Arms...agony..help!

Hi:

I am 2 weeks out from my TT and arms. Tummy is actually feeling pretty good. My arms are a different story. I am in so much pain. My doctor doesn't have me wearing any garments on my arms. The incisions are down right scary looking! I hope they fade. My armpits especially just look so inflammed and irritated. I am supposed to go back to work in 2 days and I can't even imagine it. I have not even been wearing a bra. When will the arms start to feel better? Any suggestions? I hate feeling like crap :(

Sandy

 If you are wearing nothing on your arms - could it be the irritation from rubbing that is bothering you?

I got this tubular compression stuff from the drug store - came in a large roll that you cut to the appropriate length.  I doubled it and had it all the way from armpit to wrist/hand.  Helped reduce swelling and keep the incision covered...

 I totally agree with Erica. My arms and thighs had to have compression on them! This incisions were very sensitive and the swelling was bad! Swelling would make the incision widen and hurt! I wore www.marenagroup.com compression sleeves almost 24 hrs a day for 6 months!

 I'm so sorry you're in pain.  I wore compression on my arms was six weeks, 24/7.  I think it really helped me.  I have heard about women getting thick girl tights  and cut them to wear them as sleeves.  Others have used ace bandages.  I wore a very soft tshirt under my compression to keep my armpits from rubbing on anything.

Let us know how you're doing  please.

 My surgeon didnt have me wear compression on my arms and I did fine.  Can you post a picture of what you're talking about?  I definitely did not have that kind of pain, especailly 2 weeks out.

If you want to see my scars, and how they healed, there are pictures on my profile.  I"m just about a year out from plastics.

I had a TT and arms done too.  The arms have been the most difficult part of my surgery.  I am 3 weeks out and I got a seroma on my arm last week.  I do wear compression garments 24/7.  Last week when my arms were really bothering me, my husband suggested I take the compression off - big mistake.  I felt much worse with the garmet off.  When I put it back on, I did feel better.  So if you could get some compression on your arms, it may help.  Take some Tylenol too for the pain.  I use a computer all day at work and although I do feel better now, I couldn't imagine being on the computer all day with my arms up when my arms were really bothering me.  

I needed compression on my arms to feel good, too, and wore them long after my doctor said to, even if it was only part of the day. My arms felt good by day 10 and I went back to work on day 17.

 Tomorrow will be 6 weeks since my tt & arm lift. My doctor told me I can stop wearing my sleeves & garment 24/7 now & wear them for 12 hours a day for the next 6 weeks. I can't imagine not having worn my sleeves. My incision is better on my non-dominant hand & I definitely attribute that to using it less. My arm pits have been a problem as I popped stitches, but they're slowly getting better. I'll be using silicone cream & strips for the next few months to improve the scars. I've heard the strips really help cushion & protect the scar as well as the healing benefits. You may want to consider them.

Brachioplasty 03/15.  Can't imagine not wearing compression.  My arms feel awful when I take the sleeves off just to shower.  I also got what Erica was talking about -- go to an old fashioned drug store that sells all kinds of bandages and buy different lengths of tubular stretchy bandages.  I wear from armpit to below elbow during the day and all the way to the wrist  and doubled above the elbow at night. 

The arm pits are tough.  I read on the web that they can take 4-6 weeks to close up.  Kind of makes sense since they don't get much exposure to the air and we tend to move our arms too much.  For around the house I took an old loose t-shirt and cut the arm pits out so the air can get to the incisions.  I also try to keep them away from my side when I think of it.  My doctor says don't put anything on it but warm, soapy water.  It is also soothing to put a warm wet wash cloth up under your arm several times a day.  I have also used a hair dryer on a cool setting just to make sure they are good and dry.

I don't wear a bra at night 'cause I don't want it riding up and rubbing the arm pits.

Try some Tylenol on a regular schedule.  Hope you feel better soon.  Just the last few days have been much better for me.

Buy an garment to wear on your arms, who cares what your doctor says obviously he's clueless.  I wore mine for a long time because it felt better against my skin then anything else, I never had any issues with my arms but the scars were sensative to any touch at all.

Good Luck