I had a Da Vinci robotic hysterectomy with BSO 5 days ago due to complex hyperplasia with focal atypia. I am happy to say that the pathology reports came back with no evidence of cancer. My hyperplasia was caused by the drug Tamoxifen, which I had to take for almost 5 years following breast cancer treatment.
About 6 weeks before surgery, I had a pelvic ultrasound that showed a thickened endometrium (uterine lining). That was followed up with a D&C that showed the focal atypia, which the dr. said could lead to uterine cancer. At first, I was totally devastated by the news that I needed a hysterectomy. It was "the last thing I wanted." But I could not let the hyperplasia go, and my GYN sent me to a GYN Oncologist who specializes in Da Vinci robotic surgeries.
He told me that I needed everything removed. I had hoped to keep my ovaries, but at 53, they were shutting down anyway, and he did not want to leave them because of potential problems down the road. As it turned out, they were adhered to the back of my uterus and he couldn't have saved them anyway. It took me a long while to come to terms with losing all of my reproductive organs. But eventually I worked through it and was mentally ready for the surgery.
I was the first surgery case of the day. My bowel prep was done the day before, and I was ready, but very nervous. My blood pressure spiked up, but they were ok with that. The pre-op nurse was just terrific. She explained everything she was doing, and kept me comfortable. Blood was drawn for the lab, IV was started, I talked to the surgeon and the anesthesiologist, kissed DH, and they started to wheel me to the OR. Then they had to wheel me back to the prep area because they were changing power over from generators (there had been a snow storm).
I had no pre-op meds, and frankly didn't need them. It was my choice, as they offered something for anxiety. But I was wheeled into the OR completely lucid, and asked to meet everyone who was there. I prayed with them, and asked for discernment and skill for the surgeons. I also asked for white healing light for myself, and during surgery, the dr. said the light became so bright in my abdomen that he had to adjust the cameras so he could see. Hmmm....
I saw the robot, which was much bigger than I imagined, and it was all wrapped in plastic covers. The anesthesiologist put a syringe next to the IV an that's all I remember until I got to my room. I do remember the dr. telling me "No Cancer!" from results of the frozen section during surgery.
DH and daughter were in the room, and they and the nurses got me comfortable. I don't know if I had any narcotics, may have had them in recovery, but I did throw up a bit of liquid 3 times before they gave me compazine in my IV. That cleared up the nausea right away and I was able to take some ice chips and jello.
Pain wasn't nearly what I had imagined. I have five 1/2-inch incisions across my waistline, which are glued shut. There are apparently stitches inside. The dr. prescribed Toredal (sp?) for pain in my IV. I got 3 doses between the time I arrived in my room and the time I left for home the following day. The rest of the time I have managed my pain with ibuprophen and ice packs. The surgery pain is more like moderate menstrual cramps, not even as bad as I used to get with my periods! I am amazed.
I think for me, the most difficult things have been the gas in my abdomen and the sore throat and coughing from the breathing tube. For the first few nights, I slept propped up on the couch. Last night I slept in my bed with lots of pillows around me, and rested much better. Now at 5 days post-op these issues are resolving. Now it is a matter of keeping myself down and not overdoing, as I feel pretty good.
My suggestions are that you get up and move every hour if you can. Walking does so much to alleviate the gas pains. The nurses also recommended lying on my left side with my right leg pulled up on a pillow to alleviate gas, but I couldn't do that for the first two days. Now it's no problem.
My surgeon found that I had "pelvic congestion syndrome" which is basically varicose veins in the uterus. I didn't know that even existed, much less that I had it. He corrected it and said that I should not have pain in my lower back and pelvis after I heal up. I had wondered what caused that, but had no answers until now.
You will read that the waiting is the hardest part. It is. My regular GYN said she predicted I'd have an extreme sense of relief when it was done. She was absolutely right. Now my biggest challenges are to balance the right amount of activity with the right amount of rest.
Because I teach pottery for a living, I will not go back to work for 4-6 weeks, per doctor's orders. Even at that, I won't be able to do the lifting I normally do. The students will be doing that for me for a while.
Having had the hysterectomy has turned out to be a blessing for me that I didn't expect. I'm glad I did it now, and am so surprised that it was much easier than I imagined. Good luck ladies.
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