Upcoming hysterectomy 2/5: Has anyone had a spinal tap?

hi I'm new here... My surgery is in 4 days. My doctor told me he strongly recommends doing a spinal tap to help recovery so that heavy pain medications are not needed as much as I would without the spinal tap.

Is this normal/typical to have a spinal tap? I'm very anxious about that, almost more so than the surgery itself.

Any advice greatly appreciated if this is recommended or if I should be fine requesting to not have the spinal tap...

Thank you!

Hello,

I had a TAH on 22nd Jan with a general anaesthetic and spinal for post op pain relief.

In the anaesthetic room before they did it I was so petrified & started crying like a child!! I said no I don't want you to do it about 3 times, the nurse looked at me and said do you really mean that, I said no just carry on and ignore me. They sit you up so your legs dangle off the side of the bed, and then you lean forward resting over a pillow.

The thing with me was I knew I had to remain completely still with not even a twitch when the needle goes in and I was scared thinking I would move.

Anyway the dr puts the local anaesthetic in first which honestly was nowhere near as bad as I thought! Then he went to inject the stuff but I said no it hurts because I could still completely feel it, so he put more local in, then after that I couldn't feel it at all, then they get you lying back down real quick before your legs stop working.

Now all the above stuff was completely fine and you shouldn't worry about any of that. However with my experience I definitely would have chosen not to have it if I had have known what happened post op.

I was in recovery and in A LOT of pain.... I could feel my legs and I could move them like normal. They said they usually give you an iv morphine pump just for the first 24 hours to help you get through the worst part. But I couldn't have the pump because in the spinal they had put diamorphine in so then it would be too much for my body. The spinal was meant to last 12 hours but it didn't on me and was pretty pointless me having it because I got no pain relief from it, and couldn't have anything strong because of it.

If I were to ever have something like that again I would say they would have to give me more of whatever it is they use to numb everything below the waist. My body has an incredibly high tolerance to pain killers because I've been on and off them for the last 10 years due to all my troubles! So that high tolerance probably didn't help.

Whatever you decide, make sure it's your decision.

Take Care

Emily x

What kind of surgery are you having (abdominal, laparoscopic, vaginal) and what are they quoting you for a hospital stay? I had a TAH with not a spinal but rather an epidural, which means that they inserted a catheter near my spinal cord and used it to supply pain meds. I was also given "twilight sedation," so I wasn't (and didn't want to be) conscious during surgery.

Afterwards the epidural catheter was left in for the duration of my hospital stay and used to supply post-op pain meds. Because the application was more direct, lower doses of meds (dilaudid) could be used -> fewer side effects. I had no real pain at all, just soreness and twingey-ness. I was up and walking around - catheter and all - the first day after surgery with a nurse. By the second day I was walking laps around the ward on my own, quite bright-eyed and bushy-tailed.

The epidural catheter was removed without incident first thing in the morning on the third day, and I was released later that day. For me, the epidural worked out really well.

Jenee,

I had an epidural along with general anesthetic for surgery. The epidural was left in for a day and a half after, for pain management. It was wonderful!!! It didn't hurt going in (they numb the area first), I woke up with zero pain, and had no pain until it was removed. I could still walk around and move fine - no numbness. I would never have an abdominal surgery without it. If you're nervous pre-op, you can ask your doctor ahead of time to have something there to give you for nerves.

I wrote a surgery story in the abdominal hysterectomy stories section that describes the whole experience in detail that you might want to read. I dreaded the whole thing, but it was so much easier than I thought, and choosing to get the epidural was one of the best decisions that I made!

I had an epidural and tap blocks as well (blocks are administered once you're under) and woke up in very little pain. This low pain level continued until the day after surgery, when I started using my morphine pump. They did warn me that the pain meds would make me itchy, and they did, but I thought that was worth waking up in less pain than I might have otherwise.

It is laparoscopic - they are removing uterus & cervix but leaving the ovaries.

Do I have the option to request an epidural instead of a spinal tap? Is there also any risk/downside of epidural?

I would really prefer to not do the spinal tap if I can avoid it but still have good pain management. My body is use to high doses of pain medications so I'm worried it won't effect me as much and I will be in a lot of pain either way.

I've previously been hooked up to morphine 5 years ago for another surgery but it had absolutely no effect on me then.... As far as reducing my pain goes.

I'm already so anxious about everything that I'm losing sleep and giving myself tension headaches.

How long does the swelly belly last? I already have a good muffin top after c section. Is it permanent? Will I ever look the same other than scarring? How long does it typically take before resuming driving or riding a bike? I currently bike daily and am worried how long I will be unable to ride - even if I take it easy.

Does your bladder have issues? Or does it go back to being normal? I already pee a little if a sneeze or laugh hard. I don't seem to get the "bladder full" feeling even when it's near bursting, like I use to before having my son.

Sorry for the endless questions - reading your experiences has been a tremendous help!! Cannot thank you enough - it's been the only thing that eases my mind finally.

	Quote:
Originally Posted by Jenee' It is laparoscopic - they are removing uterus & cervix but leaving the ovaries. Do I have the option to request an epidural instead of a spinal tap? Is there also any risk/downside of epidural?

You have the option to request anything you like. The anesthesiologist will either tell you yes or no. :-)

In my case, I met my anesthesiologist minutes before surgery. He ran in the door of the anteroom to the OR and announced that we were doing an epidural. I asked why and he said it would be better for pain management. Then he ran out the door to go scrub for surgery. I don't remember ever seeing him again, since the last thing I remember before surgery is doing an "angry cat back" for the nurses to insert the epidural catheter.

	Quote:
How long does the swelly belly last? I already have a good muffin top after c section. Is it permanent? Will I ever look the same other than scarring? How long does it typically take before resuming driving or riding a bike? I currently bike daily and am worried how long I will be unable to ride - even if I take it easy.

The extent of the swelly belly and how long it lasts varies from person to person. I could wear my regular clothes at four weeks but still had a bit of swelling for another month or two.

Can't help you on the driving as I don't, but my doc cleared me for cycling at four weeks. :-)

	Quote:
Does your bladder have issues? Or does it go back to being normal? I already pee a little if a sneeze or laugh hard. I don't seem to get the "bladder full" feeling even when it's near bursting, like I use to before having my son.

I didn't notice any bladder changes. Have you tried Kegel exercises? They're easy to do and might help. :-)

My surgery is tomorrow I'm having a TVH with an epidural they said, unlike my csection, I would not be awake when they put in the epidural. I'm totally ok with that!