# My daughter's surgery - complete hyst.



## Ks-Sunshine (Aug 23, 1999)

They managed to do it vaginally, but it was tough and took much longer than normal. Her uterus was terribly enlarged. There were no fibroids on the outside as they had suspected to find. She lost quite a lot of blood before they were finished. She ended up with a migraine also. She came home today with it still. I'm worried about the path results from the uterus. She has had extremely heavy flow during her periods which could come at any interval. The hope was that it would help some of her migraines.


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## Ks-Sunshine (Aug 23, 1999)

I voiced a real concern on the above post. Is there anyone here that reads this type of thread or has had experience with hysts?I have other personal "woman type" problems I would like to discuss, I don't want to discuss this with the men so I would like to come here.


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## erin5983 (Mar 25, 2003)

Sunny,I have no knowledge on hysterectomies but I hope your daughter is feeling better. I'm not aware of why she had one but from your post that she has a real problem with migraines and her period. How old is she? I have read that doctors are hesitant to perform hysterectomies for small concerns so this must have been a big problem for her.I hope she has a speedy recovery and can get rid of those migraines. There are few things worse than an awful migraine. I cannot imagine trying to deal with one while having to deal with heavy periods. Hopefully this helps her.You have my prayers!


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## Ks-Sunshine (Aug 23, 1999)

My daughter is 42. She has had excessive bleeding for the last 5 years anyway. The gyn finally decided after trying a number of other things, that a hyst was in order. I'm concerned over the size of her uterus. They said it was the size it would be if she was about 6 months pregnant. Frankly, I don't know how they managed this vaginally. She is a bit sore, the migraine has nearly left now. Thanks erin, for your post and the prayers. We appreciate them.


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## Elariel (Jan 1, 1999)

are they going to do tests to make sure nothing was malignant? (i think i spelled that wrong).. bleeding that heavy for that long doesnt sound good


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## bkitepilot (Dec 7, 2003)

My sister-in-law bled heavily with frequently looooong periods. She too suffered with migraines related to this hormonal malfunction. (also panic attacks) After her hysterectomy she stopped the migraines and only has occasionally panic attacks.As far as the size of the uterus, that is not normal.... wow that's rather huge. I hope the path report is benign. Let us know what you find out.


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## *Luna* (Nov 19, 2001)

I hope she is feeling better soon







Sorry I don't know much about hysters. I think HipJan and Evie (EssenceTries) might have a little more input on this?? You might try PMing them and directing them here.In general this forum doesn't get as heavy of traffic as some others do, and it's the holidays so people may be out. I just don't know what advice to offer you.I've seen many people recommend hystersisters.com for info and support about the surgery, pre and post. Maybe you could find more info there?


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## slb (Jan 6, 2000)

I had a vaginal hyst. (kept the ovaries, lost the cervix and vagina) two years ago. Make sure your daughter takes a good six weeks to recover fully, and at least two weeks of going absolutely nothing. It will feel like everything inside is "falling" into its new place for a while. Just because there are no outside stitches doesn't mean there aren't plenty of stitches inside. An excellent site to peruse is www.hystersisters.com. This site was where I got all my questions answered during my time, both beforehand and during my recovery. I had my hyst. because of great big clots that I would pass during my period. They were not quite the size of my fist, and made it impossible to leave the house during my period. I had a D & C first, which should have solved the problem, but the first period after it was my worst ever. I hope your daughter recovers well. Keep us posted.


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## Ks-Sunshine (Aug 23, 1999)

Thanks Luna and everyone else.The path report came back with no malignancies. The uterus was filled with fibroids and there was a bit of endometriosis found also. I was at my daughter's house a couple times today. She is going nuts as her husband won't let her lift a shoe even. He's taking very good care of her. The pain is not too bad and she has walked to my house and back. We live next door. Today, when she stood up she became nauseous so hubby put her to bed and made her promise to stay there. We don't know what triggered it.The circumstances during Charlie's birth 16 1/2 yrs ago was so terrible that I am sure some damage was done. I don't see how it could be avoided. She hasn't felt too well since, but did have a normal delivery of her daughter three years after Charlie. She lost a lot of blood with both of those pregnancies. Glad this is over.


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## Sherlock (May 14, 1999)

Sunny, tell her to listen to her husband and be thankful he's coddling her! Too many men would be complaining that she wasn't able to do the normal things around the house. There is no need for her to hurry to get well. She'll be better off in the long run if she takes her time.I don't have any experience myself, but my mother had a hysterectomy and she had a fibroid tumor the size of a grapfruit in her uterus. Glad there was nothing malignant with your daughter. That must be a huge relief!


