Post-Op Day 1

Uncategorized 1 Minute

I made it through the surgery and was back home by late afternoon yesterday 💜

The surgeon removed 2 scalp masses, 1 of which felt like a bowling ball attached to my head. Because of its size, they had to take a skin graft from my thigh and place it over the scalp.. I will have a bald spot there once it fully heals. As I was told ahead of time, the donor site on my leg is definitely the toughest to deal with right now: lots of intense burning, like really bad road rash, and continued drainage that I have to manage. I’ve been used to excruciating pain from the large scalp mass for the last few months, so even though I have a massive sponge/bolster stitched into my scalp now, it still hurts less than it did 🫣 Hoping it stays that way!

I’ll go back next week to have the bandages changed and wounds checked. I’m doing my best to manage the pain and discomforts, as well as the wound care tasks.. my nursing background sure has come in handy with a lot of this stuff. Brandon has been thrust into his own training as a nurse for me the last several months, and I’m so very grateful to have him to help get me through all of this!.. even when it makes him nervous. Walking has been tough due to after effects of anesthesia and pain meds, and the pain of the donor site. Bleeding picks up quite a bit with activity, so I’m doing my best to rest.

I’m happy to be home with Brandon and the kids again. This 4th of July looked a lot different for us, but I’m grateful to be home together, nonetheless.

Hope everyone has a safe and fun weekend. Thank you for all of the continued prayers and messages of love and support ❤️💙🤍

**There are a couple photos of my battle wounds, but I turned them B&W to reduce the graphic nature

Unknown's avatar

Published by Lauren

Welcome! Thank you for being here! My name is Lauren Doyle. My husband and I have been married since 2013, and together since 2011. We have 2 wonderful kids and live in the Twin Cities suburbs. I have both a Master’s and a Doctorate and am a board-certified Women’s Health Nurse Practitioner. I also have the student loans to prove it. In 2019 our lives were turned upside down. Our daughter was born with a serious heart defect that required open heart surgery when she was just 5 days old. A couple weeks after her birth (while she was still in the hospital), I found a mass in my abdomen which required major emergency surgery to remove. At first, we were told it was just a fibroid; we learned about a week later that the mass was a rare and aggressive type of cancer – leiomyosarcoma. Through multiple surgeries and chemo, I have come out the other side, changed in many ways. I am now considered Stage IV, with a chemo-induced heart condition, and struggle with several other severe side effects from treatments. I continue to work and live and love as best as I can. I will not claim to have all the answers about anything, but I can tell you I have learned a LOT in my 35+ years of life thus far. My passion has always been helping and educating people in whatever ways possible. I am hoping this blog will allow me to do that for a broader population beyond the patients I see at work, share my unique journey, and help keep friends and family in the loop along the way. Thank you again for being here.

Published

One thought on “Post-Op Day 1”

  1. So thankful for an update and glad you’re home with your family!  You’ve been through SO much.  I honestly don’t know how you do it.  I would not be the brave person that you are.  That I do know.  Continued prayers for healing, Lauren. Lisa Sikes

    Like

    Reply

Leave a comment