Age: 24
Gender: Nonbinary
Weight: 255lbs / 115Kg
Height: 5’9”
Notable Illnesses: Hypermobile Ehlers Danlos Syndrome and POTS

Hello everyone! I had a full hysterectomy (everything but the ovaries) on the 9th of this month and I’ve been dealing with a few issues that I could possibly have some insight/advice on?

Firstly, the biggest concern I have is my back pain. I had an ANE nerve block catheter for the pain but after 9 days my back has been in pretty bad shape, it hurts to lie down on my back and sides unless I have my knees to my chest. A thing to note is that I have a pelvic tilt so when I lay on my back there’s a gap between me and the bed. I have tried ice, heat, painkillers, and massage to try and help but nothing is really helping. I had made a call to my OBGYN who did the surgery and she said that I didn’t have an epidural even though it says right in my notes I had one and then she suggested that maybe it was the way I was laying on the table during the procedure but I was sus that it would definitely not last that long if that were the case, the surgery was two hours.

The pain is an ache-y feeling right in the middle on my spine and like a little above my tailbone.

The second thing is that I’ve been having issues with starting to urinate and then completely voiding my bladder. I have to either lean forward or press on my bladder to urinate or the stream stops. Towards the end of my stream my bladder and bellybutton start to hurt like a dull sharp pain. I’ve always had trouble urinating after a surgery with a catheter but never this long either. I’m not sure if my urethra is maybe scarred from multiple catheters uses or what but it’s beginning to become an issue. I’m also feeling this sort of pressure around my lower abdomen, bladder, and perineum like i’m filled with air or something, i’m pretty sure I don’t have any air left from surgery but it hurts to sit like i’m pushing that air up into my upper abdomen and my bladder feels like it’s too full all the time even after I had just used the bathroom.

I’m also a bit worried about dryness, I read in my medical notes that I had a vaginal cuff which I didn’t really know was gonna happen but for the people who’ve had a vaginal cuff, do you experience dryness? And how are you treating it?

And the last thing, my sutures especially the one in my bellybutton ITCH I don’t know if maybe i’m having some sort of allergic reaction to the sutures but oh my god do they itch. I’ve also been having some intermittent pain in my bellybutton suture it’s kind of like a stinging/ burning sensation like it’s irritated or something and i’ve also have some pretty gnarly bruising around my bellybutton as well.

Anyway, sorry for the wall of text i’m a bit concerned and I don’t see my OBGYN until next week so I thought maybe I could gain some insight on what’s going on. Thank you!

Hello everyone
Reading all of your experiences was extremely helpful on the days leading up to my surgery. I’d like to share my experience as someone from Mexico who had surgery here since I see a lot of Americans come here for medical services and others struggle with insurance issues in their country.

I was officially diagnosed with adenomyosis and endometriosis in July of this year after years of horribly painful periods that no doctor seemed to care about. The adenomyosis was severe and it was way worse than the endometriosis, so I decided to have a hysterectomy. I was diagnosed on July 15, had bloodwork and an MRI the following week and then I had surgery on August 12, less than 1 month after being diagnosed.
I could’ve done everything through the public healthcare system and it would’ve been free, but it would’ve taken months and I was out of patience at that point so I decided to do it privately.
For the surgery I had to fast from the night before and shower with the antibacterial soap the morning of the surgery. After they placed the IV and took me to the ER they have me anesthesia. I had spinal anesthesia and some sedatives through my nose, but I was not put completely to sleep. The back injection was super uncomfortable but I immediately felt my whole bottom half fall asleep. It was weird lol. I fell asleep a little after they started the surgery and then I remember waking up halfway through it and my surgeon spoke to me about how things were going and he showed me my uterus. That was really cool of him because I specifically told him I wanted to see that bastard face to face lol. Anyway, he also explained the surgery had taken a lot longer than expected because once they entered with the laparoscopy they found A LOT of endometriosis on my bowels and abdominal wall. They got rid of all of it and that took about 2 hours.
When they finished they took me to my room. I stayed that night and they gave me some light meals while I was there. The clinic was small but everyone was super nice and they monitored me constantly. My surgeon also stopped by twice to check on me and to show me some videos from the surgery. They discharged me the next day with no catheter or anything. It’s also important to mention we don’t really give opioids or similar medications here, so the pain was kind of rough for the first few hours.
The surgery itself was about $2,500 dollars and it included the hospital stay and all the medications/materials they used while I was there.
I had zero complications and the 3 follow up visits I had with the surgeon were included in the price of the surgery.
Feel free to ask any questions!

