u/bubblegumbombshell

Original post

It’s been just over a week since I had my hysterectomy and I feel like things are going well. I’m still far more tired than I expected, but I only have a bit of soreness in my pelvic area. I’ve overdone it a couple times, especially because I tend to pick up my 3yo out of reflex, but nothing a bit of rest can’t fix. I haven’t taken toradol since 5 days post op and then it was just at night to help sleep.

Speaking of sleep, having a pillow to tuck under has helped me sleep on my side. I tried a few different supportive bands as others have recommended but none were comfortable and supportive. Instead I’ve been using a spare pillow under me and it’s worked quite well.

The biggest problem I’m having is a suspected minor allergic reaction to the surgical glue causing minor redness and itching. My surgeon is in the loop and we’re monitoring closely to make sure no treatment is needed. I’ve had reactions to sutures and such in the past, plus I’ve got some other allergies and autoimmune issues, so this wasn’t a huge surprise.

And yesterday the pathology report came back showing “extensive adenomyosis” which was more of a relief to read than I expected. I had the heavy bleeding, and the massive blood clots, and debilitating cramps. I had the imaging studies that showed issues throughout. But I guess there was still a part of me wondering if I’d made the right choice. Now I know with certainty that I did.

Hi all! I had my hysterectomy today. It was done with the daVinci robot and took about 90 minutes start to finish, then an hour in recovery and another in the PACU. I’ve had my appendix and gallbladder out before, both when I was much younger, but I’d say I woke up in about the same condition from this as I did from those. I’ve been home for 8hrs or so now, taken 3 naps and I’m alternating toradol with Tylenol for the pain. Also, the gave me a scopolamine patch which I think is probably a huge help.

I feel really fortunate to have had such a proactive gyno and zero fights with my insurance over this. I was first diagnosed with suspected adeno in December 2023 via TVUS based on heterogenous myometrium. I’ve been on OCPs since, taken straight through to prevent periods, with mixed results. Second TVUS in January showed the same results, and an abdominal CT for a possibly related issue in February showed diffuse calcifications of the myometrium. My annual gyno appt was in April and during that she recommended the hysterectomy as long as I was done having kids.

Took a bit to book because of my schedule, and I wasn’t really ready to be done having kids but also realized I physically wasn’t going to be able to handle another pregnancy thanks to several possibly related issues along with the adeno. My last period was at the end of May and I spent the first 2 days racing to the bathroom every 30 to 45 minutes to deal with blood clots sliding out of me (which may be one of the worst feelings ever). Kinda funny how the office messaged me 3 days after that to let me know the August surgical schedule was open, but it made that process a little easier.

The only man on my care team that I met before surgery was a hilarious anesthesiologist. Everyone else was women and 2 out 4 had a hysterectomy around my age. A third was anxiously awaiting her own, and the fourth was my gyno who has never said if she’s had one or not. The two other PACU nurses either had one or knew someone who did and shared their stories of relief. Between all of them and my mom, who also had one, it kinda felt like I was being welcomed into a club. Which is why I figured I would post here tonight.

There are so many barriers for us to overcome to get the relief we deserve. I was fortunate to have a relatively short and easy journey. Even accepting that I’m losing my fertility wasn’t terribly hard to swallow because I’m almost 40. But there was still the social stigma, or that cultural attitude that encourages women to accept the pain and tough it out. Turns out there are a whole bunch of us who have made the leap and it was really cool to hear some of them talk about it so openly.

Happy to answer any questions and I’ll post updates as I continue my recovery!

Tldr almost 40 and feeling sad after scheduling my hysterectomy.

I’ve been a lurking here for a couple years since I was told I likely have adeno. It started with heavy painful periods after having babies. It got really bad after my second. I’d have pain radiating down my thighs and across my lower back. The bleeding would be so heavy that I’d have to go to the bathroom every 30-45 min on the worst days to prevent leaks. After I finished nursing my youngest, I switched to a combo pill which helped and then started taking it continuously to skip periods completely. A couple packs in I started having pain under my right ribs that’s slowly gotten worse. Turns out I have a small liver cyst and an enlarged liver but the drs don’t know why. They have all told me that usually combo pills are only an issue if you have adenomas, which I don’t, but we could try stopping it and see if that helps.

I’ve had an iud before and didn’t tolerate it well so that doesn’t feel like an option. At almost 40 it makes sense to just get rid of my uterus and hopefully get healthier, because I’m pretty unwell these days. I’m anemic but can barely tolerate iron supplements because of the GI stuff that seems to be connected to the liver problem. I also have inflammatory arthritis that flares up every so often but seems to be somewhat connected to periods.

So I finally got scheduled for a hysterectomy this summer and I’m just so sad. I know it makes sense to do, but I don’t really want to be done having kids. Not that I can reasonably be pregnant or take on caring for another in my current condition. It’s just that a hysterectomy is so final. I’ve got 2 boys that I adore, but I also always saw myself having a girl and a bigger family overall.

And then I think about all the reasons to not have another. From my health to the current state of the world and everything in between. It makes sense to be done. But then why am I crying at my desk after getting off the phone with scheduling?

My husband is so supportive but also a bit lost on how to help. I’ll talk to my therapist and we have some time to work through it. In the meantime I thought maybe there were some others in here who felt something similar and might be able to help. Or were you all just so over it by the time you got to scheduling? I thought I would be and now I’m second guessing myself.

Sorry that’s a lot to read.