jtean
Full Member
Posts: 119
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Post by jtean on Nov 6, 2011 16:52:09 GMT -5
I just had mine three days ago, and reading these really helped me prepare, so i thought i'd share my own story!
I did not have to do a bowel prep at all. I'm not sure why that is...it seems like almost everyone else here did? I wasn't allowed to eat or drink anything after midnight, which really sucked for me because I was soooo thirsty and couldn't sleep, and i felt sick when i went to the hospital because i hadn't had breakfast (I'm very hypoglycemic, so if i don't eat, it really messes me up)
Anyway, they put me in a little room, and many nurses came and talked to me, asking me all sorts of medical questions. Then the anesthesiologist came and explained what she was going to do, and asked if i had any questions. The nurse kept saying that i looked really scared, which didn't help make me feel less scared haha! Theeen the doctor and his assistants came in, and talked to me a bit and joked around, and made me sign some stuff. After that they wheeled me up to the surgery room!
It was SO COLD in there. They sat me on the table and strapped me in, put a bunch of padding things all over me, and put the breathing mask on. I don't remember anything after that until i woke up.
I woke up in the recovery room, with the doctors assistants telling the nurses that they'd drained a large endometrioma and removed a bunch of endometriosis. the nurse asked me if i heard, and i sort of nodded and fell back to sleep. Then i woke up again FREEEZING. I guess being in the cold surgery room for so long had made me soooo cold. They put 8 million blankets on me and i was still cold for a long time after. It took me about 3 hours to really be awake, and they gave me a percocet and some ginger ale.
After that, they wheeled me down to the second recovery room, and got my boyfriend to come in. I went to use the bathroom, and change, and realized i was bleeding soooo much, and i peed out a ton of blue dye. While in the bathroom, i got realllllllllllly nauseous, which i think was from the pain killers. I had to be given some stuff to make it better, and stay about an hour longer.
finally, i was able to leave, and we called a cab and went home. My neck/ collar bone started hurting reallllly bad in the cab, and didn't get any better until i got home and lay still for awhile. the gas pains are definitely the worst part of this.
I do think it's funny how a lot of people say they can't eat much and feel sick after the surgery, because as soon as i got home, my boyfriend went out and got me a wendy's spicy chicken sandwich and fries...I never eat fast food ever, but this is sort of my joke favorite food that i eat once a year at most. Anyway, i ate the whole thing in 5 seconds. Definitely had no loss of appetite haha
The only nausea i've had was definitely from the pain meds, and i haven't really needed to take them. The pain from the surgery is nowhere near as bad as i felt before the surgery. i'd say it was a really good and easy experience, and i can't wait to talk to my doctor about everything he did.
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Post by Karoliina on Nov 15, 2011 4:31:56 GMT -5
Hello hello, Here's my lap story. I will also copy paste this to the "laparoscopy stories" thread. First of all it's really difficult for me to write this because I'm not really familiar with the hospital terms in English, I'll use dictionary but even the dictionary doesn't know every word but I hope you still understand my bad English We woke up 5:45 am and left the house about 6:30. I checked in to the hospital about 6:40 and then we (me and Toni the boyfriend) just waited for my nurse to come. And I wasn't nervous at all! weird.. my nurse came about 7:15 and explained me what's going to happen and told me that my lap is scheduled at 11 am. She gave me hospital shoes and showed me my room, there were two other patients. She also showed me my hospital clothes which were on my bed and said that I don't have to change yet if I don't want to. So I didn't. The nurse left and told me that my doctor will come soon to have a chat with me. So we went for a cig (well Toni doesn't smoke) and came back. We watched tv in the lobby and about 8 am two doctors showed up and wanted to talk in my room. So we went there and they explained what they're going to do and asked me questions about my birth control pills and when did I have my last period. they also asked about my pain, like where is it and do I have pain everyday etc.. Then they said I was going to have 5 days sick leave but I don't need that since I'm not at school right now. they left. it was 8:10 am and all I had to do was just wait. I changed into the hospital clothes (socks, the gown that showed my awesome ass and a "morning gown"). We kind of slept with Toni the whole time. It was 10 am when I told Toni to just leave, he was having a bad tooth ache, poor man.. So just when he was about to leave I started to cry, I still don't know why lol.. He came to hug me and said its ok to be scared. So he stayed with me for one more hour, he left at 11. as soon as he left, my nurse came in and gave me the sedative which was a diazepam called "Diapam", don't know if you have it there in other countries.. I started to feel a little weird and couldn't concentrate on the news paper I was reading. It was like I was drunk. at 12 my nurse came back and said that it's time to go. so we left and I walked because I was in a good shape despite the sedative. We went two floors down and into the place where are the theaters. We waited in front of the recovery room for my