HELL IN A SILICONE BAG

THE TOXIC TRUTH

Silicone is made up of approximately 40 toxic chemicals and heavy metals. The chemicals are defined as cytotoxic, neurotoxic, carcinogenic and are harsh irritants to live tissues…

Methyl ethyl ketone (neurotoxin)
Cyclohexanone (neurotoxin)
Isopropyl Alcohol
Denatured Alcohol
Acetone (used in nail polish remover and is a neurotoxin)
Urethane
Polyvinyl chloride (neurotoxin)
Amine
Toulene
Dicholormethane (carcinogen)
Chloromethane
Ethyl acetate (neurotoxin)
Silicone
Sodium fluoride
Lead Based Solder
Formaldehyde
Talcum powder
Oakite (cleaning solvent)
Methyl 2- Cynanoacrylates
Ethylene Oxide (Carcinogen)
Xylene (neurotoxin)
Hexon
2-Hedanone
Thixon-OSN-2
Stearic Acid
Zinc Oxide
Naptha (rubber solvent)
Phenol (neurotoxin)
Benzene (carcinogen/neurotoxin)
Lacquer thinner
Epoxy resin
Epoxy hardener
Printing Ink
Metal cleaning acid
Colour pigments as release agents
Heavy metals such as aluminium (neurotoxin linked to Alzheimer’s and auto immune disorders)
Platinium
Silica

I LOVED EVERY MOMENT OF BEING A MOM, ESPECIALLY BREAST FEEDING

Nothing brings you closer to another human being, and nothing made me feel more beautiful, than breastfeeding my newborn babies, but after breast feeding four children, I was left with very little breast tissue and a lot of skin. I would lay on my bed, on the cool cotton sheets, naked in the heat of the summer and feel so ugly. I hated the way the skin pooled, and the way they made me feel when I looked in the mirror, so after the kids were grown I made an appointment to talk to a plastic surgeon about what options were available to me that would return my breasts to something a little more youthful. I told him I liked my size but I wanted them to be more full. He said I could get a lift and explained the procedure (and all the scars I would be left with), then he told me I could get implants, which would do the same as a lift, without the scars. Well heck ya, sign me up! I had endured enough scars and stretchmarks over the years, and if I could get away without even one more, I was on board. He suggested we use these “new Allergan, textured, Natrelle cohesive gel implants, the safest on the market, and they will last a lifetime.” I trusted him, after all, he was more educated than me, and he knew way more than I did about implants.

After explaining all the normal possible complications of any surgery, he also explained to me that these implants will create a capsule around the implant to keep it in place (FALSE, the capsule is your body building a barrier to protect you from the toxic foreign implants), and that there are two very rare complications… One, capsular contracture (hardening of the capsule), and two, implant rupture. He assured me that these implants would not cause capsular contracture because of the textured surface, and that these implants would not rupture or leak because they are silicone cohesive gel, and even if we cut them with scissors they would never change shape or leave the shell.

MY HUSBAND, AS ALWAYS, WAS SUPPORTIVE OF MY DECISION, BUT HE MADE IT CLEAR HE DIDN’T THINK IT WAS NECESSARY. HE LOVED MY BREASTS JUST THE WAY THEY WERE… AND VERY SOON, I WOULD REALIZE, I DID TOO

JANUARY 29TH 2014, MY LIFE WAS CHANGED FOREVER, AND THE BATTLE FOR IT HAD ONLY BEGUN

I remember being so excited on the days leading up to surgery. I couldn’t wait to finally feel full, vibrant, and youthful again, and I couldn’t wait to show my husband the new me! On the day of surgery, I skipped into the surgery center with a huge smile on my face and not a care in the world.

In recovery I heard a nurse telling me to breathe, and me being the polite Canadian I am , I apologized and fell back asleep. She shook me awake again and said, “Rita, we need you to breathe...” I woke up with a strange heaviness in my chest (not just from the implants) making it very hard to breathe, but I chalked it up to the anesthetic and presumed it would go away. Hours led to days, and days led to weeks, and eventually I just got used to it, being short of breath was my new normal. I relied on freezer packs, and my husband, to get me through my recovery, and soon I was healed and life was back to normal, or so I thought. My breasts were heavy, my breath was heavy, and shortly after healing from surgery, I was heavy. I started to put weight on and within a year I had gained 40 lbs (without change in my diet or exercise), and no matter what I tried or what diet I followed, I couldn’t lose the weight, in fact, I put even more on. Around this time I also started to retain fluid in my legs, and I felt like I was having to lug them around with me. Then one night early in 2015, I noticed an itchy bump on my leg, kind of like a blister, and by the end of the week it had spread to my entire body. The itch caused by this rash was insane and deep in my tissue. It’s something I can’t even describe, it was maddening. This was the first time I suggested to my husband, that I thought I may be allergic to my implants.

