Suggestions for sleep positions after lumpectomy

KarenKordisch

I'll be having a lumpectomy in 2 weeks, left side. I usually sleep on my stomach or left side. That's not going to work! Will I need to sleep on my back? Maybe sleep on a recliner? Any suggestions?

RocDocVic

https://csn.cancer.org/discussion/327997/suggestions-for-sleep-positions-after-lumpectomy

I had a lumpectomy on my left side, and I'm a side sleeper. I wore a T-shirt to sleep in (not loose fitted for support), and a king size pillow along my left side and one on the right side. I could lay my arm across the pillow in a somewhat elevated position on the right side. It will be uncomfortable either way for several days due to swelling and bruising. Use ice for breast and lymph nodes removed in the armpit area. Small bags of frozen peas work great for this. Have several in the freezer for rotation. I had them in Ziplock bags too. Make sure doctor prescribes painkillers for at least 7 days if needed. Ibuprofen helps too.

Also, put towels on the bed incase the sutures weep fluid. The sutures in my armpit weeped lymphatic fluid and some blood for 2+ weeks. I had to purchase sterile bandages, 4x4 inches, and gauze cut into mini pads, 3x3 - inches, and change it out at least 2 times each day. No showers for the 1st 2 days. I used hydrogen peroxide to keep sutures/area clean.

KarenKordisch

Thanks for taking the time to give such a detailed response. It was very helpful. My lumpectomy got moved up to Thursday so I'll be trying them all soon.

RocDocVic

https://csn.cancer.org/discussion/comment/1715221#Comment_1715221

Best of luck. I had a lot of swelling and bruising. I needed the painkillers, so make sure you get enough for 7 days. I had an egg sized lump in armpit area. Doctor said it was OK to allow for some drainage from this area because it alleviated more swelling and pressure/pain. Monitor for any signs of infection such as turning red and feeling hot around all sutures. I had glue sutures on my Breast and left it there until it finally fell off in the shower 4 weeks post surgery. You can barely see the surgical cut line now.

No heavy lifting for at least 2 weeks. Driving was a little difficult with having to turn the wheel. I tried to avoid driving for 1 week. Only if absolutely needed.

I needed 4 weeks of recovery due to the amount of swelling and bruising. I'm in physical therapy to help with limited range of arm motion. Exercises are helping with this. Don't be afraid to ask for this. It does help to get me ready for radiation therapy. I will start this in about 2 weeks.

KarenKordisch

Wow, that's longer than I anticipated! How many lymph nodes were removed for you?

I think I'm working with a good hospital/doctor system. They already gave me a packet with exercises. You are the second person to recommend PT. I'm certainly interested in it.

Have you had chemo, too, or are just moving to radiation? I've got both in future.

Good luck with radiation.

RocDocVic

https://csn.cancer.org/discussion/comment/1715230#Comment_1715230

Yea, my recovery was a little bit longer than anticipated. They took 3 Sentinel lymph nodes identified by the radioactive dye they injected in the OR. Slick process. I also had a large tumor, at the upper end for a lumpectomy. I had Neoadjuvant chemo treatments 1st which did help to shrink the tumor so I qualified for the lumpectomy. 6 cycles every 3 weeks. Month off to recover from chemo before surgery in mid March. I went and stayed with friends in Mexico starting 2 weeks post surgery. Before I left my surgeon drained some blood that had pooled in area of tumor which really helped. I stayed in Mexico for 4 weeks. Restarted on Herceptin and Perjeta targeted chemo drugs when I returned. I'll be on these infusions every 3 weeks through at least October. Just saw my surgeon and she cleared me for radiation therapy. I meet my Radiologist Oncologist next week to hear what she proposes. Number of treatments and rad dosage. I'm hoping for fewer treatments and possibly no need to zap armpit area since I had a pCR pathology report for the tumor and lymph nodes. No cancer cells found. The chemo drugs worked. No residual cancer, at least they hope so. Herceptin and Perjeta are needed as an insurance type policy to make sure if any cancer cells escaped they'll be taken care of. I'm HER2 positive breast cancer, stage 2.

Hope this helps.

olivesew

Hi Karen,

Good luck with your lumpectomy. Mine went real well, really didn't have a lot of pain afterwards. Yes, sleeping is a little awkward. I slept on my back, or on the nonsurgery side. Pillows are great to rest your arm on. I wore a bra to sleep in, as had a drain tube for the lymph nodes, and it could be tucked into the bra to keep it in place. I guess they make special bras for after surgery, but I didn't know about them at the time.

As soon as you have a consultation for radiation, ask about skin care. A lot of people start using creams right away. I didn't know anything about radiation burn, and no one at the radiation oncologist office ever told me a word about it.

Definitely ask questions about every aspect of your treatments. I expected the experts to fill me in with info, but they didn't. It seems like you have to pry information out of experienced medical experts who know the questions people have. Why don't they suggest websites to look at and other sources of info for patients? I know they have limited time to talk to each patient, but they could hand out a sheet of paper with sources of info to research if you choose to.

I posted a list of questions to ask about the radiation treatments and the machine. I got zero pre-treatment info at my radiation oncologist, so wish to help others know what to expect. It is titled "Questions to ask before starting radiation…"

KarenKordisch

Thanks for all the suggestions. Good point about handouts. I've also signed up for a breast cancer group on Facebook. It's wonderful to be able to speak with others who have gone through this.