no solid diagnosis -- laparoscopy scheduled

Hi, I came across the site here while looking for some information. while I haven't been diagnosed, laparoscopic surgery is next test on the list for me. I'm very young, but I've suffered from serious abdominal pain for years, and they've yet to come to a conclusion as to what the cause is. My doctor has suggested the laparoscopy to search for endometriosis and adenomyosis. I know these are possibilities when it comes to the cause of pain, and we've ruled out some of the others with many tests. I'm terrified. So, I'm sorry to have joined the site under false pretenses, but I'm looking to collect as much information as I can. And who better to ask than those who've lived what I may face in the near future. If anyone can offer their knowledge, I would appreciate it to the fullest.

Thanks,
BBear521

I had it a couple of months ago. I too was petrified. But all went well I was home in a few hours. Mine was on a Friday had a friend come stay for the weekend cuz I was worried. Really not a big deal for me. Way smoother than I thought. Actually enjoyed the weekend watching movies, dozing on and off.

The pain after was like a mild cramp and compared to my periods they were nothing.

Still in the what to do stage. I get a second opinion then end of Nov.

Hang in there.

I think it is great that you are looking for a reason for your symptoms before jumping into having a hysterectomy!

I had a laparoscopy along with a hysteroscopy prior to my hysterectomy to see what in the world was going on for me! The hysteroscopy allowed my doctor to take a look inside the uterus for any problems and the laparoscopy gave him a view of the outside of the uterus and the surrounding pelvic region.

It was during my lap that my surgeon found my endometriosis.

My biggest issue with my lap is that I woke up sick to my stomach from the anesthesia. Otherwise, after the first day, I don't remember a lot of pain from the lap. In fact, the week after my lap, I was able to take a day trip a few hours from home where I walked around quite a bit. I could feel a bit of uncomfortableness but no pain.

Knowing what was causing my symptoms and where the endo was located let us then determine what I needed to do next.

We do have some information in our Resource Database about laparosocpy so you might want to read some of them so you will have idea of what to expect!

I wish you all the best for your upcoming procedure and hope it will give you and your doctor some insights as to what is causing your symptoms!

yes, well I'm glad that you're all here to help! I've got some questions though.. I read in a post here that there's no detection method for adenomyosis until after a hyst.? this is true, or not? because that is a concern, I'm feeling a little worse every day but the next time I'll be able to see any doctor is this time next month, and it's been over a year since I saw one last, other than the ER and they didn't do much for me but send me home with RX's and information packet on dysmenorrhea. No test, no questions based on whether or not I knew the cause of pain. I've been working at one or two jobs the last two years depending on my financial comfort zones, and the bulk of my expenses are medical. I've grown very tired as it seems to be that I've spent more time and money on CoPays and RX's than I have to actually make any progress. I hate issue mostly because with every waking second I'm in pain, and more often than not: the pain brings over-whelming waves of nausea. I work in customer service, it is hard to be pleasant in that state of holding down your lunch.

Generally speaking, yes, the only way to 100% diagnose adenomyosis is with pathology following a hysterectomy.

However, some doctors use MRI to help diagnose adenomyosis. Educated guesses can be made based on symptoms and the appearance and shape of the uterus. For instance, many ladies with adenomyosis often have an enlarged, boggy uterus.