Back on the ward

It was the nurse who told me about the "undergarments from hell" that I would have to wear after surgery. I gave up wearing bras more than 35 years ago, but now I would need industrial-strength front-fastening bras (worn 24 hours a day) and an abdominal binder - a corset similar to those worn by builders, shearers, etc., with velcroed straps that fasten across the belly.

My hospital admission was early on the day of surgery, directly into the room outside of the theatre. Preparation was much less fussy than previous operations; no paper hat and bootees, or diaper, but I had my hair in plaits, and had to replace the ties, which had metal grips. I also had pressure stockings to wear, helping to prevent deep vein thrombosis. The plastics staff came in and did extensive drawings on my breast and abdomen, a guide to what I used to look like before they chopped into me.

The operation took about 8 hours - first removing the breast tissue, including my nipple, then the free TRAM flap reconstruction, using muscle and skin from my abdomen. My belly button was also move - a new hole was made further up my abdomen and my umbilicus was stitched into its new home. No invasive cancer was found, so I had no surgery to my lymph nodes.

I woke up back on the ward, clear-headed, with no nausea, but with the usual cotton-wool mouth and sore throat that seem to result from the tubes used during the operation. There was remarkably little pain. I was hooked up to an antibiotic drip, a self-administer pain-relief drug, a catheter, three drains (one from my breast and two from my abdomen), and an oxygen mask. I was arranged in a "banana" shape, with my back and head elevated and knees bent up over a pile of pillows.

One of the most unexpected side effects of the operation was total numbness in the thumbs and first three fingers of both hands - classic carpal tunnel syndrome. It felt terrible, and didn't go away when I massaged or moved my hands.