doctor to come. She came and my nurse left. We went to the theatre and I went laying on the table and put my legs to these thing which btw were sooo comfortable. One doctor came late and started to put a blood pressure thing on my left arm. Then the anesthesia guy came in and put me the IV. The doctor put these things on my forehead that measured the deepness of my sleep. And a thing on my wrist that measured how relaxed my muscles are. And finally things on my chest. They put me a warm blanket and the anesthesia guy put the anesthetic and I started to feel huge pain in my veins. They put an oxygen mask on me and.. I was out. I woke up at 3 pm feeling a little fuzzy. I asked that did you put something to my throat because it hurts. someone said yes. that someone asked how much pain i'm having on a scale 1-10 and i think i said 6 so she gave something in my IV. I heard someone talking about endo and asked "really? you found it?" and she said yes. I had to pee so my nurse came in and wheeled me back to the 8th floor and to my room. I stood up with the help of my nurse and it didn't really hurt that bad. slowly we walked to the toilet and I was feeling a little tired but not nauseous or dizzy at all. I went to the toilet and couldn't pee. We went back in my room and she went to get something that measured how full my bladder is. she went to get the catheter and finally I got a relief I fell asleep and woke up an hour later or so.. I think it was about 4:30 am. I rang the bell and I heard a voice somewhere "yes?" and I said that I have to pee. My nurse came and helped me to the toilet. I couldn't pee at first, then I put my hand on my bladder and pushed it and oh the joy of peeing.. I was bleeding a lot down there btw. Back to my room and my nurse brought me coffee and something to eat. Oh the coffee.. I was in heaven. It was bad coffee but still so good.. Still no nausea or anything. My nurse went home I guess because another nurse came and said that we should talk after I've eaten. I ate and went for a walk to the hallway, got bored and went to get the nurse. She translated all the Latin on the lap paper. I asked when could I leave and she said that as soon as Toni comes to get me. So I was happy and called Toni to come pick me up. At 5:30 pm he arrived, helped me put my shoes on and took my purse and everything we were home at 6 I think. ohh I wanted a cig so I went for a smoke and I was in heaven again. went to sleep but just couldn't. I'm not good at resting so I pretty much just watched tv.. It was midnight and still wasn't tired, didn't care about the nurse's comment about not taking a sleeping pill, just took it. Fell asleep at 1 am.. Woke up having excruciating pain, 10 times worse than yesterday. Took two painkillers and went to the kitchen to take coffee with me. Went for a smoke which I guess was a bad idea because I almost fainted after that. I almost fainted last night too when I was standing too long I think. So, they found endo on my bladder, my left ovary, under my right ovary and under the left ovary was a "bleeding" endo.. thing. which means that when they burned it, it started bleeding. they also managed to hit my colon, idiots.. It was just a 2 millimeter cut luckily. I would've had 2 weeks sick leave instead of the 5 days they first said. The stitches will melt in about 2 weeks or a month. I have a lot of pain and everything's kind of difficult I modified this just a little because there were some serious typos in the post that I wrote to the "Karoliina's story" it's the same text without the stupid typos
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Lisa
New Member
Posts: 7
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Post by Lisa on Nov 18, 2011 16:12:26 GMT -5
My lap was 11/11/11…supposed to be a lucky day! Followed my food/water/showering instructions to a T before heading in.
My bf (Shawn) and I arrived at the hospital at 10:10, with surgery scheduled for 12:10. I couldn’t believe how fast we were brought back to our room, I had assumed we’d be sitting in a waiting area for a while. The instructed me on what to take off/leave on. My bf helped me change into my gowns. I went to the rest room to give them a UA for a pregnancy test, went back to my room and waited for the nurse.
The nurse gave me two HUGE Tylenol pills that I could barely swallow with my sip of water allowed. My doctor came by and said we could go early if I wanted, and I was really excited because I already wanted to go home. The resident I have also been working with came by to visit. The nurse came back and clarified that I knew what surgery I was having and what could or could not be done during surgery. I met with my anesthesia team, who put in my IV. About two minutes later, they came back and gave me the feel good meds. I kissed Shawn good-bye and they wheeled me back. I assume though, I don’t remember anything between kissing him good-bye and getting in the operating room. I know it was before 11:30, it happened super fast.
I remember moving onto the operating bed, and then waking up. I immediately asked if I could have a baby. I’m not trying now, just concerned for my future. The nurse told me my doctor was talking to my family now, but then said “Oh wait, Dr. Littlefield [my resident] is shaking his head yes.” I smiled, and proceeded to demand to see Shawn. The nurse kept telling me to breathe. I was having breathing issues, presumably from my asthma. The nurse told me I couldn’t see Shawn until my breathing was under control, so I worked really hard on waking up and calming down. And my goodness, my voice was hoarse! They did the whole control your pain thing, dilaudid is wonderful.
