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hysterectomy

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Finally, an update.

I had my hysterectomy on December 19 (my last final exam was December 16). The operation, a laparoscopic-assisted vaginal total hyst (including my ovaries and cervix), was scheduled for 10:45am. I arrived at the hospital around 8:30 with my fiance, and went through pre-op. My mom got there around 9:30.

I was told I'd be able to leave the hospital as soon as I passed the nurses' tests - pain under control, able to be up and walking, and able to urinate. I told them I'd be leaving that evening. The nurses weren't sure they believed me. :)

They wheeled me into the OR at about 11:15 (the surgery before mine took longer than expected). I guess I was in post-op at about 12:30pm, and back into the room where my mom and fiance were waiting about about 1:00.

The pain wasn't nearly as bad as I expected it to be - I've had two laps before this, and this wasn't any worse than they were, possibly even milder. I was given hydrocodone immediately after surgery, but took nothing but extra strength Tylenol after that. I had some crackers and ginger ale while lying in bed. I usually doze off a lot after surgery because of the anaesthesia, but this time I felt really alert pretty much the whole time.

By 3:30pm I was up and walking around. I was discharged at 4pm, four hours and forty-five minutes after going into the OR. Headed home (an hour trip) with my fiance. We stopped on the way and I had chicken nuggets and a milkshake at McDonalds. I was hungry. :)

I think the worst day was the day after the surgery, after the drowsiness from the surgery had completely worn off. I bled pretty heavily at first, and then off and on up until about four weeks after the surgery. It's been over five weeks now, and I'm feeling almost 100% - definitely better than before the surgery, except for the occasional bad hour or two when I do too much lifting or bending. Most of the pain has been pretty concetrated in my back.

Post hysterectomy changes -

The hot flashes have been unpleasant. I can't do any hormone treatments for another month or so, so I have to tolerate them on my own until then. I go from being too cold to being too hot almost instantly.

My skin is clearing up! I've always had very oily skin with pretty bad acne. It's starting to go away - I hope it continues to get better. My skin all over my body is starting to dry up, which will be annoying, but I'd honestly rather have dry skin than bad acne.

I have to urinate more frequently, but not enough that it's caused me any problems. This happened after my last two laparoscopies, as well (though it didn't last as long), so it might just be a side effect of the surgery that will go away as I finish healing.

My vagina has been very dry. Almost no discharge at all, which is weird, because my body used to produce a lot. It's dry enough that it gets itchy occasionally.

I haven't had post-op sex yet. I just don't feel ready, and I'm very lucky in that my SO understands completely. It'll probably be at least another week or two.

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That was really interesting, thank you for sharing. My boyfriend's mother is actually going in for that this coming Monday. It gives me a better idea of what she'll be going through, after at least.

Best wishes to her, and I hope her experience can be as positive as mine was.

I hope so too, thank you :)

Thanks for sharing.

While I hope I can put off having a hysterectomy for a while, I know its in my future so I appreciate hearing about it.

It is scary to konw you are younger than me and going throug menapause but I am glad that things are not too bad.

I hope I helped relieve any fears you have about it. Overall, the experience really was a positive one, and I really am glad I did it.

The menopause isn't too bad - yet! I'm just so glad it's winter and not summer. In mid-March I'll be able to go on estrogen (the doc is keeping me off of it for now, so any leftover endo tissue dies off), so with hopes the hot flashes will be gone by then.

Starting next year, I'll be needing yearly bone density scans. That's going to be a pain in the butt!

I've had one, its a breeze! It is a matter of holding still for about 20 minutes but otherwise not a big deal :)

*note to self - have surgery in january... wait it was 70 today! hmmmm

70, huh? Our high today was 42, and that's unseasonably warm! :)

it is unseasonably warm for us too. its normaly 50 or less :)

Thank you for sharing. :) I hope your recovery continues to go well.

Thank you for the thoughts!

may i ask why you needed a hysterectomy? and more specifically, why such a total one, with the ovaries and everything?

I have severe endometriosis and adenomyosis, and have since I first started my period at 10. At first, the crippling pain was just during my periods, but then each period started lasting 2-3 weeks, with only a week or two break in between. Finally, I started getting menstrual cramps even when I wasn't on my period, where they were so severe I couldn't even get out of bed for much of the month.

After years of conservative treatments, both conventional medicine and alternative, and a few surgeries, all of which gave me no relief, I decided this was what I wanted.