I am almost 4wpo and I had a follow up phone call with the surgeon at 2 weeks, and he basically said that’s it. He gave me instructions to continue to rest, no lifting over 10 lbs until 6 weeks, no sex for 10 weeks etc, but that’s it. I even called the office back yesterday to ask if I was supposed to have an exam scheduled, and the office said no, unless I have heavy bleeding or severe pain, that I’m good to go.

Other than a minor pain day after I had maybe over-exerted myself, I think I’m recovering pretty well, I’m not really CONCERNED about anything, but I guess I just thought he’d want to check? Or maybe I’d feel more confident if he took a look and said all was well?

I trust the doctor, he’s very renowned in the field, published, teaches at medical schools etc. so I guess I should trust his routine, but I feel like I’m missing closure?

Did anyone else NOT have a physical check up after surgery?

My heart goes out to those who have not had as easy of a surgery recovery as I have. Want to share my positive experience with others in case you are scheduled for a hysterectomy or are considering it.

Prior to surgery: Due to a couple small but horribly placed fibroids, I experienced heavy, bleeding every day for four straight months, with rounds of gushing blood and passing of huge blood clots. Provera stopped the bleeding for almost two months before it returned with a vengeance. I then switched to a natural, bioidentical progesterone, which slowed the bleeding, but I still experienced occasional waves of heavy blood loss and clotting. Eventually, my body seemed to respond, and the bleeding reallly slowed down. At that point, I was already scheduled for a hysterectomy, but it was actually nice to get some relief toward the end. If you haven’t tried a natural progesterone I would recommend it to see if your body responds. Like many others, I also had anemia (ferritin of 8) and underwent a couple of rounds of iron infusions. Your girl was exhausted!

Surgery experience: fast forward to today, I had a robotic hysterectomy 3 weeks ago. After surgery ( the actual procedure took two hours), I took my pain medications on a regular schedule and used a total of 1.5 oxycodone pills over the first four days, taking half a pill at a time. After that, I stopped taking pain medication regularly and only took it as needed, which was just once after I overdid it one day. For the first two weeks, I experienced some mild pain when urinating, especially toward the end as my bladder emptied. However, it was nowhere near as bad as passing the blood clots I had with my fibroids. That pain is completely gone now!

I haven't had any bleeding or spotting since surgery, and the amount of energy I have now is unbelievable! I feel so good, i’m on cloud nine… genuinely elated with life, y’all!

Very happy to put this entire miserable fibroid/endo experience behind me. I threw out all my ratty period granny panties and will be treating myself to some sexy new underwear very soon! 😂

I’m 6 weeks PO.

My bowel movements have been so different since surgery: for days in a row I will have bubble guts and have to poo 4-5 times/day for multiple days (always towards the earlier part of the day) and the consistency is soft, skinny, segmented and a brownish yellow in color — it is not diarrhea.

Other days I will have a more normal brown poo that is the usual “log” or two.

Admittedly my diet and movement have been different since surgery so I’m not sure if that’s the issue or not.

Just curious if anyone else has seen bowel movement changes post op.

For context, im trans FTM and I’m post op 1 week 2 days and ever since I was discharged I’ve had diarrhea. Already went to get lab work done and now waiting on stool sample to take in since it’s the weekend and I can’t get to quest diagnostics today or tomorrow.

No fever, a little chill but that’s only cause this house stays cold. No vomiting, no constipation. I’ve been eating soup and salad and having crackers to help with everything else plus hydrating and Gatorade.

i might be a different walk of life than some on here. i’m a 22 yr old transgender man, i got a hysterectomy with a bilateral oophorectomy in 2022

yesterday, the day after botching my weekly injection, had a rapid onset of horrible pain in both hips. i’ve been having random joint pain for a while now, wrists, knees, elbows. stuff i could pretty easily ignore.

but this is severely effecting my mobility. i can hardly bend down, struggling to walk, a damn mess. i’ve been trying to just do stuff anyways

by my moms recommendation i got glucosamine chondroitin supplements that i started today, hopefully that helps.

i do not take any estradiol, so i do not have any estrogen in my body.

any recommendations ?

