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Post by joannec on Oct 23, 2009 16:09:16 GMT -5
Hi All,
I first found these boards a few weeks ago after being scheduled for a diagnostic laparoscopy. My OB/GYN was skeptical that we would find endo in spite of the fact that I had recurring pelvic and back pain that required me to regularly take Percocet and Morphine; he believed that I might suffer from myofascial pain syndrome.
My surgery was on October 15th. The ended up having to remove a 2 cm growth on my right uterosacral ligament and three smaller ones on the left side. I just want to emphasize to others that might find themselves in my position, the importance of trusting your instincts even when no endo shows on ultrasound or MRI. The OB/GYN said to me in recovery that he was sorry; that he believe this must account for 90% of my pain and that any muscle dysfunction would have been secondary to these growths.
I did great the first three days after surgery, but believe that I did too much and set myself back. I am determined to stay put on the couch or in bed for the weekend to regain strength.
I have a questions for the pros regarding incisions. The one in my navel had a bit of a foul-smelling clear discharge which has resolved but it is now quite red and itchy...It did put some tea tree oil on it which may have been too abrasive and a dumb idea. Has anyone ever had an infection? Is what I'm describing common? Have others experienced this and I should just not worry about it?
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Post by sunshine78 on Oct 24, 2009 3:33:03 GMT -5
I would have that checked out. Even though the discharge has resolved, the redness is worrisome. Itchiness is normal where you have something like that healing, but the redness may not be. Be especially watchful of a fever, body aches, chills, or other flu-like symptoms.
I had mine start to produce a sort of protective scab, shortly after the surgery (once I could remove the inner dressing and use Provon to gently wash it), but everything around it looked totally normal. It did itch like nuts, sometimes,, though.
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Post by wantinghope on Nov 10, 2009 18:05:10 GMT -5
I had my laparoscopy one week ago.
They found nothing that could be causing my pain. I DO NOT HAVE ENDOMETRIOSIS. So I guess I will be leaving this site. They took my appendix out; there was nothing wrong with it. They also checked my tubes and they are "patent", meaning open. I have yet to decide if the diagnosis is good or not. I find it discouraging that I still don't know what my pain is caused by. But I am hopeful that we can get maybe get pregnant.
About the lap itself. Getting the IV in was the worst part. I have hard, rolling veins, and after the experienced nurse blew the vein in my hand, they got an OR nurse in who put it in my arm. She did better, but still insanely painful. I was crying from pain and stress and shaking from anxiety and cold. Lovely start. A week later I still have 2 large bruises. Thankfully the nurses prepping me were really kind and upbeat.
I could go into a lot of detail but I don't feel like it right now so if you have questions please do ask.
I started coming to in the recovery room at which time I discovered they'd given me an acetaminophen suppository, after my husband & I had informed every nurse, doctor, surgeon, anesthetist, etc that we came in contact with that I cannot take acetaminophen. Miscommunication somewhere I guess. They decided to keep a close eye on me and thankfully I did not seizure, praise the Lord. They gave me Demerol for pain.
Back in my room which thankfully I had to myself I thought I was doing pretty good until I could no longer deny the fact that I had to pee. A nurse came to help me sit up on the side of my stretcher. Immediately I broke out in a sweat and had hot and cold flashes and felt nauseaus and faint. The nurse let me lean on her and I thought she was crazy for not letting me lie down again, but after a bit the feelings eased. I wasn't up to walking to the bathroom though, so they brought me one of those chairs with a pot in it (can't remember what they're called).
I was bleeding vaginally after the surgery which is normal because during surgery they put a clip on your uterus to move it around. The bleeding afterward is not your period (I'd had mine the week before). The nurses had put a pad on me. I bled for approximately 3 days after the surgery.
After I went to the bathroom I sat in a big chair and did not lie down again. I was nauseaus but did not throw up. I sipped water but did not eat that day. I had the surgery at noon and was back home by 7pm. On the way home I started to feel increasingly nauseaus. When we pulled up to our house I opened the door of the vehicle and vomited. That was the only time I threw up, thankfully -- it's hard on the painful tummy! The nausea eased over the next day and by evening the second day I sat down for supper with the family and had a small meal.
We stayed at my in-laws for a week due to the fact that they don't have any stairs, and in our house our bedroom and bathroom are on two different levels. It was nice to stay there; my mom-in-law cooked meals and I didn't have any responsibilities except to rest and recover.
