removal of ovaries vs. keeping ovaries

I am 49 and scheduled for a hysterectomy in May. I wanted to keep my ovaries, however, my Dr., even though he says my ovaries are healthy, says at "my age" they are really not doing anything. I don't know what to do. Seems like the more I read natural estrogen is far better than taking pills.

Help from someone that has been thru this on both sides of the fence! You should know better than anyone how you feel after the surgery. I have noticed some of you say they may shut down a while after the surgery and not start back, but isn't there a test that can be done to show if they are still producing estrogen?

Any info will be greatly appreciated!

Hi Txdaisy,
Sometimes after this surgery your ovaries can go into shock and it can take them a few weeks to get going again. Ovaries will continue to produce small amounts of Hormones even AFTER Menopause. So if they are healthy I would say keep em It is much easier to supplement what they dont produce than to totally try and replace them. Not every Women has a hard time with Surgical Menopause but then there are those that struggle to find that balance. I would suggest doing some reading in The Hormone Jungle, there is alot of great info there! Learn all you can. Then make the decision that you think is best for you

All opinions stated below are my own and are not intended as medical advice.

This is a difficult decision for a lot of women. The consensus in the medical community these days seems to be to take the ovaries if you are close to or past menopause. But it's certainly a controversial position. There are a number of threads about this on the boards right now, and you can get plenty of information by searching past posts.

Good luck, I know this isn't an easy decision to make.

I HAD SAME QUESTIONS AND CONCERNS ABOUT WHETHER OR NOT TO KEEP MINE. THE DECISION WAS TAKEN AWAY DURING TAH DUE TO CONDITION OF ALL ORGANS. I WAS PUT ON CLYMARA PATCH AND HAVE HAD NO TROUBLE THUS FAR. I FOUND IT WAS JUST TOO DIFFICULT A DECISION FOR ME TO MAKE SO I PRAYED THAT GOD WOULD TAKE THE DECISION OUT OF MY HANDS AND HE DID. I WILL NEVER REGRET IT.

GOD BLESS YOUR DECISION MAKING AND YOUR SURGERY. WILL BE PRAYING FOR YOU.

Hi Daisy, I believe that if the ovaries are healthy and if there's no history of ovarian cancer in your family, that it's better to keep the ovaries. They can carry you through menopause and still continue to dribble much needed hormones (although in much smaller amounts) even after menopause. I'm older than you by a few years and I had my ovaries removed at the suggestion of my surgeon "because of my age". They were healthy ovaries, and I will always wonder if I would have felt better had I kept them. It was only after my surgery that I found out that I have a blood clotting disorder that keeps me from taking any form of HRT. (And yes, there are tests that can be performed to check your hormone levels). If I had known then what I know about the importance of ovaries even after menopause, I would have opted to keep them. (I didn't find the Hyster Sisters until 2 months after my surgery.)

For any of you who are interested, I found this thread which was originally posted last summer by a former Hormone Jungle Hostess. It's full of information you might want to print out and bring to your doctor to discuss the possiblity of keeping your ovaries.

Hi,
I had the same questions. Did alot of research, read alot of posts on this site.

I'm 48. My doctor said that my ovaries look healthy and that removing them or keeping them was my decision.
I don't have ovarian cancer in family. What made the decision for me was me saying to myself "if I wasn't having the hyster I wouldn't even be thinking of removing them of they were healthy."

I personally, didn't want to deal with the HRT thing yet - so I've decided to keep them. My doctor is fine with it. I'm glad that my doctor left the decision up to me.

Do your research and good luck with your decision. It really is your decision.

Dusky

I'm going through the same thought process! My doc says take out everything, and when I see him on April 9, I have lots of questions. I called my breast doctor. The nurse recommended Dr. Susan Love's Hormone book. Her breast book helped me tremendously when I had surgery for a benign breast problem(microcalcifications which they were positive was cancer!). Take the breast or leave it! Take the ovaries or leave them! Why do women have so many parts? LOL Anyway, I also saw that depressing movie on HBO last night called Wit about an English professor with stage 4 ovarian cancer, and I screamed at my husband from the other room that I was definitely having them out. Then this morning I changed my mind again. Then this afternoon I talked to a teacher friend at school who had everything out, and she is doing a totally natural hormone therapy. So now they are going out again. Yikes! By June when I have this surgery I'll probably just let God make the decision.