While I was in there, Dr. Littlefield told me that they found endometriosis, scar tissue, and I had a very tilted uterus, and they figured the combo was causing me so much pain. He told me Shawn would know more from talking with my surgeon and had the photos. The finally took out my nose tubes when my breathing improved, and moved me back to my room. I was so happy to see Shawn, I had a lot of surgery anxiety. He showed me my pictures and told me what my surgeon told him. There was a lot of endo, but not too serious. They could not removed most of it, which devastated me, but I wanted conservative surgery to start. I had a ton of it on my uterus, front and back. The scar tissue was all on my uterus as well. A few small patches on my tubes, but the ovaries were clear!
I told the nurse I was leaking. She “looked” and said she didn’t see anything. I eat ice chips. They force me to eat crackers. Shawn gives me my Gatorade, puts on my chapstick, and gives me a throat drop. When I was finally ready to pee, two nurses walked me to the rest room. I peed the craziest yellow/blood/blue greenish dye looking combo you’ve ever seen. Also, it burnt a bit from the catheter. I went back and saw my bed was covered in blood and the yellow/blue/green crap, which embarrassed me. How’d the damn nurse miss that? Fortunately, Shawn is a rock star and acted like he didn’t notice when the nurse quick grabbed it all and put down fresh pads.
I feel nauseas, they give me a nausea med which knocks me out. I am ready to go home. I barely remember this part because that med seriously knocked me out. Shawn helps me dress, even put my pad on my underwear. (Love him!)They wheel me out and meet Shawn at his car. Shawn stops at my doctor’s office and picks up my meds. I cannot keep my eyes open. Shawn gets me into bed and I fall asleep. I end up going to urgent care the next morning because I am so weak and it burns to pee, horrifically. No infection, just issues with catheter. This is actually still a problem a week out.
Sorry this is so long, I could add so much more. Things that helped me the most that I learned here: have throat drops, pads, travel pillow, and chapstick. My throat hurt for days, that is gone now. Pad is a must, I’m a tampon girl and I would not have known that. I hate dry lips, so chapstick just makes you more comfortable post-op. The pillow is great for the tummy in the car. Anyone who wants to know more can message me!
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jtean
Full Member
Posts: 119
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Post by jtean on Jan 18, 2012 23:26:20 GMT -5
Okay, well, i just had my SECOND lap (crazy that it's on the same page as the post for my other one) and it was notttttt a fun time. I had to do a bowel prep this time, which was really horrible for me, and i had a splitting headache from lack of food/ dehydration by the time i got to the hospital. My doctor this time is MUCH better all around than the doctor who did my first lap, and she talked to me in depth about everything she was going to be doing before the surgery. They wheeled me up to the surgery room, and sat me on the table, and showed me the davinci machine that they were going to use (yipes!). The last thing I remember was the anesthesia making me start coughing really bad.
Fast forward SIX HOURS and i'm sort of awake, and they tell me that I need to stay in the hospital overnight, because my ovarian cyst put out so much blood while it was being removed. I guess at first i was feeling okay, and kind of excited to just watch stupid tv in a hospital room, but then i started feeling REALLLLY sick. I threw up all night, and had a migraine the entire night. They gave me a million different kinds of anti nausea medicine, and i still wouldn't stop throwing up any water that i drank, or just dry heaving. It was horrrible. Finally i was able to down a percocet and fall asleep for a bit, and then at 6am the nurse gave me a different anti nausea and ib profin, and i started feeling okay again. I was even able to eat a super gross hospital hamburger and some chips haha.
Anyway, I don't want to scare anybody with that, if you look at my first lap story, it was really easy and totally the opposite, mostly because he didn't remove anything. This doctor removed A TON of endo and the giant cyst i had, and 2 fibroids. I now have SIX holes in my belly, but I think it was all necessary to get the pain gone.
Also, while i was in the hospital, my doctor sent me a vase of roses which i thought was the cutest thing ever!!
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Post by 1234 on Jan 20, 2012 18:09:27 GMT -5
wow, jtean. That is not a fun experience, but I am SO SO glad you did another surgery. I can't believe all the stuff that the other surgeon missed. That's amazing. I hope you are feeling a little better now?
The roses are so cool!
