will I have mini periods with keeping the cervix?

Hello everyone,
I'm having a LSH when it finally gets scheduled. Only the uterus is being removed. I'm wondering about mini periods.
Should I ask my doctor if she's going to do anything like cauterize the cervix so I don't have mini periods? I have had a lot of endometriosis and am guessing I shouldn't have any periods at all to help prevent this from happening.

Anytime you retain the cervix and the overies there is a chance of having mini periods. I think it lessens the chances if the cervix is cauterized, but I don't know about that. Also, if you keep your ovaries there is a chance that the endo could return. If you lose the ovaries and go on estrogen replacement, there is a chance of the endo returning. You should discuss your concerns with your doctor.

If you are keeping your cervix and/or ovaries you mind else well not have the surgery since you have endo. This is just my advice to you, I am not a DR. But if you just make sense of the disease you would realize that keeping your ovaries/cervix is not a good idea. Unless you are removing ALL the endo and all the reprodoctive system, and not take any HRT for atleast six months, you will not benefit from the surgery. Endo thrives on hormones therefore leaving your ovaries in or taking HRT will not alleviate your symptoms. Leaving your cervix in whether it has endo or not can cause you to have mini periods even if you are just on HRTS, which will in turn cause your endo to grow back. Not a good idea. Alot of women on here will tell you it is ok. But like I said if you think about the disease and how it grows it really doesnt make alot of sense to leave anything in. My DR is well known and respected, excellent DR and he is the only one I know that finally spoke the truth to me. He says that the only women who are completely free of symptoms after surgery are those who had everything removed including the endo. Some of these ladies who choose to keep their cervix/ovaries and have endo dont have symptoms right away, but eventually they do, and have to have surgery again. Not trying to scare you but just do some research and you will see that its a fact. I am only 25 and am having a TAH/BSO no HRT for 1 YEAR. My Dr wouldnt even do the surgery unless I consented to having everthing removed, otherwise it would just be a waste of my time.Good luck with your surgery!

i had an lsh and my dr cauterized my cervix..i dont have mini periods. most of the time mini periods are just spotting..sometimes just visable when wiping, no protection needed.
good luck with your surgery!

Hi bkh!

If you do want to lessen the chances of mini periods, do talk to your doctor about cauterization and other treatment options that might help. As the cervix is not a separate organ but rather the neck of the uterus, it can be difficult for a doctor to know exactly where the cervical portion of the uterus ends. Thus, some of the endometrial lining can be left behind and that lining can respond to your hormones and cause mini periods. Some ladies find that the mini periods are so light that they don't mind them at all! Talk to your doctor for more information.

Since you do have endometriosis, have you consulted with an endometriosis specialist? The more skilled your surgeon the less likely you could be to have endo recurrence. Do keep in mind that there is no cure for endometriosis, not a hysterectomy (complete or partial) and not even an oopherectomy (removing the ovaries). You do want a surgeon who can remove as much endometriosis as possible at the time of surgery. Endo that is excised is gone forever, but tiny bits of it that are not visible can remain causing problems down the road.

Just because one has endo does not dictate that a hysterectomy is necessary or that having the ovaries removed is necessary. Neither my local GYN nor my world renowned endometriosis specialist feel that removing my ovaries is in my best interest nor do they think a BSO is necessary for all women with endo. Since my excision surgery with the endo specialist, I am suppose to be completely endo free. Of course, only time will tell! My cervix has been removed as it was part of the problem for me as it was covered with endo and causing abnormal paps.

Our hormones are important to our overall health so we do have to weigh all of the pros and cons for us. HRT is not always the best choice and it can cause endo recurrence just like our own hormones. Additionally, there are ladies who have no uterus, no ovaries, and do not use HRT and they still experience endo recurrence! There is really no way to know for sure if it will be a problem for any of us so we just have to make the best decision for us specifically and then hope for the best! We don't want to borrow trouble by worrying about what tomorrow might bring!

I wish you all the best for your upcoming surgery and hope it is successful! Talk to your doctor about the mini periods to decide what is best for you! Sending lots of S your way!

