Anyone ever have an endometrial ablation?

[jfoofj]

Without getting into TMI, I have been having "female" issues and my ob/gyn has done a bunch of tests and suggested an endometrial ablation. Apparently there are different kinds of ablations, he does the "MIA" ablation which uses microwaves. I have done some research on this, and my stepmom is a day surgery nurse at a local hospital (I would go to a day surgery facility since my ob/gyn performs all elective surgery there instead of at the hospital) and she says that they are very common and done everyday without any complications.

SO, I am wondering if anyone out there has had this procedure done, how the recovery from it was, and how the short term/long term results were? I am 36 (going to be 37 on Friday ) and I am not having any more children. I have scheduled the surgery for Sept. 23 and now that I have a date for it I am nervous.

Thanks in advance!

 

[DWGal210]

I am interested to hear others comments on this as well. I am going to the doctor next month to have a laproscopy (sp??) for endometreosis diagnosis and I was also curious about down time.

 

[prettyprincessbelle]

I didn't have endometrial ablation, but to the PP, I did have a laporoscopy last October to remove cysts on my ovaries and while the doctor was in there he diagnosed me with endometriosis and removed what he could of it. My surgery was on a Friday (Halloween actually) and I went back to work the following Wednesday. The doctor made a incision in my bellybutton and on my left side, near my hip bone. My pain afterwards was mostly in my bellybutton and my abs just killed me like I did 10000 situps. My pain from my endo is still there slightly, but my pain in my ovaries is completely gone.

Good luck with your surgeries OP and PP!

 

[jfoofj]

I am interested to hear others comments on this as well. I am going to the doctor next month to have a laproscopy (sp??) for endometreosis diagnosis and I was also curious about down time.

Hi there... I had laporoscopic surgery when I had an ectopic pregnancy that ruptured in 1998. I was pretty sore, but I think that had a lot to do with the fact that my fallopian tube burst. I remember the worst part was the pain in my shoulder the next day... I guess it is from the gas they use to inflate your abdomen while they do the surgery, it gets trapped in your body and can cause chest/shoulder pain. I thought I was having a heart attack but the nurses said to expect that. I ended up w/ 3 little scars... on in my belly button and two more lower down, one on each side. I was back at work the next week, but I could have gone back sooner, they just gave me extra time because not only did I have surgery, but had lost a pregnancy (it was my 3rd pregnancy loss).

Good luck!

 

[claudia]

I had it done just over 5 years ago. The best thing I ever did. I can't remember exactly the name of the one I had done....but I do know it was the hydrothermal one. I did have it done at the ambulatory center and was in and out the same day. I had very little pain afterwards and was offered pain medication which I took in the recovery room, but did not need any after that. The next day I was up and feeling fine. I never got another period after that which was the best part for me.

 

[DWGal210]

Thanks, ladies, for the info! I appreciate it. It's on a Thursday or Friday, so I figured I would be OK for work on Monday (I sit for most of my job, not really moving around a lot).

Sorry to hijack your thread, OP.

 

[RF536]

I had an ablation done in April, and the recovery was very minimal. I will be 33 the end of this month and have 2 sons and was done having kids. My doctor gave me pain meds. to take 1 hour before my apt. and then I had an IV sedation for the procedure. I believe he also numbed my uterus during the procedure so I was pain free for a few hours afterward. After the procedure, I was only in the recovery room for about 1/2 hour,then I was discharged to go home. I had it done Thurs. morning, Thurs. I was sore, felt like severe cramps, Fri. I was a little sore but not bad, I took it easy on Fri. as well. On Sat. I had a Cub Scout outing with my sons, and I was fine, I just avoided doing any bending or lifting. My doctor had said I could go back to work on Fri. or he would give me a note to keep me out of work until Mon.

Short tem results - I did have a hard time urinating after the procedure, so as a safety precaution I was given some antibiotics to prevent a bladder infection. Apparently, this is not uncommon, since like giving birth there is some truama to that area and the bladder can get bruised. I had light bleeding for about a week after the proceedure, and my periods have been getting lighter each month. At this point they are almost non-existant, so I hope in a few more months I will no longer have a period. I also no longer have cramps, which is nice.

 

[CruiserMom]

I had endometrial ablation done about 6 months ago, it has turned out great for me. No more periods! Although they don't promise that, it's pretty common that you have either very light or no periods.

As far as recovery, I also had my tubes tied at the same time, so I had about 8 hours of discomfort after the procedures. Next day I felt great, which is good because my DH came down with a nasty stomach virus the morning after my surgery, and I had to take care of HIM for the next 3 days!