I was surprised at how quickly & steadily improvement is. Also at how little pain there was. I used heat (microwaveable beanbag) all night as well as extra strength Advil but the pain was not as bad as I'd hyped it up to be. The most pain came with getting out of bed (my husband lifted me the first few nights) and with laughing, sneezing, bending, etc.
Currently my pelvic pain has come back (I always had it off and on) so that sucks as it is coming in cramps and stabs, and I am not fully recovered from the surgery pain yet.
All in all the lap was not as scary as I thought I'd be, praise the Lord!
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Post by pamelaj on Nov 24, 2009 17:48:49 GMT -5
I just got the facts back from my doc today about my lap and wow was i shocked....
First off, it turns out that i have Adenomyosis, endometriosis of the uterus. The original diagnosis was endo by way of vag/rectal exam at the same time where the doc found what i call nodes. Im just speaking from personal experience and there is alot of differences out there but exactly what i was told by my doc today was adeno is linked to microscoptic endo not visable. I guess the only way to find out is to actually get inside the uterus. Sorry it has taken so long to reply "wantinghope" but please dont give up. Find out exactly what your surgeon looked at, biopsied etc. Ask for a transvaginal ultrasound. I was told that although there was no sign of endo tissue other than the adeno, i still have to watch it because although they may not have seen it now, doesnt mean it wont grow on other places later.
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Post by hellsbells on Nov 25, 2009 14:29:58 GMT -5
Hey Pam. I've had some very intense period cramp this time around - it wasn't just that heavy dull ache you normally get, I could feel certain areas of my uterus pinpinted with a little ball of pain. When I have my lap next month he's also doing a hysteroscopy so I'm hoping for some answers. See ya on Facebook!
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Post by pamelaj on Nov 25, 2009 16:24:28 GMT -5
Glad to hear Helen. I was surprised to find this out as i didnt experience period pain really. I was just in constant pain and altho it may seem weird/funny, my uterus felt heavy. Everyday it felt like i was in labor with no end result. I hope you get your answers.
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mem33
New Member
Posts: 36
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Post by mem33 on Nov 25, 2009 21:20:47 GMT -5
So I wrote some of this on another thread with a promise to put it here with added details of my experience. I want to first say that reading the other experiences really helped me prepare for my own lap. So I had my lap on Tuesday 24th. I'm day 2 into recovery. I checked into hospital at 5am, with very little sleep and nervous. I had had a few bouts of nerves/fear in the days leading up to my procedure. I've never had surgery before this, and never had anesthesia, so that was a big concern of mine. After checking in, changing into the lovely gown and socks, they came in to put in my IV. It took 2 tries as the first one in my arm didn't work. That was enough to set my nerves off and I started crying some. Once the IV was in, they gave me some calming meds (valium like stuff). That was what i needed! I was very thankful to have that. About an hour after that, the doctor came in to say hi and say she was ready--she said she'd meet us down there. Of course, the nerves came back and the tears. This point i was unable to really get myself to stop sobbing. Kind of embarrassing, but whatever. Doctor decided to stay and walk down there with us. I like her for that reason--she has just a good way about her. She was the only face I knew there since now my BF had been asked to go back to waiting area. I remember tidbits of conversations that took place on the way to the surgery room and once we got in there. I think that second dose of sedative was also a little stronger, because I have very little memory of entering the room or moving to the table etc...I do remember them asking me to move and maybe asking my doctor if she had had her coffee that morning (i guess i was checking to see if she was awake?? ;D) I think she told me she's a diet coke person, but I could be making this all up in my head! And maybe there was a conversation about the music on the radio and the funny hair nets we were all wearing...I don't recall exactly--which is just weird to me! Next thing I knew I was waking up in recovery--being asked to take deep breaths. I had a really nice nurse and we chatted a bit as I was in and out. She gave me a shot of demarol as I started getting the shakes. Before I left recovery 1 and went to recovery 2, I had 2 shots of demarol. So going into recovery 2, where my BF could come in--i felt pretty good. I did immediately start to feel pain in my shoulders. From the gas I guess. I was expecting it to be in my chest/ribs/front of shoulders, but it was directly on top and into my neck/back. Still is there day 2. In recovery 1 I remember the nurse telling me that the doctor didn't have to do anything because she didn't find any endo and the cysts were gone. I think I asked her a few times how long I was in surgery, and 'she didn't find endo'? I was in surgery probably 30 minutes and in recovery 1 for a bit over an hour. Once got to recovery 2, my BF came in which made me very happy. I was thirsty. He said the doc