Thanks. It sounds to me like for a few people, it’s really painful, and for a few, it’s mostly pain-free, and for most (which means probably me), it’s somewhere in between. At any rate, I’ll only have to do this once.
I doubt it’ll come back clean. My pap was suspicious looking, and there’s a strong family history of cancer. My uterus may not be cancerous, but I’d venture that it’s pre-cancerous at the very least. But the thing is, it’s such a self-contained system that taking it all out is the best solution to the problem. It’s unlikely to spread to other internal systems unless it’s left untreated for years and years. For those reasons, I’m not freaked much at all about the thought of cancer. It will be a relief, though, to get all that stuff yanked and not have to worry about it any more!
And if it is, it’s FUCKING painful. I had a horrible time with it and any doctor who’s done this and seen how painful it can be for some (many) people should be shot for not providing damn good pain meds. I felt like crap for a couple days.
(Though if I had the choice between this and the boiling water balloon in the uterus thing I think I’d do it again, cold turkey.)
I got my uterine biopsy immediately following a trans-vaginal ultrasound (in which the doc could not find my right ovary). You’d think that the combo of the world’s largest dildo smashed up against your innards and mashed around followed by forced dilation of your cervix and tearing away of endometrial tissue would neccessarily require at least a pre-procedure Tylenol, but not for my doc! No sir!
(I saw her once. That was it. I think the experience could have been improved only by the addition of barbed wire adorning the foot stirrups.)
Wow. I read that whole thread. A little off-putting to say the least.
But, as stated, I already have Darvocet (thanks to my PCP, who rocks!) and Xanax, and will make good use of both. Before and after the procedure, if necessary.
I’ve also hear horror stories of GYN’s doing hysterectomies and sending patients home with Mickey Mouse drugs like Tylenol 3. Suffice it to say that she and I will be discussing post-op pain relief before she operates, and we will reach a mutual agreement, or she will not be doing my surgery!
Good luck with your surgery, by the way. That’s got to be scary. I would, however, look forward to the 6 seconds of utter bliss between the words “start counting back from 100” and “Norinew! Norinew! Time to wake up, sweetie! Can you hear me? Norinew?”
Today I got the results of last week’s biopsy - no cancer. To say I am relieved is the understatment of the year, and my stoic, non-demonstrative Japanese husband brought home flowers and chocolates tonight.
I still have fibroids and endometriosis that needs dealing with in some way, and have an appointment in a couple of weeks to continue with the plan of treatment, but right now it’s not an emergency and not scary.
Oh, yeah. I’ve had general anesthesia lots of times, though (probably 20 or so), so it’s not as scary for me as it might be for someone where surgery is a novel approach.
And of course, when they start saying “We need you to wake up now, sweetie”, my first reaction is “Go away!” After that, though, my strategy is to ask for the maximum possible drugs in order to minimize any unpleasantness!
I had the biopsy today. I took the Darvocet and Xanax beforehand, and quite honestly, was fairly buzzy by the time she actually did the procedure. Really, it wasn’t that bad. She apparently had no trouble at all getting through my cervix in spite of the fact I’ve never vaginally birthed a child. I felt a slight pinching sensation when she pushed the pipette in, and a tugging/cramping when she extracted the tissue (she did this twice). Afterwards, I had some pretty yucky cramps, especially in my right side. But nothing that’s not easily controlled with small doses of Darvocet. I anticipate being back to normal (well, what passes for “normal” for me) by tomorrow.
We also scheduled my hysterectomy today. I’ll be going in on February 28th to have everything removed.
I’m glad you got through the biopsy OK! I am still feeling a bi t crampy since mine two weeks ago BUT she also put me on an estrogen blocker for that time and my boobs have swollen up to enormous melons so I think it is probably all connected with the pills. My last one was last night, so now I am waiting for my period to start. I am hoping that will be the release and the crampy stuff will stop.
I hope your crampiness ends soon! I hate that stuff. For me, I’m feeling right back to my old self today. I’m still spotting a little, but don’t know if that’s from the biopsy or from the Progesterone she has me on. But it’s just a little. A pantiliner takes care of it.
Now to start getting things in order to count-down to the hysterectomy! :eek:
Well, I’ll put that on my list of questions to ask my GYN at my pre-op appointment on February 26th, and I’ll let you know!
Do you just want to know about the uterus, or do you want to know how much the whole “package” weighs? (She’s taking my fallopian tubes and ovaries, too!)
norinew, You may find this website – Hystersisters – to provide some helpful information and support regarding the hysterectomy. There are things about it that I don’t like (I am not a “princess,” for example), but I found it very helpful when I was struggling with treatment for my endometrial cancer.
Best of luck to you!
That website scared the crap out of me. My hysterectomy wasn’t nearly as scary as many of theirs, and I even had complications.
Norinew, I hope it all goes smoothy for you. I was only 30 when I had mine, but it’s the best thing I ever did and I wish I had done it sooner. My only suggestion is that you find out if keeping an ovary is an option. I kept one of mine and it saved me from going into menopause. And I haven’t had any pain or problems since the surgery.
I’ve actually already joined, though frankly, I could do without the animated smilies!
I’m getting rid of both ovaries because of the history of cancer in my family, and because of fibroids. But I’m already menopausal, so it’s not a big issue. Also, my doc is more than willing to put me on HRT if I have big problems.
