What is Reddit's opinion of Gaiam Restore Cold Therapy Massage Roller - Easy-Glide Massage Ball Roller with Sure-Grip Handle - Muscle Massage Tool to Help with Sore Muscles, Neck, and Back Pain - Compact and Lightweight?

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Have you considered a portable AC unit? 86 is up there.

My mother just sent me this cold massage roller that I keep in the freezer, works really well.

Week 8! -- I've previously posted at the 6 week mark and earlier, so you can see the progress

Sleep: I'm still occasionally sleeping on the recliner. In week 7 is when I slept 1/2 the week in my actual bed. The hardest part is sleeping on my sides, which is how I usually go to sleep. So if I sleep on my sides, the next day I sleep on the recliner so I'm not too sore.

Scar Treatment: I am still doing biocornium 2x a day (morning and night) and wearing cicatape for 22 hours a day. I'd posted that I had to purchase a new roller b/c my jade one broke. However, this one's plastic chipped! Right near the rolling part, so it's not super safe to use anymore. I discovered this one online, so I'm going to give it a try. I think the issue is that you have to apply a good amount of pressure, and the other rollers can't do it.

Scar Massage Therapist/Chiropractor I've been going to one at a biweekly schedule. They are trans friendly and actually teach folks about the right way to bind. They do scar massaging on my chest and stomach b/c I feel some tightness near the scars. They also do some alignment on my shoulders since I'm hunching more -- and just generally have terrible posture

Nipple update Left nip is still regularly itchy - especially around the areola. I'm still not sure I'll get more color back, which I'm kinda bummed about. But I'm trying to remain hopeful, but also appreciate how well they have stuck

Activity: I've been going on mult. 1 hour walks throughout the week. That seems to be the sweet spot before I start working up a sweat. My wife and i are going to Disneyland in early June, so trying to build up endurance for that

Background info:

* **Procedures done:** DI with free nipple grafts

* **Surgeon:** Dr Facque in SF @ the Gender Confirmation Center

* **Cost:** Insurance covered mine but it appears that it would have been around 12k based off my co-insurance

* **other surgeons considered and thought process:** I had a consult with Mosser, but his wait time was much longer (he was scheduling surgeries for the summer) and for my calendar March would have been best. I also briefly considered Garramone b/c his results are really great. But I didn't like his practice policies and his website tone (felt much more like a product rather than focused on patient care), so I decided to go to someone closer and with whom I felt more comfortable

* **Prep work for surgery:** I started seeing a trans personal trainer who has a specialization in preparing folks for top surgery and injury prevention. I stared seeing them about 3-4 months before hand. this was so helpful in building lower body and core so that it was really easy to move around post surgery without the use of my arms. It also helped build muscle in my chest.

* **Time on HRT:** not on T and do not plan to be due to medical issues

Week 12 or Month 3! -- I've previously posted at the 8 week mark and earlier, so you can see the progress

Sleep I'm now 100% sleeping on my bed. I can sleep in any angle, which is great b/c I'm I'm a total side sleeper. I don't feel any pain or discomfort anymore.

Scar Treatment: I am still doing biocornium 2x a day (morning and night) and occasionally wearing cicatape. It's summer where I'm at, and the tape sometimes falls off with the sweat when I'm outside. It also just feels hot on my skin when I'm at home. It's hard to keep at it at this point, bc it just feels like a reminder of the surgery. Whereas I'm ready to just live my life normally and put recovery in the past. I'm also noticing that the front is become hypertrophic, so I'm going to talk to my surgeon about maybe getting some shots to address and the dog ears.

I've been using this new roller, and I'm really happy with it so far. DOesn't seem like it'll break anytime soon, and it's a smooth glide.

Scar Massage Therapist/Chiropractor I've been going about every 3 weeks.. But at this point it's more to address my back pain (unrelated to top surgery), and we throw in the scar massage at the end. It's been really helpful b/c she's been able to keep track and tell me if there are any adhesions, or address them before they even start. I'm glad I've done it so far.

Nipple update Left nip is still regularly itchy - especially around the areola. There's more color than last update, but it's slow moving. We'll see if it gets better. On the upside, I do have sensation on both.

