with a pelvic surgeon. My husbands naturopath recommended this surgeon and I
am so happy she did, because I am in LOVE. He was so cheerful and helpful and just
really spent the time with me that I needed to feel better about my upcoming
surgery.
Why am I so in love?? well, the appointment started off with a letter from him
asking if it was ok if he uses "alternative" medicine such as meditation and healthy
eating to deal with chronic pelvic pain. SO not only is he ok with complementing
medical treatments with alternative medicine, he recommends it!!
He also asked me how I was doing, and what treatments I have done so far. He
respected the work Hubby and I have done on our own and he BELIEVED me when
I told him how long my cycles are and when I ovulate. I told him how short my luteal
phase is, he said "oh dear, that simply will not do, we need to change that". My other
clinic told me point blank that this does not matter but Dr. Love ordered more
blood tests immediately to find out why else this could be happening.
Dr. Love also did my pelvic exam/ultrasound himself and talked with me about the
results. He figures, given my history of pelvic pain and the results of the ultrasound,
that I have over a 50% chance of having endo. His best guess is that I have stage 1
or 2 endo, and that it could be controlled with a proper diet & meditation. He still
recommended I have the surgery to alleviate my monthly pain but does not think
that it will really help me get pregnant given our MFI.
He basically said, "have the surgery if you would like to get rid of your pain, but if
you can deal with the pain every month the surgery is not necessary to move forward
with fertility treatments". I spent nearly 2 hours with him talking about my options,
he really listened and I really trusted his opinion. I was so happy with him that I
decided to book another appointment with him for both my hubby and I. Later this
week I will be mailing him the results of all our testing thus far. He has also ordered
blood work, a semen analysis, and an ultrasound for my Hubby before our next
meeting. Finally after nearly two years someone has recommended an ultrasound!
So there it is, my surgery is still planned for Friday. A very wonderful friend of mine
took the day off so that she can drive me home from the surgery and watch girly
movies with me. My hubby will be waiting for me the whole time as well. I am
actually getting kind of excited about possibly being pain free each month!!! If any
of you out there has any advice for the days before & after the surgery I would
love to hear it!
P.S. There was a picture of a little baby named Jonathan in Dr. Love's waiting room
that made me tear up. That is what I have always wanted to name my baby boy and I
took it as a sign that I'm on the right track.....I know baby Jonathan was asian and
I'm caucasian, but still I'll take a sign whenever I can get it :)
Hey girl! I know all about surgery allllll too well!! You are having a lap, correct? When I had my lap 1.5 years ago, I remember just being super out of it from the anesthesia for the remainder of day 1. On day 2, I still was groggy and began having sharp pains on the side of my neck. That sounds crazy but my RE said it's the #1 pain complaint after a lap, and it's due to the gas that they fill you up with trying to escape (I can't remember why it goes to your neck...) Anyhow, I basically was just super duper bloated and uncomfortable for the first 3 days. By day 5/6 I was up and could go out and do "normal things" again. I did have to sleep in a recliner and upright for about 1 week b/c it was so uncomfortable! The whole thing isn't too bad, so try not to worry too much! Good luck!! :-)
ReplyDeleteYour appointment sounded wonderful! How refreshing to have found a doctor who recommends alternative medicine! It seems these day they are so quick to offer a pill or surgery for something. I realize in some cases its needs, but in others it can clearly be controlled through our personal practices.
ReplyDeleteThe baby picture of Jonathan was a definate sign!I am really excited for you and hubs - sounds like your on the road to becoming steps closer to your dream!!!
Yay! It's such a relief to find a doctor who "gets it."
ReplyDeleteGood luck with the surgery.
Wow - I love this doc too! I'm so glad you found someone that connects with you - so incredibly important!!!
ReplyDeleteGood luck with the surgery - no advice, but really looking forward to hearing about how pain-free your future months are!
AWESOME! A Doctor you ACTUALLY like or should I say love and a sign. I think you may have just hit the Jackpot in the Doctor lottery! Wishing you a speedy recovery.
ReplyDeleteYour doctor sounds great! So glad to hear you'll be pain-free soon. My third surgery was the best decision I ever made - getting rid of the endo completely changed my life.
ReplyDeleteMy advice for post-surgery would be to give yourself plenty of time to heal. Even after you start feeling better, your body continues to need lots of rest and good nutrition to heal internally for many months.
It sounds like you and your doc have great communication going. He actually listens to your wants and needs and trusts in you. Good sign!
ReplyDeletehttp://bringingyoumorethanasong.blogspot.com/
Hopefully the picutre was an omen...good luck with the surgery!
ReplyDeleteI love your doctor too! My RE is nice and I adore her as well but I wish my natural therapies and my RE treatment was going hand in hand as a united course of treatment instead of feeling like I'm operating in two different worlds. Please keep us posted on what he tells you to do!
ReplyDeleteI'm glad you found a good doctor! I just had my lap in May so it's still pretty fresh in my mind. I had never been put under anesthesia before, so that's the part that I was most nervous about, but that wasn't bad at all. The first two days of recovery are the worst (although they're not really bad at all) As soon as I left the hospital, I was really nauseous and actually ended up throwing up right before I got in the door (but that's because I didn't have anymore alcohol wipes to sniff. Did you know that sniffing them makes the urge to throw up go away?!?! Those came in handy!) I could walk around for the first two days, but I had to stay really hunched over if I did. I mostly laid in bed those two days and did nothing. After that, you really can do almost everything you did before, just don't move too quickly.
ReplyDeleteOne other piece of advice - Your doctor may tell you to do this, but mine said that she wanted completely clean me out before the surgery just as a precaution because she said that if for some reason everything inside was really messed up by the endo, and she happened to pierce my colon then if stool gets inside of me, it would be life-threatening, so I was thankful that she took that precaution even though drinking the magnesium citrate the night before I absolutely hated. And I didn't get much sleep because I had to keep going to the bathroom.
Anyway, it's a relatively easy surgery. You will do fine! I hope that this gives you answers like it did me.
What a difference a good doctor can make - I am so happy to hear this.
ReplyDeleteAs for the post-op. Girlie flicks are good - and a lot of sleep is a must. If they give you pain killers, take them, even if it doesn't hurt too badly.
Also, I think your story about Jonathan is also a sign for me. That is the full name of our son (Nate) that we are waiting for from Vietnam. So, he will be an Asian Jonathan and I am his caucasian mommy.
Will think of you tomorrow.