OT - Girl Advice

I had a consult with a surgeon today to make plans for a hysterectomy. Actually, pursuit of a hysterectomy was the beginning of my WLS journey. Three years ago, at 325 pounds, I discussed getting the surgery with my OB/GYN. I had been experiencing extremely heavy bleading for about five years. Going on the pill (my tubes are tied) helped for a few years, but even with that it was getting out of hand. The doctor told me that at my weight she wouldn't advise the risk of elective surgery. She said lose a hundred pounds and I will give you the hysterectomy. She asked if I had ever considered gastric by-pass. She had spent many previous years in ER medicine. I forget her exact words, but she alluded that I was going to end up on a table opened up for some kind of emergency surgery that wasn't good. I remember that drive home. It was the first time a doctor had made me aware of my morbid obesity. It isn't like I didn't already know how bad things were, but I credit her with saving my life that day. Fast forward three years. I am down 165 pounds and still want my hysterectomy. I though perhaps losing all of this weight would change things. When you are obese you are floating in estrogen, and heavy periods are often part of obesity. Nothing is improved. If anything they are getting worse, and I am fighting anemia all the time. I have different insurance, so different doctor. I like him, and we are proceeding with the surgery. I was already pondering take the ovaries or leave them. After talking with him, I am going to leave them, although I have horrible fears of ovarian cancer. Not a family history, just the fear that it is so undetecable and deadly. I guess the benefits of leaving the hormone function outweighs the fear of cancer. The one I was thrown by is his advice to leave the cervix. I guess the risks involved in the location of it being so close to the bladder and compromising any of that function outweighs the cancer risk there too. Gee, in my moms day they took it all. I didn't even think of the cervix and uterus as separate. Yuck - I don't even like to think about it. SORRY! Does anyone have any experience or advice about hysterectomy? I am hoping after WLS it will be a piece of cake. It will be LAP, with the chance that it could convert to open depending on cir****tance. He brought up the idea of piggy-backing panni-removal during same surgery. I was going to ask, but I guess he has women do it all the time. It only saves on the stay in hospital, not operating room or anesthesia. Also, only under general once vs. twice - and you are recovering anyways. Unfortunately, it just isn't a financial option. Not even kind of. DARN! Thanks for any suggestions. Patty

Patty, I nearly died of a menstrual hemorrhage a few years back. Was advised to have a histy. Fast forward post surgery and discovered that I was deficient in vitamin K, which makes your blood clot. A sharp hematologist at OHSU discovered it after I had complications from surgery. I am totally healthy now and so are my innards. Seems doctors, even the great ones, just don't think of this. take care, tee

I received this through email and thought I would pass it on for you. Ovary Removal Elevates Risk for Parkinson's Disease and Parkinsonism April 13, 2005 (Mayo Clinic) Mayo Clinic researchers have found that surgical removal of both ovaries doubles a woman's risk of developing Parkinson's disease and parkinsonism many years later in life. They also discovered that the younger a woman is at the time of the surgery, the higher her risk. Visit (add the www then copy and paste to browser) womenshealthresearch.org/news.htm to read more. tee

Thanks Tee T! I think I am going to keep the ovaries. I actually can't wait to have the histo because I have had enough of the periods for one lifetime. I will read the suggested site.

I haven't had a historectomy but my mom did at 32 and I have several friends that have in their late twenties/early thirties.......(I'm 26). My mom left her ovaries because of the hormone function and was fine. When she was about 42 she started having menopause symptoms and went on estrogen, shortly after was diagnosed with breast cancer. Fortunately it was caught early and she is a survivor and at 48 is pretty healthy. She is now having her ovaries removed just to cut out any risk that might be there. She said that if it was her choice to do it over she would have had them take everything. That was the opinion of another friend of mine who left the ovaries. Just a couple of opinions! Whatever you do it sounds like this is a good choice for you! I am hoping once I have WLS and lose weight it will help with some of my girl problems too.

I can't speak for myself, but my mom had a full histo at age 46 due to a cyst. Her recovery was slow going and this may be a "TMI" but her estrogen levels have been messed up ever since. Major mood swings and absolutely no sex drive at all! This is not from her...but from my dad. I don't know why he's chosen to share with me, but it was an issue in their relationship after the histo. I told him he needed to talk to her and her Dr. about it, not me. Just something to look out for.