Upcoming surgery and need moral support

I'm new here and wanted to say hello to everyone. I am 42 years old. I am waiting for my doctor's office to call me with a surgery date for sometime in the next month (with the holiday and all). After 1-1/2 years of pain management for ovarian cysts, the big one finally burst 3 days ago and landed me in the hospital AGAIN! The ER doc was wonderful, and called a specialist at home, who got me right in. He showed me the ultrasound results, and I still have 3 cysts on the right ovary that are about 6 cm each, and a couple on the left that are nearing 5 cm each. I also have a fibroid tumor which covers about 1/3 of the uterus, so we both agreed that a hysterectomy was the best option, taking all but the cervix. This does run in my family (my mom had a hysterectomy at 48, endometriosis, and my sister, now 55, is facing the same as my mom). i would appreciate any help and advice on HRT, herbal remedies, what to expect before, during, and after, etc. It's my goal to be as well-informed as I can possibly be. I am recently divorced, so I have no significant other to be with me through this, just my wonderful daughters. thank you in advance.

Hi betmyheart;
to this wonderful site. You will find many wise and helpful women here.
Do you know yet what type of surgery you are having? I had two large cysts on my ovaries, one was 11CM and one was 15 CM along with several multicystic masses and pre-cancerous nodes. Mine were found incidently during MRI and CT scan for neuropathy/MS.
I never had any pain from them and I did not know I had them until then. After seeing a GYN & GYN/ONC on January 6th I was in surgery January 8th.
My CA-125 was very high so they didn't want to wait.
I had a total Hyst. Abdominal/vertical incision.
We are around the same age .... My surgery went very well, I was in a lot of pain the first couple of weeks. You will most likely need someone to stay with you for at least 2 weeks. We all heal differently so your pain tolerance and healing time will differ from mine.
The real key is to be sure to rest and rest some more. It is important that you do so. You only get one chance to heal correctly.
Drink lots of water, it helps cleanse the system. You will also need to take short walks to get your body going again.
The gas pain after surgery hurts! Once you can let it out you will feel so good!
Talk to your doctor about what you can take to help with that pain!
As far as HRT, that is a decision you and your doctor can make. I use the climara patch. It is a weekly patch. I have had minimal problems with it. I do occasionaly get red itchy bumps under it due to the adhesive. I have read many reports of this which prompted many women to change to a different type of patch or something else all together.
Wander over to the hormone jungle and ask the ladies there your questions or concerns.
Just remember, what may be true for one woman won't necessarily be true for you.

Good luck to you and Take care!



Sybie

Hello there!

Having been through the surgery and come out the other side, I just wanted to send you a message of support.

Due to large fibroids and excessive heavy bleeding over a prolonged period of time, I had a FAH including ovaries just over 4 weeks ago. The surgery went well and at 44 the healing process appears to be progressing slowly, but surely.

I completely agree with Sybie - do get some help for the first couple of weeks - I was in hospital for 5 days and the following 8 at home were hard - I was in pain and my hormones were all over the place (lots of tears), my two children are still realtively young so it has been hard on them. Do get as much support from friends as you can - one friend came over every lunch time with a meal and just sat for a chat which was a great boost.

If you're having a FAH, try sleeping with a pillow cuddled into your tummy whilst on your side, it really is a great support to the wound - in fact I still do it now as it certainly makes for a more comfortable night's sleep.

I'm taking combined Oestrogen HRT orally and so far, so good - it's still a bit of an emotional roller coaster, but the highs are now overtaking the lows.

Do rest as much as possible post op and don't rush recovery - you will get there in your own time. Be good to yourself and don't expect too much too soon. It's a special time in a way, when do we ever get time to just stop? Post op recovery is an enforced break so make the most of it! I started off railing against it as I'm usually always so busy, but my body had other ideas and I'm taking it easy - it really is the best route to recovery.

I wish you the very best of luck with your surgery and your recovery.

Take care

Angela

Well, I didn't have any ovarian cysts, but I did have a grapefruit-sized fibroid and a bunch of smaller ones. My surgeon took it all with my blessings - uterus, ovaries, tubes and cervix.

Before my surgery, I did lots of reading and studying. Due to some suspicious discharge, I had ultrasounds (internal and external) and an endometrial biopsy. The biopsy was not fun but thank goodness, no cancer. My pre-op physical, 2 weeks before my surgery date, consisted of a urine test, blood tests, EKG and a chest x-ray. They also gave pre-op instructions which included a fleets enema, a medicated douche and a medicated scrub from naval to thighs the night before surgery.

The surgery and hospital stay went well. I was under general (full) anesthesia, but it was a breeze. The IV going in was painless and the initial drug to relax me is the last thing I remember. My voice was raspy from the breathing tube but my throat wasn't sore. I had no nausea from any of the drugs and managed my pain easily with the patient-controlled morphine.

I had jello and broth for lunch the same day as my surgery and was on solid food that evening. I was discharged after 2 nights in the hospital.

I went on Climara, a transdermal estrogen (bio-identical estradiol) patch a couple of days after my surgery. I intend to wean myself off sooner rather than later, but so far, surgical menopause has been a breeze. No symptoms whatsoever... no hot flashes, no abnormal moods, etc. I just replace the patch once a week and forget about it.

I also do not have a DH and in my case, no kids, so I was fortunate that my sister and brother flew in from Boston and Minneapolis, first one and then the other, to help me out. Between the two of them, I had on-site help from the day of discharge when my sister arrived, until 8 days later when my brother left. That was enough to get me through the worst and from there on out, I managed on my own.

I went downstairs every AM right from the beginning and back up to bed in the evening. I walked up and down the lane next to my house at 4 days post-op and was off the pain pills within 10 days post-op. I had no problems with my incision nor any spotting. I was able to bend over and scoop cat litter or freshen water bowls within a day or two of coming home.

Currently I am 7 weeks post-op and in my 2nd week back at work. All is well. I have some swelling, numbness, skin sensitivity and jabbing pains, but nothing too terrible.

I encourage you to read all you can, as you mentioned. Be aware that while there are some stories and experiences that may frighten you a bit, there are also some of us who do very well through all of this. That's why I took the time to write about it.

If you have any specific questions I can answer, send me an email (easier for me than private messages).

Good luck to you!

Thought I'd put in my two cents worth.

I am 46 and was diagnosed with a pre cancerous condition so I did not have a choice. The first couple of days were the worst, by the third day I started to feel better and was released the evening of the 4rth day. My DH stayed home with me the first week and treated me like a true princess, I am truly blessed. I had no gas pain and no problems with BMs (took stool softners 2 days prior and continued 1 week after). I was up walking on day 3 and managed the stairs once a day when I got home. Every one is differant in their recovery but mine was uneventful. Was off pain meds by week two only advil at night. I am now 2 months post op and am feeling pretty good. Yes, I do get tired very eaisly but every day gets better.

I hope that you make the decision based on how you are feeling right now. Do not let the awful posts put you off. What ever you decide to do I wish you luck.

Hugs
Sheri