New to this, and having doubts

Hi,
I have been reading alot of the info on this site and it's great, but at the same time it leads me to wonder if I made the right decision..it all sounds so hard!

I just got my date -- Jan. 3 -- and now that it's set I am beginning to think it might be better to procrastinate for awhile and just see what happens. I can't even stand visiting people in the hospital, so the thought of being held captive there has me really freaked out. And, all this pre-op stuff doesn't sound like much fun either! Was wondering if someone could answer a couple of questions for me:

1-The Dr.'s office called me today and said they'd be sending me something in the mail describing the "limited bowel prep" instructions. Does anyone have any idea what that means?? How limited is limited?
2-My Dr. says I'll have to stay overnight one night in the hospital, does anyone have any experience with having been told that but then ending up being well enough to just go home on the same day? Do they let you do that? Is there a cancellation policy on the room?
3-I'm scheduled for an LSH but my Dr. says depending on what the find in there, they might have to convert to a laparotomy. Does anyone have any idea how common that is? I guess if there was any way to tell ahead of time, she'd tell me but I do wonder how likely it is to happen to me...are there any signals I might consider looking for to determine if it's very possible for me (is this a dumb question?)

Many thanks to all of you for sharing this information -- I can't imagine how we'd ever know this stuff if it wasn't for you!

Hi Mikeylee

So glad you found this wonderful website. Let me start off by saying that if you have any doubts whatsoever get a second opinion.

I had a TAH so my hospital stay was three nights but I've seen posts from women who've had only over night stays, and some that were sent home same day. It depends on the procedure, the doctor and, sadly, the insurance company. Personally I think going home the day of surgery is just plain nuts. So many things can happen within the first 24 hours such as running a fever or bleeding that I'd want the medical staff close by.

Although I'm not a doctor I do believe it's common for them to try one procedure but end up doing another. I was originally scheduled for a LAVH and possible TAH, which ended up being a TAH. My doctor went over both surgeries in detail just in case.

I hope this has been helpful. Try to read as much as you can and ask lots of questions in order to educate yourself. And don't forget you have thousands of new "sisters" who are here for you!

Welcome to this site Mikeylee - sorry to hear you have to have a hyst - but it really is NOT all that bad. I will try to answer some of your questions as directly as I can:
Bowel Prep - This usually means you have to take something the night b4 surgery to make sure your bowels are empty for the surgery. I had to take magnesium citrate and it was not bad at all. I was scared I would be living in the bathroom all night - but I only got up a few times to go.
The Castle Stay - I believe every hospital requires you to stay a minimum of 24 hours so they can monitor you and make sure you are ok. The girl in the bed next to me was gone within 24 of her surgery - she had vaginal hyst - and had NO problems at all. I was in 2 days with an abdominal hyst and also had no problems.
No this is NOT a DUMB Question - Even with an ultrasound the doctors do not always know what they will run into once they get inside or bodies. If you were found to have adhesions, endo, adeno, or something that would be large and/or blocking the areas the doctor needs to be in - then yes it is possible that she would need to convert. That is always a possibility. I am prone to severe adhesions and have had 2 prior surgeries so I knew I was going to have to have abdominal even if they tried to just go vaginally - which they didn't because I opted for the abdominal due to my history. You really have to take a look at your prior history and discuss the odds with your dr.

As for putting it off - you may end up in worse shape if you do put it off. Talk to your dr about all of your concerns - make a list of questions and ask her - that will really help ease your mind. My dr would think I had lost it if I didn't have a list ready for him!!!!!!

Hope this helped you out some. You may also want to try the chat room to get more ideas from other women who have already had hysts. and those who are pre and share your concerns.

Wendy