da vinci hysterectomy - what can I expect?

I am scheduled for a da vinci hysterectomy May, 22, 2008. My fear is coming out of surgery. How much pain? How long is the recovery process? How many days should I prepare in advance of frozen food? Should someone be there to take care of me? I have not had children and am newly divorced. I guess you could say my hysterectomy is another way I am getting rid of my past. Just think, I am becoming a virgin again. I know this may sound silly but it does help me to try to look at things in a positive manner. I am really scared though.

Hi Pearls,

The DaVinci is a great improvement in the hysterectomy process.

Not everyone has the same experience, but I can share mine with you.

I did not have very much abdominal pain. I DID have arm pain, the nurses said it was gas (from the co2 that they use to inflate your abdomen), but it was NOT. I had fractured my shoulder years ago and the position they put you in during surgery (on your back and head down..called Trendelenburg position) aggravated the old injury.

Abdominal discomfort was handled well in the hospital by a epidural that was left in for 24 hours.. then oral medication. The nurses advised me to take the medication every 4 hours to stay on top of the pain.. never let it get really bad before taking meds. I started weaning off when I quit waking up in the middle of the night in discomfort.

Some ladies never need pain meds with this surgery. I wasn't one of those lucky ladies.. but the pain I had was well manageable.


Recovery varies also..but the standard 6 weeks is probably a good guide. You might feel wonderful earlier, but there is still lots and lots of healing going on inside. I probably could've gone back to a desk type job in 4 weeks.. I was able to drive in 2 weeks .. but I live in a rural area w/o much traffic. If you have a lot of traffic to deal with.. you may need to wait longer.

I would have at least a week of meals prepared ahead of time.. more if possible. While you will be able to do stuff for yourself, your energy levels will be very low. The first days, just getting from my recliner to the kitchen to get a bottle of juice and back to the recliner was tiring.

One thing that no one told me and I found to be good for me.. was that small frequent meals were more comfortable in the early days. I could feel the food moving past all the internal stitches.. and large meals made that feeling worse. Not exactly painful.. but very strange feeling and a bit uncomfy.

If you can have someone the first week, that would be a good idea. If they can't stay with you.. at least have them come in and help with stuff for a few hours.

I see you're in Havana.. will you be having your surgery in Tallahassee? I didn't know that TMH had the DaVinci available. I guess the town has grown since I lived there.

If you have more questions.. don't hesitate to ask.

I had the daVinci on March 17 and I am glad I chose it.

First of all, I should mention I am 57 so as much as I had to admit it, my recuperative powers are probably not as stronger as those of a younger woman. I am in generally good health and was feeling well before my hysterectomy (which was done because I was diagnosed with endometrial cancer).

Having watched my mom battle complications with the scar from her abdominal hysterectomy, I am delighted I have only five small holes.

The anesthelogist spent a lot of time with me prior to surgery, and I told him I have arthritis in my lower back. He said he would do his best to position me to minimize the strain on my back. I did not have any aches and pains from the position used in surgery. My surgery lasted 4 hours - the doctor said it took an extra hour because I am overweight and he had more of a challenge moving things around.

I had my appendix out 15 months ago and I remember being terribly thirsty after surgery from being intubated. I was intubated this time, too, but did not have the same thirst.

I was in the hospital overnight. While I was in the hospital, they gave me shots of Torodal for the pain and it worked great. I was not able to drive myself home from the hospital because of the Torodal, but I had a long drive home and it helped to have medication for it.

I was not able to pee the first time I tried after surgery, but it was fine the second time and I have had no problems with that at all. It took about a week for the BM to return to normal, because the vicodin I took for pain made me very constipated.

When I came home, the pain from gas and constipation was worse than the pain from the surgery. I was able to stop the vicodin by the third day after the surgery and used ibuprofin prescribed to me instead. I still take ibuprofin during the day, but I returned to work two weeks after surgery, working half days at a desk job.

The doctor had told me I would be able to return to work after 1-3 weeks. He released me without any restrictions at my 2 week post op. I did not drive until my release.

I an working 6 hour days now - 5 weeks after surgery - still not quite up to a full day, but I have a stressful job even though it is a desk job.

This week I began working out - just 15 minutes each day on the treadmill so far.

I was not very hungry when I first came home, but without good food on hand, I would have taken the easy way out and not eaten well.

I would say it might be good to have someone spend the night with you for the first 2-3 nights.

Now that I have had an appendectomy and a hysterectomy done laproscopically, I would not hesitate to choose that method again, if I have another surgery. I do think it is an easier recovery, although probably not any shorter.

Best of luck with your surgery.