Questions about post-op pain

I will be having a laparoscopic hysterectomy some time next month. I am not as scared of the sugery itself as I am of the aftermath.

When I was only 3 years old I watched my mother go through cancer and she had a radical hysterectomy. Even though I was that small, the horrifying memories are burned into my brain like it was yesterday. She had an awful time healing and my dad took time off from work to care for her. After surgery she had a terrible time with HRT and she never enjoyed sex again in her entire life.

That is the only person in my life that I know who has had a hysterectomy. She was 38 and I will be 34 for my own. Now my situation is much less extreme so there is no way I can use her experience as a guideline or for comparison.

What I would like to know is what I might be facing after I have my uterus and one ovary removed. I have suffered endometriosis since my early 20's , and I had some relief after my last surgery, but now all the pain is back again. I also have an issue with cysts. I have had some rupture causing EXTREME pain and now my current cyst is in my left ovary completely blocking the blood flow to my ovary.

If I do this through a laparoscopy, how long will my recovery take? What type of pain and how extreme, how long will it last, etc? Also my biggest fear is how will sex be after the fact? Will I still be able to feel anything? Any experiences from women who have gone through a similar experience would be appreciated. The fear of the unknown is worse than my fear of the surgery.

You are so right fear of the unknown is the worst. Post op pain was not what I expected it to be as I had excellent dr's who were on the game! I had very little pain at the hosp and at home. Discuss ahead of time what may make you sick, percuset made me vomit. After surg, at one point, my sex drive was nill and my 'o' gone but it's a month or so later and I am back on track. I did not have endometriosis but had TAH/BLO both ovaries gone. Surgical menopause was hell for me but acupuncture and hormone cream working for me now.

Honestly the wait and anticipation are the worst part of the whole experience. There are going to be a few women here and there that have a much harder time, dont heal as well, have issues afterwards... but I think for the majority of us it all goes much smoother and easier than we anticipate. The hospital staff was wonderful about tending to me and keeping me calm, then they just knocked my butt stupid with medication before they took me to OR . I barely remember a few bits and pieces of anything. I woke up thinking how much longer....and I was already in recovery LOL I was in some pain when I first woke, not anything agonizing, just incomfortable. They quickly took care of that with meds, and they stayed ahead of any pain from there on out. Alot of what you feel with the laproscopic is soreness (like you really over did it exercising), a little cramping, tender incissions. Nothing too bad really at all . I took pain meds the first week so I could stay totally comfortable and rest. After the first week I quit those meds and just took aleve (naproxen) occassionally - mostly when I did too much and made myself a little sore.
Other than an issue with one incission infected, its been suprisingly easy. Im 2 weeks post op today, went back to work yesterday, and really feeling pretty much like my old self. When I do too much, stretch too far, pick up too much my body tells me. I can feel the pull abdominally, the incissions might sting a little. Other than that, the pain is gone for me

My question too, thanks for answering.

Tina is right, the worst part is the anticipation. I feel very fortunate in that my recovery has been great so far. The pain wasn't near what I thought it was. For me the worst part in the beginning was the bloating and gas the first few days. But once that passed I felt much better. The pain was minimal at best - more discomfort than actual pain.

Take your pain meds on schedule for the entire first week - even if you don't think you need them. Better to stay on top of any pain before it starts. My doctor told me once you get behind it is very difficult to catch back up with the meds.

I have not been cleared for sex yet, but we did try outer and that worked out well!

PS: I am very sorry to hear about your mom's experience.

The wait and unknown are always the worst. Just remember what one person experiences someone else might not. I had cervix and uterus removed yesterday and am now home recovering. Dr sent me home with percocit. Using that and a heating pad seems to do the trick. Also remember to drink lots of fluids

It was my first surgery and I was so frightened also. Especially about the pain. I cannot take ibuprofen so I didn't think anything else would contol it. At the hospital the pain was totally controlled with the pain pump. At home, my only discomfort was constipation, gas and BMs. After going through that I realized that I hadn't followed my Dr.s instructions. Dumb me! But the pain was 1000% less than I expected. Totally manageable. I was off the heavy drugs in 3 days and only needed tylenol which seemed to work. You will feel so silly about how much you worried. I know I did. And my family still laugh about my white knuckled grasp on the pain pump in the hospital. But it all worked out. It will for you also. Cheryl

" You will feel so silly about how much you worried. I know I did. And my family still laugh about my white knuckled grasp on the pain pump in the hospital. But it all worked out. It will for you also."

How true this is. I look back and laugh at myself now but I do remember what I felt like then, before the surgery and it is justified to feel those feelings but it will all be okay.

Ok I need to say the exact same thing. The fear was much much worse than the reality. I have had little to no pain post op. Surgery Thursday, took percocet til Friday night. My first BM was on day 3 post op. I'm staying on stool softeners for a few weeks. Mostly just tired easily. But very minimal soreness on day 5 post op today. I read on here somewhere " this is not our mothers' hysterectomies, girls!" and I think that is so true. I am looking forward to a wonderful sex life that will no longer be interrupted by periods, urinary leakage, etc!!!!

Thank you all so much for your answers. This does help me significantly with my worries. I have been cheking out and reading lots of books from the library and so far I have three pages of questions written down to ask the doc when I go in with my husband. This is one of those times when I wish that I could just have it done immediately so I didn't have weeks of my thoughts and fears freaking me out. I have been putting this off for years even after getting the same advice by doctor after doctor. But now that I have finally made the decision to go ahead, I just wish it was already time.