Did you guys take any stool softener pre op?
Was it advised by your doctor or did you guys self medicate? If yes, long ago before surgery you started taking them?

Ok so im 5.5 weeks post op. And I feel like theres something inside my vagina. And I feel crampy. I dont want to go to my ER as its always 5+ hours waiting.

Ive had a cough the past 2 weeks aswell its been brutal. I feel like trash today.

Its like period cramps but I dont have a uterus lmao should I be concerned? My tummy hurts low down. Im not bleeding or anything.

I did have to rush my 30lb toddler into the ER the other day. I ran carrying here and had bleeding after. But it went away.

Did PMDD symptoms get better after getting your hysterectomy? And if you’ve had trouble prior to your hysterectomy, were you able to finally lose weight after you healed?

A friend suggested that I stick to soups and soft foods a few days before surgery to help with post-surgery pooping, which she found to be excruciating. Is that a thing?

I’m 4 weeks post lap full hysterectomy. I have covid so I’m coughing which isn’t helping but is it normal to have a ache here most of the time? It’s bothered me all day. Is it just healing pain?

TL;DR: Any recs for one of them online doctors that has actual doctors? A reliable source of comparative information?

Hi. So grateful to this community.

I’m 44yo, about 15 months post total thyroidectomy for papillary thyroid cancer. I also had a hysterectomy this January. Kept ovaries, but the hormone sitch has been rough this last year. Doubling up allergy meds helped some to get me out of the deep slump I was in post both surgeries, and now it seems like thyroid level is stabilized, other hormones a bit hit or miss. Because so much of this lives in “subclinical land,” I’m having a hard time having any doctor listen to me. Had a great doc I got to see once for the PTC who said she’d help with the perimenopause stuff, but she had to suddenly leave her position and the new cancer doc looked at me like I was delulu when I asked him about perimenopause symptoms. He did at least say I didn’t have the type of cancer that make GLP-1s a terrible idea, and since I’ve gained about 100 pounds over the last couple years, that is an idea I’d like to explore as well. Are their good resources to compare options for online options? I’m pretty broke (working has been rough and unsteady this last year), but would like to find one that has actual doctors and are otherwise credible. Hoping that I may be able to take on more work if I can feel better/ have more strength and energy. Would love to hear others’ experiences and or be pointed to some resources. Thank you!

I had a robotic assisted laparoscopic total hysterectomy. I know it’s been barely 24 hours but this abdominal pain is really rough. I’m alternating Tylenol and ibuprofen. They did give me some OxyContin but I’m a little scared to use it. I’m sleeping on a recliner because my bed is on the high side and it’s difficult to get into. I’m currently sidling to the edge once the leg part has lowered. Then I stand up. It kinda feels like my stomach muscles get stuck until I walk a bit. I have a pillow to help brace myself with coughs. I thankfully haven’t sneezed because even with the pillow the cough is kinda painful.

Someone mentioned using a belly band before and I want to know if anyone else suggests this. I know it’s super early but it’s very difficult for me to find a comfortable position to sleep in.

Edit: I’m finding it hard to relax my abdomen muscles which isn’t helping the pain

hi girls and gays! I’m 34nb and had my total laparoscopic hysterectomy with partial oophorectomy yesterday. I’ve had horrible periods my whole life - abdominal cramping and back pain, achey legs, brain fog, fatigue, nausea, and in the last year I started experiencing flu like symptoms also. naturally, even with an IUD and taking birth control continuously, the damn cycle wasn’t even predictable, there have been months where not even a week goes by in between pain. I started to ask for a hysterectomy about 5 years ago and I thought that my extreme experiences were mostly connected to dysphoria, it was only this year that a I got a transvaginal ultrasound and found out I had cysts and signs of endo. by then, I already had the surgery scheduled for gender affirmation. it doesn’t matter now, but I do wonder how much of my dysphoria (and distress) was actually due to the disease of endometriosis.

