February 3rd, Tuesday, was my tattooing. I've never had a tattoo before in my life and I never really had any desire to get one either. Just like many other things, breast cancer changes things. I had my exchange surgery and my nipple reconstructed back in November. They like for the nipples to heal for about three months before doing the tattooing of the areola. We're not really supposed to get any sensation back to our breast after surgery. I gotten some sensation back but didn't really know what to expect when I arrived.
The person that did my tattooing, I'll call her Ms. R, chatted happily with me. She loved that fact that I worked with the Cowgirls and the BCRC. We looked at the different coloring and tinting to try our best to match what mine used to look like. Well, to be honest, it was hard to remember. I've been through this since January of 2006. Granted I still had one natural breast up until May of 2008 but the mind gets foggy easily, especially after chemo. She put a topical cream to numb my nipples. I was still able to feel some of the needle pressure even after the cream was applied. Ms. R put more cream on and we carried on. The whole precess was pretty lengthy. She spent a great deal of time on my first areola mixing different colors. The other areola did not take nearly as long. She did have to do some "shadowing" since my right areola is flatter than the left one. Another option for those of you that do NOT want to get your nipples reconstructed is to get three dimensional tattooing to make it appear like you have nipples. This is a good option for those that never want to wear a bra.
We were finally satisfied with the color though the coloring will change a great deal within the next week. Apparently the blood rushed up top while she was applying the permanent colors. There will be peeling within the first week. I'm to apply ointment and keep them bandaged up for a week. I have my appointment in early March to go in for a follow-up. They will possibly do more coloring then.
I got to work ready for a full day even though it was close to noon by then. My tattoo site was getting very sore and painful. I do not like to take medicine if I don't have to now that I've been through chemo and am on Tamoxifen for five years. I stuck it out for a few more minutes before hunting down some ibuprofen. By the time I found some and for it to kick in, I was miserable. It reminded me of the times when I did not take pain meds early enough during my saline filling days. The good news is that I do have some sensation back. The bad news was that it took about an hour for the meds to kick in. I highly recommend taking some pain meds prior to getting the tattooing. Better be safe than sorry!
This jpeg was found off of Google but it shows that the areola makes the breast look so muhc more realistic. Most of my scars are now covered by the tattooing too!
I looked in the mirror last night before showering. It's pretty crazy how real they look! I haven't seen two breast and two areola on me since January 1, 2006! Four years later and I'm pretty much done! Most women have a much shorter journey than mine. I'm extremely happy for them. I'm not sad for myself. I just hope I always remember to appreciate my life and my body. It's okay if I'm a few pounds over my plateau. I just need to keep balancing my life with exercise and a great deal of greens.
2009 is starting off well and there's no reason for the rest of 2009 not to be!
