Almost 3 years later....

Hi everyone,
I have been away for awhile I have been doing great. Then the last few months I startee having cramps that felt like I have a period and pressure like I had to push sometimes.

Ihad my uterus and cervix removed in august of 2007, and the relief was instant I was diagnosed with adenomyosis. No signs of endo at that time

My doctor today said the two are so closely related hes pretty sure taht si whats causing the pain and he thinks one ovary could be attached to my cuff which is causing the cramping. Sometime I double over in pain it get so bad. He said women under 40 usuall yhave recurrences every 2 years after the hysterectomy. He does not want to take my ovaries out im only 3o. So he is going in to look around and clean anything out he finds. Its just hard for me to wrap around the fact taht teh endo has surfaced. Has anyone had any experience with this? I could really use some advice.

Thanks
Mandi

((darkconfused27))

I am so sorry you are dealing with pain and possibly endometriosis! My goes out to you!

Having a laparoscopy to see what is going on and possibly cleaning up as much endometriosis as possible could be helpful for you. Keep in mind, that if your surgeon does not have the skills to remove all the endometriosis he finds, you could continue to have pain and issues from any remaining endometriosis. I continued to have issues as my GYN could not remove the endo from my bowel walls. Years later, I had to travel to an endometriosis specialist who was able to remove that endo and all the other endo and adhesions he found. I had an adhesion from my vaginal cuff to my bowel that was a big part of my symptoms! It has been two years since that surgery and I am doing well! (And yes, I still have both of my ovaries because that is what is best for me.)

The stats for endometriosis recurrence somewhat depend on who shares them! Endometriosis specialists tend to have lower recurrence rates among their patients than a general GYN will have. For one, the more of the same type of surgeries you do, the greater skill you can have. A general GYN isn't generally going to be treating as many women with endo as a specialist. Some women have had great success having surgery with gynecological oncologist for endometriosis because those types of doctors have exceptional skills when it comes to delicately removing stuff that does not belong in the body!

Was endometriosis ever found during any of your prior surgeries? Is the surgeon you are seeing now the same one who has done your prior surgeries? Endometriosis and adenomyosis do not always go hand in hand. There are many of us here on the site with one or the other condition, but not both. So, while it is possible for endo to rear its head sometime after a hysterectomy, there might also be some other issues going on.

I wish you all the very best for your upcoming procedure and hope it offers you the pain relief you need!

s

It is not the same surgeon my surgfeon has moved and I like this dr. I never showed signs of endo before....i jsut hope its the right decision with the symtoms I dont know what else to do

Dakconfused,
I had a total hysterectomy July 2009, I have no ovaries, and I had surgery two weeks ago and my doctor found a few spots of endometriosis on my colon. I was, and still am, a little confused as how it can come back so quickly with no ovaries, but supposedly it's not that uncommon.
I'm 28, so I can understand that you want to keep your ovaries, and frankly, if endo can come back with or without them, I think you make a good point on keeping them.

Thank you all for the advice and sharing your stories. this is just so frustrating when I started feeling the pain again and the cramps I thought I was losing my mind. I think I'd feel better about the surgery if I would have been told I had endo when I hadmy hysterectomy but I was only diagnosed with adenom but my mom and grandma both had endo so if my ovaries are still in tehre, they might have it now I guess I will find out.....

I had my lap yesterday teh dr found 10 areas of endometriosis. He also noticed my appendix looked strange so he had another surgeon come in and remove that. Im recovering which is never fun. So I guess adeno and endo are rleated and come back. He said we will see how this goes and go from tehre. For now I have kept my ovaries and I hope I continue to do so

((dakconfused27))

I hope your recovery is a smooth one! Be sure to remember to and give your body time to heal!

Adenomyosis won't come back after a hysterectomy as it occurs only inside the uterus. However, any endometriosis that is not removed can cause continued issues. It is possible that you have had endometriosis all along but your prior surgeon(s) did not recognize it or find it. That happens far more often than we would like. Hopefully all of it was removed with this surgery and you feel better than ever once you have completely healed!

I wish you all the very best!