came out and talked to him, told him good news--no endo...bad news no endo (i.e. no answers). I asked the nurse if doc would come talk to me, and she said not likely. I wasn't as impressed with her as I was with the other nurses I had throughout the morning. She just seemed rushed. She said it's rare they come in, you'll have a followup. Well--my doctor, like I said has a way about her, and of course she came to see me. She brought me pictures and explained what she did, and what she did and didn't find. She found no visible traces of endo, except there's some red streaking on my bladder betweeen bladder and uterus that she said could be endo related but not enough to biopsy or cauterize. i'm okay with that. Most likely cause of pain: my more than occasional development of hemorrahgic cysts. I've been having them monthly--they don't always resolve within the monthly cycle, sometimes taking 2-3 months.. but they do appear to be resolving themselves however they are re-occurring. They had resolved from the time we had ultrasounds in Sept and October, to my surgery, so she didn't not have to do anything to my ovaries except look around. From what I know of these cysts (info I've read and info from doc), they can cause pain at relatively small sizes, compared to some of the other cysts that can cause no pain even when they are relatively large. I have had lots of burning type pain that's very localized to my lower left, which could be these hemorrahgic cysts leaking blood/fluid. Much of this I've read/asked about before surgery as when we first saw the cysts on ultrasound, there was question whether they were hemorrahgic or endometriomas. So i read up on both and asked questions about both. The doc offered hormone bc that would stop ovulation and likely stop the cysts from forming, but she knows me better than that I feel okay--pain scale has been 5 or less, mostly the shoulder pain, which I've determined is best when I sit or lay on my left side. If I lay on my back or right side, it's very sharp and painful. The heating pad is my friend for sure! Today I've had more pain in my uterus and bladder-like just bruised feeling. My small incisions look good (one below belly button and one center above pubic bone). Minor bruising, but they aren't sore...just inside between the two are really sore. My pain is sometimes tolerable and sometimes less so. This morning was probably the worst. I'm pretty well taking Percocet every 4 hours, but today was able to go 6 hours between doses. I'm getting tired of teh drugs already. I have been unable to have a BM and it's driving me bonkers. I'm taking Colase, and had a super high fiber hot bran cereal for breakfast, but nothing. I know I would feel better if I could just poo! I get nausea with the percocet, so usually just lay down. I've not slept great, but hope to sleep better tonight. That's my story--positive experience as far as surgeries/anesthesia go. I don't have endo, and don't have a lot of answers, but plan to really track my ovulation to see when the pain starts and stops. Knowing I don't have endo is a relief since my mom had her hysterectomy at 38 due to endo. I hope this has helped someone--I know the other stories helped me. I wish all of you the best. I've exhausted myself and now must go lay down. Best wishes M
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Post by hellsbells on Dec 23, 2009 7:51:11 GMT -5
Hey ladies! Delighted to finally be able to post my lap story, which I had yesterday.
So, went to bed nice and early Monday night, slept ok. Drove to hospital, arrived just after 7 am and made my way to gynae ward, where I was told I had been moved to day surgery unit, so off I trotted. Lots of people came in after me but called in before me, but I guess that's just the luck of the draw/different surgeons' time tables etc. About 9 ish I went to see anesthetetist. Only concern was my high BP, other than that it was all ok. Went back out to waiting area to sit with mum, and then got called back after a while to be admitted, but doc hadn't showed up yet and the registrar was on call and couldn't stay. In the meantime anothe anaethetist got wind of my BP, took a look and said 'Obviously it's going to be high, you're nervous, but dn't worry it's not dangerous and won't be cause for cancellation', which helped enormously! Back to waiting room. First anasthetist told me I was last on list, but they were due to finish at 12 so I knew it would at least be morning. Then the nurse called me back to admit me, BP was still pretty high but as A.N. had said not to worry, it wasn't an issue. Then registrar came back and she went through the rest of the admittal with me. Then back to waiting room.
It was only about 10 when they called me through, so it wasn't as long a wait as I expected. Mum went off to finally get a cup of tea and some breakfast. I got changed and had to go to loo to remove tampon and put a pad on. I was then expecting to sit and have to wait a bit but they took me straight through to anaesthetic room. Getting pretty nervous at this point! So up on to bed to get strapped up, and both anaesthetists came back, smiling and cheerful. I had to drink some phosphate stuff to neutralise tummy due to a history of indigestion etc. Didn't taste as bad as they said, have certainly tasted worse! Had both anaesthetists trying to get veins up on my hands, eventually the lovely man from the corridor succeeded first time and I barely felt a thing. By this time BP is going crazy!!
Surgeon popped in to say hello, run through notes and ask relevant questions. Told him I was having my period and he said it wasn't an issue. Off he went, wished me sweet dreams, mask went on and anaesthetic went in........off the the land of nod.
Woke up, first reaction was 'What are you doing......why are you waking me up........I'm tired...' All I wanted to do was go back to sleep. But I started to open my eyes, asked for a drink of water and asked the time, wanted to know how long it had taken, and to ask if surgeon would be coming to talk to me at some point. She had a quick look at my notes and mentioned an endometrial procedure had taken place. Phew! That was my first answer. She did the obs, BP readings (which were like, bordering on low they were so good, even though I was a bit anxious. Guess the meds took care of that....!). She's also asked about pain, and I had the worst cramp I've ever had I think. Probably due to uterus being inflated and flushed out. Over the course of 10 mins or so she gave me 10mg of morphine and pain settled. Oh, and thankfully I had no nausea/sickness whatsoever.
Off to post-post op, still lying down and thinking 'Hmmm, no gas pain, have I escaped this part of it?'.
After a shirt while the surgeon came to see me, showed my the pics and told me they found endo on bladder, at top of vagina and also on tubes from kidneys to bladder, he'd managed to get rid of most of it but not all, some left on one of the kidney-bladder tubes. So he said I'd go on Provera tablets for 6 months, and that combined with Mirena should kill off the rest. Hypertension is one of the symptoms of urinary tract endo, so I've noticed my BP already coming down. No cysts, masses or adhesions so I count myself very lucky.
My mum managed to pop in for 5 mins, and I remember I was dying to see her and felt so loved up........lol. I was smiling at everyone. They brought me a sandwhich and a cup of tea and my mum went off to waiting area again. Started feeling even more 'with it', but as soon as they started to sit me up a bit, I felt the gas pain starting. Mainly under my ribs and across the front of shoulder blade but I can't sa it was agony, just very uncomfortable. In the meantime, the cleaner was vacuuming, nurses were bitching about someone else, a colleague of theirs on maternity leave brought in her two toddlers who ended up crying and screaming. Not exactly conducive to rest and recouperation, found it really bloody annoying. Was told a while later that they were just waiting for my meds, and I'd be ready to go. Waiting.....waiting.......waiting. Eventually the told me I could go get dressed, but then they couldn't find where they'd put my clothes and were asking me if I knew what had happened to them.........umm, I don't work there? I was out for the count how the hell would I know?? Practically forced a nurse to take the canula out before I got dressed as it was a bit tender and I didn't want to knock it. Got dressed, came out, was told to go wait in another little room. I figured if I was only waiting for meds surely I could go sit with my mum outside so I asked and they said yes. Still took about another hour and a half of waiting before someone eventually went and got them, and another 20-30 mins for someone to come out and give me them and the paperwork. By this time I was fir to burst and just wanted to go home. Got in car and had a good cry.
Got home, finally. Sitting eating a McDonald's choc muffin and coffee, my mum was on phone to stepdad and I got majorly p1ssed off, and for the first time ever I actually let myself react to how I was feeling, and my muffin got flung everywhere, mum shouted at me a bit, and I ran upstairs and sobbed my heart out. It's been a very difficult year (and I know you guys have probably had it worse, please don't think this is 'poor little me') and at times I've felt like I was hanging on to my sanity by a thread. Yesterday was also pretty stressful, and combined with the relief of finally getting a diagnosis and a reason for the pain, I just let it all out. Still feel a bit emotionally wobbly today. So I called my mum upstairs, apologised and asked for a hug and she was great, telling me I needed to let it out, I'd been through a tough time and needed to ease up on myself. We went back downstairs and she started vacuuming up the muffin, and we both saw the funny side. She stayed with me last night too, and has been looking after me. She's a star my mum.
So all in all, as far as the op goes it was all very positive. Post-op care left a lot to be desired, but now I have the answers I needed and I already feel like some of the 'normal' daily pain I was in has gone, fingers crossed. I now thoroughly intend to go out and have fun and celebrate NYE this year, to wave goodbye to this horrible horrible year, and celebrate the start of a year that will hopefully be so much better.
