questions about tvh, and bladder lift

i will be having vag. hysterectomy and bladder lift next month- is there anyone that has had this that has any advice, info etc? there is also a procedure to repair the bowel, which they say is all common w/ uterine prolapse. i'm just curious about recovery time, is it longer w/ the bladder procedure? i'm sooo not looking forward to this surgery, but at the same time, i wish i were scheduled today! i'm tired of pain, and bleeding 27/7! i can't wait to have a drawer full of "good panties"!

I had a tvh w/posterior repair, no bladder work. As far as the TVH there has been very little pain with that. the postreior repair for rectal prolapse was only painful in the perinial area as they cut like an episiotomy. It is possible that you will have a folly cath a little longer with the bladder repair but should not be for too long. Another thing you will probably have is packing, usually removed the morning after surgery, this packing was very uncomfortable for me, for some it is not so bad, but thought I would warn you. I like to know as much as I can. It sounds like you are going to be having enterocele repair, others that have had this have really not noticed that anything was done until their BM's seemed to be easier. I was in the hospital 2 nights, I almost wish I had stayed a third as I have little ones at home and that made it harder. By the end of the first week I was feeling great and started doing little things around the house, this however is not always recommended. I did and still do get tired very easily, I if I worked I could have easily physically returned between the 2 and 3rd week, emotional was another story. My Doc released me yesterday to resume normal activities, but reminded me to listen to my own body and not do more than I can handle. I am released for intercourse, but have a granulation that is being treated and so he recommended waiting as that can cause pain. I hope that I have helped you some. I wish you the best with your upcoming surg, remember the waiting really is the hardest part. Angela

thanks for the info. i teach preschool, 3 year olds, so i'm wondering when i'll be able to get back to work. i haven't asked the doctor that yet, but what would you think? i'm also wondering if i will be able to travel (by car) by the 3rd or 4th week. any input? and what is this packing i keep hearing about? i'm assuming it's like an uber tampon?

I had TVH and had no packing...I didn't even have any bleeding or discharge afterwards, other than 1 day about 1 week later...very, very light pink color on toliet paper. I was back to work after week 3. Actually in January I had a lapro gallbladder removal and this surgery was easier to recover from. Didn't have any bladder repair...sorry, can't help ya there!

I had a TVH with no bladder repair, but my sister had a THV with bladder prolapse. I'm 44 and she's 50. She had the packing (which is a bunch of gauze) and I didn't - she said it wasn't bad except for the removal (only for a few seconds though). We both had a spinals and neither of us had any pain after surgery. Spinals have pain meds that last for 24 hours - so your pelvic area is quite numb. Within the first week we were both moving around really well, and riding in the car was no problem. After one week we were both driving. I returned to work after 2 weeks and she after 3 weeks (her job is more strenuous). Hope you have the same luck we both did.
"Beams"

I would say going back to work dealing with kids may take more time, I was back on my job almost right away, I am a SAHM, lol. I did not start to lift my DD 2yo until near the end of the 3rd week. With prolapse repairs you need to give yourself more time to heal or you can have a reoccurence. my gyn said he only used packing if you had a repair. The nurse that removed mine said it was like having 5 super tampons in there at the same time, removing the gauze did not hurt at all, and was such a relief to have removed, I started crying just cause it was finally gone. Others have compared the removal to a magician pulling scarves out of his sleeve, lol, it was very much like that, I was not sure when it was going to end. Every person is different make sure to follow your docs orders and also what your body is telling you. Angela, PM me if you would like.