It wasn't bad- and honestly, I was so tired of dealing with the thing- I would have gladly endured worse- lol! It felt more weird than painful- but was over quick. Since you are nervous, maybe take some Tylenol before you go so you will have something already in your system. Good luck! Hugs!

I only had one drain and the worst part of the removal was the sting from where the skin was trying to heal over the drain tube. My bc nurse just clipped the stitch and then pulled it out! It hurt for a couple seconds but then was done. Not too bad afterwards and didn’t hurt as bad as the couple of times it got pulled on a bit when I was dressing or something..

yes once they remove the drainage bulb they will cover that hole with a wound bandage.

Having the drains removed is nothing to stress over or be nervous about. I've had 12 chest surgeries and had drains 10 or 11 times now. It is such a relief once they are removed. You are instantly in less pain and can move your arms and upper body around much easier. It is also way easier to get dressed and wear tops that you can pull over your head instead of tops that button or zip. Most of my doctors have allowed the drains to be removed once you have 10 ml of drainage or less per day. Every time my drains have been removed the nurse or doctor will first cut the stitch. Next they would tell me to take a deep breath. Then they tell me to let the breath out slowly. It is while you are breathing out that they remove the drain. They will pull it out in one quick and steady movement. Sometimes it has felt a little weird and other times I don't feel it at all. There's been a couple times where it stung for a minute. I have even removed my drains myself at home a couple of times with the doctor's permission. Most of the time your skin will be red and irritated around the drain holes, especially if you have tugged or pulled your drainage tubes by accident. I always seem to get them hung up or tugged at least once a day while I have them. After they are removed I always keep the drain holes covered with gauze until the incision holes are completely closed. It typically takes from 1-2 weeks for them to close up. Sometimes, especially if you've had your drains for a really long time which I consider to be 3 weeks or longer, you will have a bit of watery yellow or sometimes blood tinged drainage for a few days after the drains are removed and this is totally normal. Good luck on Thursday ❤️

@A MyBCTeam Member I had one drain and it hurt to have it removed because the doctor did not numb that area the first time. It is hard to sleep with at times but I slept with the drain wearing my post-surgical bra and I hope on November 11, I do not have to have another drainage bulb put in because that will be the fourth time. I hope they just give me exercises to help drain that area without them putting a drain inside me again.

Mentioned Users

A MyBCTea...