my Breast Cancer blog

My tummy is tucked. It's flat, tight, and oh how I love my new belly button. Amazing. Simply amazing how that loose and saggy skin that troubled me for so long is now gone. Completely gone.

My surgery yesterday went well. My excess belly skin was removed, my baby-stretched muscle was repaired, and my umbilical hernia was fixed. One day later, I'm walking in hunched-over style, spending a lot of time in my living room recliner, and staying on top of my pain medication so misery doesn't set it. I have two drains dangling from my belly, one pain pump strapped to my side, and a compression garment holding me tight. I feel some pressure and some minor throbbing but nothing serious is plaguing me at the moment. Could it get worse? Probably not, says my doctor who will remove my pain pump and one drain on Saturday. The second drain will come out on Tuesday. Then I'll be on my own—well, maybe I'll keep my pain meds on board just in case—to recover and heal.

Just after I had my second baby, I asked my OB/GYN about a tummy tuck. He wasn't a fan of the procedure and suggested I give it five years. Five years to allow my body to bounce back from two whopper pregnancies and to achieve a healthy weight and fitness routine. The five-year mark would also put both of my boys in school so I'd have time to rebound from this serious surgery without tending to their every need all day long. Good advice.

Today, both of my boys are in school. Danny turns five in May.

This entry was posted on Thursday, April 24th, 2008 at 12:09 pm and is filed under Diet, Exercise, My story, Surgery, Survivors. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.