Jen is now a week and 2 days past the big de and re-boobing event. She was doing so well, or was possibly just annoying the staff with her highly evolved sense of humor, that they “gave her the option” of going home (**cough, kicked her healthy ass out. cough**) just 24 hours after her triumphant Operating Room exit. Cheers were heard, "BRAVA" was shouted, roses were thrown -- you know, the usual for Jen and her outstandingly awesome surgeon Dr. Barbara Smith.
One side note about Dr. Smith. After her part of the fun was completed, last Tuesday, she came downstairs to give us (me, Bob, Oni and Jen's sister Erin) the play by play. Dr. Smith talks with her hands and they are THE most amazing fins -- large with long, thin but clearly strong fingers. Egon Schiele hands. These were the hands that were just doing magic dances inside our Jen. I wanted to take pics of her while she spoke but got all caught up in worrying that it might be just way too weird, even for me, to ask at that moment.
Back in recovery-ville -- Jen, naturally, tires easily and sleeps a lot but each day there’s an uptick in energy and strength levels. I figure she’ll be benching Minis by the weekend.
I think the cats (she has 3 -- Thelma, Skitter and Rosie) have an awful lot to do with the recovery speed. Little holistic healers that they are, they all 3 sleep on or wedged in beside her at night now -- poor Oni’s got to take a number.
She looks the same in clothes -- Rack 2.0 is about the same size and shape as the first set (the docs asked -- she could’ve gone all Lara Croft/Pam Anderson but in a fit of hippy/groovy, organic maturity she said “eh, just gimme what I had before.”) . The harsh thing is that she’s completely numb and always will be. The nerve endings were severed and likelihood of them growing back is said to be nil. The upside, the backside, the REAL takeaway is that her chance of cancer recurrence is now at 2% versus her previous no-thank-you odds of 50/50. (similarly sort of -- I’m now deaf but, guess what mon ami, I’m alive!).
So far so fab.
One side note about Dr. Smith. After her part of the fun was completed, last Tuesday, she came downstairs to give us (me, Bob, Oni and Jen's sister Erin) the play by play. Dr. Smith talks with her hands and they are THE most amazing fins -- large with long, thin but clearly strong fingers. Egon Schiele hands. These were the hands that were just doing magic dances inside our Jen. I wanted to take pics of her while she spoke but got all caught up in worrying that it might be just way too weird, even for me, to ask at that moment.
I think the cats (she has 3 -- Thelma, Skitter and Rosie) have an awful lot to do with the recovery speed. Little holistic healers that they are, they all 3 sleep on or wedged in beside her at night now -- poor Oni’s got to take a number. |
| Jen, very kindly, illustrated the exact area of numbness for us |
So far so fab.
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