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Welcome to the site. The ladies here helped me so much in the emotional part of my recovery. I remember when I was grappling with all the confusion and questions. Nobody will understand you like somebody who has been through it all and know exactly how you are feeling. Remember we are always there for you. Ask, vent...stay connected. Good luck to you.

Hello LuBeeMay,
I am scheduled for an abdominal hysterectomy at the end of March (this month!) and I am scared out of my wits. What kind of pain do you feel after this type of surgery? Is it painful in the uterus, vagina, or pelvic area? Are your abdominal muscles affected? I have endometriosis, cysts and fibroids and I had two failed endometrial biopsies from two different gynos, that is why I am getting an abdominal hysterectomy, plus my mom had uterine cancer. I have had periods every two to three weeks for over a year and last month a long one (all month). Had a two week break and now another one. I sure enjoyed the break! Do they use staples on your stomach or stitches? HELP!
Lhasalvr

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Originally Posted by Lhasalvr Hello LuBeeMay, I am scheduled for an abdominal hysterectomy at the end of March (this month!) and I am scared out of my wits. What kind of pain do you feel after this type of surgery? Is it painful in the uterus, vagina, or pelvic area? Are your abdominal muscles affected? I have endometriosis, cysts and fibroids and I had two failed endometrial biopsies from two different gynos, that is why I am getting an abdominal hysterectomy, plus my mom had uterine cancer. I have had periods every two to three weeks for over a year and last month a long one (all month). Had a two week break and now another one. I sure enjoyed the break! Do they use staples on your stomach or stitches? HELP! Lhasalvr

Dear Lhasalvr - my computer has been down since yesterday and just came back up so I just got your post. I hope I can encourage you as you face the things ahead of you with surgery and recovery. I have not had the long standing problems like you have with pain and endo. I really did not have any problems until January when I had some unusual bleeding, and so I went to my gyn to check it out. Had biopsy which came back inconclusive and then she ordered an ultrasound. Had that on Feb 29 and really did not expect anything to show up. But on Mar 4 in the evening my gyn called me with a very concerned tone in her voice and told me that the u/s did not look good and it looked like I had a large sarcoma! I was shocked! I did know that I had fibroids from years ago but they had not caused problems and she thought this was not a fibroid from the way it looked. So she said that I had to have a TAH as soon as possible! They had to do the abdominal surgery instead of vaginal because of the size and the possiblilty of cancer to tubes and ovaries. I was extremely scared too! I am thankful that it did come up so fast and that I did not have time to think too much about it. I had a MRI on Mar 5 and it did show some possible hope that it was just a degenerating fibroid and not cancer but they were not sure at all. They were all very concerned which of course concerned me more! My doctor scheduled the surgery on her afternoon off, Mar 12, as she was so booked up for weeks and did not want to wait. I had never had general anesthesia before and was terrified of it! But doing some research I found that the anesthesia they use these days is so safe and I told the anesthesiologist of my fears and he was great and very comforting! The main thing for me that is my strength is my faith and knowing that the Lord is in control of it all. So for me that was my comfort and help. I had to give it all up to God and rely on Him to get me through, and He did. In the hospital they keep you on pain meds and make sure you are comfortable. The pain right after surgery was somewhat like mild menstrual cramps. Seemed strange to me as they had taken everything out that would cause that kind of pain! But having an abdominal incision keeps there from being any pain in the vaginal area. And I realized that after the surgery and they had removed the uterus and huge fibroid and several other cysts and smaller fibroids that had been causing all sorts of pressure in the pelvic area that I thought was just normal, I actually felt much better in the pelvic area! All that stuff in there was better to be out! When they do the surgery they do not cut the muscles in the abdomen. They separate them apart. So they do not have to heal from any incision. I had everything removed, uterus, ovaries and cervix. Too much growths around to save anything, and I just want to be able to recover and feel the best I can. And now no worry about cancer of any of those parts in my future!! They did not use staples on my stomach, just internal dissolvable stitches. My suture line looks very good at 6 days. They took the dressing off the day after surgery and I have left it off since. I keep it dry. I stayed on meds that had codeine for the first few days, but the narcotics all make you constipated. And after abdominal surgery one of th biggest things is the gas and constipation. So I have been on Senekot S 2-3 times a day and Metamucil. Plus drinking lots of liquids. It has really helped. Also GasX helps with the gas. The pain for the first few days is mostly in the incision, especially with movement or coughing. But bracing it with a pillow (and I bought the hystersisters pamper the princess pillow with the handles which is one of the best things I did, I love it!) really helps. You feel like you may bust everything open but it is really secure and you can't. Just brace it with the pillow. Now that I am at day 6 I can move much easier and the incision pain is minimal. Really each day gets better, and if you stay resting and eating lots of protein, I think the body really heals itself up well. I know you will be amazed at how well you will feel after you have all the problems removed with the surgery. Just take one day at a time. Sometimes one hour at a time. I am so happy that it has worked out this way. I did find out 2 days after surgery that my pathology reports came back all benign! One other thing that I think has helped is to keep looking toward healing and being better off at the end of all of this. From the first day in the hospital I tried to get up as soon as possible and walk. Little bits at first, but I think that helps the healing process. Once home I walk little bits often around my house. When you are in the hospital bed, move your legs often and keep the circulation going. I think that really helped me too. Now that I am 6 days past my surgery, the main issue is resting and not being up and doing too much too soon. I am normally a very active person and so it seems strange to get so exhausted so easily. But that is the body's way of telling us to rest and let it heal itself. I have talked to several of my friends who have had hysterectomies and they all say they feel so much better for it. You will love not having to ever worry about those nagging periods ever again!!! You will be so glad you did this. What is it that you are most scared of? Sometimes it helps to try and determine that. If it is the pain, there are plenty of medications to take care of that. Is it the long healing process? Well use it to your advantage; I am catching up on reading and handwork. For me the answer to it not being cancer got rid of most of my fear. The other big fear I had was the anesthesia, which I just had to give over to God. I trusted that God was working through the doctors in the surgery and so that gave me peace there. Not sure what else I could encourage you with. I think the waiting and the huge number of things that run through your mind to scare you takes away energy and renders you weak. Try to focus on this as a positive thing that is going to help you and make you better and to feel better and give you a new lease on life! I really think it will. Hysterectomies as a surgery is considered one of the safer surgeries. So that was a comfort to me too. Let me know when you surgery date is and I will be praying for you. Hope this has been an encouragement to you.
Blessings,
LuBeeMay

LuBeeMay,
You are an angel sent from God! You really told me the answer to a lot of questions I had and worries. As you say, I KNOW I will feel better without the pain of the endo, cysts and fibroids. And if I do have bad stuff, better to get it out now.! I am already tired, so I am not worried about fatigue after surgery. I am writing a couple of books as a hobby and I really should spend my down time finishing those books! I feel so much more comforted by your long and generous letter, may you be blessed by your sharing. When I go to the hospital, I will remember that you have been there and your faith pulled you through as I hope mine will. I wish you a safe and speedy recovery and you must be strong to have gone through what you did. I am going to try to concentrate on God and how he made bodies to heal and survive. Thank you again from the bottom of my heart.
Peace
Lhasalvr