Drain Removal and New Belly Buttons

Warning!  Graphic images and video that may freak you out!

You've been warned.

I had a follow-up visit with my plastic surgeon this morning.  He is quite happy with how I am  healing.  In fact, it's better than he had anticipated.  That was SO good to hear.  I also got rid of two of my three drains today.  I'm hoping to see the other one go on Monday.  Fingers crossed!

During all of this process, I have taken some photos and had Kevin take a video.  It's stuff that fascinates me, and I thought some others may be as warped as I am, so I want to share.

First, the new breast is made out of muscle, fat, and skin from my tummy.  This means a few different things.  For instance, I have a few stretch marks on the bottom side, because I had a few stretch marks on my tummy.  Get it?

Another thing is that my belly button wound up on my upper chest, on the inside of the new breast.  He sewed it closed, and it's healing, but I've been having fun pulling down the neck of my shirt and telling people, "Look!  This was my belly button!"

This image, like all of these, have bruises, medical tape residue, and incisions.  I did warn you, remember?

Usually, after the shock of seeing this wears off, the next question is, "So, Rachel, do you have a NEW belly button?  What does it look like?"  This is where it gets even more fun.  My new belly button is a circle surrounded by stitches.  We've discussed how much it looks like the CBC Sunday Morning sun (example at the end of this blog entry):

There is also the talking point of my hip-to-hip incision.  I debated about showing this because it would be WAY too revealing, had the bandages not been there.  Oh well.  All of my modesty has left me in this past two years, so here ya go.  It still has the steri strips on at this point, but you can see the length of it:

Finally, with all of my history and experience with drains, I thought to ask Kevin to record the removal process.  It goes really fast, but it's interesting.  I added an image and a couple of captions to help explain things.  I also blurred out the new breast, even though it doesn't yet look like one.

So there you have it.  More of my body than anyone has ever wanted to see.  And if you weren't sure what I meant by the CBS Sunday Morning sun, here you go: