Am I bad enough for treatment - which one?

Hi - I'm new and feel awful. I am 41 and have had fibroids for 5 years. The last 6 monthes have been very uncomfortable. Ultra sound showed several 10-15 fibroids, but largest is only 4X3X4 cm. My uterus is measuring 12.5 X 6.2 X 5.6 and is so very swollen. I can't wear anything but drawstring pants or shorts because any kind of pressure gives me pain. I feel like I have a bowling bowl in there. There is much bladder pressure also and I have to go to the potty often. My bleeding was quite bad, but dr put me on estrostep birth control pills for 4 straight monthes and it helps the bleeding, except last week I had a new bleeding episode. I bled the heavist ever and what scared me was that the blood was very red - not the usual break-through, period blood with lots of clots. One clot was the size of an orange. I had another ultrasound after the bleeding episode, but the ultrasound was virtually unchanged from this past spring. Last spring, my Doctor referred me for a Uterine embolization, but I don't feel quite 100@ on this procedure. I think it needs to have some more history, before this would be for me. My doctor only does hysterectomies, so I am trying to find another doctor who could offer me more alternatives. Is my situation bad enough. I feel bad most days, but do I continue to hack it out. I have read several of your posts and it seems most ladies with fibroids had ones much larger than me. ANY IMPUT GREATLY APPRECIATED.

Hi Renee,

I had a LSH due to two large fibroids. My 1st Dr. recommended a TAH due to the size of my fibroids. My 2nd Dr. advised a LSH after I did (3) months of lupron shots to shrink my fibroids enough for surgery. I had my 1st Dr. for five years and I felt I just needed to search out all avenues for myself.

I can suggest maybe getting a 2nd and even a 3rd opinion. I think that the more you can find out about alternative methods and types of hysts, the better it helps you to make a good decision for yourself.

For me, it came down to the quality of my life with fibroids. I had fibroid pelvic pressure 24/7, I had bladder incontinence where I had to rush to the restroom even for a trickle, I was constipated a lot and I had no energy. And my periods were starting to get heavier. I felt 86 instead of 46.

I can ask you the same question. What is the quality of your life with fibroids??

Best wishes. We Hyster Sisters are here to help you if we can.

Mary

Dear renee:

Welcome to HysterSisters Here is a link to the fibroids section of our Resources Directory https://www.hystersisters.com/vb2/lin...=browse&cid=26 Be sure to also check out www.thefibroidplace.com

Get smart about your symptoms and your options, and make the best choice for YOU.

I am sending huge cyberhugs

Renee,
You are FOR SURE bad enogh for intervention. I'm happy for you that your gyn even mentioned embo. Mine did not. I had to find it for myself on the internet. My uterus was (I think) slightly larger than yours, though none of my many fibroids measured any larger.
I had uae in March 2003 and I am so glad that I did. It took care of my symptoms and having a period now is no big deal at all. They sneak up on me now.
I think you could find a LOT of answers to your questions about embo on this web site: http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/embo/
The ladies there have had or are scheduled for embo and have been where you are now.
Best of luck to you and keep us posted.

Cindy

Hi Renee,

So sorry you are having this difficulty. It's not the size of those fibroids that determine our misery, it is the TYPE and LOCATION. I had TONS of fibroids, several were large and once you begin to get anemic, it's all downhill from there.

I, too, was a bit frightened of the embolization procedure, and studied it a bit, but as it turns out, I was NOT a candidate because I had so many of them and I had all types of fibroids to boot. They basically grew everywhere, even on the outside of my uterus. Hence, the TAH.

Anyway, I would get a second opinion at the very least and talk in depth to your doctor about the embolization.

Take care,

Jackie

Renee,
A gyn is not who can determine if you are a candidate for uae, it has to be an interventional radiologist. My gyn said I was not a candidate because I had too many. Turns out that too many will knock you out of a myo, but not embo. If you are considering uae you need to talk to and IR, who will usually schedule an MRI to make sure.

Best of luck to you!

Cindy

Hi there Renee, I'm glad you found this site. There are so many helpful ladies here. I have been where you are with the very heavy periods and the bright red bleeding. It can be alarming and draining physically and emotionally. I recommend Dr. Christiane Northrup's books. I was actually helped by some of her nutritional suggestions. My fibroids actually shrunk when I started eating flax seeds everyday. Now I am reading a book called The Hysterectomy Hoax by Stanley West. He says 90% of hysterectomies are unnecessary. And also as somebody else said it's not the size of the fibroids that matters or even how many you have. It's what it is doing to your health and your life.I do recommend you have a cbc done to see if you are anemic. I have been struggling with anemia....it's hard. Go for more opinions and read all you can. Take care of yourself. I wish you the best.

Hello there Ilikemyuterus,

I, too, used natural methods for nine years after my myomectomy to control my fibroids that had grown back 1.5 years after the surgery. I became pregnant soon after, but endured a very painful miscarriage.

I am a health nut anyway, vitamins, excellent nutrition, exercise. It is actually my life's work. I took primrose and flax, eliminated milk and ate soy (still do). It was all no match for those fibroids. They stayed small for years and then POW!

Yes, sometimes hysterectomy is necessary, as in my case. I bled so badly that I was anemic, had godawful pain, and faced blood transfusions and even death. My mother suffered the same fate after hemhorraging years ago at the age of 39, but luckily pulled through due to quick transport to the hospital and emergency surgery.

I am 41 and healthy in every other way. This surgery has helped me to regain my life and I have NEVER felt better. I feel young and vital again. For those women who are candidates for other procedures, I think that is wonderful and should be pursued. My myomectomy was originally performed to help me achieve pregnancy, but I have never been able to have kids after all. It is now known that the myomectomy can carry great risk for future pregnancies and can be difficult to carry and/or give birth naturally. In my case, my uterus was quite scarred and lobsided, as well, and incapable of supporting a pregnancy at all. I really wish I had been a candidate for UAE.

Obviously, because of my holistic health approach, I am not one who rushes into surgery lightly, but sometimes drastic measures are necessary to improve one's health or prevent disaster.

Take care,

Jackie

Hi Renee,
I would say you are in need of some type of intervention! It is good that you have tried all of these other things already. I am 42 years old and only had one small fibroid, but boy did it cause major problems! I bled every 20-23 days for 7 days and had very large blood clots for 2-3 days of the 7. I always felt so tired and washed out; I could not participate in any family functions because I was either too tired, bleeding too much to be away from the bathroom or both. I think it comes down to the quality of your life. I was missing out on so much! Today, I am 6 weeks post op from a TVH and I feel so much better. This site will help you weigh all of your decisions. Make the best one for you!

Dear Beachluvr and JackiePerks,
I am glad you both are feeling better. I think every case is individual and I agree sometimes hysterectomy is the best option. Bleeding so heavily is bad for your general health, I've lrearned that for sure. Take care.