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Post by abillings9 on Feb 18, 2012 20:40:45 GMT -5
I just had my first laparoscopic surgery with Dr. Albee with the CEC in Atlanta, GA. I traveled 5 hours to see Dr. Albee after receiving no help from local medical personnel. Symptoms at the time were low back ache, constipation/diarrhea, pelvic pain on the right side, hip pain, pain in groin and legs, pain during sex, numbness and tingling in knees, legs and feet, (worse on the right side) and stiffness in the knee joints. Surgery was Feb. 8th, needed to be to the hospital by 5:30 a.m. and in the OR by 7:15 a.m. I was very glad that it was so early, as it was, I woke up at 2:00 a.m. still dealing with the effects of the bowel prep. Plus I was SO hungry and thirsty by the time we got to the hospital, I could not imagine having to wait longer to get in and get done! We arrived just on time, and were taken back to fill out some papers for insurance. Then we made our way to the outpatient surgery room, and I was taken by fairly quickly by a nurse, who showed me to a bed and instructed me to put on the robe, slipper socks, and cover with the blanket, as well as put all of my clothes and belongings in the bag provided. Got as comfy as I could, and sit for a few minutes before another nurse came along. She explained what all would happen with the surgery, and prepped me with an i.v, gave me an anti-nausea patch behind my ear, an antacid and some 'happy medicine'-(the nurse called it 'hospital coffee' LOL) to help me feel relaxed. Then my husband came back and we sat for a bit, it didn't seem like too long, and Dr. Albee showed up, said hello and are we ready? And he went to change and get ready for surgery. About 10 mins. later they said it was time to go, and at this point I was just trying to lay still, enjoy the nice comfy warm blankets and let the medicine relax me as much as possible. The two nurses that were wheeling me into the operating room were wonderfully nice, the one was an older grandmotherly looking lady, she reminded me of a Mrs. Claus type. LOL They had me slide over onto the table, and then Dr. Albee introduced Dr. Sinervo, who was going to assist in the surgery. The anesthesiologist assistant had me breath in a oxygen mask for a few breaths, but the air tasted funny. Then I Dr. Albee held my hand and asked if I was feeling ok, and I mumbled yes. It was just about that time that I got the loud ringing in my ears and was out like a light! I woke up in the recovery room and the first thing I mumbled was "Did they find it?" because I didn't know for sure that I had endo so I was just hoping they had found some. LOL The nurse just said that I was in recovery and I did fine. She took out my catheter which sucked but probably not as bad as it could have been, I was so drowsy. Then she asked if I had any pain or nausea, and I did feel sick to my stomach so she gave me something right away in in my i.v. that helped. I was also very thirsty but she would not let me have a drink and said I would have to wait until I got to my room. So then I asked her if I could just go back to sleep and she said, "That's ok." LOL I asked when I could see my husband and she said "When they move you to your room." So I just drifted in and out of sleep a little bit. I started feeling like I could breathe better and it was about then they decided to move me, my oxygen rate was up high enough to go. Two nurses came to wheel me to my room, and on the way I saw my husband but couldn't speak loud enough down the hall to call to him and he didn't see me being wheeled behind him! LOL They got me to my room and my nurse introduced herself to me and I was allowed to have some ice chips and then sips of water. My middle was wrapped in a belly binder--best thing ever! It held everything nice and steady in place and made it easier to get out of bed! I started feeling like I had to pee, so the nurse helped me up; I had to sit for a minute as I got dizzy, but we made our way to the bathroom and she turned the water on for me and left the room. I had the feeling that I needed to go, but nothing would happen so I finally gave up and went back to bed. It wasn't too long after that my husband showed up and told me what all had been done. Dr. Albee found endometriosis in 4 spots. My appendix looked swollen and irritated and they took it out. He excised the 4 spots of endo, located on the left pelvic side wall, anterior and posterior cul de sac, right uterosacral ligament, and a small cyst on my right ovary. He also found and excised adhesions on the sigmoid and lower descending colon, abdominal wall and IP ligament. My colon was stuck and kinked, which accounted for the bowel problems. I was able to leave the hospital and go back to the hotel later that afternoon, by 4 p.m. I was peeing normally and made it back to the hotel where I made myself some chicken broth and some ginger twist tea. I am now 10 days post-op and feeling wonderful! I was diagnosed with stage 2 endometriosis. The back, hip and leg pain is gone! There is still a slight numbness in my feet but that seems to be resolving itself a little more every day. I stopped taking the narcotic pain pills about 6 days after surgery and started eating full solids again, took ibuprofen days 7 and 8, and nothing the past two days! I am I still have a bit of soreness and am struggling with bloating, gas issues in my tummy and soreness during BMs. My bowel problems are definitely better though, it is amazing the difference! I am so impressed with the CEC, Dr. Albee and Dr. Sinervo, the staff, the nurses and anesthesiologists at Northside hospital. Everyone was SO nice! I could not have asked for a better experience, the whole thing exceeded my expectations. I feel like Dr. Albee took great care of me and his expertise showed.
