Saturday, August 11, 2012

Day 211 - Phantom Itch

No radiation today. It's the weekend! Hooray! So no fun fact either.

This is something I meant to write about before... the phantom itch. Lately I've been get the urge to itch my breast (before radiation). I'd go to scratch the place where I think the feeling is coming from, scratch it and nothing would happen. There would be no relief... so in order to get the relief I am seeking, I would have to feel all around. Sometimes I would find the place that is actually itchy. Other times I would just leave it alone. For instance, I feel like I have an itch on the top of my breast, but I'd find that I find relief right where my cleavage is. Ha! I was told that this is expected. As my skin and body heals from the mastectomy, the nerves are growing back. However, the nerves may not grow back to the original spot but rather in a distant spot. It's an odd feeling. As for feeling in my boobs, there's feeling around the edges, but as you move further towards the center where my nipples used to be, I don't feel anything. I can feel if you press down, but that's because I feel the tissue expander pushing down on my chest wall. But I won't ever get feeling there. I also have no feeling on the back of my left arm due to the axillary dissection or under my arm. Small price to pay.

Oh yes, last monday when I went in for my physical therapy session, I asked my therapist if I can enjoy hot tubbing. There are mixed reports of what you should do. She suggested that since I do not have lymphedema, but I am at risk, that I can go in as long as I keep my arm out of the water. So we'll see!

P.S. Do you like the facts??? I know my radiation techs are really getting into it! :)

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