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Tuesday, October 13, 2020

State of the uterus: Fibroids

Yep, it's fibroids. :p  I heard from my family dr's office late this afternoon. Apparently I do have some fibroids (plural -- I thought there was one, at most?) that have grown slightly since my last ultrasounds four years ago, and a slight thickening of the uterine lining. 

As expected, they are referring me to a gynecologist for an endometrial biospy.  (I kind of figured that was coming.)  They asked if there was anyone I wanted to be referred to -- you may remember that my longtime ob-gyn retired last year -- but my sister-in-law had a hysterectomy a few years ago, and I remembered that she had some good things to say about her gynecologist, whose office is not too far away (in the same building where I had the ultrasound done, actually). So I gave her a call & got the contact info from her and passed that back to my family dr. 

Now to wait for the appointment information -- hopefully I won't have to wait too long to see him. Dh is relieved. I can't say I'm HAPPY, but I am happy that someone will be looking into it!  I need to make a list of symptoms and questions I want to ask him about. 

I'm still spotting, on & off (for almost three weeks now). 

If any of you have any experience with fibroids (especially post-menopause), I'm all ears (eyes?!)!  Also re: endometrial biopsy... I had one 20 years ago as part of my infertility workup, but that was a while ago & I don't remember a whole lot about it, other than that it did hurt a bit, but it was over quickly. 

12 comments:

  1. I've been reading and hoping it would turn out to be nothing. It's stressful enough under normal circumstances to have health issues rear their heads. Doubly so during covid. I hope it can all be sorted out quickly and painlessly!

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    1. Thank you, Turia! <3 Yeah, the added stress of COVID does NOT help!! I had to wear a mask and go in to the ultrasound clinic alone and I imagine I'll have to do the same for this upcoming appointment too.

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  2. I share both yours and your DH's sentiments.

    Hoping you can get in soon and find further resolution.

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  3. I had fibroids - big ones - that (I think) kept me believing I was having a cycle, when apparently my hormones indicated I should already have stopped having periods. Mine caused massive bleeding - so much that I needed a hysterectomy, and a blood transfusion before the hysterectomy. They were trying to kill me! Some people's fibroids fade away post-menopause - I had a woman tell me over lunch that in the meantime I had to grin and bear it, at the very time that I was (I discovered later) bleeding on the restaurant chair. TMI? lol Nope. Mine did not fade away.

    Hope you get the answers for what will work for you soon.

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    1. Yikes, Mali!! So far, just spotting and a bit of occasional crampiness/pelvic discomfort for me. I've been chatting online with a few friends who have had hysterectomies to get rid of their fibroids... I understand there are several possible things they might suggest, depending on the situation -- I've never had surgery before (unless wisdom teeth count?) & I hope I don't have to have a hysterectomy, but if that's what it takes to get rid of these things & ensure my future health, so be it!

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  4. I had surgery last year to remove a fibroid that was bigger than a baseball - 8.2 cm, I think - along with three or four of its "buddies." I'd been having intermittent stabbing pains in my belly; finally went to see my doc about it when it was sharp enough to make me gasp in the middle of a conversation with my boss! I ended up needing to have the "open" sort of myomectomy, with an incision akin to a c-section, as that large fibroid was too big to really be able to do it laparoscopically. The surgeon said I'd likely be out of work for 4-6 weeks, though thanks to some intensive focus on physical fitness beforehand, I was actually able to come back part-time at three weeks. So if you do end up needing surgery, I highly recommend getting in as good shape as you can manage in preparation, because it did make a difference for me! And I was lucky that the women's World Cup was on during my main recovery period, so there was something other than the usual daytime TV. ;) It's been worth it to no longer have the random stabby pains, and I'm close enough to perimenopause myself that I can be reasonably confident they're not likely to come back. Hope the doctor is able to give you a clear path forward!

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    1. Yikes! That's a big one. Glad you're doing well now!

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  5. I'm sorry, Lori. That's unsettling to be sure. I hope this can be resolved as quickly as painlessly as possible.

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  6. Not post-menopausal but I had fibroids, found when I was going through IVF. I had a first surgery (recovery was pretty good, only a couple of days I think) but I was an unusual case and had to have another D&C a couple of months later. Improved my life so much - I'd had terribly painful periods for a long while and only realised in retrospect that they'd gradually worsened over about 15 years, I thought it was within the bounds of 'normal' and hadn't had it investigated. No reoccurence or issues since then (10+ years)

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  7. Thank you, Helen -- I'm glad you're doing well now!

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