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Post by Karen on Feb 18, 2012 20:55:06 GMT -5
Thanks for sharing! I hope recovery continues to go well and you'll no longer have symptoms.
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Post by ktwildermuth on Apr 21, 2012 21:24:23 GMT -5
I had my first lap about two weeks ago and am still just not starting to be able to really do things on my own... Here is my story
I had been having pelvic pain for 7 months so my gyno said the only option left was a lap. It was an outpatient surgery for me. They called and did all the pre-op stuff the day before the surgery. My surgery was at 10:30am so my husband and I didn't have to be there until 8:30. We got there, checked in, and waited a very short time before they took me back to my waiting area. My husband was told to wait in the waiting room until I got my IV in and then him and my family could come back. Mind you my family was driving 2 hours to come support us on that day. We had no idea what the doctor was going to find once she got in there, so we were looking forward to a diagnosis. I couldn't wait to get in and out of surgery because we would finally have an answer... Well they take me back to a corner area in the surgery waiting area and tell me to put on the regular hospital gown and socks and lay on the bed with the blanket. No tv and nothing to do. I was in a corner with nobody around. They took me back late so they had said they would have to get my IV in pretty soon to get me all ready for surgery so it would stay on time. I probably waited by myself, in tears, for about a half hour. I had terrible anxiety and separation anxiety from my husband. I had never had surgery or anesthesia before so I was terrified. Finally the anesthesia tech comes in and talks about everything she is going to do during the surgery. I asked when the nurse with the IV was coming so I could see my husband. She didn't know. The anesthestiologist came next and basically told me the same info. Still no idea when the IV nurse was coming. BUT they said they would get me an anti-anxiety before the surgery to help my anxiety. I never had anxiety issues before in my life. Then this older nurse came in and took my physical info. She said the nurse with the IV would be coming soon because it was getting close to 10:30. My nurse that was the contact person between me and my husband came back to check on me and could tell I needed my husband so she snuck him back to see me before the IV nurse came. I was never so relieved to see him in my life. Finally the nurse came and did my IV, as my gyno is coming down to talk to us before surgery and take me up. I remember being taken up to surgery and getting onto the table. The last thing I remember is talking to my gyno about where we each went on our honeymoon and her kids and my nephew. I woke up in the recovery room with just a nurse next to me. I knew I would wake up without my family there so I wasn't surprised when I woke up. I had a little pain but was really thirsty. The nurse asked me if I wanted water or Sprite. I drank Sprite for a while. She kept asking me how I felt. My throat hurt from the breathing tube so my voice was scratchy and I was super tired but she said as soon as I felt good enough they would transfer me back downstairs to where I was before so I could see my family. After a little bit of time in post-op they took me back downstairs. I woke up to my husband next to me. I guess I kept asking him if I was pregnant! Ha I knew I wasn't but I guess I just kept asking that! My dad, sister, and brother-in-law had to leave so they came and said goodbye. I knew I was going to see them in a couple days so it wasn't a big deal for them to leave early. My mom and husband stayed with me the rest of the time at the hospital. My nurse was super nice. I was in a little pain but most of it was from the incision sites and from the gas and my throat. I had strawberry jello and sprite the whole time in the outpatient surgery post-op area. The nurse finally asked if we could get up and walk a little bit and then I could leave. My mom had gone to the hospital gift shop because she was restless and wanted to go on a walk. So I walked a little bit and the nurse said once I got dressed and everything I could go home. My mom made it back to help me get dressed and get the car ready. I had very little energy and was so sore from the gas that moving fast was not an option. Mind you I am a very skinny woman so the gas filled me up pretty full. We got home around 3:45pm after the surgery was at 10:30. The gyno had found a good amount of endometriosis in my stomach cavity. It had attached my intestine to my side, had connected my ovary to the wall, had moved my bladder, and had a lot of adhesions. They also found that one of my fallopian tubes is blocked as well. There was a lot more scar tissue than she expected before surgery. She said she treated as much as she could and that my pain should be so much better than before. The next week and a half were rough. I just laid and relaxed pretty much the rest of the day of the surgery. My mother and husband stayed with me. I took the Oxycodone and Motrin they prescribed every chance I could. I ate soft food for the first couple days. I loved jello and sprite... I always like Sprite. It was so hard to get up and back down from the bed because doing those you use so much of your stomach muscles that are sore and hurt from the surgery. The hospital gave me a little pillow that I would hold against my stomach as I got up and down and would help add a little cushion when moving around. The hardest part was our bathroom was upstairs but where I slept was on the first floor so I would have to go up and down stairs every time I had to