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Post by sayjayx3 on Jan 12, 2010 10:34:44 GMT -5
On December 11th, I had my first lap and it was a really great experience.
I got to the hospital at 8 for my 9:30 surgery. I was checked in, my nurses were awesome. My doctor came and talked to me and everything was fine prior to surgery. My roommate got me a prayer bear (it is a bear that sits in their sanctuary and hears the scriptures and then you take it to someone in need of prayer) and they let me take my bear into the operating room with me!
I did stop breathing during my surgery which called for a breathing tube, but that is just how i react to general anesthesia.
When I woke up my throat hurt (from the breathing tube) and it was not fun. I was nauseous after getting dressed. They gave me meds for that with sprite and graham crackers and I went home to sleep. I can't even see the incisions!
My surgery went really well. I just wish someone had told me that the gas caused a lot of shoulder pain. That was honestly the worst part for me...it felt like someone was pulling my shoulder blades off. I got the hot stick on pads for my shoulders and they helped a lot.
I went for my post op appointment last thursday and they said they got the endo that was there and I saw the pictures of what was inside me! I am really happy. I am not totally pain free but it is tolerable. My doctor also gave me medicine for uteran spasms which has always been a problem for me!
I am very very happy with my lap recovery.
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Post by annie2013 on Apr 28, 2010 21:38:13 GMT -5
Hey Everyone, I found all your stories very helpful, so I wanted to post my story to hopefully help others. I had my lap this morning, and it was amazing. I had it at an outpatient facility, and the people there were awesome, so understand and caring. I told them that I had an incredible sensitive stomach so I was worried about nausea so before my surgery they gave me 2 pills, not exactly what they did, but they were both to prevent nausea. They also gave me another pill that helped with nausea right then. Then they put this sticker on my ear(guess a lot of people take this to help with nausea on boats) and I can keep that on for 3 days to help with any nausea I had at home. I felt horrible for my nurse, she was sooo sweet but couldn't get an IV started, she blew the vein in my hand(its really bruised) and tried in my forearm and couldn't get it there either. She kept apologizing but needles don't bother me at all and the pain wasn't bad either. So another nurse came over and was able to start the IV in my right hand. Then they hooked me up to everything and let my husband come back and stay with me until they had to take me back for the surgery. My dr came over and talked to me, I absolutely love my dr he has always been so supportive and he was really optimistic we would find endo and get rid of it. He talked with me for awhile and made sure I was ready, then I had to say goodbye to my husband. Easily the worse part of the whole thing, he looked so sad and worried and that really killed me. They gave me the "good" shot that made me all loopy and happy, and hten they wheeled me off. When I got the OR I had to move onto a new bed and the people were so nice. Talking to me and asking me questions and made sure I was comfortable. Then the anesthesiologist gave me the shot to put me to sleep. And I was out within 20 seconds. I woke up in recovery in very minimal pain, the worse part was the pain from the catheter. I woke up once and was alert and ready to see my husband, but I had to wait just a few. My dr talked to me and showed me pics and said he found A LOT of endo. It had my intestines covered with it, and was on my bowels and pretty much had all of my organs shifted and glued to my left side. I really felt great, especially after hearing that I got an answer, I now knew what caused all htat horrible pain. The nurse asked me how I was and give me a little bit of pain killers and gave me some sprite and crackers, where were SO hard to eat because my mouth was so dry, even with the sprite. After 15 mins I got to the 2nd recovery and got to sit in this reclining chair. The nurses were so impressed with my pain tolerance(it honestly wasn't bad at all!) And my husband got to come right back. Which made me feel even better. We had to change my bandages and I had to go pee, went pee no problem and the nurse took my vitals one more time and said I could leave as long as I felt well enough to. I was only in recover for a half hour total. I left over 3 hours earlier than expected. Came home and got to see my father-in-law, my parents, and my little sister. Everyone was worrie dbout me but I felt fine, just sleepy. Went upstairs and fell asleep. Woke up a few times to take my meds, even though I wasn't in pain my dr said I really need to stay on my pill schedule for the first 3 days. So honestly, my lap was amazing. he was able to remove a lot of it, but not all of it, so the only downside is he really wants me to do lupron to get rid of the rest...so I guess I'll have to see that. but ladies, don't be worried about the surgery, it's really not bad and especially if you have a good facility that will listen to your needs. And after all the pain we endure with endo, surgery is nothing! I'm excited to see how much better now that I got so much removed:) Good Luck ladies!!!!!