I’ve learned so much from this community over the past few months as Ive been preparing and researching for my surgery - all my close friends and even a few of my coworkers could tell you how often I reference r/hysterectomy haha. I got my wedge pillow set, belly binder, cough drops, heating pad, ice packs, miralax and many other things I read about here. I set up my ‘command center’ a few days ago - I live alone in a tiny house with a very challenging ladder and I’m not partnered so I was feeling apprehensive about the early days of my recovery. for the next two weeks I’ll be staying in the guest room at my friends house! king sized bed, big TV, en suite bathroom, and plenty of space for people to drop by for a visit or to watch a movie etc. for these first few nights, I also have a friend spending the night with me. my heart goes out to all of you navigating recovery, especially those with young kids or no partner or family nearby. we deserve all the gentleness and patience we can get in these first few weeks while our bodies recover from a major change!

I’m still feeling very groggy, and my vision is actually kinda blurry which is making it hard to read or type on my phone (my nurse bff said that’s not unusual thank god) so I’m not going to say much else for now, I just wanted to pop in and share a little bit.

I was at the surgical center for almost 12 hours yesterday, the surgery went well apparently (altho I have no memory of talking to my doctor afterwords) but I had debilitating pain once I was back in my recovery room. the amazing nurses were so attentive and on it tho, they put me on a dilaudid drip which brought the pain down from a 9 to maybe a 7, and then they put me on a tylenol drip. I’m a recovering drug addict and alcoholic, I have been really worried about taking narcotics, some of which were my drugs of choice before I got sober. I always tell my healthcare providers about my history - and that I’ve been proudly clean and sober for 12 years now! I was open to taking half doses of oxy for the first few days, but then I found out about a pain killer called journavx which works w sodium blockers and is showing great results for acute pain, especially for people who are trying to avoid opiates. my surgeon wrote the prescription for it but I did have to pay out of pocket, with a goodrx coupon I got enough pills for the first few days for $80. I’m also taking tylenol and ibuprofen every few hours, as well as zophran for nausea. knock on wood but today my pain is pretty minimal!

I’ve been looking forward to my surgery for the obvious / life changing reasons, but I have also been looking forward to posting here and sharing some of my experiences! hopefully this wasn’t too rambly, I’m planning on posting another update a week or two post op. if I can help anyone even a fraction of the way this sub has helped me, I’m happy. also, I’m available to talk with anyone else in recovery! healthy sobriety can include hardcore drugs when prescribed by a doctor, but it’s not easy, and I know that we addicts can help one another in ways that normies can’t - my surgeon isn’t an expert in my recovery, nor should she be.

So today I went to another dr, hoping he'd be ok bc I wouldn't have to pay the surgery since he's in the national system. I have both DIE endo and adeno. I tell him I tried 3 hormonal treatments in the span of 1 year and it was horrible, they destroyed my body and life even more than endo, at least with endo and adeno I was in pain only 10 days a month. I tell him I gained 16 kgs in 1 years, the pain dispersed, now I feel it in my legs and uterus anytime I walk, I can't sleep without treatment, I got random stabbing pains in my abdomen, bones pain. He said that even after surgery I need to try other BC pills bc endo would come back without them and there are hundreds of choices on the market. Does he expect me to be a fkin lab mouse?

So he said yes he wants to excise my endo lesions. I say ok what about the adeno? He gives me an ultrasound, he said it's not bad enough to operate on it. I say ok but I bleed 7 days with so much blood and many blood clots and I got literal contractions. He said he'll put in an IUD and take it out when I want to have kids. I got a mindfuck. I don't even want any children. He just assumed I do. I just never want to ever have a painful 7days menstruation again. And I don't want his shit IUD he can insert it in himself. I just want to be painless and be able to have a life and not take any hormonal treatment. Is that too much to ask? I cried from the rage on my way home.

In 2 weeks I'm seeing an endo surgeon I hope that will go better. And if it does I'll have to use my whole life savings for the surgery. But at this point I don't even care ab that I just want my uterus out.

How did your dr accept to do the hysterectomy? Based only on imaging? Did it have to show a horribly affected uterus? Or did they take into consideration the symptoms as well?