pee. Going upstairs wasn't bad but coming down was terrible because I was so bloated and you use stomach muscles going down stairs. It was terrible but there was no other option. I was so tired all the time but couldn't sleep a whole lot. I would take a little nap in the afternoon and still go to bed for the night around 9:30/10 and sleep until 7/8. On Thursday I had a 2 hour drive home to my parents house. I was starting to move around a little faster by then. I mean I was going a little faster than a hare. Still not fast. After an hour in the car I had to get out and move for a little bit. It took 3 hours to get home because I would need to move because I still had so much gas in me. I was at my parents house from Thursday until Monday because I was feeling too terrible to go back Saturday with my husband. My Monday I was able to shuffle around with my 15 month old nephew and walk around half of Walmart! I was eating normal at this time too. One of the hard things as I healed was showering. It hurt so bad to stretch back to wash my hair and wet it so my husband would have to shower with me and wash my hair for me. I would still have terrible pain at my incision site at night. It would feel like someone took a sharp knife in my left incision and would go side to side in it. It was so painful. I had run out of my Oxycodone but had some Vicodin so I would take one to just be able to sleep. It has been 11 days since surgery. I am still super bloated from the gas and can just not get rid of it. We met with the gyno and she explained more of what she found and answered all of the questions we had about getting pregnant and treatment and what not since we knew nothing about endo before the surgery. She has released me to go back to work next week and do everything I did before the surgery. She did say that my one incision was a little irritated and since it was right by where my main adhesion was that is why the pain at night was happening was because that area is healing and was very irritated before surgery. She gave me more Motrin and said to take it as necessary. I still have a lot of pain in my back from the gas but am trying different ways to get rid of it. I went out by myself for a little bit today and that was the most I had done in three weeks! I can finally shower, dress, do laundry, stretch a bit, and pretty much everything I did before. There are still some limitations but I almost feel back to normal. My pain is so much better than before surgery. I couldn't do anything really before surgery. I basically had enough energy to get up and get ready for the day and I would be exhausted. I was in pain all the time and nothing helped with the pain. I basically slept all day. So being able to do everything with just a little nap in the afternoon is great. I am still healing and getting back to regular life for me.
That was my story so far. I hope this helps. Take one day at a time and don't get discouraged if your recovery takes longer than you expect it to. Have a great support system to help you get through the first couple days and through the whole process. Know you are not alone!
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Post by giantlilliputian on Apr 24, 2012 19:20:07 GMT -5
This is a thread that I started elsewhere and it was suggested that I contribute to this thread as well. I am on my first day of recovery after my laproscopy. 4 incisions in my stomach, and I am so sore today! It hurts to walk, sit, lay down, and breathe. But other than that I'm doing well. The surgery itself went fine, and I am following up with my doctor in 2 weeks. But surprise surprise...I don't have endometriosis!
What I had it turns out was a dermoid cyst. Which apparently has the capability of growing teeth, hair, nails, etc. They originally thought the mass was 7cm, it turned out to be 12cm! It also was deemed necessary that they remove the ovary along with the cyst, which I was prepared for. My doctor originally gave me the option to monitor what they thought at the time to be an endometrioma. I'm glad I elected to have the surgery, especially since it turned out to be something completely different.
The surgery itself took 2 or 3 hours. After I woke up, they wouldn't let me go home until I peed, which took probably another 2 or 3 hours. I spent the day dozing on the couch. They don't tell you that your wounds may ooze a bit, or that the anesthesia will cause your ankles, wrists, and back to cramp.
I didn't eat yesterday. I could only manage to drink water, which I threw up. I had a fruit smoothie when I woke up this morning, so I feel a little better having something in my stomach, though I don't think I'll feel up to eating solid food for a few days.
Being that I thought I had an endometrioma, I have for the past 3 weeks followed a gluten free mostly dairy free diet. I'm wondering if I should continue on a diet of no gluten, no red meat, no dairy, no soy, etc, for a dermoid. I guess a cyst is a cyst though and either way will be aggravated by estrogen and possibly wheat? Anyone's thoughts are greatly appreciated.
I took a week off work for recovery, so we'll see how I feel over the next couple of days. If anyone has questions about the procedure itself, feel free to ask! Good luck to you all, and thanks for listening and being there!
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Post by mallori735 on May 28, 2012 0:50:30 GMT -5
Hello! It's been a while since I've been on here, but I wanted to FINALLY share the story of my first (and only, so far) laparoscopy. The fourth doctor in a few years that i've been to see (and the only male doctor) finally mentioned that I may have something wrong other than "bad cramps" and said he wanted to schedule me for a lap to check for endometriosis.
