LOSING SENSATION AFTER MY MASTECTOMY
I wish I knew that I was going to completely lose sensation after my mastectomy and just how much it was going to impact my life every single day.
I’ve often thought of my surgeon in these moments and wondered how or if they could have better prepared me for this…
But it’s not like he knows what it feels like to undergo a mastectomy and lose sensation and I doubt he has time to explain sensory nerves to each and every one of his patients.
Plus, I don’t think he knew about newer surgical techniques used to reconnect nerves anyways… but this is something our care teams should be talking about, because it’s a big deal!
[During a mastectomy, the breast tissue is removed, nerves that provide feeling to the breast and nipple are also cut. When nerves are severed, nerve signals are disrupted. It’s like cutting the cord that plugs your TV into the wall. This can result in numbness and permanent loss of sensation to the breast area. We often regain little to no feeling, even if we choose to undergo breast reconstruction.]
But I do wish I knew that I was going to lose the ability to feel any sense of touch, feeling of warmth, any sensation at all.
I know talking to other breasties that have gone through this helps a lot and knowing that you have options to preserve your sensation has given me hope.
There is so much that we aren’t told or taught before our surgeries. I even started classes to learn as much as I can about breast neurotization and sensory nerves because I want to know more about this and I can’t wait to share this information with the community!!
I am looking into having Resensation done at the time of my revision surgery.
Resensation is a new technique of breast neurotization, or nerve repair, that can potentially restore feeling as part of autologous and implant breast reconstruction surgery after a mastectomy. Resensation uses allograft nerve tissue to reconnect the nerves in the chest that were cut during a mastectomy. Over time, the nerve graft guides regrowth of nerve fibers and can lead to sensory restoration to the breast tissue.
When sensation is restored to breasts after mastectomy and reconstruction, we have the ability to not only look, but also may feel, more like ourselves again!
Let me know what questions you have and how I can help you!! I’m soo excited not only about the possibility of getting sensation back but also to be sharing this information with our community!