Week ten - Total adominal Hysterectomy part 6

Tenth week – well I cant believe how quickly time has flown – I am so bored just being stuck at home and cant wait to get back to work. Today I saw my doctor and have been given the OK to go back to work. Obviously I will be take it a bit easier, my body will tell me if I push things too far.
I must say that the whole experience so far has been OK apart from the scare I had on the second week. However, don't forget I haven't had to take care of anyone else as I have been lucky to have 24/7 support from my husband. I have managed to read quite a few books on all types of Hysterectomy including my own total adominal Hysterectomy and will list my recommendations here soon.

How to recover from a total adominal hysterectomy part 5

Third week – This week I started to do more exercise and planned to do two walks a day one walk in the morning lasting 15 minutes and one in the afternoon lasting 20 minutes. By evening I felt quite tired but wasn't in any pain whatsoever. My scar was healing well and beginning to turn red. I forgot to mention that I didn't shower in the first and second week I was paranoid that I might get Scar wet and get an infection. Obviously I had a wash down every morning.

Fourth week – this week I was beginning to get back to my normal self. Although my husband had to keep reminding me not to do too much So I ended up spending most of the week watching TV in between doing my daily walks, which now amounted to about 50 minutes a day.

Fifth week – as you can gather so far so good and this was the week that I started to say to myself I want to get back to work. My daily walks was now up to one hour a day. My energy levels were good, and I noticed that I was beginning to put weight back on. In my first and second week I noticed that I had lost quite a bit of weight but now I was almost back to normal. Not a great deal to report and to be honest This whole experience is beginning to sound quite boring, but then again maybe that's a good thing. I had herd so many bad stories about having a total hysterectomy that maybe it's good to hear a story like this one, so I will continue.

Six-week – this week I went to the doctors mostly just to obtain a sick leave note for my job. When I was at the hospital having my operation the nurse had told me that total abdominal hysterectomy patients, no longer had to have six week review examination unless they had complications. The whole experience at the doctors was quiet a none event he just ask me how I felt. When I told him that I felt good and wanted to get back to work as soon as possible. He said that instead of signing me off for another six weeks he would only sign me off for four weeks. At the end of four weeks he said I might be able to return to work as long as there were no heavy lifting involved. I left the doctors feeling quite positive but was quite surprised that he didn't examine me, but then again I had no complications so why should he. Obviously this is all part of saving money for the national health service, to be quite frank its probably right thing to do. One last thing to mention I made love this week and everything works!

recovery procedure from a hysterectomy - Part 4

First week – I spent the first week in bed all I did was read books and magazines. I had a slight pinching type of pain for the most of the week apart from that everything was fine. It is worth noting that I believe it is essential that you have someone with you, as you are pretty helpless for the first week, I was lucky as my husband works from home so I had 24 hour support. While I was in bed I spent a lot of time doing the exercises that the hospital had recommended. This mainly consisted of the following exercises: Knee rolling, knee bends, pelvic tilting, and pelvic floor muscle exercise.

The second week – things changed drastically on the second week. I started to feel quite sick and half way through the night I started to vomit violently and my whole body was shaking. My husband tried to contact the hospital where I had the operation but was unable to get an answer so he then contacted our local GP and was advised to take me to a local hospital. Getting to the hospital was quite a nightmare I was consistently being sick in the car. Luckily when we arrived at the hospital I was seen to straight away, to be honest at one stage I thought I was going to die. Apparently my body had gone into shock and was told that this was quite common after an operation. I was given a thorough examination by the doctor I was quite surprised to find that my temperature was normal and my blood pressure was normal. I finally stop being sick and felt a lot better The doctor prescribed a number of drugs for sickness,heartburn and constipation He did say that being constipated could have been the main reason that my body went into shock. The good news was that I was allowed to go home and the whole experience only lasted about three hours. I spent the next 48 hours sleeping and afterwards I felt a lot better.