I had it on June 10th, 2011. I didn't have to do a bowel prep or anything, but wasn't allowed to eat past like 8 the night before or drink past midnight. I checked into the hospital bright and early and was given a (very painful) IV in the center of my forearm (which i thought was strange) and made to take a pregnancy test (with what very little pee I could squeeze out). Then I waited around and was finally taken into the operating room and woke up just an hour an a half later. When asked my pain level on the 1-10 scale, I responded with an 8 and the nurse said "I shouldn't be in the much pain because I had dilaudid." I rested for a while in recovery drifting in and out of sleep and they finally decided to put me in a room. Upon removing the blanket that was covering my arms and upper body, the nurse discovered that my IV had infiltrated and there was a blob of dilaudid in my forearm like a baseball. After working that out and into my system I started feeling a lot better and they took me to a room where i met up with my parents. They "wouldn't let me go till i peed", but they broke that rule when I really just could not pee (i think i was just inflamed and my body wouldnt' allow it yet) and they let me go, but told me that if i didn't pee in a few hours i needed to call them and come back. (I peed shortly after getting home... figures. ha.)
The doctor had told my mom that he just found a few spots of endometriosis (on my uterus and cul de sac) and that one of my tubes was "twisted". He told me later that he sent dye through it and it still "worked" but somehow it got messed up (I'm not sure how that happens, IF ANYONE KNOWS: let me know =] ).
Since then, I've been on a few different types of birth control pills (the first two kinds gave me horrible weird side effects like loosing hair and cystic acne) to ease the bleeding and try to keep it from growing back as fast. I'm still in a lot of pain sometimes though. (sorry for the long, boring story. :])
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Post by misslauren on Oct 7, 2012 22:24:03 GMT -5
Hi ladies. I have just spent my entire afternoon reading all of your stories, and I applaud you all for your bravery and strength, it's incredibly inspiring. I am in the process of booking in for a lap, and was wondering if anyone could tell me a little more about the scarring involved? The severity, locations, sizes, etc? I hadn't really thought about this but I have my belly button pierced...I assume this will be a problem? Also, has anyone had any major issues with endo on the bladder and having it removed during a lap? Thanks
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Post by hellsbells on Oct 8, 2012 6:38:21 GMT -5
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Post by misslauren on Oct 8, 2012 18:37:21 GMT -5
Sorry hellsbells, I keep doing that to you--very new to this whole forum thing! Thanks for your help
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Post by marleybee on Feb 16, 2013 22:04:48 GMT -5
Hello,my name is Emily. I had my first lap done yesterday. I am 20 years old. I have always had very bad periods but over the past few months I started having an increase in my pain as well as pain during intercourse. Sometimes I would feel a stabbing pain in my pelvic area. After a couple of months dealing with this pain I mentioned it to my Gyn during my regular pap. She suggested that I have an ultrasound done to see what the cause of my pain was. The results of the ultrasound showed nothing abnormal besides me having a tilted uterus. My gyn started thinking of endo when she discovered this problem and suggested that I try stool softeners for a couple of weeks to help with my recent constipation but otherwise we would look into doing a lap or hormone therapy. The stool softeners regulated my bowel cycle but did nothing to relieve my constant pain. Afraid of hormone therapy at my young age I decided to have a lap done. To begin my procedure I had a pre-op appt with my doctor where we discussed how the procedure would be done and what my limits would be if endo was found. I wrote down a list of questions and my gyn was very careful to answer each one of them. She then sent me to my local hospital to have blood work and a few other things done. A few days later it was time for my surgery. I came in to the hospital at 11:45 am and was taken straight back to my room. My mom and my fiance were with me and were allowed to come back and help me get into my gown and sit with me. Once I was out of my clothing my RN checked my vitals and started an IV. Anesthesiology came and talked to me and explained that I would be put to sleep for the procedure and asked some medical history questions. After that my gyn came and talked to me for a minute and made sure I had no more questions about the procedure. Then my RN gave me some anti-nausea medicine and a relaxant. I remember laughing quite a bit once I felt the meds but nothing more about being taken to the OR. After the surgery I woke up in the first recovery room in a lot of pain. My RN there would not be my favorite person I have experienced through all of this. She came over and administered pain meds without me asking and was scaring me. I think I had an allergic reaction to something in the recovery room or my gown because I began to itch all over and I complained to the nurse about the itching so she gave me more pain meds. I discovered later that she had given me 4 doses of morphine in less than an hour. I was DRUGGED. Once the nurse actually took the time to examine where I was itching she noticed that I had broken out in a rash all over my upper body. She and another nurse hurried me out of the surgical gown and into a regular gown. They were very rough about it. I began to have a bit of a panic attack