showering with drains

I am scheduled to have a breast lift and arm lift on Nov 7.   This is the first of my plastics as I cant hide my arms and they are BAD.  My surgeon has told me I will have drains due to the breast lift.  Will I be able to shower with them?  the idea of having to go a whole week without a real shower does not sound appealing.

Also, for those that did these two procedures today, how was your recovery??

Thanks for the info!!

You can shower with drains. You just have to use something around your neck to hang them from while in the shower. I used a piece of fabric tied in a loop around my neck. It isn't the most comfortable feeling but it allows you to take the shower which is a wonderful thing. I had a prophylactic bilateral mastectomy with reconstruction from my abdomen so I had two in my chest and two in my mons area to hold up. Enjoy the shower.

Thanks for the info.  

I can live with the awkwardness of having to hold the up.  I am one of those people that doesnt do anything without taking my morning shower so I have to admit it was making me nervous.

I had arms and a breast lift done at the same time 2 years ago.

I went home with one drain in each armpit.

They pulled my drains out the next day at my wound check appointment.

I had it done on a Thursday, follow up on Friday .... Rested through the weekend.
I took the following week off from work, but was up and about and out of the house each day. I was on the computer and could have worked, but was glad to have the time off.

The recovery was not hard at all.
My arms felt heavy by the end of the day, so I wrapped some flexible ice packs with ace bandages and that helped.

My breast recovery was a breeze ... I had pads against my skin, then a soft t shirt and then my front close bra.

The area on the sides was most uncomfortable .... It was hard to sleep on my side for the first few weeks.

Best of luck ..... You will do great!!!

Thank you for the info

There wasnt a "wound check" appt on my list of follow-ups.  I am having surgery on a Weds (as an outpatient) and as far as I know I dont see my doctor until 8 days later.  I see him pre-op on the 2nd so I will check at that time.  I am also taking the entire following week off as well to give myself time.

I am glad to hear your recovery went well.  Being uncomfortable sleeping on my sides is something I can live with in order to get rid of these batwings.

 Try some of those cheap beads from a party store. Good luck and speedy recovery! I had both surgeries as an outpatient and did not have drains. I so love the difference 

Thank you!!  I am bouncing off the walls already in anticipation.  I wish I wasnt having drains but I figure it is a small price to pay in the long run.

I hung my drains from a lanyard around my neck, no problem. I was allowed to shower the day after surgery. I had no drains from breast or arms, but I did for tummy tuck. Breast lift was a piece of cake compared to other things, arms were not painful but long recovery. I'm very happy I did both.

 I was actually debating doing my chest as a good bra dies wonders but with the skin hanging on te sides my Dr thought I would get much better results doing my arms and chest together.  I am so excited!

When you leave the hospital, they will give you instructions on how to strip the drains.  My doc wants them stripped at least 3 times a day.  I empty them at the same time.  You will be required to measure their output.  My doc says they are ready to be pulled when the individual drain outputs 30 ml or less in a 24 hour period over 2 days.  So you may have to call the office in between doctors appointments to have a drain pulled.  Usually a nurse pulls the drain.  It is a quick, mostly painless process that only takes a few seconds.  These appointments are not scheduled in advance due to the drainage requirements.