recovery procedure from a hysterectomy - Part 3

Day off the operation - I had to call the hospital an hour before my appointment to confirm that my bed was available and it was.I got to the hospital at 11 oclock and my operation took place at 4.30 I cant remember coming around in the recovery room. My husband rung the hospital and they told him that I would be back in my ward at 7.45,visiting hours stopped at 8. He managed to get there on time, but obviously I cant remember much about it. The following day the nurse monitored me every 30 minutes the only problem was that I had a high temperature so they opened the window! I had an oxygen mask fitted, a drain from my tummy, a drip in my arm for pain which I think was morphine and a catheter. I felt very weak but wasn't in a lot of pain. The good news was that I didn't have to have my ovaries taken out. I had a total abdominal hysterectomy and my incision was vertical all the way up to my to my belly button. I had tape over each stitch and I counted 22 of them. On the second day I felt a lot better and too my amazement the doctor said that I could go home within 24 hours. Also on this day the nurse removed the drain from my tummy and it hurt, this was the worse part of my whole stay in hospital, felt like someone was pulling my intestines out! On the 3rd day I was allowed to go home..........to be continued

recovery procedure from a hysterectomy - Part 2

Hospital appointment with consultant 8th January -Consultant asked about my medical history. Then she examined me even though at the time I had my period so it was a little bit embarrassing. After the examination she confirmed that I had a large fibroid she asked if anyone else in my family had fibroids I told her my sister did. It appeared that this made up her mind to perform a operation. We then discussed the various operations and she concluded that I should have a total abdominal hysterectomy. She explained that It was a possibility that my ovaries may be removed but this decision would be made during surgery. I signed all the consent forms and was told that I would have to come into hospital a week before the operation for a pre assessment .


27th January hospital pre assessment -This consisted of seeing a nurse about any medication I was on, another nurse to weigh me, take my blood pressure, medical history, and then another two nurse's about preparing for the operation and what I need to take with me to the hospital, oh yes they also measured me up for surgical stockings. They also confirmed that my operation would take place on Wednesday the 4th February.

recovery procedure from a hysterectomy - Part 1

OK I'm going to write down my hysterectomy experience, but I'm not going to bore you with too many words so I will try to write down what happened to me day by day and in bullet point form,
here we go:

Something not quite right

My history – part of my cervix removed in 2004 taken as a precautionary measure, I had some cells that were in the very early stages of cancer.

Late 2008 thought I was just constipated and started to notice that my belly felt bloated, it was my husband that pointed out that something wasn't quite right. He said that he felt a hard lump down one side of my abdomen I had to finally agree.

Doctors appointment – 19 Nov 2008- Doctor examined me and told me I was pregnant! Now considering that my husband has been sterilised the diagnosis was a shock I didn't know to laugh or cry. Doctor said that I needed a scan to confirm. On leaving the doctors I went straight to the chemist and bought a pregnancy testing kit. My husband was with me and our conversation went along the lines of: you you cant be pregnant, if I am pregnant do we keep it, we cant afford to have another baby, can we go through this again? Thankfully the results were negative!

Scan date 12 Dec 2008-While having the scan I told the nurse the story about the doctor telling me I was pregnant. She confirmed that I wasn't. I asked her did she know what the problem was she said that she wasn't allowed to discuss her findings, but because she saw that I was upset she told me. She said that she was 99% sure that I had a fibroid and that it was very big, hence why the doctor thought I was pregnant.

Doctor confirmed results 2 Jan 2009- Doctor confirmed that I had a fibroid he told me that surgeon would contact me to discuss whatever procedure I needed .


Hospital confirmed appoint with Surgeon for the 8th January............to be continued

