Surviving breast reconstruction

By John Bach

Julie got her boobs back.

There’s a sentence I never thought I’d write — let alone blog about. Then again, we never thought she’d have breast cancer, have to undergo months of chemotherapy or sacrifice her breasts to fight off disease. 

On average, 800 women a day are diagnosed with breast cancer in the U.S. alone. Roughly one in eight will face it. Pretty staggering statistics. 

Hard to believe, but 20 months after this all started, we returned to the hospital for what seemed like a step toward normalcy. It took her surgeon two hours to remove the uncomfortable breast expanders that had been stretching her skin over the last year, insert silicone implants and close her back up. 

We are three days out, and so far, so good. The 7-inch incisions that run through the middle of each breast seem to be healing well. Thankfully, her pain has been mostly manageable with medication. But what has been even more encouraging is what I’ve noticed in her outlook. She seems relieved, almost hopeful.

I witnessed a long-absent expression on her face today as she undressed and removed the bandages to take her first post-surgery shower. How different this scene was from when she stood in the same spot looking at the same bathroom mirror following her double mastectomy. 

Instead of breaking down crying, and saying how hideous she looked, she actually looked at herself, turned, and even noticed her shape again. It has been a long road of treatment, followed by multiple surgeries, months of procedures and so many infusions. 

She’s badly bruised and covered in scars, but she’s beginning to regain a portion of her identity and a sliver of her confidence. For that I’m thankful.