New and undecided

Hi Ladies,
What a wonderful and informative site! My name is Kristy and I am 35 years young. I have a wonderful, supportive hubby and 2 beautiful children. I was on birth control pills for about 18 years before I got off them March, 2006, due to high blood pressure. I was originally put on birth control pill's as a teenager to regulate my cycles and decrease my horrible cramps. Since I got off the pill last March, I have gotten a cycle every 2 weeks that last about 5-10 days. My doctor said I was anovulatory as I do not have any cramping, just migraines & moodiness with my cycles. My doctor put me on Provera for 5 cycles to see if this would regulate my cycle. I waited until January to go back to my doctor who then did a pelvic ultrasound and blood work . The u/s was normal, just showed my uterus was thinned out. The blood work showed slight anemia Next step I had a D&C and my doctor told me Novasure may be my next option if this failed. I had my first cycle 10 days after my D&C and now they are every other week with cramps and fatigue included in the package. I made an appointment to see my doctor and discuss Novasure and hysterectomy. From my research on ablation, I would just as soon skip that and go with a hysterectomy and keep my ovaries. To me, ablation seems to be a temp fix, and I really don't like the idea of general anesthesia again. Just the thought of being burned inside is scary, what if my uterus (which my doctor said was thinned out) ruptures and other parts were burned too. Maybe I am just being too paranoid, I know hysterectomy has it's pros and cons too. My mom had a hysterectomy at 39 and said she did not have any problems. My grandmother had one in her 20's after being diagnosed with uterine cancer. Any feedback would be greatly appreciated. I am so undecided and definitely praying about my decision.

I can so relate to your dilemma as I'm currently weighing the option of embolization (like ablation) or a hysterectomy for my adenomyosis. Like you I tend to lean towards the hysterectomy because the embolization will most likely only give me a few years of relief. I suffer from a lot of pain due to my adenomyosis and if the embolization isn't a for sure thing like a hysterectomy is, I'm not sure I want to go throught the embolization with the possibility of having to be cut open again down the road. I'm actually meeting with a radiologist tomorrow to discuss the embolization and to see if I'm a good candidate for it or not. My advice to you is to get as many medical opinions as you can. Even though I'm leaning towards a hysterectomy, I still want to hear what this radioligist thinks. Another thing to consider is hanging onto your uterus for as long as possible is a good thing. If it means having the ablation and buying yourself 5 or so years before a hysterectomy, that can only be a good thing. The recovery with an ablation is very short compared to a hysterectomy. I'm also meeting with another gynecologist next week to get a second opinion. I had an MRI in Feb. which showed that I definitely have adenomyosis but it's mild right now. Maybe I should just suck it up for as long as possible. This website is a great find and I've really had some great advice here. You have to make your own decision, of course, but knowledge is power!! Keep me posted and best of luck. It's a long journey so far.

Bailey, thanks so much for your comments. I love this site and am finding so much helpful information. Best of luck to you too and keep me posted what you decide. I'll keep ya in my prayers!
Hugs,
Kristy

Just wanted to give you my update. Went to see the radiologist today and he feels i'm not a candidate for embolization because it does not help with the endometriosis that we suspect I have as well. doesn't make much sense to have the procedure if its not going to help with everything. so I'm going to see another gynecologist that a friend of mine recommended. She had a hysterectomy last fall and shares a lot of the symptoms I do.
So it looks like my journey is steering me towards hysterectomy. I'm not jumping into any decisions right away though.
good luck with your decision and let me know how it all works out! We're here for you!

I'm 34 and facing the same decision. My dr also said I was not a good candidate for ablation because of the size of my uterus which he feels will make it very difficult to freeze via novasure. He also said there would be no fix to my adeno which is showing up in a larger area than a year ago, even after just having a baby. DH weighed all the options and now is the time for the LSH. I have had a hard time with my post partum recovery and we are looking for an "end"!

Good luck in your decision!

Thank you all for you wonderful, caring comments/opinions. What a difficult decision to make.
Bailey, I wish you the best of luck in making your decision too girl!
Jennifer, keeping you and your upcoming surgery in my prayers.
Hugs & Prayers to all of you,
Kristy

I so appreciate all of your posts. My grandmother had uterine cancer while in her early 40's, and I have fibroids, adeno, heavy bleeding with anemia, etc. My doc advised against an ablation because it may mask the symptoms of uterine cancer, so I am considering (so far, avoiding) a hysterectomy as well. If I do I think I'll keep my ovaries - I want to avoid HRT because we have a family history of early breast cancer. Thanks to this website, I feel like I'm getting advice from friends. Good luck in your decision!

Renee

Kristy,
You really need to talk with your doctor about the pros and cons of each procedure. There is alot of information about ablations on the website www.endometrialablationdiscussion.com

I had a Novasure EA last fall. It did not work for me as I had hormonal issues that regenrated the endometrial lining. I am not sorry that I had it first, it is far less invasive and the down time is a whole lot less. One week vs 8 weeks with my TAH and I still get tired 10 weeks out. I have a few friends that have had successful EAs and one had big fibroid issues.

There are certain conditions that EAs are not very good in dealing with, adeno and and endometriosis are a couple. You mentioned that your grandmother had uterine cancer. I agree with four sister that it is very difficult to detect endometrial cancer after an ablation. That was my biggest concern with my EA. It's something that you need to talk with your doctor about, your family history may not make you a candidate for EA.

Best wishes, I hope you are able to come to the decision that's right for you.

I met with my doctor today and I am going to try the Novasure procedure first. I had a very informative talk with him about the pros and cons, and of course, in the end, I could end up needing a hysterectomy. I am a bit leery in that I sure would like to know the reason for my bleeding every other week, and so far taking hormones and my previous tests have not showed why. I guess the only real way to find out is to have a hysterectomy, but for now I think I am going to try the Novasure first. (there, did I just convince myself?) lol

Hi Sameasy - I tried other things first (not a candidate for ablation, unfortunately) and I'm glad I did. Unfortunately, the bleeding is getting much worse since my D & C in October, my iron stores are completely gone and the anemia is causing me to be so lightheaded that I had to miss work today. So I'm scheduling an appointment to finally talk about a hysterectomy (again!) - but I tried what I could prior. So are you! I hope the Novasure is the answer for you - if not, then you gave it a shot. I got so many answers from the sisters on this site - and I know I can continue to come back and learn what to expect from the hysterectomy.

All the best!

Renee