 

[Mom loves Disney]

I go in to get the results of my last ultrasound. The nurse said I had two endometrial cysts, one on each ovary. I have been in pain for several months.I'm not looking forward to what she is going to say. I expect her to say surgery to remove them.
Did you have any cysts or just endometriosis? I hope everything goes well!!!

 

[smfritz03]

I had multiple cysts and endometreosis. So they did a laproscopic surgery and performed an ablation at that time since they were already going to be working to remove the other stuff. I know I was pretty wore out afterwards for a week or so, however I was up and moving around a lot since I can't sit still and watch people mess up the house. I think my total surgery time w/ all of it was almost 4 hrs. Recovery wasn't bad-I think the worst was all that gas they pump into you sat right around my heart and I felt like I was having a heart attack but other than that, it was pretty normal and no more periods! My friend also had this done, it was done externally for her however, she was at work the next day and fine after that, but she didn't get as lucky as me!

 

[FloraFauna]

I had my ablasion done on July 2. I'm so glad I did. I went the hospital for 5:30am, was operated on at 7:30am, and then left the hospital for 11:30am. The doctor wrote me out a prescription for pain pills, but I didn't even it filled. The pain was manageable with Tylenol.

 

[Princessbaby]

Best thing I ever did! I had mine 2 years ago (at age 33 and after 3 kids). I went to an ambulatory surgery center. They put me out which I was surprised, but it did not take long. My husband took me home afterwards and I stayed in bed and took some pain medicine and I was up and around the next day or so. I went from horrible long periods (like 7-10 days) to MAYBE 1 1/2 to 2 days of very light spotting and it is still that way today. What a difference.
i'm not sure exactly what mine was called, but the biggest risk my gyn told me about was the risk for perforation of the uterus. She said she had performed so many and never perforated, so I was confident it would be fine. Good luck!!

 

[jeepgirl30]

I had the hydrothermal abalation. Let me say, when i got home and for the next 2 days I experienced the WORST pain ever. I have had 2 children. Again, WORST pain EVER. I normally don't like to take pain meds, I would watch the clock so I could take the next pill at exactly 4 hrs apart. I could not be awake it was too painful.

However, it has been almost one year and i have no period! I occassionally have spotting but very very minor and not even monthly. I used to not be able to stand up during that time it was so bad.

good luck! pm me if you would like more info.

 

[m&m's mom]

I had one done in Nov of last year and sadly I have no clue which kind I had done. I was just D O N E with periods.
I did go to day surgery and was put under. I never even took an aspirin after surgery and I was fine the next day.
Unfortunately my uterine tumor grew back fast and a month later I ended up deciding I wanted a partial hysterectomy. I am so very happy now! It was SSOOOO easy and now no more periods or BC!

 

[jfoofj]

Thanks everyone.... I found a lot more info online today and I feel pretty confident that I am making the right choice to have this procedure done. It has gotten to the point that I spend at least one day a month on the couch, and I take so much Advil that I am afraid my stomach is rotting. I would gladly trade a couple of days of discomfort/dealing w/ some pain to not have anymore girlie issues each month. My Dr. said that it is general anesthesia, and I do hate having that, but I am pretty much a big baby when it comes to being a patient, so that is probably better.

I will let you all know how it goes...

 

[claudia]

Here's a wonderful discussion board that I joined when I had mine done:
http://www.endometrialablationdiscussion.com/
Just scroll all the way down to the bottom of the page and the link for the discussion board is there.

 

[Lanshark]

I had one several years ago and had no issues at all. Minimal recovery.

 

[podsnel]

I'm so glad I stumbled on this thread! I have been wondering whether or not to do this for a year at least, and have a check-up next week. So I know my DR is going to bring it up again. Thanks for the discussion, and good-luck OP!

 

[Serena]

I had a NovaSure ablation done a couple years ago. Insurance paid for it as I have about 3x the normal lining. I went in in the morning and was out early afternoon. I was knocked out. I cramped, but not more than I normally did on a monthly basis. I bled for about 2 months afterwards. It didn't stop my cycles, but diminished them to normal. I still cramp like crazy though.

 

[wdwmom2]

The office I went to offered several types of ablation. I was interested in the Novasure but ended up doing the cyroablation. They did it right in the office. Not a bad procedure, worst part was clamping my cervix. Minimal recovery time. I do still get my periods but they are now very managable!!!!