

    I am worried I may need a labiaplasty, since there is very little sensation down there, and the part that feels sensitive isn't exposed at all.

    Anyone have a complication like this?

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