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Post by july on Dec 3, 2007 20:24:57 GMT -5
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Post by kb on Dec 4, 2007 0:54:09 GMT -5
I agree, there are other options to be explored first. I personally wont go down this path until all other options are exhausted. While i admit there are times there is no choice, it isnt always the case, sometimes women really dont know that there are other ways, and specialist will only tell u bout surg and medical options, they never mention trying anything natural first to see what effect it has.
Recently i had a friend diagnosed with endo, she had had her kids already so they just went straight to hysterectomy, personally i didnt agree with that, but i guess to each their own, and she was happy with her decision.
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Post by puddleduck on Dec 4, 2007 4:43:47 GMT -5
This is a point which the SHE (Simply Holistic Endometriosis Trust) in the UK tries hard to publicise and work hard at promoting research of new treatments.
It is heartbreaking and infuriating to see consultants agreeing to perform hysterectomy on a woman in her twenties, almost at the drop of a hat. The facts remain and prove that it is not a cure for endometriosis, especially in women in their twenties and thirties. Women in their forties and older seem to fare better.
I believe, as you do, that we have to make our case heard more strongly to prevent drastic, irreversible surgery so that more thought, time and energy is directed into research and clinical trials for new treatments.
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Post by erzulie on Dec 4, 2007 17:30:03 GMT -5
Thanks for starting this thread! It's a good point. Doctors don't seem to think much of removing our reproductive organs. The Endometriosis Association has made the point that if men suffered from a disease fed by testosterone, their doctors would never recommend castration as an option, even if it were the only thing that would help! Why should women feel differently about their bodies? I hate how some doctors think that once you've had all the kids you want, there's no reason to keep hanging onto your uterus and ovaries. Again, no one would ever tell a man that! It's a painful, risky surgery that may not have the desired benefits, and once you've done it, you may find yourself with no sex drive and with a decreased capacity for orgasm, not to mention you've just been thrown suddenly into menopause before your time (if you've had the ovaries out too). Some people recover well from hysterctomies, but others find they are never the same afterwards. You don't know which category you're in until it's too late, and then if you discover it wasn't worth it, or that you could have had the same results with some less invasive treatment, you can never go back! I think that really is heartbreaking. I would never have a hysterectomy unless I was so miserable that I knew I had nothing to lose, and I had tried everything else first. Once I read an article in a lesbian magazine about unnecessary hysterectomies. It talked about how hysterectomies are performed even more often on lesbians, because the doctors think lesbians aren't going to be using their uteruses for anything anyway, so they don't offer the options. It's one reason I've been scared to come out to my gynecologist, I'm afraid she would just say "well in that case, let's just take everything out!" I don't really think she would actually, but I can't help feeling a little nervous.
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Post by kb on Dec 6, 2007 0:26:54 GMT -5
Ive had a number of people tell me to 'just have my kids and a hyster', what they dont get is i dont want to have my uterus out unless i genuinely have to.
While the concept is bizarre to some people i do feel kinda attached to my organs and would like to keep them if possible, even if there not performing something i need. I dont want kids at the moment, cant be certain i ever will, its not about keeping options open, thats only part of it. For me it truly is wanting to stay whole.
My husband cant understand this, why i want to keep something thats causing me so much trouble, but its part of me. Now i know this sounds silly, coz i know its not really true, but i do sorta feel that having my uterus removed is going to on a psychological level make me feel less of a woman, and i know ill grieve the loss.
I understand that sometimes there is no choice, but i feel like ive been to hell and back with all this, and well ive come out fine the other side. I know im not 100%, that fatigue still plagues me, but my endometriosis is no longer causing me problems, i have it under control through a combination of things, and i feel satisfied that ive done it without losing part of myself.
Please dont think this takes away from anyone who does make the decision to have one, i respect the choice, life is what matters, and i still one day may have to make that choice, but until then im willing to try all other options first.
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