Afraid of what they might find

My biggest fear is I am going in for laparoscopic and afraid to wake up with shocking news like for example "you had to have a Total abdominal because one of your fibroids was bigger than on ULtra sound" , or " once we got in there we found endometriosis was spread all over not just in the spots we saw on ULtra sound" anyone else have this fear, or had this happen and want to share?

Try not to be too anxious! I Just had my LAVH on Wednesday and they found extensive adhesions and endometriosis that they had not expected. They were still able to do it all laparoscopically. Even if they end up having to do a laparotomy, chances are you'll have a good recovery. Pain management these days is amazing and complications are fairly rare.

Good luck!

Hi Kimimila, welcome to Hystersisters! Your surgery date will be my one-year anniversary!
I was also warned by my surgeon that my planned laparoscopic surgery may be converted to an abdominal procedure, because of the size of my fibroids roids, but fortunately, that didn't happen. I would recommend talking to your surgeon, and asking him exactly under what circumstances would he convert, and what are the chances of that happening - ideally, it should be no more than 5%. I would also recommend discussing your concerns about your endometriosis, so you can gain his perspective on what may happen. Best wishes for your upcoming surgery!

Hi Kimimila,

It is common that doctors warn that they may have to convert to open when they schedule a laparoscopic procedure. I had the same warning. What I am curious about is that the doctor said they "saw" endo on the ultrasound. I had a nasty stage IV case of endo, and it didn't show up on u/s or MRI. The only way to diagnose endo is to actually see it like with a laparoscopy or other surgery. Did you ask your doctor how she/he knew it was endo? If not, you should ask. You should also ask if the doctor plans to do a complete excision of each and every endo implant (if what they see is endo - it could be something else since it would be very rare for endo to show on an u/s). I always encourage women to get a second opinion, even if they are happy with their doctors. It never hurts.

Thank you ladies I have written down these questions to ask at my pre op. I could have misunderstood but I thought she said I see some endometriosis so I am going to do an endometrial biopsy. Those results will come this week.

I'm glad you will be asking because an endometrial biopsy only provides a sample of the endometrial lining inside the uterus. Since endometriosis only exists outside the uterus, that wouldn't help diagnose endometriosis either. All of this can be very confusing, especially in the beginning. I recommend writing out your questions in advance so you won't forget. It is easy to get sidetracked and nervous. You're doing a great job!