WEEKS 7 & 8: Drain Tubes and The Nasty "R" Word

In hanging around and waiting for a major surgery to heal, the most memorable thing ends up being the "drain tubes"! Oh, did I ever learn to hate those yucky things! During surgery, they strategically placed 3 different tubes inside my chest area, with each of them coming out of small incisions under my armpit, with a single stitch in each to hold them in place. At the bottom of each tube was a clear, soft plastic bulb that looks like a hand grenade, which catches the blood and fluids (and some gross tissue) that need to drain out so it can't just build up and cause infection. Once or twice a day I had to empty the bulb into a little measuring cup, and write on a chart how much each bulb was draining. Okay - just a little gross! Because I was so sore and immobile those first few days that I was staying at the Smith home, my daughter-in-law, Jamie, ended up helping me drain and empty the tubes & bulbs. She is one tough cookie to be willing to do that! After a few days, Jamie was able to drive me to her home in Rexburg, where Rich came down to meet us and drive me the rest of the way home.

When we finally arrived home at about 10 pm, I could hardly wait to go crash in my bed. What a surprise awaited me in my bedroom! Scattered around the room were 6 vases of roses, as well as the mixed flowers from my Butte students refreshed with some new ones. My room smelled amazing! I knew my friend Murlene had to be one of the people involved, so I found out from her everyone who had pitched in on the flowers. Thank you: Murlene, Glenda, Nora Lee, Carolyn (again), Christine, Rene', Neldene and Becca! Good friends are so nice to have!

As I got to laze around, popping pain pills, breathing in the smell of roses (a little "Alice in Wonderland" theme going on there, eh?), I got one very unhappy kick in the head. Vickie, my breast health nurse at the Huntsman called to let me know my surgeon felt I should go get a consult with a Radiation Oncologist. WHAT?! From the very beginning the discussion had been about surgery and Chemotherapy. That's it! The stupid "R" thing hadn't been talked about at all as something I would even need to worry about. I was mentally and emotionally prepared from the get-go for surgery & chemo - not for radiation! So, I must admit - I have tried to be tough and deal with all of this stuff, but the "R" word really made me cry.

It will be such an imposition on my life, I really don't want to do it. Chemo involves 6 day trips to the clinic in Rexburg, each 3 weeks apart. Radiation is every single day, Mon-Fri for 6 weeks! Obviously there is no Radiation Therapy in Dillon, so that means being on the road every day, plus finding someone who can drive me if I don't feel up for it, or go move in with a family member who lives near a Radiation Center. Either way I have to impose on others - and here I thought I'd be done with this and have my life back by August! Very discouraging. Okay, I guess that's enough whining for now!

My happy news for this post is getting rid of the tubes. About 10 days after my surgery, 2 of the tubes were draining below the required 10 ml to get removed, so I went and got those taken out. I must admit, I was terrified to have them pulled out cause I'm still so sore and tender. Dr. Wilson took them out for me. One really stung as it was pulled out, the other was in such a numb place that I barely felt it.

This picture is celebrating the fact that I only have one tube left (Isn't it cute the way I have to pin it to my pants?). By the end of the week, the third one wasn't draining much, and I was able to have Dr Weed pull it out. Again I was terrified, but this one was from a very numb spot so I didn't feel it at all. What a relief! Even though it will take a lot of getting used to - having my right breast always be numb - at times like that I'm a little glad for it! (I know, I'm a wimp!)