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How long should I expect pain in armpit after removal of lymph nodes?

Posted by meomurian @meomurian, Nov 18, 2023

I had a mastectomy with removal of three lymph nodes 8 weeks ago and am still feeling pain in my armpit, where they were removed. Is this normal and how long should I expect to feel pain?

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timely | @timely | Nov 21, 2023

I would definitely go for PT.
The pain in my armpit and at sentinel node did not go away for about 9 months until I went for Breast lymphedema PT.

The PT was able to work on these areas and the pain is now gone.
I also had a loss of arm raising to full stretch which she is having me work on also. This is either from the radiation or sentinel node difficulty.

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1 reply
myoga | @myoga | Nov 21, 2023
In reply to @mchler73 "I think it is normal for some people. I had a really hard time recovering from..." + (show)
@mchler73

I think it is normal for some people. I had a really hard time recovering from the Sentinel Node surgery. I had mine August 28th and I still have numbness and occasionally have pain. I started seeing PT several weeks after that surgery and that was the only thing that started to help. I had cording and could hardly straighten my arm. It was extremely painful! Are you seeing someone for PT?
Also, I am not sure if you are doing radiation, but I started that this past week and the nerve pain started happening again in that area.
Hope you start to feel better soon!

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I had mine sentinel lymphnode removal last year and the numbness is still there. It gets better though. Try doing stretching exercises while taking shower. I found it easier to stretch when the muscles are warm. When you feel the pain, stop for a few days then resume when the pain is gone. Took me a month to regain full range of motion. Good wishes. Happy Thanksgiving. Hugs.

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3 replies
meomurian | @meomurian | Nov 26, 2023
In reply to @timely "I would definitely go for PT. The pain in my armpit and at sentinel node did..." + (show)
@timely

I would definitely go for PT.
The pain in my armpit and at sentinel node did not go away for about 9 months until I went for Breast lymphedema PT.

The PT was able to work on these areas and the pain is now gone.
I also had a loss of arm raising to full stretch which she is having me work on also. This is either from the radiation or sentinel node difficulty.

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Thankfully, the pain has gone away (at 8 weeks post-op) and with the chest stretching exercises the surgeon gave me to do twice a day starting day 3 of post-op from my mastectomy, I now have full range of motion!!

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meomurian | @meomurian | Nov 26, 2023
In reply to @myoga "I had mine sentinel lymphnode removal last year and the numbness is still there. It gets..." + (show)
@myoga

I had mine sentinel lymphnode removal last year and the numbness is still there. It gets better though. Try doing stretching exercises while taking shower. I found it easier to stretch when the muscles are warm. When you feel the pain, stop for a few days then resume when the pain is gone. Took me a month to regain full range of motion. Good wishes. Happy Thanksgiving. Hugs.

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A month is fast!! That's a reason for thanksgiving!

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meomurian | @meomurian | Nov 26, 2023
In reply to @colely "I would suggest that you ask for directions on how to do a type of lymph..." + (show)
@colely

I would suggest that you ask for directions on how to do a type of lymph drainage you can do for yourself at home. My Third O.T. finally showed me how to do it!!!

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I found a You Tube video with an OT demonstrating manual lymph drainage. I was doing that for abdominal swelling and it worked!

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1 reply
meomurian | @meomurian | Nov 26, 2023
In reply to @myoga "I had mine sentinel lymphnode removal last year and the numbness is still there. It gets..." + (show)
@myoga

I had mine sentinel lymphnode removal last year and the numbness is still there. It gets better though. Try doing stretching exercises while taking shower. I found it easier to stretch when the muscles are warm. When you feel the pain, stop for a few days then resume when the pain is gone. Took me a month to regain full range of motion. Good wishes. Happy Thanksgiving. Hugs.

Jump to this post

A month is fast! A reason for thanksgiving!

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1 reply
myoga | @myoga | Nov 26, 2023
In reply to @meomurian "A month is fast! A reason for thanksgiving!" + (show)
@meomurian

A month is fast! A reason for thanksgiving!

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@meomurian I'm so glad you regained full range of motion! Twice a day is a lot of work! My hat is off to you. I only had lumpectomy and sentinel lymphnode removal so the cording was not so bad. So happy for you. Hugs.

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tonysmom | @tonysmom | Sep 26 11:08pm

I had my lumpectomy and node removed 9 days ago. Should it look swollen and feel hard under the incision.It does'nt look infected and is'nt painful,but it was'nt swollen the last 8 days.

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2 replies
mdr3 | @mdr3 | Sep 27 6:24am
In reply to @meomurian "I found a You Tube video with an OT demonstrating manual lymph drainage. I was doing..." + (show)
@meomurian

I found a You Tube video with an OT demonstrating manual lymph drainage. I was doing that for abdominal swelling and it worked!

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Please share the link. I had inguinal lymph node dissection (16 total) a year ago, and severe abdominal (not so much leg) lymphedema. Thank you!

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angiemal | @angiemal | Sep 28 9:37am
In reply to @tonysmom "I had my lumpectomy and node removed 9 days ago. Should it look swollen and feel..." + (show)
@tonysmom

I had my lumpectomy and node removed 9 days ago. Should it look swollen and feel hard under the incision.It does'nt look infected and is'nt painful,but it was'nt swollen the last 8 days.

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Yes it is normal , mine felt hard for a couple of months after the surgery…

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