Scared and don't know what to expect!

First let me say thank you for this board! I've been reading the posts here and I have a little less anxiety because of it.

Here is my situation. I'm 44 with multiple fibroids in my uterus. The biggest one measures 26cm x 12cm x 10cm. That's 10.2" x 4.7" x 3.9". It's the size of a six month old fetus. The second one close to it is 9cm (3.5"). I have had extremely heavy bleeding with clots for 2 out of 6days on my period but it's every 24-25 days, cramping and mood swings. Needless to say, I'm exhausted everyday, borderline animeic, and have the extended belly.

I have never had surgery in my life and I'm really scared. Also, I have no kids. I adopted two kids so I'm still a mom. I'm having a TAH with a vertical incision because of its size and position. I'm keeping my ovaries and tubes but losing the uterus and cervix.

While I'm OK with not having any biological children, I'm just nervous at how recovery is going to progress and what this is really going to do to my body. I've never stayed in a hospital and really don't know what to expect. I guess not knowing what I will need for the hospital stay and what I can and cannot do immediately following is what's scaring me. I need to work and can do that from my iPad. Are we allowed to have laptops in the hospital?

My kids are 2.5 and 8 and they need their mom. My youngest one just came home from Russia 4 months ago and is still learning English. I have a busy household! DH is always working and I will have my sister One week and my mother the following week to help out. I just have to remind myself NOT to feel bad for not doing the cooking, cleaning and errands when I get home.

Sorry for the long post. I'm so scattered brained with the impending operation that putting this post down has really let it sink in!

For those sisters out there...what did you do to prepare for your surgeries and the stay in the hospital? Are we allowed to have laptops/iPads? Anything you could help to make this an "easier" transition for my family would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you!!!

It sounds like you have things nicely lined up. It's good that you're thinking all these things throug. It's great that your sister and mom can help. I think you'll find all of your questions answered somewhere on the HysterSisters site.

I was allowed to bring my laptop, but I wasn't there long enough to feel up to it. I was out in about 24 hours. I did do a bit of texting.

Your 8 year old can be of great help to you. As long as your 2 year old understands that your abdomen is off limits, you should be fine. You'll definitely be up to reading story books, playing pretend with figurines, and even cooking soon.

One thing that went with the fibroid for me was the desire to fall asleep every time I sat down. I haven't had the urge to take a nap since my surgery.

I wish you all the best!

My surgery is this week. I am not nervous..I am excited and cant wait to get it over with so I can LIVE again! Do not think of the negative or even your fears..think about how much better of a mom this surgery will allow you to be. Yes, you can bring your electronics to the hospital with you. Its great you have help for 2 weeks ad you will be back on your feet before you know it.

You may not be up to using your laptop for a few days after surgery. Youll be in heavy pain meds in the hospital and you may find later that you did and said stuff during your stay that you don't remember or wouldn't have normally said. To the hospital I took my toothbrush, Chapstick, comfy loose pj's to wear on the car ride home and my iPhone for texting, playing the occasional game and listening to music to fall asleep. I was told I would stay one night in hospital but ended up staying for two. So keep in mind you may be in longer than anticipated depending on how your surgery goes and what level your pain is. Freezing lots of food for later is a huge help. You have family to help you for two weeks but after that it is so helpful to pull something out of the freezer for dinner. Also freezing muffins, homemade cookies is great. I wasn't able to cook anything of significance for a month post op. We had a lot of frozen dinners. Explore this site, you will find lists of stuff to take to the hospital, questions to ask at your pre op appointment, recipes for post op. There are also checkpoints for post op that will give you an idea of what you will able to do at different stages of your recovery. I wish you luck with your surgery :-)

Athenasbylisa, I understand how you're feeling, I really do. Perhaps my story can ease your fears a tiny bit.

I had a TAH (kept my ovaries) with a bikini incision in mid july. I really, really didn't want the abdominal surgery, but my dr explained that with the size of my uterus in relation to my size (I'm petite and short), she wouldn't have enough room to work with the lap tools and get everything out safely. I don't know the overall size of my uterus but my dr called it a universe filled with so many fibroids she couldn't count. I also had a large fibroid on the outside of the uterus. I was terrified about this surgery and the scary things I had heard from other people and read about - external incisions, hemorrhage, post op pain, the list goes on. I was so stressed out before my surgery I was a mess. My dr had already sent me to a dietician/massage practitioner so I had been working on my stress that way, but it wasn't enough. I got some guided meditation/relaxation CDs that are specifically geared towards surgery and used those too. I also walked, listened to music, cleaned the house, cooked, anything I could to keep busy and get ready. Honestly, looking back I think all those things helped make my recovery easier by being well prepared, but the waiting was much harder than the surgery itself. I think I read that a thousand times here on the boards, but it's true, the waiting is by far the worst part for most of the sisters. Not knowing what's coming messes with our heads!

I came through surgery okay, a couple of little problems with low bp and the catheter in recovery, but nothing major. Stayed in the hospital 2 nights, 3 days and came home feeling pretty darn good. I was able to come off prescription pain meds after about the first week and a half, got a UTI so played with antibiotics, and rested, and rested, and rested some more. I was sore, but it was manageable, and I could tell if there was something I could not do. My body really did tell me. Some of the aches and pains were scary because I had never felt anything like that before, but reading the post op boards helped because there were so many women there with similar things going on. The best things I read here all had to do with healing and how to take care of yourself and the things to have to be prepared while you heal. You have one time to heal so you have to take care of yourself and do it right!

So 3.5 months later I'm doing pretty well. My incision healed beautifully and is actually smaller than I thought it would be since my dr tried to cut the skin incision smaller than the fascia incision. I'm on estrogen replacement therapy, which I didn't expect, but I feel so much better I don't care! I'm 49 almost 50 so I had menopause symptoms anyway. I still get tired and my belly is a little swollen, but all in all, I know I made the right decision. My anemia is gone, no bleeding, horrible pain gone, it was worth it!

There's a ton of information here and it really can help you be more prepared. Some of it's scary so if you can avoid reading that, it helps (I stayed away from reading too much post op board threads when I could). Hang in there, know that there are lots of sisters here for you, and don't forget to breathe deeply - it really helps! Sorry this is so long!

OMG!!! Thank you Sisters for your responses! It makes me feel so much better that I'm not wasting my time getting things "prepared" for my departure to the Castle. Although I'm a bit scared I am excited to be "full of life" again. I miss having the feeling of appreciation of life.

Thank you again and I'll keep you all posted. The doctor is taking photos and weighing it for me. I'm just too curious to see what's inside me.

Wow, your fr¡broids are HUGE! You HAVE to be making the right decision with this op...

It sounds as though you have organised your care well. If you haven't already, I can't recommend enough reading all the pre-op tip articles on here - the ones on logistical stuff.

I had never been in hospital for an operation either and I spent so much mulling over the "big stuff" I failed to notice the more day-to-day advice.

Actually, even though I found info on the site really useful I hadn't even signed up here as a member so if any lurkers are reading this now - JOIN NOW - there's some useful extra stuff you can see...

Back to you, Athensbylisa, all the very best with your operation.

Despite lack of experience I found arrival and the actual operation stuff really quite smooth going and I just put my trust in the hospital staff...

DO read all the practical advice on preparation beforehand. The one thing I didn't have was an "Advocate" as recommended here - lots of help but I had to organise them while the advocate has a more proactive role so you don't have to think too much. So I hope your DH or sister are well-briefed for that role...

And I found having everything ready in my bedroom for return (things I might want within easy reach) and also having had a last big preparatory shopping expedition were two vital things to have done beforehand.