After a long year of no sleep (from the incessant itching), multiple visits to the doctor and dermatologist, 12 boxes of NIX cream for scabies (just in case), a biopsy, and multiple blood tests, I finally went to a naturopath who took one look at me and put me on an Epi-Paleo diet, and treated me for Candida overgrowth and leaky gut. I was already on a limited diet of scrambled eggs because I didn’t know what was causing my rash, so it was an easy transition to the new diet. By this time, I had thrown out everything in my home that I was using on my skin. I bathed in ONLY water, washed my clothing in ONLY water, I stopped using everything in my home for fear it was giving me the rash. My naturopath was so concerned with my condition that he called me soon after I got home to make sure I got home safely (he was worried about me driving because of the sleep deprivation) and then again two or three times later that week, just to check on me. By following my naturopath’s advice, and his food/supplement plan, my rash was mostly healed by April 2016 (so was the staph infection I had developed along with it) and other than my weight gain, shortness of breath, and fluid retention, I was feeling a bit better. I was feeling extremely fatigued but hey, I had just put on a ton of weight and I just had a horrible year with no sleep!

I SUFFERED A MINI STROKE

Fast forward to October 2016, while walking down the aisle at the local drug store, without any warning, I suffered a TIA in the lower right parietal lobe of my brain. I was terrified, and alone, and I didn’t know what to do. I was confused, but somehow I knew what was happening… I was near a bench, so I sat and stared at the pharmacists who were all lined up behind the counter oblivious to what was happening to me. I was paralyzed and unable to call for help. I sat there with tears silently streaming down my face, watching them go about their day, and it felt like forever. Finally, an employee came to find me to see if I had found what I was looking for, and she was able to get me help. In the weeks to come, I endured over a dozen tests (that pumped more radio active material, heavy metals, and toxins into my body), all of which came back normal. To top it all off, during all these tests, I had an episode of angina accompanied with terrible jaw pain that left me feeling like every bone in my chest had been crushed, and of course another trip into the hospital that left me with no answers.

Over the next year, breathing became harder and harder, I had to stop halfway up a small set of stairs to catch my breath, and I was so fatigued that all I wanted to do was sleep or lay on the couch. My legs started to collect fluid daily and very often my legs, ankles, and feet were painfully swollen with pitting. My joints and muscles would ache and throb, I began to be very aware of memory loss, brain fog, and loss of cognitive function, and it was beginning to affect my job and my family. I had to become more efficient at making lists to help me remember just about everything, and as time went on, I started to develop allergic reactions to food and wine, and my breasts began to throb and burn with pain. I was having daily angina and strong palpitations, so much so that I was afraid that if I actually had a massive heart attack, I would die at home because I would presume it was just a regular daily “episode.” Again, I said to my husband, “I seriously think I am allergic to my implants.”

I WAS BECOMING A BOILED FROG

Symptoms slowly crept in, one by one, and I had no idea what was happening to me. Doctors had no answers, and other than some fluid in my left capsule, my breast ultrasounds looked normal. By the end of six years with implants, I was suffering, daily, with over 60 severe symptoms that doctors couldn’t explain.