because of the way they were acting and kept jerking me around and telling me to stop crying. The nurse put some oxygen on me and wheeled me into the second recovery room when I started to really cry. When I got to the second recovery room my new RN went to get my mom and my fiance who hugged me and asked if I remembered my gyn coming to talk to me. I said no. I didnt really remember anything. They told me that she had found a few small spots of endo and cut out the ones she could. Apparently the biggest spot was on my colon and my gyn was not comfortable removing it at this time. She showed them pictures of what she had removed and scheduled a follow up appt with me this Friday. Once I got to the second room I began to feel the urge to go to the bathroom so I asked to be helped up. A second nurse came in to help my nurse and she was very rough with me. I was feeling dizzy when I sat up but they would not allow me to sit on the side of the bed before standing. I almost fell when I stood up and had a horrible time walking to the bathroom. I tried to pee for about 10 minutes and only dribbled once. (I think feeling the urge made me nervous and I didn't want to have an accident in front of my fiance.) I had my mom help me into my panties and a pad where I was having some spotting. The nurses had taken my bed out of my room while I was in the bathroom and made me sit in a recliner and get my clothes on. Then they told me that I was not able to go home until I peed more. I asked if I could have something for pain and they said I would have to eat something first before I could. My fiance began to help me try to eat some applesauce but it was very hard to swallow because my throat was sore from being intubated. I was coughing quite a bit and gave up trying to eat. (Keep a folded blanket or a pillow to hold against your stomach when you cough. It was a life-saver for me.) I kept drinking to force myself to pee and ended up getting the hiccups. This hurt horribly and happened right at shift change. The next RN I had was wonderful. She brought me anti-nausea meds and a pain pill with chicken broth. The hiccups stopped after drinking some Sprite and my nurse helped me to the restroom where I peed finally! She called my doctor and I was able to go home about 9pm. I was the last patient there. As soon as I was home (my house is about 2 blocks from the hospital) I felt very nauseous and my mother went to get my pain meds from the pharmacy while my fiance sat with me. I fell asleep (I drifted in and out of sleep from the minute I woke up in recovery, sometimes not even finishing sentences) and woke up and vomited violently. As I had not been able to eat I was mostly dry-heaving but it was so painful. My fiance was wonderful and got me cleaned up and helped me to bed. He set an alarm and made sure that I got my pain medicine all through the night. I was having to get in and out of bed every 45 minutes or so to pee though. I am still not peeing very well after the catheter but it is getting better as the day goes on. I have been home for 24 hours. My throat is hoarse from the tube and vomiting but I have been able to keep food down today. I am very sore around my belly button incision but my other incision doesn't really bother me. I have had very little spotting today and have not had a bowel movement yet. I am afraid of how that will feel. I have skipped a couple of doses of my strong pain meds in place of tylenol so I wouldn't be so sleepy but it was a mistake as I am hurting quite a bit this evening.Right now I am preparing to lay down and relax a little. Over all I am glad to have answers and a confirmed endo diagnosis although certain parts of my lap experience were not so pleasant. I guess you can't always have good staff members taking care of you. The good ones were the best and were so kind and understanding. They made me feel comfortable and safe. Also I do not know if I could have made it today without my fiance. He has been wonderful helping me up and down and helping me with my medicine and making food. He is so supportive. My cats are all about me as well and wanting to help(by standing on my stomach...it's the thought that counts!) which makes me smile. I am taking 2 weeks off work to fully recover but I go to have my stitches taken out and speak with my gyn on Friday. I am curious what will happen from there as far as my continued treatment goes. I will be researching hormone therapies and other treatments on this site. I hope that my story has helped someone who is just as nervous as I was about my procedure. This forum is a godsend. Looking forward to meeting my endo sisters. Emily
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Post by marleybee on Feb 17, 2013 9:49:52 GMT -5
Emily,I am glad to hear that I am not the only one who has had a reaction to something after surgery. I have itched a little here and there but it has stopped for the most part. I think it must have been the material the gown was made of that irritated my skin so much. As soon as I was out of the gown I felt much better. I have been drinking cool drinks and eating ice cream for my throat. I made sure to have cough drops handy afraid that my throat would hurt much worse than it really does. I only notice it now when I try to talk for an extended period of time. Thanks for the advice, I really appreciate it. How long did it take you ladies to stop feeling bloated? Granted, I have not been able to pass nearly as much gas as I thought I would (blushes) which is probably why I feel so uncomfortable. That and not being able to sleep on my side and stomach. I have never been one to sleep on my back so this is a whole new world of discomfort for me. I'm sure that will get better with time though!
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