Lord knows I’m bored af being off work for 6 weeks!

Hi everyone! Just wanted to check in and hear about other women’s experiences with vaginal estradiol cream.

I started using it in mid-June and haven’t had any real issues, other than some burning and a weird menthol-like irritation during the first week, which eventually went away.

A few friends have mentioned that estradiol cream can cause yeast infections, so now I’m curious. For those of you who developed one, did it happen pretty quickly after starting, or did it show up months later? I also don’t know whether the women who experienced this stopped treatment or continued using it and eventually had no further issues.

Since I’ve made it this far without a yeast infection, I’m hoping I’m in the clear, but I thought I’d check in with others who’ve actually experienced this.
Not looking for medical advice, just interested in hearing your personal experiences.

Thanks!

I have very obvious, extremely uterine-contraction based orgasms and really can't orgasm from clitoral stimulation after multiple lower abdominal surgeries screwed up my sensation. I need a partial hysterectomy (keeping ovaries and cervix, already had my tubes removed eight years ago) for longstanding heavy menstrual bleeding, hormonal options not possible. I wanted a UAE or ablation but was told they wouldn't stop my bleeding, which is a bit confusing to me (?). My gyn referred me for UAE but the interventional radiologist said my fibroid is too small to be causing my heavy periods and if it's not the cause the UAE won't work and in any case would never stop them completely. I see other people on here posting about orgasm difficulties and am surprised by how many comments seem kind of ignorant about what happens physically during orgasm, or quick to suggest it's a mental block issue or hormonal. I'm 39 and not yet in peri menopause. I don't really have a sex life right now anyway but enjoy masturbation occasionally and have had an overwhelming amount of medical trauma in my life. I honestly feel rage and despair at the thought of my body losing its ability to feel non-miserable sensations for a few seconds and I feel certain that is what will happen. When I orgasm it is all contraction in my abdomen. Does anyone here know another way to avoid this surgery? Any advice or info? Thank you

I had my surgery 8/3 and for the first 3 weeks or so everything was pretty great. Around week 4-5 I just started feeling awful... feeling really depressed or like I was going to have panic attacks at any moment. I had a lingering migraine for what felt like weeks. I was given a stronger dosage of my estradiol patch but it took 2 weeks to get it because there were availability issues....I started it today.

I have had about 3 check ups and 2 rounds of silver nitrate because im still not completely healed. I go back Tuesday and hope I will be healed and back to normal activities.

I just feel not like myself and I'd just love some reassurance that this is normal. Im glad I don't have to deal with the awful periods but im questioning if its worth it. 🥴

Im 44 years old. Kept my ovaries. I was already taking progesterone and using the estradiol patch before.

Hi! I had a laparoscopic hysterectomy for submucosal fibroids and they also found endometriosis and adenomyosis. I felt great just 24 hours later. I didn’t need to take anything for pain, gas pressure/pain was very minor with certain movement, no bowel issues, energy was really good and post op bleeding stopped maybe within 48 hrs. I did start moving around and maybe overdoing it at times because I felt so good but still not lifting anything over 10 lbs. I had done quite a bit with no bleeding or pain. I started getting a little bit of very faint brown discharge as I approached the end of week 3 and then right at 3wpo I had a sudden start of active red bleeding. Not enough to soak a pad but to drip out of me and realizing I need a pad. No pain and from what I can tell no significant pelvic pressure. Everything I read says this is normal at this time with sutures and scabs coming out. The drs office says it is as well. It stops when I completely rest but the moment I move around I activate a little bleeding. Always very minor amount, barely even soaking a liner but it can be red at times not indicating old blood. We all know this is a nerve racking healing process so I’m just looking for some reassurance from anyone that had a similar healing process and when did the bleeding stop? Did it delay your vaginal cuff healing or did you find out there was a tear at 6 wk follow up? I feel like I can’t do anything at all, even walking or I’m damaging the healing since I’m bleeding.

I've seen posts in the past about hair loss. I'm 10 weeks po and my hair person told me that I was losing a lot more hair.

How common is this?

If you had hair loss how long did it last?

What, if anything, helped?