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## Cher202 (Nov 4, 2003)

Hi!I to had a hysterectomy in May of 2003. I agree with the hystersister web site very very informative. I also have IBS and gluten intolerance and had my last bout of IBS on New Years eve. Make sure your daughter rests alot and don't even let her lift a gallon of milk, my doctor told me nothing over 8 pounds until 6 weeks. It sounds extreme but a hysterctomy is major surgery no matter how it is done. Hope she feels better soon and let her know she's not alone in her recovery that there are many women out there who are going through the same thing.


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## Guest (Jan 9, 2004)

Sunny... I'm sorry I missed this post of yours... I've been so incredibly busy in recent weeks.As you know, I've had a hyst, but it wasn't "complete". I still have ovaries and 2 inches of my cervix. When I had my hyst my uterus was the size of a 22-week fetus, so that's not too far off from what your daughter had. My bleeding was from enormous fibroids as well as adenomyosis. I was 46 when I had the surgery. I also bled like a stuck pig for years... I was incredibly anemic, to the point of passing out even though I was swallowing prescription iron like candy.It's my understanding that there are a lot of things that can cause an enlarged uterus... fibroids is only one...and they can grow outside, inside, over, under, around and through and well as hang from a "pendulum" outside of the uterus down into the cervix and even into the vagina. Two of mine were the size of large grapefruit.Another possible cause might be adenomyosis (endometriosis of the lining of the uterus).I've never heard of having a hyst to alleviate migraines. Do you know what the reasoning is behind that one?I sure hope your daughter heals well and doesn't suffer too many complications from the ordeal


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## Jeanne D (Nov 14, 2001)

Sunny,I missed this also.I'm glad her surgery is over with.I will pray for her speedy recovery.Jeanne


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## erin5983 (Mar 25, 2003)

Thank goodness she has such a supportive husband! That will be great for her now.Also wonderful that there were no malignancies. I am praying for a quick recovery!


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## denise.bradley (Jun 7, 2000)

Hey Sunny;Sorry I don't check in on this side as much as I used to. As you know I has my hyst because of heavy bleaeding and sever pain. Before I went in I would swell to the size of 6 to 8 month pregnant too. The Hystersisters site is excellent its been a year for me now and they are still helping me threw many things. They can also help threw with the Hormone Jungle part too. Its really important that she listento her husband and not do anythant in the first couple of weeks. The dizziness is where she is tired and the anestic is still wearing off and all that drugs plus you said she lost alot of blood. Her body is still rebuilding. It will take a good year before she is in top form. Tell her to enjoy being a princess for all its worth right now and to listen to the pillow police.Denise


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## BBDM (Oct 17, 2003)

Sunny, I had to have a hysterectomy about 10 years ago because my bladder fell and everthing prolapsed.(my bladder, along with IBS run my life now) I was told to do virtually nothing for about 8 weeks after. No driving, no lifting, bending, etc. I had small kids at the time so it was a little rough at first. I never had problems at all with my period by I used to get migraines. I get a few now and then still, don't know if it's related. As for panic attacks-I just started to get those a year ago, so I got the Dr to check me for menopause-no sign of that yet thank God.She's very lucky to have such a supportive husband. I wish her well and a speedy recovery. I hope she will not get like me and mourn the loss, I do now as I'm getting married again in 2 1/2 weeks, so no more kids. I hope she will get the rest she needs so that she will heal well.All the best to her!!


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## stinky-me (Feb 13, 2004)

I had a total abdominal hysterectomy 6 years ago at age 34 due to heavy, irregular, prolonged, painful periods. Got rid of both ovaries, my appendix, and a bunch of adhesions (scar tissue from who knows what) in my abdomen in the process. Also had them tack my bladder up as long as they were in there. Anyway, I used to have terrible IBS problems associated with my periods; since the hyst, it's not as bad (but still there). Also, I used to have migraines; again, they are not nearly as bad but I do occassionally have them. I think, in my case at least, the IBS and migraines were hormonally linked. Since the surgery, I have been on straight estrogen (no progesterone), so my hormone levels don't fluctuate monthly. I had to try several types of estrogen to find one that worked and didn't cause migraines or other problems. Good luck to your daughter!


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## AZ101 (Feb 15, 2004)

I just had a Hyst on dec 03. My quick short story is posted under the Endometriosis post. I am 24 but had such horrible pain, I was informed by several doc's that it was my last resort. I turned to to be heaven sent. I am not longer in pain. Hormones are a little wacky but I am working to get that fixed. I could not have gone 15 years in the pain I was in. The hystersisters.com site has helped me thru every aspect of this ordeal and still does. Hope she is doing well and tell her to hang in there, she will start to feel better but it can take up to a year. Heidi


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