I have made my decision

I had a doctor appointment yesterday & I decided that I would just go ahead with the hysterectomy. I am going to have everything removed but one ovary (my right one)unless they are too damaged to leave in, so that I do not have to go on HRT yet. I'm hoping that that I can get another 10 years out of the ovary that is left in since I am only 24.
My surgery is going to be some time in Jan. The doctor felt that it would be best to get through the holidays first. I agree!!!
I am going to have a laparoscopically assisted vaginal hysterectomy (LAVH).
For those of you who are going to say, "bit it won't cure your endo!" I know.
I am not doing it for the endo. I am doing it to cure my adenomyosis.
Please feel free to give me advice. I would love to hear from you ladies.
I know that it's going to be a long process, but with you by my side....it seems so much more simple!
I hope that all of you are feeling okay.

Good luck! I, too, have endo and adenomyosis. The relief from my hysterectomy so far has been incredible. When you have two causes of pain, it's hard to know which is which. I hope adeno is your big culprit and you get years of relief!

If you're doing it for adenomyosis, why are you having your ovary removed? Adeno is a disease of the uterus (ingrowth of uterine tissue), but doesn't have anything to do with the ovary. Just curious

I am having my left ovary removed because of the endometriosis not the adenomyosis.
Endometriosis is a left sided disease and if you remove the estrogen supply on that side, then you have a less likely chance of the endo returning.

I'm not sure who told you that, but that's absolutely not true. It does nothing to lessen your chances of reoccurance of endo. Let me list some facts here for you. What you do with it is your business:

No one knows what causes endometriosis. Removal of uterus and removal of ovaries will only lessen the disease if the disease is confined to only those areas.

in an 18-month long study conducted by Johns Hopkins, 138 women with Endometriosis underwent hysterectomies. In the group of those who kept their ovaries, 31% had recurrence of disease. Of those who had their ovaries removed, 10% had recurrence(2).

Before you make your decision, may want to investigate it a little further or get a second opinion - not about whether or not to have surgery, but about the type of surgery that you want to have. Do what's right for YOU.

Some people do well with uncertainty - I'm not one of them. Endometroisis is NOT a left sided disease and has nothing to do with which ovary you have removed. If there's a study that backs that notion up, I'd like to see it.

PS There's no way to know that you have adenomyosis except thru removing the uterus and then examining the tissue under a microscope. And expert can sometimes recognize it thru laparascopy (an adenomyosis uterus will appear grey/red and boggy, not elastic).

...or, rather, an adenomyosis uterus MAY appear gray-red and boggy. Mine looked fabulous.

Otherwise, I agree with everything Adrite said. Do a little more research before you make a final decision about your ovaries.

I did have a laparoscopy in May & it was determined that I have adenomyosis.
As far as the ovaries go, I would rather have them both removed then just one, because there's a chance that I will have to have the one that is left removed later on & I don't want to have to go through any more surgeries after this.
Thank you for your advice, but I whole heartedly trust my doctor (he is the best surgeon & endo specialist in the Mid-Ohio Valley & has scrubbed with several upstanding endo specialists....such as Dr. Redwine)
My decision has been made. Thank You for your input!

EndoChic,
I just wanted to wish you well with your surgery. I had endo and both ovaries removed and two years later I am still pain free. I hope you have the same good fortune. I too am curious about the left sidedness you speak of? I only had pain on my left side but never had heard that. I was wondering if you could elaborate a little on that point.


Becky in OHIO

I'm glad to be able to read your post endo chic as at the age of 26 I'm considering a hysterectomy for endometriosis. My mother suffered from adenomyosis and Im' afraid that I may too in the not too distant future if I keep my uterus for much longer.

I'm just curious as to whether you have children or are in a relationship to consider having children?

Thanks for the info

Regards

Yes, I do have children. Two of them to be exact. I have a 6 year old & a 2 year old.
Please keep me posted & let me know what is going on with you.
I can honestly tell you that even if I had no children, it is still to the point that I would have my hysterectomy.
You just have to do what is best for YOU!
I'll be thinking of you!