Natural Remedies for Fibroids

No one wants to undergo surgery and would be happy if a natural remedy existed or a drug cure However, when visiting a doctor to discuss treatment options, alternative methods are never discussed or if they are they are never recommended as most GP's don't have hands on experience with natural treatments. However, the facts speak for them selves natural remedy's do have a high success rate, but it normally depends on circumstances .Half the women that have fibroids don't even know that they have them as they are so small they don't cause any problems. For others though, the situation is very different. The symptoms can be very uncomfortable and upsetting and include heavy bleeding during periods, bloating, bowel and bladder problems, pain during love making and even infertility. Fibroids can range in size from the size of a tiny pea to the size of a melon. You have to remember that problems which can occur from fibroids are very rarely dangerous. Most doctors prefer to leave them alone unless they are causing serious issues. Understanding what causes fibroids is a good starting point when looking at a natural cure for fibroids. There are two main hypotheses which explain why fibroids might arise. Quite a lot of doctors think that the cause is genetic and that some women are simply prone to inflammatory conditions within the body and that although there is nothing which can be done to stop this, there are ways of cutting back the inflammation by eating foods which have anti-inflammatory properties, such as cumin, rosemary and hops. The second known reason is an excess of estrogen within the body. Although the cause of this is not known in all cases, it is known that estrogen is related to the number and size of fat cells within the body, so it makes common sense to eat a healthy diet and exercise. In addition, it is thought that certain pollutants can mimic estrogen and another fibroid cure is thought to be detoxification of the liver. Another fibroid cure which has been used with a good degree of success is the use of Chinese herbs. They are known to be good in helping with cleansing the body and, in particular, the reproductive organs. Further growth of fibroids and the formation of further fibroids can often be prevented by certain herbal preparations. Fibroids usually begin to shrink naturally after the menopause, but for many women that is too long to wait and especially if you are suffering. Fibroids do respond to natural treatments and if followed correctly, a natural cure for fibroids can be very effective indeed. So it makes complete sense to try out a natural fibroid cure first as already said fibroids are rarely life threatening,but whether or not you want to try a natural remedy depends on your own personal circumstances.

GP Told me that I had to have a hysterectomy

you've just been told you need a hysterectomy you will be feeling a bit
confused and overwhelmed. This is nothing unusual and in fact quite normal!

So now naturally you will start trying to find out about hysterectomy's and start
asking questions to family and friends and also research using the internet

These type of questions may help in you research:

Are my symptoms so unbearable as to make my life a misery that I must have surgery

Will the operation relieve all my symptoms?, what will the downsides be, if any?

Will there be any unexpected consequences - am I prepared for an earlier
menopause?

One of the biggest questions- do I still want to have children?

What will happen if I decide not to have a hysterectomy?

Do I want to get another opinion and even a third opinion which is a smart thing to do

Have I tried all the alternative treatments?

So do your homework and research you might be pleasantly surprised and relived when you do

Hysterectomy Statistics

Not had a great success in finding a definitive database on statistical information but thought the numbers from NHS hospitals in England fell in line with what my GP told me.

In 2006 38,831 hysterectomies were performed in NHS hospitals in England

The figures for England can be broken down as follows:

Abdominal hysterectomy: 32,184 with 510 emergency operations carried out.

Vaginal hysterectomy: 6,641 with 40 emergency operations carried out

Removal of the cervix (not necessarily in conjunction with a hysterectomy): 18,586 with 131 emergency operations carried out

Removal of both ovaries and fallopian tubes (not necessarily in conjunction with a hysterectomy): 2693 with 98 emergency operations carried out

Removal of one ovary and fallopian tube (not necessarily in conjunction with a hysterectomy): 3076 with 645 emergency operations carried out (the high rate of emergency probably relates to ectopic pregnancy).

I will continue searching unless anyone else can point me in the right direction?

Fibroids what are the symptoms?

ibroid symptoms are often blamed on other causes. Sometimes, the symptoms of fibroid tumours are not even noticed,as was the case with me( in the beginning) while other times the quality of life is impacted every day. Fibroid tumours are non-cancerous growths that form in the uterus. Fibroid tumors frequently grow in groups, and they can be as small as a pea or as large as an or as in my case as large as a small football! Fibroid tumors afflict nearly a huge population of women throughout the world and will aim to put some statistical figures together in another post. One statistic that I do know is that approx 40% of women will develop fibroid tumor symptoms just before the menopause. However with me it was about 15 years earlier!

Here are some symptoms of fibroid tumors:

1. Pressure on the bladder or lower abdomen - this pressure can result in having to go to the toliet often. Also, you can feel a sense of urgency to urinate before you normally would expect to have to go.

2. Pain - especially lower abdominal pain or in the bladder area. The pain can come and go or it can be somewhat invariable. And pain with sexual activity can happen if the fibroid tumors grow in close to the vagina or become large enough to cause the vaginal walls to protrude.

3. Menstrual cycle problems - heavy bleeding or painful periods, sometimes bleeding between periods. Women with fibroids sometimes have periods that last 8 days or longer. If frequent or heavy bleeding occurs, the excessive blood loss can result in an anemic condition.

4. Pressure on the bottom - the result is constipation.

5. Increase in waist size and shape - even though there's no significant weight gain, your clothing no longer fits around the midsection.

