So as many of you know I am recovering from a unilateral mastectomy with no reconstruction. I found out I had DCIS which is Stage 0 breast cancer in April and I made the choice to have my right breast removed so that I could avoid radiation and further biopsies as I also have intraductal papillomas too. What a ride! I had my surgery was on April 24th and I thought I was pretty well educated going in but there are a few tings I wish I had known in advance.
Here is my Top 5 list of Amazon “must-haves” that I really appreciated while recovering from my mastectomy. FYI – I did add Amazon affiliate links here. Amazon Prime was my best friend as I could get things pretty much the next day.
The Drain Jacket – I really balked at buying this sucker as it was $59.99 and not exactly fashionable. I chose black because I thought it looked cooler and you can’t see the blood on black. The Breast Cancer Recovery Tee with Internal Drain Management Pockets comes with drain pockets which made it possible to sleep without ripping out my dreaded JP drain. I literally wore this jacket for 8 days. My husband would wash and dry it at night while I took a shower. I had a love/hate relationship with this jacket. Yes, those are frozen peas on my chest!
A Pillow Nest with a Wedge! Oh my gosh, that first night I was a huge mess. It’s hard to lay down and impossible to lay on your side after a mastectomy so I bought an Abco Tech Bed Wedge Pillow with Memory Foam Top. The wedge allowed me to lay on my back and be propped up enough that my incision didn’t pull. I then surrounded myself with regular pillows — under my arms, heads and legs for further comfort. I had a nice pillow nest going on for 2 weeks!
A Front Close Bra – Fruit of the Loom is now on my BFF list for these Front Close Racerback Bras. There is no way to get a sports bra on without a front closure after a mastectomy. This bra is so comfortable and easy to put on. It was gave me some compression which I need to feel secure. It’s weird having a tighter bra made me feel so much better. I did not have reconstruction and I think the light pressure helped with swelling. I have since ordered 6 more of these bras as they are so inexpensive.
Dial Soap – It’s been years since I bought a bar of Dial Soap! You all know that I love Bath & Body Works and Lush but having a huge incision inspired me to get some good old fashioned Dial Antibacterial Deodorant Soap. You can’t shave or wear deodorant after a mastectomy and the smell of this soap made me feel really clean and I didn’t stink which is a real moral builder.
The Super Pack of Sterile Pads – After I had my JP Drain (I really hated this thing) removed it was super irritated and the hole leaked for about a week after it was pulled. Hence the Curad Sterile Non-Adherent Pads were a miracle for me. Band-Aids didn’t do the trick and these pads fit under my compression bra to soak up the excessive fluid (yes, I know — yuck).
Needless to say when that blue Amazon truck pulled up each day I was pretty darn excited. I utilized Prime Pantry quite a bit too. Having fruit snacks and Doritos delivered to my door gave me hope of recovery!
Queen of the Girl Geeks 
I hope you’re feeling better- thank you so much for this list, my aunt had a bilateral mastectomy eight years ago and this would have been so helpful I hope you’re continuing to feel better- sending good thoughts your way!!
Thank you so much! I really appreciate your kind words : ) I hope your Aunt is doing well too.