What I wish I'd known before my total hysterectomy
Six weeks in, and I'm finally ready to talk about it
I don’t even know where to begin to write this post. I had a hysterectomy. Six weeks ago. A full one (ovaries included... or, well, if you’re me “ovary” included. I inexplicably lost one at some point before I turned twenty five — when a laparoscopic procedure revealed that said ovary had in fact withered away and died. What an odd thing. We still don’t know why. I digress. (I always feel like Elmo in this meme when a doctor asks me about my lost left ovary).
My ovary(ies) have been problematic for basically ever. Ovarian Torsion during my twin pregnancy (10/10 do not recommend ovarian torsion — I was hospitalized for four days, put on Valium while pregnant, and told I had to ‘figure it out by stretching and doing yoga to manually untwist it’ or undergo an oopherectomy while carrying my 22 week old babies). TLDR: I figured it out. Yoga style.
Ovarian Hyperstimulation Syndrome. I gained 22 lbs in 48 hours. Of water. Hospitalized eight days at the very beginning of my twin pregnancy post-IVF. I’ll never drink yellow gatorade again. (They force-fed it to me to bring the fluid down).
Cysts. Chronic, constant pain. Very heavy periods. Add in the perimenopausal issues that my singular ovary brought me a little on the early side and well, I’d had enough. I booked an appointment with my amazing OBGYN and we decided, together, a complete hysterectomy was the right move for me.
