Hysterotomy

Second opinion time!!!!! Go to another Dr. Take her history charts with her and get another doctors opinion.

When you first start thinking about a hysterectomy....yes...it is scary.

This website did wonders for me www.hystersisters.com

It has very detailed information, sometimes TMI, about the good, bad and ugly of the surgery, options as far as hormone replacement, etc.

I had my hysterectomy at age 40. I will say...IT WAS THE BEST THING I EVER DID..

Overall, I feel better, look better, I got a very positive perk from the HRT because my boobs went from perky C to perky DD and I LOVE it.

The worst part for me was waiting for surgery day to arrive. I had the abdominal incision (you can hardly see it now thanks to vitamin E oil), opted to remove everything and go on HRT. They put a patch on me at the hospital and I change my patch about once a week. My patch is small so you can't see it when I am wearing a bikini.

I was scared of anesthesia the most. My Dr. gave me an epidural then a light drug so that I was not COMPLETELY knocked out. After the surgery was great, I used the pump for pain. My worst day was the 2nd day after they removed the pump. For about 24 hrs after pump removal I had horrid pain, then things got MUCH better.

I did not have a lot of the side effects that I so worried about from reading on the hyster site and hearing from others. The one I was most worried about was the rumor of automatic weight gain and swelly belly. I have only weighed over 116 once and that was when I was pregnant. I am petite and in good shape so I was fearful. Right after surgery, the Dr had me wear an abdominal binder and I wore that thing 24/7 for what seemed like forever. I did wear it longer because I wanted to make sure I had no swelly belly. I never gained the extra weight or had swelly belly I heard would happen.

Like I said, for me, this was the best decision. I opted to take everything knowing that on HRT the risk of breast cancer was higher. However, Ovarian cancer is harder to find and cure so I chose to go on HRT. I love the HRT and have never had issues with it.

Another worry was sex drive and function. I guess some people do lose it (or use the surgery as an excuse). Mine went sky high and has stayed there.

Each person reacts differently to surgery like this. I have a friend who pretty much went into mourning because she lost her "womanhood". As for me, I knew I was done with my family and I saw it as a relief and freedom (whoo hoo, no worries about birth control!!)

I was not allowed to drive for 2 weeks. I took my time during recovery. If you overdo it, you body will let you know. NO lifting.

I think if you go into it with a positive attitude and do a LOT of research, you can make the best decision for yourself.

If you want to pm me (or if your friend does) feel free to. To this day...I still say the my surgery was the best thing I ever did.

Good luck.

I had to have a partial hysterectomy in Dec 2007. The plan was vaginally but they ended up having to do a c-section incison due to complications, My uterus was attached to intestines, navel and bowel, I had a lot of blood loss so I had a transfussion and became anemic. I had a c-section with my youngest son which at the time of hysterectomy he was 2 1/2 yrs and I was a single mom so it was rough but I was in a lot of pain, was in the hospital for a week due to complications. I was not able to drive for 2 1/2 wks and not able to go back to work until 8 wks after surgery but even after that it took me awhile to get back to normal, prob another month and a half before I felt good, I had a lot of scar tissue so tell your friend plenty of walking to break things up, def take all the meds. I would def suggest a 2nd opinion. I hope this helps.
If she needs an OB/GYN mine is awesome, she's at Medical City of Dallas. I would highly recommnd her.
Good luck and I hope this helps.
M.

Please tell your friend to get a second opinion right away. I have known several women who have never had children and still had hysterectomies vaginally. That is simply not true. I suggest Alisa Ward in Richardson. She may not even need the surgery; there could be other alternatives.

Tell your friend to get a second opinion before doing anything with this doctor. The fact that he says she only needs 2 weeks off after major abdominal surgery is enough for me to want another opinion.

Your friend needs to get a second opinion and maybe a third if her questions are not answered. It is possible to have a hysterectomy vaginally even if you have not had any children. I know because mine was done vaginally.

I agree totally with all the other posts......Seek a second opinion. It is your friends body that they will be cutting on and when that happens you can not go back. Be sure she see's two or three different OBGYN's....try a female OBGYN. The doctors are to quick to do surgery. It means more money in their pockets. Good luck

I would suggest she seek a second opinion. I had a hysterectomy last fall after having 4 children via c-sectiona and they were able to do it Vaginally. Doesn't make sense to me that she would have to have it via an incision. 2 weeks for a vaginal is about normal but after having a c-section- similiar to a hysterectomy via incision no working for 6 -8 weeks. There are also laposcopic hysterectomy. However if she has other complications that may be the reason for an incesional procedure. Good luck to her. www.hystersisters.com is a great site for support and to get answers.

Encourage her to get a second opinion. That is a very permanent solution to whatever problem her OB/GYN thinks she has. A second opinion never hurts.

I am 37 and had a complete hysterectomy and ovary removal in April. It was rough. I am great now but it took me every bit of 6 weeks to recover (and I have had two c-sections). I took my meds and slept for basically a week and a half. I had the c-section type of surgery. I imagine if she can have it laproscopically or vaginally it would be differetn as it is less invasive. I feel way better now and would do it all over again if I had to but I would be more prepared to be not myself for a few months. It took me several months to get my energy level back. Your friend can feel free to call me or email me if she wants to talk to someone who has been there... MY email is ____@____.com
E.