Hyterectomy a PMS cure???

(I posted this on the ob/gyn board and am reposting here for further input - sorry for the redundancy if any saw it there also - I meet with my RLNP tomorro and I hope to haveenough info to convince her of my urgency)

I've suffered from severe PMS for 25 years and I'm so tired.....My life is dictated by my hormones and I want to have a hysterectomy and simply end it.

My cycle is as follows:

Severe bleeding for 3 days (I can't leave the house it's so bad!), light for 2 days. About 5 days of "Normal" where I'm hopeful, energetic and feel that I can accomplish all that I set my mind to. Then I begin to get clumsy (I drop everything!), confused (I get lost in places I know full well), forgetful (details, names, appointments escape me) and I mix up my words if I can even manage to put a sentence together. I get very frusterated with these symptoms and become so depressed that getting up in the morning is difficult. Then the headaches and severe fatigue set in - (none of the other stuff mentioned stops until I begin to bleed again) and finally I know my period is close when my breast swell a full size and hurt so bad that I have difficulty walking (they're just little 36 b's to start!)and can remove my bra only for a quick shower. I can manage to mask these symptoms as long as I don't have to be in public - otherwise I'm simply a mess.

I want it all removed! I had a tubal ligation 13 years ago - Im 36 and I have an 18 y/o and a 13 y/o. I've been on antidepressants for 7 years, they recently added wellbuterin to my effexor and low dose BCP's. I always thought that drinking was the cause of all these symptoms but I haven't had a drink for 7 years and I'm still here in hormonal hell.

I don't want more kids - I want to feel normal. I want to be able to get a job and be consistant in it......would a full hysterectomy help....... ??????? I realize there would be other "inconveniences" but from what I've been told - the craziness stops and women are able to truley begin living instead of just existing.....

Please help!

First of all, welcome to the hystersisters. And I am so sorry you have been going thru this for so long. Troll thru the hormone jungle and pull-down menus for previous posts about PMS.

You describe your symptoms, but has your doc discussed with you any causes? Endo? Fibroids, Andeno?

Obviously a hyst will end your periods, but I'm not sure how that will effect your hormonal balance (for good or bad). Part depends on leaving your ovaries. Some of your symptoms may be due to blood loss from your periods, too. These are my guesses.

You mentioned seeing a nurse practitioner - do you have an MD also? You'll certainly want to see one, and maybe get a second opin prior to a hyst. Your doc will want to discuss options with you - based on your medical conditions. That might mean an ultrasound or exploratory lap to find out what is causing all your problems. Don't give up until you get answers. A hyst is permanent - no going back. Altho you don't want more children, this is still major surgery.

I am a little less than 2 months pre-hyst, but now feel good about my decision - and that took a lot of hunting, praying, coming here, reading other websites (watch out, some have very negative agendas) and getting no less than 3 second opinions. It is your body and you will be the only one who lived with your decision.

All THAT said, it seems to me that the overwhelming majority of women say post-hyst that they feel better than they have in years and wish they'd had it done years ago. I just want you to know that there are real risks and no guarantees.

Please do keep us posted in your searchings. We are waiting to hear from you again! Welcome!

Dixie Tracy, Fibroid Investigator

Thank you Dixie....No I don't have an MD also - but I'm gonna get one and I don't have any pain that might indicate the possible causes that you mentioned - could they be there without pain?????

I will take a stroll through the Hormone Jungle (maybe a nice change of pace from hormonal hell )

Thanx again - You are appreciated

Sandi

We are all different, so no pain is certainly a possibility. In my own experience I sometimes have great pain, and sometimes none (with fibroids on the biggish side.) This is why it is so important to find a doc you can trust who will listen to you and share her/his insights with you.

Keep searchin'

Dix

You aren't alone in considering this, Sandi. Last night I was trolling through some medical publication sites looking for info to answer a Hormone Jungle question and came up with a bunch of stuff on PMS. A couple, talking about last-resort-if-nothing-else-works kind of stuff, mentioned that in some cases where other treatments are unsuccessful, obliteration of the natural hormonal cycle (with something like Synarel or Danzol) and then superimposition of a "normal" hormone cycle with hrt can be effective. We do in fact have a woman in the HJ right now who is doing that post-hyst because her ovaries are too rowdy. The other last resort option they mentioned is a hyst. I think this would be hard to weigh, between ripping up your hormonal regulation with drugs or undergoing the risks of major surgery. Ultimately, however, many hysts are performed for quality of life issues and in many many cases the quality of life is drastically improved. I feel for the tough thinking you have ahead of you, and I think you'll want to discuss this with several docs as you explore the right options for your own situation. But I think that even taking risky steps has appeal over a dismal life impaired by elusive and poorly-treatable health problems.

Please come do some reading in the Hormone Jungle to begin getting aquainted with hormone strategies and their perils and successes. You should remember, of course, that it is problems we deal with in the Jungle--the successes don't hang around to post. It's a whole language to learn, so try not to feel too panicky if it looks overwhelming at first. There's great background info in the hormone dropdowns on the main Hormone Jungle page, and a growing library of back posts referenced in the Hormone Jungle Archives.

I wish you the best of luck and health, whatever route you take on this.