DIEP Breast Reconstruction

Hi @mkefighter !

I had the DEIP Flap done on my right breast. For my first surgery to get the tissue out and put in an expander I "babied" my arm and so my shoulder was partially frozen when my 12 week lifting restriction was up! Oops but PT got it back.

PT helped immensely as did the meds. I have a bit of cording and my abs were very weak post-surgery, but are pretty good now.

I was most surprised by the aftermath of the surgery itself - every hour on the hour they were in checking on it, so I got less sleep than I thought I would.

I slept in our 40 year old lazy boy recliner and that was great. My husband was well trained in cleaning and changing my drains.

I would say today, 3 years later I am not back to 100% - my right arm still lifts less than my left by about 20 pounds - but I have a lot of life stuff that I think has more to do with that (I had just had a baby pre-diagnosis, and I had some extremely rare nerve damage from radiation to deal with).

I'd guess, from what you are describing with your eating and martial arts, that you will rock this surgery and be back to yourself in 6 months or less, with good PT and support from friends and family.

All the best!

@seathink
Thank you for your honest response, I appreciate you taking the time to share your experience. You have helped me relax some. By cording in your abs, do you mean scar tissue?

Wishing you continues wellness,

@mkefighter

No, I have cording in my arm and just some general tightness across the abdomen scar, I realize I lumped the two together there, sorry.

I had DIEP flap on both sides late November 2023. I had an electric recliner (not lift) and a regular recliner. A recliner is a must for recovery. It took a long time for me to move back to bed. Getting out of bed was hard. I lived in recliners for 4 weeks.

Just keep in mind this is my experience and I was not exercising regularly before surgery. I had it on both sides also. I pulled out my hand written notes. Here are the highlights:

Drains are a pain and it’s always great when they come out. I also had a wound vac on the abdominal site for a while instead of the drain there.

I think the worst part for me is how tight I was in the abdominal area. It took a lot of effort to just stand because of it. I couldn't stand up straight for weeks. I found that it took a good 3-4 weeks to be able to stand better. My fascia in abs to this day are very tight. PT and a good massage therapist has helped. It’s one of those things, I just got used to. I only really feel it when stretching, putting arms over my head or laying down flat, the pull in abs. It’s just tight though. It’s not painful. I don’t have issues rotating my torso. In the beginning becuase I was pulled so tight, it tweaked my back. I used a heating pad on my back and Tylenol/advil combo.

For prep….Put items around the house at counter top level, ie cups, bowls, plates, anything in a medicine cabinet. I was not able to put my arms above my shoulder for weeks. Plastics had tight restrictions no repetitive arm movements including cooking, cleaning or typing for 4 weeks. I was told no caffiene or chocolate the first month. No strenuous actively for 8 weeks. The 10-15lb weight was after 8 weeks post op. Medical bra for 4 weeks.
Plastics had me wear a binder brief for 6 weeks also. I ordered extras on the brands website. I pulled them on, I did not use the clasps in the crotch. It was too hard to do.
It’s nice to have two bras and two briefs so you can wash one and air dry while wearing the other.
I could not drive for 2-3 weeks. Frankly I didn’t feel like driving anyway.
Do practice breathing exercises post surgery so you don’t have lung issues.
Take laxatives from day one or stool softeners and Miralax. Drink 8-10 cups of water a day if you can.
Use slip on shoes rather than shoes that are hard to get on.
Get a list of movies, tv shows or books to do while in down time!
It helps to have someone lined up to get packages, empty garbage, unload dishwasher, help with laundry the first two weeks.
A cheap oversized shirt that is cut down the middle and over lapped was more comfortable to put under the medical bra.

I had a lot of pulling where they tied the fascia together where your ribs meet in the middle and the belly button. I held those when I coughed or sneezed for a while.

They told me 8 weeks to get back to normal stamina.

Ask what the restrictions are before surgery. I didn’t find out I could not have caffiene until the day of surgery. My surgery took 13 hrs also.

I have had LOTS of surgery, including a DIEP flap, in my life and what I have learned as I have gotten older (wish I learned is earlier!) is that when you KNOW you have a surgery coming, (hopefully even before that!) you begin a defined exercise/training program with a reputable provider/facility. 10 weeks before I had a VLNT surgery and the DIEP flap, I signed on with a personal training. When I had the mastectomy, even rolling over in bed was hard. Getting up/walking HARD. So my goal with him was to work on getting a strong as I could so I could:
1. Roll over or onto my side in bed
2. Sit up in bed
3. Move my legs to the side of the bed
4. Move from sit to stand
5. Walk

I didn't want to have to have nurses pull me over, push me up, support me which was needed following mastectomy because I was so weak. So we worked HARD, 2-3 times a week using weight training, cardio training, etc. machines, floor exercises. I developed strength in a relatively short time period that got me through the 13 hour surgery and recovery (IN THE MIDDLE OF COVID!!!) without having to rely on nursing or aide staff all the time. I continued with the training/physical activity after I recovered and am now 40 pounds lighter than when I started out 5 years ago, stronger than I was in my 30's, more coordinated and physically fit than I ever thought possible!

The DIEP flap requires a major cut to your abdomen and it was a good 3 months before I could begin exercising, but my abs were much stronger going into the surgery because or all the work I put into it and I think my recovery (as COMPLICATED as it was) was remarkably good.

EXERCISE NOW A LOT!! Train like you are going to the Olympics! Hire a trainer and work, work, work! At least it worked for me. HTH.

I love this and am currently doing the same in preparation for my bilateral mastectomy and tissue expanders. You are an inspiration!!🥰🥰🥰🥰

Thank you all for your responses! You have made me feel a bit more relaxed. As far as staying fit and active, I am carrying extra weight even though I am active in martial arts which frustrates me to no end. I am currently working towards my 2nd degree black belt whcich I plan to earn in Sept. I know there's muscle weight, however, I have a lot of fat areas that create unwanted stress. I am going to add in more resistance training to see if that boosts my metabolism to get the unwanted fat off my body.