To Keep the Cervix or not??

Hello my fellow Hyster Sisters. I am really at odds about my cervix. (Now that sounds funny!) I am scheduled to have my hysterectomy on Sept 20 by a wonderful Doctor. He is giving me the choice to choose if I keep the cervix or not. He is giving me up to the morning of surgery to decide so that is nice. I have never had any irregular pap tests and I have had them on a regular basis. I don't have issues with prolapse but I am worried I will if I remove it. Could I be that 20% of women? I am also worried that if I decide to keep it, will I be one of the 5% of women who still menstrate after? So many questions and so little time. Any advice at this stage would be a god send. Thank you ladies.

Hugs.

I am having mine the day before you. My doc suggested having it removed but I have had some bad pap tests in the past. This one came back fine but we decided not to risk it and I did not want even a .0001% chance of having a period again. I am so sick of periods! Good luck in your decision!

Thank you and good luck to you as well. After reading similar posts I am leaning towards removing it. I really don't want to be the .0001% either!!

I would suggest searching that topic on here. There has been some great info posted. Both for and against.

I chose to keep my cervix, not my original thought. Postings from other Sisters made me do some more research. Shared tales of vaginal cuff challenges scared my eyes wide open. Then I found it is a bit easier to recover from surgery if the cervix is left in. My DR was all for it, "why remove the cervix if it is healthy?"

I don't have what I expected to be a "mini period". I have only seen a bit of old blood when I wiped 1-2 days, for the first time this month. Not even enough to wear a pad/tampon. I do get some PMS, since I kept my ovaries this was expected.

Do some more research. Talk to your DR. Be comfortable in your decision. Good luck!

I'm having my surgery on the 16th, and mine is going. It's a personal choice though, if there is even a small chance I'd get a period, I'd get one. After 3 1/2 years of almost non stop periods, I don't want one every again.

There are pros and cons to each choice though and there are some really great posts on this site for both.

I am 12 weeks out and glad that it is gone. I am one of those that probably would have had gushing mini periods, too. Do keep researching, though. Some of the cuff stories really made me concerned, too. I guess, though, that sometimes difficulties could arise whether the cervix is left or not.

I kept mine but once again, the advice to do a search for the pros and cons is a good one. I wasn't concerned about mini-periods (they couldn't be as bad as what I had in the past) and my pap smears have all been clear. The recovery, I am told, is a bit easier if you keep your cervix and the vagina remains the same (no cuff issues to deal with). I am 10 months post-op today and haven't had a mini-period at all. My recovery also was better than most with no pain the day after surgery aside from pulling of the incision when I moved.

Good luck with your decision!

I'm another one who intends to keep my cervix after surgery next week.

I've never had unusual pap smears, and after the period difficulties of the past, I reckon any mini period will almost be a novelty

Just think ... "Ooh, I've got some spotting"

vs

"Ooh, I'm at the photocopier, in what is about to be a puddle of blood, complete with clots the size of tennis balls running down my trousers ... will my colleague think it's weird if I run off mid-sentence to the bathroom?"

.... yep, I reckon a bit of spotting might be kinda cool

Surgery was 4 weeks ago today. Opted to keep my cervix, didn't want to deal with vaginal cuff and those issues.

Had what I am guessing was a mini-period and it was NOTHING! Just some extremely minor spotting and very light blood on tp when I urinated.

From what I understand, no such thing as a gushing mini-period. Nothing left to gush, just some cells on the cervix that could not be reached to be cauterized, that "think" it is that time of the month to bleed.

I just had my LSH on August 8th, 2011 and I chose to keep my cervix, since I never had a problem with pap smears. I did a lot of research and felt that the pros outweighed the cons.

My surgeon said he was able to cauterize the cervix so well that I shouldn't even have a little "mini period" that is sometimes talked about. I was definitely afraid of the prolapse issues that can occur when the cervix is gone. I figured since it seemed to be healthy I would keep it. However, I did tell my surgeon that if anything looked amiss at all to go ahead and take it. Well...I woke up and still had a cervix lol.

I also didn't want to deal with a vaginal cuff. I have read mixed reviews on whether sex is better when the cervix is left or if it is gone. Since I'm still not allowed to have sex yet, I can't tell you about that yet lol. I guess everyone is different.

We can all offer you advice and our experiences but you have to make sure that you make the decision that is right for you. Do whatever feels right to you because you are the one that has to live with it! Good luck and best wishes on your upcoming surgery!