Forgot to mention one more thing. I went to several endo specialist. I had two laps done by them. I traveled to Atlanta, California and New York. You know what they did, Cut out my endo, give me some progestorone and BC pills, and send me on my way. These so call "specialist". They all felt strongly about keeping my "sick" ovaries since I was so young, you need them they kept telling me. After each surgery I felt well for a few years, then symptoms would return with a vengeance. I would change BCP since they were making me so sick. I called the DR's they would just give anti-naseau medicine. After my second surgery I felt this was wrong what they were doing to me. You know endo can be removed but it comes back? You can take it out but if you still produce estrogen or take it it will come back, period. There is no argument for that. Its a proven fact that estrogen feeds endo. After thinking about this and doing some research, I realized how silly it was to go back to a DR who is giving me MORE hormones. Why would I keep having a surgery over and over again? Sounds dumb right? I found a Rebel Dr at a University of Florida. When I saw him I didnt tell him a wanted a hysterectomy, I let him look at all my records. He said why did you have so many laps, these DR's they just wont do hysterectomys to have a returning patient. They know what they do is wrong but they do it anyway. He said there is no cure for endo. But I have seen women with great results who have a TAH/BSO and no HRT. But its not onliy no HRT, if you have endo you also cant take anything that simulates a hormone such as soy, black cohosh etc. He gave me a whole entire list of no no's. Finally that is what made sense to me. I talked to several women in his office young and old, who said he changed their lives, some coming from all over the states. They also warned me not to veer off the no no list, because your symptoms will return. Please research endo, analyze how the diseas works and grows before you have surgery. I just want to spare you the pain I went through and confusion from these so called "specialist". There is no cure for endo, there is no argument for that. But if you can have the surgery and monitor what you put in your body, you can be symptom free. and that to me is a blessing!

	Quote:
Originally Posted by leekelhank You know endo can be removed but it comes back? You can take it out but if you still produce estrogen or take it it will come back, period.

Well, I understand what you're trying to say, but let's be clear about exactly what can happen in the presence of estrogen even after surgery for endo. IF the surgeon removes 100% of the endo existing at the time of surgery, then the endo will not return. However, that IF is a pretty big IF. It is well nigh impossible for a surgeon to see every single tiny bit of endo present - it tends to hide behind organs, in bends in the GI tract, anywhere it can implant, not just in the pelvis (although that is the most common site) but even in other areas of the body sometimes. And IF, at the time of surgery, the DR does not succeed in removing 100%, every single bit, of the existing endo, then yes, estrogen (whether endogenous or exogenous, as in HRT) can cause it to re-grow. This is not a return of the same endo that was there before; it's regrowth of new endometrial tissue from whatever few cells were left behind. That is why some women have to have multiple surgeries for endo.

JMHO, but since the cervix is part of the uterus and provides an ideal substrate for endo growth, to me it wouldn't make sense to leave it behind if you are going to the trouble of having a hyst for endo -- to me, the benefits of keeping the cervix, which are debatable anyway, are not worth the risk.

However, the ovaries are another matter entirely. The decision of whether or not to keep the ovaries is a very difficult one best made as an individual after consultation with one or more DRs that understand the individual's history and concerns. Yes, ovaries make estrogen. However, besides fueling endo growth, that estrogen serves many other important functions, and some women would find that their overall health might deteriorate if they were removed and the estrogen (and other ovarian hormones) not replaced. It's a double-edged sword, in a way. Besides, even if the ovaries are removed and no ERT is used, the body can produce estrogen and store it in abdominal fat cells -- this is why naturally menopausal women who do not use estrogen replacement often acquire an extra layer of fat around the middle. It's the body's way of trying to replace what the ovaries made once they've shut down. The only way to counter that would be to use a medication like Lupron or Megace, a strong synthetic progestin, and the use of those medications over a long period of time has its own risks.

Unfortunately, it is a very complex decision and one which imho has no right or wrong answers. Take your time, do your homework, make your decision and commit to it 100% - and don't look back. There's no such thing as a free lunch; no matter what you decide, there will be risks and side effects. It's a matter of what you feel you can live with over the long term.

Good luck with your surgery, (((bkh)))!

s,
-Linda

I agree surferbabe. There is no right or wrong answer! It is just simply giving up one thing for another, and if it is worth it to you. I am choosing to have my ovaries removed, however for me that means no HRT my DR says a year, but I want to go as long as I can stand it, I am also facing heart disease and osteoporosis because of the lack of hormones, this means I am going on a strict diet, vitamins and exercise routing after my recovery for life. In other words, this was a lifestyle change decision and shouldnt be made if someone isnt ready to commit 100% to it. Women who are my age and have this procedure and do not take hormones usually have their lifespan cut quite a bit, because they do not make any serious changes to prevent other causes. For me the risk of heart disease and osteoporosis outweigh keeping my ovaries because I have a strong family history of cancer, and my chances of getting that are far worse, than the other. Also I would love to alleviate my endo, so it wasnt a hard decision for me. And nothing I am doing is 100%, I am just stricly taking a chance that this will be what works for me. This was a very personal decision for me, and a hard one at first. But I know I am more then capable of commiting to the long term changes I need to make in order to prevent heart disease and osteoporosis. And I just want to make other women out there aware that there is another choice, its a hard one, and not everyone can do it, but if you are serious it is a great thing. I have met alot of women my age, (most of them had ovarian cancer, so had no choice to hyst.) I had to go to another website to find some youngsters, and there is life after a BSO and no hormones, and that is what gave me my boost.