Essentials You Need After a Double Mastectomy

There’s a lot to think about and prepare for before a double mastectomy. Preparing your house and self is important because you’ll have a reduced range of motion and activity restrictions after surgery. You may be wondering, what are the things you need after a double mastectomy?

Hi, I’m Julia, and I am a BRCA 2+ previvor who had a prophylactic double mastectomy with direct-to-implant reconstruction in November 2023. Before surgery, I had a breast reduction in July of 2023. The combination of the breast reduction and then the mastectomy helped me to understand exactly what I needed to recover from a major surgery like a mastectomy. 

On top of having these major surgeries, I did the surgeries between travel therapy contracts and moving for work. Meaning, that I was never in the same place after surgery because I was in temporary housing and I had to travel to San Francisco for the surgeries. I managed to modify my housing units to accommodate my stay and make recovery as stress-free as possible. 

Must-Haves After a Double Mastectomy 

• Personal Hygiene
• Compression Bras 
• Surgical Site Management
• Pillows and Sleeping
• Clothes
• Over-the-Counter Medications
• Stepping Stool
• Delivery & Helpful Services

Personal Hygiene Products Post-Mastectomy 

Post mastectomy, you will have drains and not be able to raise your hands above your shoulders for a prescribed amount of time. Thus, it can make showering and personal hygiene more difficult. Here are some things that I found helpful to feel fresh and clean.  My surgeon’s office recommended I wash with antibacterial soap prior to surgery, and I also used it after surgery.

• Body wipes
• Dry Shampoo
• Bidet attachment 
• Antibacterial Soap

Compression Bras Post-Double Mastectomy

You’ll need to wear compression bras for a prescribed amount of time after surgery. I had my first surgery in July 2023 and have only worn compression bras since then. To me, they feel the most comfortable. I don’t know what cup size I am anymore because I haven’t worn a wired bra in almost a year.

My MD highly recommended the Prairie Hugger Vida Bra. I bought 2 of these which were pricey ($86/bra).

I also found a more affordable bra on Amazon and bought a pack of 3 bras on sale for $27 (regularly $40, but they run sales often).

After wearing both sets of bras for almost a year now, I can report the Prairie holds up well over time. They are also my preferred bras for exercise because they absorb moisture well and oddly feel clean even after heavy training. If you want to invest in something that holds up well over time, I recommend the Prairie’s.

• Prairie Bra Use “JULIA10” to save 10%
• Amazon Compression Bras

Surgical Site Management

After surgery, you’ll need to manage your drains, incisions, scars, and implants. Here are some things I found helpful.

• Aquaderm and CeraVe lotion for scar and implant massage
• Silicon tape for scar management
• Non-irritating surgical tape to keep dressing in place. This was clutch because my skin got extremely irritated by other kinds of tape. This was the only tape that I could tolerate without an itchy, red reaction.
• Drain belts. I recommend getting at least 2 because you’ll want one to wear in the shower when you get wet and one to wear other times.

Pillows and Sleeping

Sleeping comfortably can be a challenge post-mastectomy because you will not be allowed to sleep on your side or stomach for a prolonged period. The 2 most important things I found helped with sleeping were a good mattress and a wedge pillow. 

Because I was moving around to different temporary housing units as a traveling therapist, I was sleeping on many different mattresses and was practicing sleeping on my back on different mattresses. I quickly realized that the mattress made a big difference in the comfort level of sleeping on your back. 

Through my travels, I fell in love with this Molblly mattress from Amazon. So much so that I bought it for my home base, where I did a part of my recovery. It’s on the firm side, yet it has memory foam which gives lower back support. To me, this was the best mattress for my recovery. I found that soft, pillow-top-style mattresses, while comfy, didn’t give enough support for a back sleeper. 

I also used a memory foam wedge pillow while sleeping to help me maintain back posture. And, the first couple of days after surgery you need to elevate while you sleep. In addition to the wedge pillow, I also had a pregnancy pillow and mastectomy pillow, which were recommended by other previvors. I didn’t gravitate towards the pregnancy pillow or mastectomy pillow that much post-op. I found the wedge pillow to be more comfortable for sleeping.

The last pillow I bought was this cute seat belt pillow. To be honest, I never felt like I needed the pillow for driving. But, it’s super cute and the dog design sparks joy in my day. So, I still have the pillow in my car on my seat belt and wear it daily. 

Lastly, I found it extremely hard to get in and out of bed after my first surgery, which was a breast reduction. I made a video of the exercises I did to help prepare me to get in and out of bed post-mastectomy.

Clothes Post-Double Mastectomy 

For the first couple of weeks after a mastectomy, you won’t be able to raise your arms above your shoulders. This limits the clothes you’ll be able to wear. To play it safe, you’ll want to get some button-downs. As an avid thrifter, I picked up a lot of button-downs at thrift stores before surgery. However, I also found some fashionable finds on Amazon that I’m permanently adding to my clothing collection. I especially like these button-down tank tops.

• Button-down tanks
• Button-down tee shirts
• Button-down sweater
• Button-down PJs

Stepping Stool

As a five-foot-nine woman with long arms, purchasing a stepping stool has never crossed my mind. However, because you cannot lift your arms above your head after surgery, I quickly realized that I would need some help reaching higher places. 

While in one of my apartments, I was able to modify my environment by putting everything high on a counter. By my second surgery, I was in a small unit that relied heavily on using high counters and shelves. I bought several stepping stools and they helped me out tremendously. 

• 13-inch stool
• 9-inch stool

Over-The-Counter Medications

Surgery and pain medications lead to constipation. Perhaps the hardest part of the first few days post-op for my breast reduction was dealing with the inability to move my bowels. For the mastectomy, I made sure to come prepared with the goods. I took extra psyllium husk fiber pills before and after surgery. I also took Colace post-op to help my bowels move. Trust me when I say the last thing you want after surgery is cramps in your stomach because you haven’t moved your bowels in days.

Delivery & Helpful Services

Post-surgery, you will have restrictions for weight-lifting, range of motion, and exercise. This makes shopping and cooking hard. I relied on delivery services to help me after surgery. 

• DoorDash for meal delivery
• Shipt
• Instacart for grocery delivery
• TaskRabbit for anything else you may need help with like laundry or cleaning.
• Rover if you need to find a dog walker/sitter

I hope this list helps you to prepare your home and yourself for a double mastectomy. If you’re reading this, I applaud you for getting this surgery and wish you a safe and easy recovery.