Extreme Weight gain
Inflammation (whole body)
Fluid retention and swelling (whole body, especially lower legs, ankles and feet)
Extreme fatigue
Skin rashes (Severe)
Memory loss/ loss of words, and cognitive function
Brain fog
Shortness of breath/shallow breathing
Hair loss/ breakage
Slow healing
Night sweats/chills
Allergic reactions to things I have never been allergic to
Slow muscle recovery
Breast pain (throbbing and burning)
TIA in 2016
Severe chest pain
Muscle spasms
Restless legs
Twitching all over my body
A feeling of cold fluid rushing throughout my body
Poor sleep
Premature aging of my skin
Dry, sticky, gritty eyes, and styes
Rapid decline in vision
Low libido
Throat clearing (like goo in my throat)
Dry throat (like I am inhaling a fine powder)
Metallic taste in mouth
Foul smelling urine
Body odour
Scalp tenderness and bruising
Heartburn/Acid reflux (with all food)
Intestinal pain and bloating, painful gas
Severely lightheaded and dizzy (floating up)
Leaky gut, Candida overgrowth
Higher than normal intolerance to cold
Ear ringing and deep pain/itch
Helmet headaches
Nausea
Heart palpitations
Chest pressure, tightness, and pain
Severe joint and muscle pain (deep) throughout my body, even in my feet and hands, loss of grip
All over weakness
Spinal pain
Swollen and tender lymph nodes in breast, armpit, neck, and groin
Frequent urination (More than normal, and unable to hold my bladder)
Numbness and loss of sensation throughout my body
Cold feet and hands
Sporadic swollen muscles for no reason
Burning pain under nipple, around implant, and into armpit
Pain down left arm and underarms (like a rubber band tied on it)
Liver and kidney dysfunction
Anxiety, easily aggravated, depression
Overwhelming feeling to get things in order, feel like I am dying
Symptoms like that of Fibromyalgia
Symptoms like that of Lupus
Symptoms like that of Rheumatoid arthritis
Jaw pain
Burning under ribs and in entire abdomen, and unable to bend over
Abdominal bloating
Eye pressure
Brain pressure
Sensitivity to light, noise, and movement

LATE IN AUGUST 2019, I RECEIVED A LETTER FROM MY IMPLANTING PLASTIC SURGEON

The mail lady came bouncing in like she always does and handed me a letter. She smiled and shouted, “have a good day,” as she left. As I opened the letter, I noticed it was from my Plastic surgeon’s office. I sat in shock as I read what was in that letter… My implants had been recalled because they were causing a unique blood cancer called BIA-ALCL. I am not sure if my heart stopped beating, or if it sped up so fast that I lost the ability to breathe, but in that brief, quite moment my breath was taken from me, and my ears were ringing in the silence. This wasn’t just the passenger side air bag recall letter! This was my body.

At this time, my children were blessing me with multiple engagements, weddings, and babies, and I was expecting my second grandchild very soon. I was way too tired, way too sick, and way too busy to deal with this, so I put the letter in my desk and decided I would look at it after the baby was born. Looking back now, I realize I was terrified and didn’t know how to deal with it, or even what I was dealing with. About a week after receiving that letter, my health had become so bad that my husband feared he might lose me, and he begged me to go to the doctor. I was always reluctant to go to the doctor because nothing ever came of visiting the doctors or the hospitals, but to appease him, I finally made an appointment and I took a copy of the recall letter with me. When my doctor came in the room he could see how unwell I was, and I could see how concerned he was. I knew I didn’t look the same anymore, but I didn’t realize how “sick” I looked until that moment. He did a physical exam and ordered some blood work, most of which came back normal, although there were some tests that suggested red flags with my liver.

AFTER A COUPLE OF WEEKS OF BASKING IN GRANDMA HEAVEN, I TOOK THE LETTER OUT OF MY DESK AND BEGAN INVESTIGATING BIA-ALCL

I love to do research, and I am pretty good at finding the information I am looking for, but while researching BIA-ALCL, I was led to something more, and what I found was both horrifying… and reassuring. It was reassuring because I found answers, but it was horrifying to learn what these implants had been doing to my body all these years. As well as having symptoms consistent with BIA-ALCL, I found that I was suffering with the same symptoms consistent with Breast Implant Illness, which I had not been warned about. I was sick, I was scared, and I was being poisoned. Daily tasks were becoming unbelievably difficult, and I eventually hired a shopper to do my grocery shopping. I had no energy or strength left in my arms, hands, wrists, and fingers, and the thought of going out in public was embarrassing. I felt ashamed of what I had become (a shell of myself) and what I had done to myself, and I was afraid to talk to anyone for fear that I would break down crying. I used all of my “happy face” energy to get through my days at work, hiding behind my desk and my computer, researching BII until I quickly came to the realization that I had to get the toxic implants out of my body as soon as possible. I strongly suspected for 6 years that I was allergic to my implants… that my body was somehow rejecting them, but now I realized the severity of what was happening to me, and there was an extreme sense of urgency to explant.

