My recent surgery in Atlanta

I have been dealing with leg pain for awhile now along with low back pain from my endometriosis. I have done chiropractic care, physical therapy, and yoga with little result. My dad helped me out by taking me to my PT appointments and then watching the children twice a week for 3 months. I think that I have lost friends due to the pain because I couldn't drive to see them and was focused on trying to get me better. I had been in tears due to the constant pain I was in some days.

I gathered up my records and sent them to Atlanta to Dr. Albee at the CEC again after having my 7 hour surgery done by him in 2008. He is an angel. He did my 4th surgery on August 3rd lasting a few hours. He excised the endo on my diaphragm, took out the remaining portion of my right ovary due to the hemorrhagic cyst on it, and lysed the few adhesions that I had. Dr. Albee said that I was at Stage 2 (see http://www.health.am/images/uploads-gyneco/21-3.php for some details on the staging of endo).

I am quite sore. It hurts to take a deep breath in at times. My right side hurts to the touch. I haven't been able to sleep through the night yet due to my pain. I have incisional pain at my belly button and it isn't due to an infection.

Due to the surgical menopause that I find myself now in, I'm on estrogen patches. I cry over the loss of my organs. I cry due to the pain I'm in. I cry that I had to fight with my obgyn's office in order for me to be seen post op--they didn't want to see me as the surgeon does the post op visit and they didn't do the surgery but once I brought up Dr. Albee's name, the name of his group practice, and my willingness to give the nurse his phone #, I got my appointment for August 26th. I cry because of the possible loss of friends again this damn disease might have caused.

I am so so so thankful that I have a supportive husband who used up most of his vacation this year on me, family members who care, and friends who have stuck by me.

Gotta go back to resting. Jeff heads back to work tomorrow morning and I'm certainly not ready for that just yet.

Post Operative Appointment and the Report

Jeff and I went back to CEC this morning to have the cath removed and to have a post op appointment with Dr. Sinervo. Dr. Sinervo went over the pictures with us and he asked if I had any questions/concerns. I did tell him that I had several questions. He took his time and answered each and every one of them. He checked out my incisions (which is something I haven't really done yet due to pain and Jeff's descriptions of them).

I have a 9 page operative report to read through and a huge pathology report to read through. I read through part of the operative report but couldn't finish it...I found myself getting too emotional about it. But I can tell you this...

I was diagnosis with Stage 4 endometriosis. Out of a possible 150 points, I had 109. This isn't something that you want to get a high score on. My uterus had 3 diagnoses...endometriosis, adenomyosis, and leiomyomata (fibroids). My cul-de-sac was totally obliterated. My left ovary was covered with adhesions, multiple cysts, and sites of old cysts. My right ovary had an ovarian cystectomy (removal of the ovarian cyst). There's more to the report but I haven't read it all yet.

I will say this though...after my first 2 surgeries, I was laid up for a few weeks. I needed help getting on and off the toilet. I needed help to get on and off the couch. I needed to be followed as I walked from one room into another.

Here I am 4 days post op of a major 7 hour surgery and I can walk around our hotel room, walk around the grounds of our hotel not once, not twice but three times this evening. My first line of pain defense is 3 advil (that's 600 mg folks) every 6 hours. If that doesn't work then I'm on a prescription pain med. This is so much different than after my first two surgeries. I'm happy that I researched my choices for endometriosis excision experts and so far I'm extremely happy with Dr. Albee and the rest of the crew at the CEC. They are wonderfully supportive there.

Pre-op Appointment then Surgery

Dr. Albee is very compassionate and understanding. After dealing with some doozies for doctors, I'm glad that I made the decision to come see him. He and his assistant Dr. Yeung are wonderful. The rest of the office staff is very friendly and compassionate. My appointment was at 7 am and it ended at 9:30. Jeff and I got a lift over from the CEC to Northside Hospital by Dr. Yeung.

I was so exhausted by the time I got up to the surgical waiting area that I was resting my head on Jeff's shoulder. Dr. Yeung was upstairs with us and went to check on when I could get that IV started. I was finally called back and after filling out paperwork, I got the IV put in.

I was given reglan and prevacid beforehand plus they gave me something in the IV to calm me down. I don't remember too much except Dr. Yeung was there with me and gave me my teddy bear who has gone through my 2 other surgeries with me. I held him tight as I went under.

Jeff got 6 phone calls from the OR...some times it was Dr. Albee, the other times it was a nurse telling him what was going on to keep him up to date on things. When surgery was finally over, Dr. Albee saw Jeff and gave him the pictures that he took. He said that I had described my pain very well and every where that I felt like I had endo there was endo present in those areas...every single place. When I learned about this from Jeff, I didn't think that I had described my pain adequately enough.

They used Adept to prevent adhesions. They found lesions on my diaphragm, uterus, cervix, under my liver, my appendix didn't look healthy, and more. I lost my uterus, my cervix, my appendix, my left ovary and 50-60% of my right ovary.

I spent the night Monday night and wasn't released from the hospital until 9:30 last night. The cab ride back was pretty bad.

Bowel Prep

I'm surviving the prep. Yuck is all I got to say to the phospho-soda. But I survived it. My poor abdomen is hurting so much though because of the severe bloating. It's been me, the TV, the heating pad and the bathroom. Jeff has been great in getting me jello, my prep, letting me sleep, and getting me apple juice.

By this time tomorrow morning, I will have seen Dr. Albee and by 11 have my surgery.

See you afterwards!!

My last post before Atlanta

While I haven't been sleeping easy this week, I know that pretty soon it'll be for the better. I'm nervous, yes, but hopeful that I'll get a good outcome from surgery. Hopeful that I'll have no more pain in my life. While endo doesn't have a cure, I can only hope for a pain free life for awhile and I know that this way, going to the doctors at the Center for Endometriosis Care, is the best way to get it.

The doctors at CEC are endometriosis specialists. They do excision surgery there pure and simple. They will spend the time to cut out all of the endo that they see. No longer will I be subjected to 2 hour surgeries since the doctors get paid the same from the insurance companies whether it's a 15 minute surgery or a 6 hour one. These docs at CEC have been known to do 13-hour surgeries before for the more complicated cases of endometriosis. I'm not sure how long my surgrery is going to be, what exactly will be done, when I'll be back at our hotel, or when I'll feel up to telling you all how I'm feeling. So much is dependent upon what Dr. Albee believes that is going on internally and what he finds when I have my surgery and my own recovery afterwards. I'm scared but I know that I'm in capable hands.

Well I gotta go for now to finish getting ready...do the last minute packing, go to the airport, hug and kiss each one of my children before we go to board our flight.

Say some prayers that this is it, that I'll be pain free after this. All of us endo sufferers deserve pain relief...all 7 million of us here in the US and 70 million of us worldwide.