BREAST CANCER: BEING AT HOME AFTER OPERATION ON REMOVAL LUMPS FROM BREAST
You may have pins and needles and some pain or discomfort in your chest for a few days. Any numbness or tingling’ sensation under your arm may last several weeks or months. If you have had a mastectomy or auxiliary lymph glands removed, your shoulder will probably also be stiff. The exercises explained above will help you to regain the movement in your arm, and apart from doing these regularly, you should try to use your arm normally as much as possible. However, heavy housework and lifting should be avoided for about 6 weeks, and you should use your other arm to carry shopping etc.
Depression
You are likely to feel tired for at least a few days, and may find you become easily depressed. Many women experience a sense of elation immediately after their operation which then gives way to lethargy and exhaustion as the anxiety they have been feeling starts to be relieved. Mood swings are common, ranging from elation to depression and anger. This is a normal reaction which should settle down in time.
If you have problems sleeping, waking in the night and worrying so that you are exhausted during the day, your GP should be able to prescribe a light sedative which you can take for a few nights. Even three good nights’ sleep can help you to cope again, and stop the cycle of tiredness and anxiety.
Although you should take things easy and rest when you need to for the first few days you are at home, it is important to try to get out and about as much as possible and to return to your normal life as soon as you feel able to do so.
Some women worry that they will be less attractive to their partners, or will be unable to find a partner, after a breast operation, but in the majority of cases these fears are unfounded.
Telling children about cancer
Young children can only understand very simple*’explanations about why their mothers have to go into hospital. By the age of 10, most children can grasp quite complicated details, and it is better to be honest rather than let their imaginations dream up something much worse than the reality. However, it is probably better to give them a little information at a time and gradually build up the whole picture, taking your cue from your children about how much they want to know. All children need reassurance, and a chance to express their own fears and to talk about things if they want to. Older children may find their anxieties difficult to cope with and to express or understand. They should be encouraged to talk about their fears, but not pushed into doing so before they are ready.
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