Activity and lifting arms over head: I made a post earlier about going to Disneyland. I'm basically back at 100%. In fact, last week I started raising my arms above my head. I know the surgeon recommends 6 months, but I was starting to feel really severe shoulder and back pain. Once I started moving, my pain basically all but went away. So, as much as I wanted to keep to doctors orders, it was really hurting my body to do so.

Background info:

Procedures done: DI with free nipple grafts

Surgeon: Dr Facque in SF @ the Gender Confirmation Center

Cost: Insurance covered mine but it appears that it would have been around 12k based off my co-insurance

other surgeons considered and thought process: I had a consult with Mosser, but his wait time was much longer (he was scheduling surgeries for the summer) and for my calendar March would have been best. I also briefly considered Garramone b/c his results are really great. But I didn't like his practice policies and his website tone (felt much more like a product rather than focused on patient care), so I decided to go to someone closer and with whom I felt more comfortable

**Prep work for surgery:** I started seeing a trans personal trainer who has a specialization in preparing folks for top surgery and injury prevention. I stared seeing them about 3-4 months before hand. this was so helpful in building lower body and core so that it was really easy to move around post surgery without the use of my arms. It also helped build muscle in my chest.

Time on HRT: not on T and do not plan to be due to medical issues

Week 8! -- I've previously posted at the 6 week mark and earlier, so you can see the progress

Sleep: I'm still occasionally sleeping on the recliner. In week 7 is when I slept 1/2 the week in my actual bed. The hardest part is sleeping on my sides, which is how I usually go to sleep. So if I sleep on my sides, the next day I sleep on the recliner so I'm not too sore.

Scar Treatment: I am still doing biocornium 2x a day (morning and night) and wearing cicatape for 22 hours a day. I'd posted that I had to purchase a new roller b/c my jade one broke. However, this one's plastic chipped! Right near the rolling part, so it's not super safe to use anymore. I discovered this one online, so I'm going to give it a try. I think the issue is that you have to apply a good amount of pressure, and the other rollers can't do it.

Scar Massage Therapist/Chiropractor I've been going to one at a biweekly schedule. They are trans friendly and actually teach folks about the right way to bind. They do scar massaging on my chest and stomach b/c I feel some tightness near the scars. They also do some alignment on my shoulders since I'm hunching more -- and just generally have terrible posture

Nipple update Left nip is still regularly itchy - especially around the areola. I'm still not sure I'll get more color back, which I'm kinda bummed about. But I'm trying to remain hopeful, but also appreciate how well they have stuck

Activity: I've been going on mult. 1 hour walks throughout the week. That seems to be the sweet spot before I start working up a sweat. My wife and i are going to Disneyland in early June, so trying to build up endurance for that

Background info:

* **Procedures done:** DI with free nipple grafts

* **Surgeon:** Dr Facque in SF @ the Gender Confirmation Center

* **Cost:** Insurance covered mine but it appears that it would have been around 12k based off my co-insurance

* **other surgeons considered and thought process:** I had a consult with Mosser, but his wait time was much longer (he was scheduling surgeries for the summer) and for my calendar March would have been best. I also briefly considered Garramone b/c his results are really great. But I didn't like his practice policies and his website tone (felt much more like a product rather than focused on patient care), so I decided to go to someone closer and with whom I felt more comfortable

* **Prep work for surgery:** I started seeing a trans personal trainer who has a specialization in preparing folks for top surgery and injury prevention. I stared seeing them about 3-4 months before hand. this was so helpful in building lower body and core so that it was really easy to move around post surgery without the use of my arms. It also helped build muscle in my chest.

* **Time on HRT:** not on T and do not plan to be due to medical issues

I started massaging with a roller from Amazon ($16 - https://www.amazon.com/Gaiam-Restore-Therapy-Massage-Roller/dp/B01MR9GQU9/ref=sr_1_9?dchild=1&keywords=Gaiam+roller&qid=1593815238&sr=8-9) around week 7-8. It was very slowly because I did not feel comfortable going too aggressive with the roller. If I pinch my nipple, I cannot feel any glands underneath so I am guessing whatever scar tissue I might've developed went away? I wore the compression vest + extra wrap around my chest for extra tightness for 9-10 weeks. I probably did not need it but I wanted the results to be perfect.