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Hello All.
I had my surgery 9/27/11. I went in for a 1 hour DaVinci out patient procedure, but it turned out to be a full blown sugery. They had to cut right through my hip to hip incision I already had from the myemectomy I had last year...actually that was my 2nd myemectomy to remove the fibroids. Anyway, my gyno tried to do the DaVinci, but he noticed that my uterus was connected to my bowels. I knew something was wrong prior to the surgery because everytime I #2 during my cycle, I got a gush of blood. So, my gyn doc had to call in another surgeon to do a 3 hour procedure to carefully separate the 2 organs before doing the hysterectomy. I found out after I woke up that I was under for almost 4 hours. The fibroid must have broken through the uterine wall & attached to the uterus. So any woman who has fibroids & they're small & your doctor tells you not to worry about them, this is not true. When i first found out I had them they were the size of a dime, then as I got older, they grew bigger. Then I got to my 40s & is in the permimenopause cycle, they grew even more due to the change in hormone levels. If you have fibroids, keep your "eyes on them"..let the doctor check their growth pattern & keep an eye on your cycles to see if they're getting heavier. I know I've always had a problem with chronic constipation, so I don't know if it';s that that caused the uterine problem. I had a horrible recovery from the surger. I spent 4 days in the hospital, then had to be re-admitted a week after I came home because I couldn't keep anything down. I was vomitting every 15 minutes...I lost 15 lbs. I couldn't keep even broth on my stomach. The meds must have messed me up or something from the chemicals they gave me. The recovery was long & slow, but i recovered. My doc said I have to stay regular for the rest of my life & I can see why. Since the uterus is out, the lower part of the intestines descend slightly down in the lower abdomen & if I'm blocked up i can feel it in the tummy area. So, to avoid that, I eat an apple a day..skin & all..drink a good amount of water & it seems to work with lots of fiber. But I no longer have to travel around with an extra panty with tons of pads. I no longer have to take tons of vitamins & iron & i don't look pale anymore due to heavy, prolonged bleeding with big clots & i don't have to take hormones. I look at my complexion now & now I realize how sick I was. God knows I tried to save my uterus, but everything I tried failed me: exercise, yoga, acupuncture, raw vegan diet, prayer..nothing healed my uterus. It was a life & death situation for me. Last year I bled so much I had to get 2 blood transfusions. When i wasn't bleeding I was always stressed about what would happen to me next cycle. I felt like I was near death because the bleeding made me feel so weak. I had no social life, or sex life because I was always scsred I'd start bleeding again. I can't emphasize how good I feel now. When I first went to see my gyn, he said "you're going to feel so good after the surgery". You know what? He was right. Now, I got to keep BOTH ovaries & this is important. I told the doc b4 the surgery that I wanted to keep the ovaries in if they're healthy. He said doctors are steering away from giving woman total hyst these days. So, to anyone going up for a hysterectomy, discuss with your doctor about keep your gonads!! (your ovaries). if they're healthy, there's no reason to take them out. Don't let them talk you into taking them out a a precaution. If they're healthy, fight to keep them. God forbid somehting happens to them down the line, you can always deal with it at that time. With my ovaries in, I still feel when I'm ovulating because I still feel sore, and I feel a little sore when it's time for a period. The doc said this will continue montly until i go into menopause (i'm 48) because the brain is still sending messages to my ovaries & don't know the uterus isn't there. I'm cool with that. No More Bleeding!!! On the flip side, I haven't lost my desire to have a child. I thought that would go away, but it hasn't. After 1 ectopic pregnancy & several miscarriages due to a sick uterus, that desire is still there. So, hubby & I will be looking into adopting an older child. I had a little spotting after the surgery for about 4-5 days. The doc told me to wait 7 weeks for sex, I waited 8. I had a light pink discharge for weeks, & I was getting nervous, but the doc said it's normal & I should be patient because I had a lot of work done. I pray & hope that how I feel now will continue for the rest of my life. My sex life hasn't improved because of fear. It's not painful, but the fear I had about bleeding when I had the uterus is still there, so this will take time to get over. The heavy bleeding wreaked havoc on my physical & mental health. I know I'm making myself paranoid because I wonder if the vagina will fall out since the cervix was removed. The top of the vagina is sutured so i wonder if it will come apart or fall through the opening. i discussed this with my doc & he said that doesn't normally happen & if it does it can be easily fixed. Really, that's the only thing on my mind right now. I wake up in the morning & can work out before work & I have lots of energy. God is good! I wish you women all the best who is facing this surgery. I encourge you to do your research. Look into all the options first such as non-invasive procedures (embolization, removing the fibroids alone-if possible, etc). If you've tried other things & have failed & have to do the surgery, find a ob/gyn/surgeon, who is skilled at doing that type of surgery..not just a ob/gyn who delivers babies. someone who knows what they're doing & affiliated with a good hospital. Take care all. God bless.
Related Titles
my decision to have a sah
Right Decision
TAH - Best Decision Ever!
TLH - Davinci robotic hyst - amazing decision!
SAH/BSO - Best Decision!
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