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Post by hellsbells on Apr 30, 2010 13:23:14 GMT -5
Nice one! Give a lot of thought to the lupron. My doc couldn't get rid of all of mine and put me on Provera for 6 months and the side effects have been minimal.
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Post by lizzylou on May 1, 2010 22:07:22 GMT -5
After 2 years of problems my dr basically decided to do surgery to give me "peace of mind". I took what I could get because I knew something was wrong and they kept telling me the pain was normal. Even before surgery when she was talking to me, she had an attitude like she knew she wasn't going to find anything. Went in for my outpatient procedure Friday morning. My surgery was at 8:00, I figured I would be home before lunch (dr's and nurses agreed). I got all checked in, got a shot in my thigh to dry my mouth, I think they might have given me something to relax me (I don't remember that part). I said goodbye to my fiance and they wheeled me in. I was SO nervous but the anaesthetiologist gave me something to put me out fairly quickly. I remember saying that it burned when he put it in, but I was out before it stopped burning. I woke up in post op to someone saying my name. About 3 seconds after I opened my eyes a picture was put in front of my face. Mind you, I'm blind as a bat without my glasses, and I'm drugged to high heaven and sleepy as can be. My dr says "we had to remove your ovary, I found some endo, and I put a hole in your colon while removing it" and then she went away. So I start crying, and figure I didn't hear her right. The nurse says "the dr said she thinks she sewed up you colon pretty good so you should be fine". I was trying to digest thing and kept asking "they took out my ovary?". Thankfully they brought me back to my room and my fiance was there. The dr talked to my fiance after surgery, so someone I trust got the story straight from her and could answer some questions once I calmed down and could comprehend it all. Due to the hole in my colon, I had to stay overnight to get antibiotics in my IV, which upset me again. Thankfully I felt decent after surgery so I was talking to people on the phone and on my laptop. My biggest complaint (besides the hospital food), was they had my IV turned up really high and I was going to the bathroom almost every hour. And as you ladies know, when your stomach was cut, getting out of bed and walking to the bathroom, going, and getting back in bed is a chore! My fiance went home to get some stuff for me and brought me back some decent food! My mom came to visit after work, which was really nice. At night my fiance went home to get a good nights rest. I was upset about that, but Id rather one of us get some sleep. I got woken up at about 5am but the nurse (who I happened to know) doing the usual rounds. I hadn't had a pain pill in a while and I HURT, so I got 2. Breakfast wasn't for another 3 hours so I had them on an empty stomach and got really sick (so no more sleeping that morning). My fiance was back around 7:30am. My dr finally came in around 9:00. The first thing she said to me was "you had every single one of your symptoms pegged, I didn't think they made sense but you were spot on". First, she found I had a 6" ovary (50x the normal size of 4cm) that was that large due to a dermoid cyst. Mine had hair and skin cells (no teeth). Nex time your at the grocery store look at a grapefruit, it was bigger than that, and missed for 2 years during pelvic exams!! So she removed my ovary and fallopian tube. Then she looked around and found 3 VERY tiny spots of endo (maybe the size of a pencil tip). She burned these off and while doing that, burned a hole in my colon. They had to call in a 2nd surgeon and they had to decide how to handle it. I almost had to be cut completely open and rinsed out, but the figured I was ok and the 2nd surgeon was able to sew it up with the lap incisions. My dr told me I was find to go back to work on Monday. went back to work on monday. Started bleeding due to complications with my colon, and the dr then took me out of work for the rest of the week (which i think she should have done to start).
