Here is a sentence that I would have bet would never come out of my mouth. I got new nipples today. Yup, by a gal named Tada. Can’t make it up can you? Last year about this time I had some more reconstructive surgery and I finally got to a point where I was ready to finish it all up. Who ever thought it would go on for 3 years?
I made an appointment with my plastic surgeon and scheduled time with their tattoo specialist. Believe it or not they do this right in the Dr.’s office and it took about an hour and a half. For those of you who have tattoos it was exactly what you think it would be like. For those of you who don’t have any, I’m thankful that the skin in that area is mostly numb. Today they don’t look like the final product will, apparently there is quite a bit of fading after the initial procedure. Not to gross any one out but I was told that they would look like pepperoni’s walking out the door and sure enough, they look like two pepperoni slices. But I am pleased because they cover up scars and will look fairly normal when I’m done.
To get ready for the tattooing I was told to go to a store called “Underneath It All”, and buy a pair of stick on nipples. I’ll let that sink in for a moment. Fortunately these folks work with breast cancer patients and no one was remotely shocked that I walked in and asked for them. They even gave me a glass of wine and a brownie. We love them for that! So I tried on a couple pair and last night I put them on and was amazed at how real they looked. Who knew rubber could look so good? I should have bought these a long time ago; they sure made a difference in how I felt about what I’d been looking at for the last 3 years.
What a process huh? So these will fade a bit, need to heal and then if I want more detail I can go back again in 6 weeks and have more work done. Which I’m certain I will do.
Note from Guest Author J.R.: Sorry guys, pictures for this blog entry are sadly not available!
On another note, I am still participating in the Zometa trial and have maintained the “stable” condition of my last report. My tumor markers are still in the normal ranges and the scans are coming back with no significant change. I will have some more scans next month for the trial, hopefully the disease will stay put.
So that’s it for me. I can’t believe how quickly this past year has gone and 2010 is right around the corner. I hope this note finds you all well and wish you and your families a Happy Holiday Season and a Happy New Year!
Love to you all,
Jen
