Too young for a hysterectomy?

Hi everyone :-)

My Dr and I are discussing "exploratory laparoscopic surgery" right now to figure out what's causing all my problems, so I am looking for advice from those who have been there/done that, or who have read up a bit more on this than I have :-)

For a brief history - pretty much every woman in my family has had endometriosis and fibroids everywhere (although for some reason they never show up on ultrasounds, the Dr just gets a big surprise during surgery). My mom had her hysterectomy at 34 and my grandmother had hers at 19.

I have had an ultrasound that showed only a "mass they believe to be a cyst", but the pain is unbearable. I started having problems after delivering my last baby and only after my periods came back. Each month my period would last for 2 weeks, with a lot of pain mostly just before the period starts and after it's done. When I'm bleeding I actually feel a little bit of relief. This has continued for months and months, I think coming up on 6 months now?? Each month is worse with pain to the point that Advil doesn't touch it :-( I have been taking Vicodin to deal with the pain recently and hate it because it makes me very loopy and tired. Today the Dr put me on Ultram so hopefully that will be a little better, but I am the type that hates taking pills so I would rather just fix the problem.

I'm basically ready to have a hysterectomy because I can't cope with the pain any more. I'm 29 and have had 3 healthy children and have no desire for more, but I'm not sure whether my Dr will be willing to discuss a hysterectomy at my age and with only a cyst showing up on ultrasound. I have always heard that they don't like to perform them on women younger than 35, so (I know this is kind of silly), I was actually afraid to ask her about it today. Right now we are discussing the exploratory surgery to see what she finds and go from there, but I really don't want to go under the knife more than once and am a little nervous about this plan of action. She has asked me to sit down and think about what I want to do if she does find problems. Like if I prefer to save my ovaries if possible, etc.

There is a hospital nearby that does da vinci robotic surgery and I'm REALLY interested in it, but there are only two drs that are trained to do the surgery (and mine isn't one of them). My only hesitations about going this route are that it's difficult to get in to see these specific drs and I'm afraid they will look at me like I'm crazy for asking because I'm "young" and other than the pain I'm having it doesn't look like there is anything wrong. I'm also afraid even if they did take me seriously that any surgery might be pushed out for several months.

Please, any advice from those who have been there done that? What sort of things should I be thinking about and discussing with my Dr next time? Thanks in advance for any input! :-)

I am a recipient of the UAE procedure. Full TAH was the first option laid on the table by my (no longer retained) GYN. An MRI will be more definitive than the ultrasound and much less invasive than exp. lap. It will define cysts, fibroids and adhesions/endometriosis. My ultrasound could not see my ovarian cyst past the large fibroid.

I'm sure anyone's concerns for you would be the early onset of menopause. I wonder if ablation might be a more conservative option for you until you get closer to 40 years old. My best friend had it late this summer and it worked wonders for her. She had a long history of adhesions/endometriosis and heavy periods with pain. That said, I'd still make the MRI of the Pelvis your next move if you can get it prescribed and insurance approval (if they require pre-approval).

Best of luck!

What I might try to do is to keep a log of the pain and what is causing it. It may help your doc to see how it is impacting you. Most of the docs I know did not want to do mine even after being diagnosed by endo via a lap. The one thing to keep in mind is that a hyst will not cure endo and can cause some other fairly significant problems. Have you tried birth control to see if that helps?? I was on Lupron for three years prior to my hyst. Talk about all your options and if you do have endo, I would suggest finding a specialist who can help you. Good luck

I started asking for a hyst at 22 (I'd had two children) ... I've been to countless docs, asked countless times - finally got to this doc, who offered it as first option even at my age (41) and agreed to take the ovaries too... if I'd have found him years ago, he would have done this years ago. He literally took me by the hand and said, "you've suffered enough." Needless to say, I burst into tears...

I had my hysterectomy on July 7 of this year at the age of 27.I had severe adenomyosis and adhesions from previous c-sections.It took me 5 years and several doctors to finally have this done.I had my youngest child 5 years ago and the pain was so severe that it took my breath away.

I started my period at the age of 11.Ever since then my periods were 2 weeks long.The last 2 before my hysterectomy lasted for about 20 days.I had no quality of life.I couldn't leave my house.For me,the hysterectomy was my last option.I am so glad to finally have some relieve and my life back!

I have tried birth control yes, and it really doesn't seem to make any difference at all :-( Still on it though, to prevent pregnancy...although with the pain I've been having that's pretty unlikely anyway lol since sex sounds agonizing at the moment.

I'm kind of intrigued by the MRI option, I had read something about that and was wondering if it would be able to show anything else that might be going on. I didn't know it would show adhesions and endo! I will definitely ask my Dr about this option as I really want to know what's going on BEFORE getting opened up, I'm not too thrilled about the whole idea of a "surprise!" factor in surgery :-) Thanks for that!!

I really appreciate all the advice, thanks so much! If it turns out I do have endo I will definitely look for a specialist as I don't want any leftovers! :-)

I'm 21 and just had a hysterectomy 3 days ago. I was diagnosed with endometriosis at 13 and have horrible pain that keeps me in bed for the last 8 years. I was told I'd never have kids and today I have a beautiful, happy healthy 14 month old baby girl. I would rather spend an active life with her then be in pain all the time cuz I'm so "young" my ob was great he said at 21 you can drink and everything offered in life has become available for you plus it's your body and you should get to decide what to do with it... I'm glad I'll be able to get of the narcotics I've been on and live a great full life with my little angel. ( that I'm blessed to have)

Hi, I am 29 and had my hysterectomy this July when giving birth to my son! It was a traumatic pregnancy, started out with twins and lost one..my placenta previa turned into accreta so I was on hospital bedrest for 6 weeks and delivered my son under anesthesia via c-section at 35 weeks. They were not able to stop the bleeding and I needed a transfusion so they went on and removed my uterus. Now my little guy is 4 months and overall some days I feel ok but truthfully I am extremely tired and not up to par most days. I did get to keep my ovaries but I have flashes and all the other symptoms of pre-menopause. So I am not sure if it makes a difference when you have your hysterectomy because its a healing process for all. I would recommend getting a good support system. Other than my husband and mom, my girlfriends don't really understand what i am going through so it's frustrating at times. Good luck with everything

Thanks so much for your stories, it's so good to know I'm not alone. I'm very glad to hear there are Drs out there that will listen and not just laugh at your pain and say you're too young. I know it's certainly tough caring for my little ones when I'm pretty much homebound and bedridden for half of the month :-( Or dosed on pain meds just so I can perform basic daily tasks. Not good for any of us.

I'm so sorry about the circumstances of your hyster JJJ I can't imagine how tough that must have been, it sounds like it was probably something you didn't expect either? Or a spur of the moment life-and-death sort of decision in any case. I can imagine it must have been really difficult emotionally for you. Even if you didn't plan on having more children it's a tough thing for any woman to wrap her head around.

Thank you..keep me posted on your procedure! Wishing you well!