For several years I had been told I should get a hysterectomy but I just couldn't bring myself to do it. I kept putting it off thinking that surely this cycle would be the last one and I could put this whole perimenopause issue to a close, but that hasn't been the case. So, after bleeding for 5 straight weeks and heading into the 6th week, I made the commitment with my doctor and got it done. This may or may not be the conversation/blog many want to read, but I've been feeling I need to share some of my experiences with this whole ordeal. Yes, I call it an ordeal because that's what it's been.
I am a 51 year old woman who has birthed 6 children. To say I have an emotional connection with my uterus that nurtured my babies is a slight of words. It is the symbol of womanhood, motherhood, in my eyes. The word "woman" actually means "man with a womb". It is a special feature granted us when we were conceived and one of those unique parts of a woman's body.
However, after years and years and years of dealing with a monthly cycle, having had all the children I wanted, and now having to navigate erratic cycles that no longer came on a schedule and could last for a month, I decided I could finally have it removed and not feel bad about it. So, I went to my doctor on Monday and we scheduled the procedure for the following Monday.
I was not nervous that early Monday morning, I was rather excited. I joked with the staff and gave them a hard time, as is my style, for an hour or so and then ... POOF! ... I don't remember anything until late in the evening. I've always been susceptible to narcotics and, obviously, this time was no exception. Honestly, I don't remember anything after the anesthesiologist came in to check the diameter of my windpipe (which I was told was very small).
When I woke, it was dark and snowing. I vaguely remember the doctor coming to see me, but I have no idea when that was and I had those squeezing thingys on my legs. I was given two activities to complete before the doctor would let me go home; walk around the hospital wing and go pee. I was told I tried 3 times to go pee but I only remember 1 and I vaguely remember walking around the hospital wing. Drugs and me don't do well together, they last too long!
So, onto the recovery period. Perhaps for a younger woman, the issues I discovered will not affect them as they did me. I'm certain the time to recover for a younger woman would be much shorter than mine. On top of being 51 years old, I had been bleeding for nearly 6 weeks prior to the procedure and was already exhausted and, basically, bled out, so I should've been a little more reasonable with myself about how long it would take to start feeling somewhat normal., but I've always expected to just jump right back into step within a few days. Such was not the case this time.
The uterus is a small organ (unless it has a child in it, then it swells to 500 times its normal size) so I didn't think there would be so many changes in my lower abdomen but there were. The first thing I noticed, after I was able to get rid of all the air the doctor had filled me up with, was that my bowels readjusted. It was at times uncomfortable. Not too painful, just uncomfortable. Gas. Seriously?! How much gas do these readjusted bowels create now?? Certainly, it could've been that the new path they had chosen for themselves had opened up cinched sections and there were stored pockets of gas finally being released, but I can't be sure. I just know that my gastrointestinal department is definitely different to what it used to be. Another strange phenomenon to me is the lowering of my diaphragm. I don't know exactly how much lower it is now, but I felt it move down and experienced sharp, short pains during the process. I haven't felt any pains for a couple of weeks, so it must've found just the right place to hang out now.
The first week and a half, I simply laid around, watched T.V., and slept ... with my trusty heating pad, of course. The pain in my lower abdomen came in the forms of squeezing, sharp, and constant. I did use the pain pills the doctor prescribed for me but after the first week I just worked through the pain. Did I mention that I slept? Ha! I don't remember ever sleeping that much but I suppose my body was in control of how much it could handle at one time and for the first 2 weeks, it wasn't much. I hear walking is good for you but I have a very small house and the weather outside was far too frigid to attempt getting outside. I swear I make a new path on the floors as I wandered around through each room walking like a zombie.
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| by: MindlessIndulgence |
Something NOT to do ladies ... stair steppers. I had the brilliant idea that because I couldn't get outside to walk, I would use my stair stepper to get some energy, movement, and on the fast track to recovery. Huge, HuGe, HUGELY bad idea!! The stair stepper causes your newly-sewn-shut-where-your-cervix-used-to-be area to wiggle back and forth which not only could rip out your stitches and start you to bleeding, it causes a tremendous amount of internal pain to one of the most sensitive areas on our bodies. So, DON'T use a stair stepper for at least the first 2 weeks post-op, unless you're just into that kind of pain where you enjoy the feeling of a knife deep inside you. No, not a good feeling at all and not recommended ladies.
At nearly 3 weeks post-op, I went back to the office. Mind you, I sit at a chair most of the day plugging away on the typewriter, oh, excuse me, I mean keyboard (I told you I was 51!). The first day consisted of about 3 1/2 hours total and I was down for the count. I spent the rest of the day and evening moving very little and doing a lot of sleeping. I have slowly managed to build up the time I can be in the office and, as I'm inside a building, I can do a little more walking than I can do when I'm at home and the weather is bad. I have managed to do entire days at the office but pay for it dearly when I get home so, I am kind to myself and leave the office when I can to to lie down for a short time just to re-energize and, if there's any pain, relax those muscles so they can heal.
Something I read from other women that had hysterectomies is that the uterus has muscles attached to it that help to shape a woman's figure. I read that the woman's waistline is present because of the muscles attached thereto from the uterus and once the uterus is removed, you can expect to see a widening of the waist as the muscles are no longer there to assist in our hourglass figures. Interesting, eh? I've also read that there is a higher expectation to gain weight after a hysterectomy. I haven't experienced that yet as I've already lost 8 pounds. I will try to remember to keep track of these possible changes and report back if I notice them.
All-in-all, I'm sure that when I fully recover this will have been the right decision for me. I simply wish those women that told me, "it will be the best thing you ever did and you'll wish you'd done it sooner", would've also mentioned all the changes the female body goes through after said surgery. Yeah, ladies, that would've been some nice information. But since they didn't tell me any of the things to expect, I thought I'd be kind enough to share some of what I went through and, on a much lighter level now, am still going through. I will be 4 weeks post-op on Monday.
I hope this information has proven to be helpful and insightful for anyone that may chose to read it. And, by the way, I'm glad to be back among the living again.