I was not made aware of the toxic ingredients or effects of silicone, and I was not made aware of the risk of developing BIA-ALCL from implants. I was not made aware that silicone is a known endocrine disruptor and that it causes autoimmune diseases, cancer, and that it destroys your liver. I was led to believe that these implants were impermeable… Nothing could get in, and nothing could get out, I was told that they were SAFE. I believed them… I would never have allowed these toxic bags to be placed inside my body, bleeding silicone, neurotoxins, heavy metals, and carcinogens into my skin, organs, lymph nodes, and my blood cells, stopping all of my organs from working as intended, making me severely ill and putting me at risk of a multitude of different cancers.

Researching everything I could about BII and BIA-ALCL, I sat with my mouth wide open, in horror, and cried. My husband sat helpless to fix it, and watched as I fell apart emotionally. In early October, I found a website, Healing Breast Implant Illness, that explained everything that was happening to me, and I joined a Facebook group called Breast Implant Illness and healing by Nicole, with over 110,000 women from around the world who were going through exactly what I was going through. The love, support, and information I got from that group, was immeasurable, and carried me through the next four months, and is still carrying me through my journey today. The BII website guided me to a list of recommended surgeons who are experienced in en bloc removal of implants. En bloc is the safe removal of your implants with the capsule intact. You don’t want what is inside your capsules to spill into your body!

Most people who know me, know I am a woman of faith. I believe God brought me to this (and through this), and so I found it a miracle that one of the most highly recommended explant surgeons in Canada was just two hours away from me, in Abbotsford BC. I couldn’t believe it! I got on the phone immediately and made an appointment for a consult, and by the end of November, I had met with my Plastic Surgeon, and booked my explant surgery. I used the next two months to research how to prep for the surgery, made lists for recovery, and learned about the two year detox to come. I visited my GP regularly, and we talked about BII, and explant. He was so supportive and caring, and so willing to learn as much as he could. He could see my health declining fast and there were no answers in sight. On our last visit before explant, he wished me luck and said, “you’ve kind of put all your eggs in this one basket… I really hope this works.” I could barely walk, and I couldn’t grip anything anymore from the inflammation in my hands, wrists, and fingers. I couldn’t see properly anymore, everything was blurry and the pressure behind my eyes was so exhausting. I was spent, this had to work… it just had to.

On January 27th 2020, at 7:30am, Dr. Aaron Brown successfully removed my implants en bloc (with an anchor lift). He saved my life, and freed me from the prison I had been held in for 6 years.

Immediately after I woke up, I could breathe! My muscle and joint pain was gone, and I felt amazing. I had so much energy, and an overall feeling of peace. My daughters had taken time off work to nurse me in the first week, and they kept telling me to go lay down! I couldn't stop getting up and walking around the kitchen, I felt so freed and so happy, and I had this abundance of energy that I just couldn't contain. Of course there was surgical pain (this is a very invasive surgery), but the pain I had been living with inside my body, for six years, was GONE! My eyes and skin tone have changed, my hair is oily again, and I lost so much fluid throughout my body and the pressure in my brain is gone. Even my face is changing back to the old me again. At least 50% of my symptoms resolved within hours of surgery, six years of hell resolved within hours of surgery! Think about that! Healing from breast implant illness is a process and takes time, my body will need to detox over 40 toxic chemicals and heavy metals that have bled into my tissue, organs, and cells, and this will take time (6 months to 2 years). For now, I will do my best to heal from this surgery, and share my story. I want to reach out to as many of you beautiful women as possible. If you haven’t gotten implants yet, PLEASE research BII, read the website, join the Facebook group and read our stories, and make an INFORMED decision.

This is what the inside of my capsules looked like. My body was desperately trying to protect me from the toxins.

I AM HERE TO SPREAD THE TOXIC TRUTH. ALL IMPLANTS ARE MADE OF SILICONE, ALL IMPLANTS CAN CAUSE A MULTITUDE OF CANCERS, ALL IMPLANTS CAN MAKE YOU SICK.

If you have implants and you are suffering from any of the symptoms of BII or if you have symptoms of BIA-ALCL, please know that you are not alone, it’s not all in your head, you are not crazy. There are hundreds of thousands of women going through exactly what you are going through, and we are here to help you, listen to you, and support you. Educate yourselves, and book your explant as soon as possible with an experienced explant surgeon. Ladies, #THE HEAL IS REAL!

BEFORE AND AFTER

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