Am I trading one problem for chronic pain?

I need your input on adhesions. After reading the site on adhesions I wonder now if I'm trading my gyn problems for possible life long chronic adhension pain.The site written by a doctor said abdominal surgery will leave 55 to 100% of patients with adhesions. Of course he went on to say how the burning pain can be so chronic and surgery to correct it only lasts 12 months!!! After the endo biopsy cancer has been ruled out, thank heaven...but now I ask, is the risk of surgery and possibly a life time of burning, pulling pain worth it? At 52 with a growing uterus full of fibroids at least I have about 8 days a month that I do feel good. What to do???? Anyone out there with adhesions years after surgery? Thank you so much, Maralyn

Maralyn. I had surgery almost 2 years ago (age 44 at the time)...and feel great.

Please discuss this with your own dr. also....you can't believe everything you read on the internet

I agree with Dot...I had terrible adhesions from my prior surgeries. I learned here that it was critical to not do too much too soon...and my doctor agreed that this can be a contributing cause of adhesions. My hyster took three hours and I lost two units of blood, largely due to the mass of adhesions that had gunked all my organs together.

After this surgery, I did NOTHING except walk a little bit for 8 weeks; NO lifting, bending, stretching, pushing, pulling, etc...and at 11 months post op, I am pain free.

I can only speak for myself, but this time, the difference was so incredible....well worth everything I went through. Please do speak to your doctor, and do all the reading here that you can. You might want to search "adhesions" using our search engine...little purple button at the top of each page.

Good luck to you!

Karen

Thank you for such a speedy reply Dot and Karen. My big talk with my doctor is tomarrow. Thank heaven for this site. I can't imagine where I'd be right now researching all the scary stuff on the internet by myself. I will remember what you said about a careful and easy recovery. So good to hear that both of you are doing well. Thanks again. Maralyn

If you read the article on the internet more closely, you'll see that the 55-100% refers to patients who had pelvic resconstruction surgery, NOT hysterectomy. Further, of those that do develop adhesions after abdominal surgery, not all have pain or obstruction associated with it. Talk with your doctor- all surgery carries a variety of risks, not just from adhesions. Usually the benefits of surgery outweigh the risks. I had a TAH and experienced no complications-friends and family had the same result. Only you and your doctor can decide what's right for you- but it does sound like you have a diminished quality of life. Also, get your doctor's advice about what restrictions are appropriate for you after surgery. Many women are able to walk fairly soon after surgery and resume normal activities in 4-6 weeks. Good luck!