6. Depression, irritability - constant pain can wreak havoc with ones state of psyche.

7. Infertility and pregnancy ramifications - a fertilized egg cannot implant in the uterus if that wall is already occupied by fibroids leading to miscarriage. When fibroid tumors are found near the fallopian tubes, the passage may be partially or totally closed up. This usually means that the egg cannot come down and the sperm cannot go up, so the egg and the sperm can never meet and pregnancy cannot occur. When a fertilized egg does implant in the uterine wall with a fibroid tumor located near the implantation site, the fibroid may continue to grow, demanding both space and nourishment needed by the foetus. The result may be miscarriage.

Fortunately, only a small percent of fibroid tumors are malignant. On a personal note the only system I got was number 4 and I will explain more when I put together my daily journal.

Hysterectomy - Uterine Fibroids

Uterine growths can be either innocent or serious. innocent growths or benign growths are non-cancerous and do not pose a menace. One such uterine growth is a polyp of the cervix. Another benign growth is a uterine fibroid though it can still cause annoying problems such as bleeding or they can grow so big that your doctor might even diagnose you as being pregnant.The cause of uterine fibroids is unknown and has been a mystery for decades. It appears that Family history may be involved as there is often a history of women in the same family developing these fibroids. Another unknown thing is why fibroids are three times more common in non-Caucasian women. Another factor currently being considered is that heavy women are more likely to develop fibroids. A fibroid is an unusual growth of smooth muscle tissue. Uterine fibroids arise from the tissue in the muscle layer in the wall of the uterus. They are benign.For most women with fibroids, there are generally no troubles and they usually only become aware of their presence when they are discovered during other diagnostic procedures.Fibroids often cause no symptoms. However, larger fibroids may cause pressure, pelvic pain, pressure on the bladder, trouble in passing urine, and pressure on the rectum causing pain during bowel movements.Abnormal bleeding is a usual indication of a fibroid. This may be in the form of heavy or painful periods, lengthy periods or spotting between periods. If there is severe localised painfulness, it generally means that the uterine fibroids are deteriorating.Although uterine fibroids are benign, they are commonly the reason for hysterectomy because of the bleeding and sometimes size. Sometimes the bleeding can be so substantial as to cause anaemia. Fortunately, there are numerous non-surgical means available to treat fibroids. Although not all fibroids need treatment, ramifications may develop. These include repeated miscarriages, infertility, and complications in childbirth. However, these are usually only if there is unusual deformation of the uterus.So how do you know if you have fibroids? Fibroids are detected through manual pelvic examination and any worries are confirmed by ultrasound. It is very similar to a pregnancy examination and the doctor only orders more complex screening if he or she is unsure of the exact nature of the uterine growth found.There are a number of available treatments subject on severity of the symptoms, age of the woman, pregnancy, general health and type of fibroids. For some women, it is simply a case of regular routine monitoring.If the fibroids are causing cramps or painful periods, basic drugs such as Ibuprofen may be recommended. In some cases, birth control pills may be used to control the heavy periods and stop the fibroid from growing any bigger. Because of the blood loss, iron tablets or a change in diet may also be required.Hormonal therapy in the form of an injection is sometimes prescribed to shrivel the fibroids. This drug and others like it, reduce the production of hormones. This puts the hormones in a state similar to menopause and may cause similarly severe side effects such as hot flushes, loss of bone density, and vaginal dryness. Surgical treatments available.Hysteroscopic resection may be used when the fibroids are growing inside the uterine cavity. This is performed as an outpatient operation and involves a small camera and instruments being inserted through the cervix into the uterus to remove the fibroids.Another procedure is uterine artery embolisation where the blood supply to the fibroids is blocked off. However, long term effects are yet to be determined and safety of pregnancy following this procedure is unsure.A myomectomy is a surgical procedure where only the fibroids are removed. It is frequently the chosen treatment women who still wish to have children, because it does not generally affect fertility.

Visit your doctor if you notice changes in your menstrual pattern such as increased blood flow, more frequent cramping and spotting between periods, feel the presence of a lump. You may also experience fullness or heaviness in your lower abdomen. There may also be pressure which affects normal urination and bowel movement. Although benign growths are not cancerous the bigger they grow the more difficult the treatment may be so always go to the doctor sooner than later