I had a myomectomy last week (removal of fibroid) as part of another procedure to remove precancerous polyps. I had the whole parade of horribles, anemia, transfusions, pain. We thought that it was the polyps causing all that because we had no idea, despite very invasive testing that I had a baseball sized fibroid pressing on my bladder. It was removed hysteroscopically, leaving the uterus intact. The procedure was long, but the recovery was minimal except for the bruising, swelling and irritation to my bladder. If not for the location, this would have been a complete recovery in 24 hours. This is a very good option for many women and should certainly be considered. I hope your sister gets a second opinion.
Glad you are doing well, @zoosermom!
When you are that person on hystersisters (I wasn’t by the way -but read it constantly to see how others with the same complications did) You want your life back. I wanted to get a bumper sticker that said "this isn’t what I signed up for "
So I understand the ranting. My hysterectomy was three years ago and I am still dealing with some fallout from my surgery.
Before the surgery I thought “this won’t happen to me” I was fit, not overweight, didn’t smoke. Well I did have complications and I wanted to change my mind and undo the surgery.
The fact that I was a minority didn’t matter at the time. It didn’t matter if there were ten other people with the same problem or a thousand -it still sucked.
Wishing you a good recovery @zoosermom
In the post ultrasound follow up, it is worth checking if myomectomy or uterine fibroid embolization are options. UFE is far less invasive and has a short recovery. It does make for a painful miserable day though, but just the one day.
I also had uterine fibroid embolization and I am happy with the results. My doctor felt hysterectomy was the last option, and UFE is much simpler. I had a few unpleasant days, but still better than a hysterectomy. Not all fibroids are made for the UFE procedure; it depends on their location. I would suggest giving it some consideration. Good luck!
I was lucky–decided on a hysterectomy after 3 opinions (all said do it). My recovery was easy–I was up and walking the first day and driving in 2 weeks; going into menopause instantly didn’t pose problems (a few night sweats). I took no hormones. I had suffered long, heavy periods and anemia, along with a uterus that was enlarged (as if I were 3 months pregnant). I decided I had to do something the day I stood up at a meeting and saw that the upholstered chair I was sitting on had a huge blood stain. I had hoped that menopause, which causes fibroids to shrink, would happen before I had to do anything. However, my bloodwork Indicated, I wasn’t close to menopause. I went with the doc who provided the third opinion–she did research on fibroids. She also told me I wasn’t a candidate for UFE. I have no regrets. I imagine if I had complications and a difficult recovery I might have felt differently. OP’s sister should definitely get an additional opinion and learn about options on dealing with fibroids.
Appreciate the advice and sharing of experiences. I did send her the hystersisters link. I do plan to suggest she get a second opinion after the ultrasound. I would think if the issue is a large fibroid, you would explore ways to just remove the fibroid, as posters have described above. Hysterectomy sounds like overkill to me. But, I’m going to be quiet for now, until she has those additional test results.
I also did research for myself as I am way past due for this same check-up, as my previous dr no longer takes my insurance, and I picked a gyn who does not do obstetrics, but focuses entirely on gyn and menopause and all of these other procedures - website had all kinds of info/options for fibroids and so forth. I tend to really really procrastinate on medical stuff, thinking that if I feel fine, I must be fine. But I guess not.