Having my ovaries removed gives me the best chances of not having endo recur, since the ovaries produce estrogen and estrogen feeds endometriosis tissue. My doctor and I decided I'd be better off having my cervix removed, as well, because then I wouldn't ever be at risk for cervical cancer - I'll never have to have another Pap again! :)

What is the top of your vaginal canal like without the cervix? Did they sew it up? Sorry if I come across as morbidly curious, but I guess I am a little. I used to have vomit-inducingly-painful-2-week-long periods, and I fear that if I ever go off HBC they will return. I'm glad you were able to make what sounds like a difficult decision, and I'm very glad you're happy with the one you made.

Yup, they stitched it up.

And I don't mind your "morbid curiosity" one bit. I'm glad to be of any help!

Are you getting relief from HBC, then? When I went on it, it actually lengthened mine - they went from one week to two, I started suffering from depression, and had morning sickness all the time. It was such a nightmare.

Well.. I went on depo for 3 years, which eliminated my periods completely, but I started worrying about the bone density loss last year, and now I'm on the nuvaring. And yeah, so far they are the wonderful four-day-largely-painless periods I've always dreamed of! I guess it's possible they are light because the depo isn't completely out of my system yet.. we shall see.

You're lucky, that the Depo Provera actually stopped yours. For many of us with painful, heavy periods, it only made things worse. I was on it for six months, and my period lasted the whole time!

Good luck with the ring! I hope it keeps working for you. A lot of women find that the pain reduction really does last for a long time after you stop using the hormones.

those are good reasons :-) im sorry you had to go through all that, and now early menopause to boot. but if it means being able to function normally, i guess its good.

I appreciate it. While I wish I hadn't had to, I really do see it as something that needed to be done. So in that respect, it wasn't too traumatic, because I'm so looking forward to having my life back - or actually having a life, for the first time in ten years!

just a question, how were you able to do it? most doctors want you to be 30? or something.. or had three kids..

With the help of an amazing doctor and nurse practitioner, who realized that my uterus was literally ruining my life. The fact that I'd never be able to have kids without a lot of fertility treatments, and a family history of severe genetic health problems affecting infants - my brother was born with cancer, I have several cousins with heart defects - helped, too.

I was levelheaded when I made the request, I did my own research and presented them with my case for the surgery, and was willing to try the "last resort" options that they encouraged me to do. My fiance is extremely important, and went to every appointment with me, so they were able to see that we really were serious about it.

you were lucky though!

Myself, I am not ready to take such drastic measures yet but it gives me hope as I plan to have one as soon as I'm done with kids, or if I cannot have them (we havn't tried yet, still getting married etc) then I'm going to go ahead and do it).

It was definitely a combination of my own diligence, and luck in finding such an amazing doctor. I'd encourage any woman who wants one, and feels she isn't being listened to, to educate on herself as much as possible. Present your reasonings with as much calmness and levelheadedness as you possibly can (it look like less of an "emotional meltdown" request that you're likely to regret in the future if you're logical about it), and seek out a doctor who is at least willing to consider a hysterectomy as an option, however drastic.

I've asked for a hysterectomy but the doctor told me no. I'm too young (I'm 32) and that my miserable heavy bleeding would go away with a D&C and/or HBC. Well, HBC gives me endless, debillitating migraines. It also gives me morning sickness. On every form of HBC I've tried I've vomited repeatedly, daily and been miserable. It happened the entire time I was pregnant too. I have had D&Cs and my bleeding afterwards has always been plentiful and it didn't really help.

My aunt died of uterine cancer at 37. I have now been bleeding for 3 weeks straight with mega cramping. I am extremely sick of it all.

I am glad that you got the treatment you needed. I hope your recovery continues to go well.

32 is too young?!

find another opinion.

I definitely agree with

nadyezhda. At least try another doctor - you might find another one more willing to work with you. My first two doctors were absolutely horrid.

I got the vomiting on HBC, too. Ugh.

Did they give you urinary catheters during your surgeries? That might be why you feel the need to urinate more(other than that they were just all up in your genital area with all of your surgeries). Or if they used a speculum or other large instruments they might've irritated you. Did you have the kind of hysterectomy where they take everything out through tthe vagina? That could have contributed. I'm sure you know it's common for women who have been catheterized to get UTIs. Thank you for sharing your experience.

Oh yes, they did it all - catheter and speculum, for all three surgeries, so I'm sure that's attributed to it some. I'm pretty certain it's not a UTI, just some irritation, but thanks for the thought. I was downing cranberry juice by the bottle in the days before and after the operation, on the advice of my NP. :)

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