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Post by ccincurak on May 17, 2010 2:01:29 GMT -5
So this is my story... Just had my lap done on April 26th so it'll be three weeks today (since it is after midnight now!) I was scheduled for 9am but I am pretty sure it ended up being closer to 10 which didn't help with the nerves! I walked into the operating room on my own and met the other surgeon that would be assisting and talked to my doc as well. Nurses there seemed nice enough and kept reassuring me that I would be fine. I remember them putting the oxygen mask over my mouth & nose and then darkness....and then waking up but still very very very groggy in the dark recover room. The nurse I had there was HORRIBLE and if I could remember what she looked like or what her name was I would definitely report her! I was crying b/c I was in a lot of pain and had to ask for something for the pain...and waited a long while until she came around. Then when she did come over and heard me crying, she actually told me to "shut up"! Finally pain meds kicked in and I fell asleep. Woke up again and heard the same nurse telling me to stop snoring (apparently I snore if I'm knocked out on pain meds or really really sick....so what?!) Anyways....was glad that there was a shift change and a great nurse came on and soon I was moved to a Day Surgery room and slept for a bit more. Finally woke up and first thing I asked the nurse? When can I go home? lol I hate hospitals and missed my comfy bed at that point...as well as my grandparents and boyfriend that were still waiting to see me. She made me drink some apple juice first (2 mini bottles) and then said I could try going to the bathroom....as long as I went to the bathroom and could walk I could go (or at least that's what I understood her to have said lol). First time...couldn't go to the bathroom. Came back to my bed (walking very very very slowly) and my bf was there and told me that he'd recorded the surgeons' meeting with them (GREAT IDEA btw!!) and laughing told me that the surgeon had actually said that I have beautiful ovaries! lol He had thought that besides endo I might have PCOS but there isn't any damage to my ovaries which has made me the happiest girl ALIVE! So anyways....drank more apple juice and tried to go again and I did a 4-5 second bathroom trip and I was good to go. In hindsight, I probably should have told the nurse I could only go a little and they would have made me stay b/c I ended up having some bladder problems over the next week or so. So I ended up going home and just sleeping and hanging out with my bf next to me until night time. However, I ended up having some pus coming out of my belly button incision and was directed to go to the ER and the nurse practitioner cleaned it up and ran a culture on it and they said it wasn't anything to be nervous about. And then a week after my surgery (May 10th) I developed the most horrible back pain I have ever felt...almost described as muscle spasms anytime I tried to move. I had to go back to the ER to make sure it wasn't b/c of surgery, which they determined after being there overnight that it wasn't (THANK GOD!) but you can never be too sure. I'm getting better with the back pain now...it's very minimal but as for the endo pain I can say that it's virtually GONE. I mean I'll get a twinge of pain on my right side every few days that lasts for 2-3 seconds but c'mon....that's amazing. Surgeon told them that I had small spots of endo but it was everywhere, especially in the cul-de-sac. He cut out all of it except for one large spot that he had to burn off. He said that it should help with the pain and should definitely improve my quality of life. I haven't been able to work full time since last Feb so that is great news!! I have a follow up appointment with him on June 8th where he said we'll discuss options of how to stop it from growing and causing pain again b/c he's sure there are more spots that were forming that were too small to take out. I was very very happy with my results and the surgery was definitely worth it for me! And bonus....I didn't even have ANY nausea or vomiting b/c of the anesthesia which I was worried about b/c of a previous surgery. It definitely helped reading all of your experiences with surgery to help prepare me for mine! Thank you to everyone who posts here!!! XOXO
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Post by breen28 on May 18, 2010 18:02:53 GMT -5
I had my surgery this morning. We left the house about 515 am and headed to the hospital. I was taken back about 610 to get ready and then sat for about an hour before being wheeled to the OR shortly after 730. The last thing I remember is being asked to slide a little bit further down the table.
Then I woke up in recovery and immediately asked for my glasses. Can't see crap without them. My vision was still blurry and I was thirsty. They started with ice chips and then got me some apple juice. They allowed my husband to come back and he told me that they did find Endo and it was Stage 1. They also removed a cyst on my tube and sent it for further testing. While I was under he looked inside my uterus as well and did a d&c so I don't have to worry about a period until middle of next month.
I was released about 1030 to go home and have been on my couch since. So all in all not a bad experience.
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Post by jhogan on Dec 1, 2010 16:36:08 GMT -5
Just had LAPEX performed by Dr. Albee in Atlanta. I highly recommend The Center for Endometriosis Care. Moderate endo excised throughout the abdominal cavity including several focal points. Endometrial polyp in the cervix removed via hysteroscopy. Retained all organs - identified endo penetrated muscle fibers of the uterus but no hysterectomy. Post op appointment on Dec 6. IBS is still persistent and was determined not to be related to my endo. On to the GI specialist I go. Dr. Albee is very knowledgeable and while he does not think my procedure will eliminate my painful periods, he was able to identify what pain in what areas was caused by endo and what pain was caused by other issues such as pharmaceutical hormone therapy and distended large bowel i.e. GI health problems not related to endo. His team was very thorough and I am considering keeping him as my ob/gyn even though he is 2 hours away and out of network. Sorry for all of the spelling errors here, almost 5pm and I'm ready to log off and go home! God bless you all.
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